In the upcoming film, Southside With You, Parker Sawyers will play the first major portrayal of our current president, Barack Obama. We spoke to the Indiana-born actor to discuss what it was like to land such a prestigious role and to help depict the story behind America’s number one power couple.
‘Southside With You’ will be airing today in theaters across the country. It is a romantic comedy-drama that aims to tell the tale of the origins Barack and Michelle Obama’s relationship. The film centers around their first date and gives spectators an idea of how they fell in love, fostering one of the greatest relationships in White House history. We had the opportunity to speak to Parker Sawyers about the casting process, playing Obama himself, and his personal political views. Keep scrolling to read our exclusive interview with Sawyers.
TK: What was the casting process like? Did you actively pursue and audition for this role or did the filmmakers reach out to you?
PS: It was a traditional audition thing. I sent the tape in through my agent. The first tape was a strong impersonation without any great acting. They got back to me and I spoke to Rich, the director and he said, you’re just playing a 28 year old just trying to get a girl more interested in you. Then we did my second tape and it was way better.
TK: How did you prepare for the role? Did you watch videos of the president ?
PS: I watched videos for mannerisms, not so much for voice. The voice, I’d been working on as a joke for a couple of years and so I had that down. The toughest part was stripping that back and just being a 28 year old Barack Obama. I guess I got to create because there were some videos of him online when he was 29, so I had an idea of who he was but in a way I had to build him from scratch. I read his books and tried to figure out what makes the 28 year old guy in the script so confident. I wanted to base that on actual, real experiences. He moved around, he went to very good schools, he was mixed race so I’m sure that gave him an interesting perspective, he lived in Indonesia… I decided that that made him more comfortable in his own skin and that’s where the confidence comes from.
TK:Did the film feel more biographical or historical?
PS: Both, I guess. Rich wrote it in such a great way – he did extensive research. The things it talks about, the family life is true. And then I think quite a few of the things that are depicted in the film happened because they went to the BART museum, they did walk and talk for a long time, they did have ice cream, the community meeting…that didn’t happen on the first date but it did happen early on in the courtship. He did have that exact same car – I don’t know if it was yellow – but that car with the hole on the floor. He did smoke cigarettes, you know. We filmed where Michelle grew up in real life, like a block away from where she lived. So yeah I guess it’s a mix because the dialogue was obviously made up.
TK: What was the most difficult part about portraying the president ?
PS: I would say just not doing the impersonation. His way of speaking, I really like the cadence, I like the pauses, and so once I got that down…not doing that was difficult. The way it was written, it sounded like how Obama speaks – the way the sentences were structured, the word order. So I had the tendency to flip into it *starts impersonating Obama* like I’m doing right now. But that does not work for a 28 year old on a date and so that was the toughest part, holding back from doing the impersonation. And walking slow because I’m pretty hyper and very tall so walking slowly for the camera…that was very difficult.
TK: What was your favorite scene/part about shooting?
PS: Yeah, the bar scene! A good part in any date when you pass through the flirting and get to something real and that, for me, is like a great turning point. They talked about their families more and his background, and then she kind of tells the truth about his father and to live his life the way he wants to live it.
TK: Can you talk about the chemistry between you and Tika ? Was it instant or did it take some work?
PS: I live in London so I had never met her before. I met her in LA for the screen test. From the moment we met, literally, it was there. We rehearsed on Skype a little bit before heading over to Chicago and yeah, we just had it. I’m understanding now how people either just have it or they don’t. It was instant.
TK: How politically involved were you prior to shooting and were you more interested in politics or government after shooting finished?
PS: No, I grew up in a very political family. My mother is deputy mayor of Indianapolis and I used to work for the lieutenant governor in Indiana. I’ve fallen off a bit because I’ve moved over to London, so I don’t keep up with it as much but I continue to have a strong interest in politics and making communities better and so forth. I’m not very good at, like, choosing sides in the sense of “ugh, you’re a Democrat?! Get out of my house!” You know, I’m more like, “we need the different opinions to put things into perspective so we should listen to everybody.” Everybody is usually wrong, anyway.
TK: How was collaborating with the director?
PS: I don’t ever want to see his face again. Can’t stand him. *laughs* No, no – he’s amazing, dude. He considered everything he knew shot by shot, moment by moment, beat by beat. He knew everything he wanted and I trusted him. I mean, the script was very well-written and then he sent me I don’t know how many e-mails, before we even started, telling me “okay it’s going to be in the tone of this film, the pace of this film, etc.” So I watched a lot of films. He sent me articles… He was so thorough that it was so easy to trust him. Richard is a wonderful, wonderful artist.
There was no improv, everything was written. We’re talking about real people so they were strict about us sticking to the script.
TK: Did the president and Michelle get to see an early cut? Did you hear their thoughts on your portrayal?
PS: No, I haven’t heard anything! I think they have a copy – a bootleg copy. *laughs* No, I don’t know. We haven’t heard if they’ve seen it or not but I hope they watch it and enjoy it! It’s a really sweet film. I hope they can get over how weird it is.
TK: Are you working on anything else now?
PS: Sort of. No-disclosure agreements, so I can’t tell you about it but yeah, we’ll see. I just want something as fulfilling as this was. It was such a great shoot man. 17 days, we all got along – everybody, cast and crew, was working toward the goal of making this really good and it turned out better than I could have ever imagined. I’m just looking for something that means something. Something uplifting, hopefully.