A new sitcom is rolling onto CBS tonight at 9:30/8:30c, titled How We Roll. Inspired by the true story of professional bowler Tom Smallwood, executive producer Mark Gross revealed that the character you’ll see on-screen is actually based on himself during a press conference for the show. “Tom was more of a resource in the bowling, but not so much for the emotional stories of his life,” Mark explained about the introverted persona who inspired the series. But the two had a lot in common, including betting on themselves during a mid-career pivot and having supportive wives.
(Cliff Lipson/CBS)
While the character of Tom Smallwood as written is representative of Mark Gross, actor Pete Holmes is drawing inspiration from a different source. “My touchstone for this character was more my father than Tom,” the actor shared, revealing that due to the pandemic, he’s never met Tom Smallwood. “In the pilot, I'm wearing those coveralls, and they're covered in black soot and stuff, and that's what my dad, still to this day — he's 80 — comes home looking like that… He's a ham, and he's intelligent, and he's funny, and, therefore, I felt I had the green light to play this character at the top of my comedic intelligence, and at the top of just my ordinary intelligence, and Mark agreed with that… The character started to bleed with me, and with my father, and a little bit of how I imagine Tom to be. Mark talked about his dad, too, being an inspiration for the character who, again, like my father, has a no-collar job, but is still whip smart, super funny, super interesting, super interested, and I, sort of, took my cue from that.”
For the same reason, Katie Lowes hasn’t met the real Jen Smallwood, but that didn’t stop her from falling in love with the character she plays. “I can't wait to meet her,” she gushed. “I've heard that she's going to watch — she's having, like, a watch party, or something, so I hope she's happy about it. I love playing her. I love her. She's strong, and smart, and supportive, and loves her family, and has her own thing going on, and she's grounded, and I'm a huge fan of the Jen Smallwood we've created, and the real person that it's inspired by. I hope, one day, we can have a beer at a bowling alley.”
With so many personal perspectives being brought to the project, Chi McBride shared how he connected to Tom’s story of an out-of-work man who literally changes lanes to become a professional bowler. “30 years ago, I left my successful career at the phone company when I was making $300 a week, against the advice of my broker,” he explained. “I drove out to California from Atlanta, Georgia, and I loaded up the truck and moved to Beverly — Hills, that is. And I took a gamble at being in show business. And I always told myself, I'm not coming out here to wait tables; I'm not coming out here to pick up anybody's dry cleaning. And fortunately, that full-level confidence is what got me into this business. And I've worked for 30 years, so I can identify with it because everybody thinks you're crazy when you take a chance like this.”
Julie White joins the cast as Tom’s mom Helen, who was delighted to find that she breaks typical sitcom stereotypes. “She's really interesting and she's a mess,” the actress laughed. “She's really shut down and very grouchy, and not a TV character that I've seen, particularly. And so, I was really intrigued by that, and had very much fun going further with it and deeper with it.” She also shared that it was fun collaborating with Mark Gross to help create her. “I'm really proud of it. I love playing her. I want her to come back.”
“I was smitten with this guy who decided, against all odds, to follow his dream of becoming a professional bowler, especially in light of just having lost his job, and knowing this would be his plan to take care of his family, and he did so with the love and the support of his family and his community,” explained actor Brian d’Arcy James, who takes a backstage role on the series as an executive producer. “I just thought these were exceptional ingredients to great storytelling. And thankfully, we have a home at CBS that is allowing us to tell that story.”
New episodes of How We Roll air Thursdays at 9:30/8:30c on CBS.