'Chuck's' Adam Baldwin on John Casey, a man of few words and many bullets

Round One for MGM set for Jan. 15

Potential buyers for debt-ridden Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. have a little over a week to "officially" register their interest in acquiring the studio on an imposed deadline of Jan. 15, according to a person close to the process. About 12 suitors, including studios and various financial players have signed nondisclosure agreements enabling them to pore over MGM's confidential financial information before making a bid.

The parties are not required to put actual bids on the table but rather "indications of interest" that show they have the financial wherewithal to move forward with a formal offer.

Among those kicking the tires are Time Warner Inc., parent of Warner Bros., and Lions Gate. News Corp., parent of 20th Century Fox, had also expressed interest but steered clear of signing the NDA.

Several people familiar with the process said it was highly unlikely that MGM would be sold in the next few weeks before the company's next interest payments on its $3.7-billion debt load are due on Jan. 31. In November, MGM's lenders agreed to give the struggling studio a second forbearance after earlier extending a Dec. 15 deadline.

A spokesperson for MGM declined to comment.

-- Claudia Eller

'Chuck's' Adam Baldwin on John Casey, a man of few words and many bullets

Below is an interview with "Chuck" cast member Adam Baldwin, who plays John Casey on the NBC show, which returns Sunday. The piece does not contain spoilers for Season 3. Below the interview there is some specific information about upcoming episodes of the show, including summaries of "Chuck's" first five Season 3 episodes. You'll get a spoiler warning before you get to that. Previous interviews with co-creators Chris Fedak, Josh Schwartz and star Zachary Levi regarding Season 3 of "Chuck" are here, here and here. There are also many "Chuck" clips in the video player on the right side of this page.

Veteran spy John Casey is a man of few words and many grunts.

And thanks to the deft performance of Winnetka native Adam Baldwin, Casey's grunts -- which can signal everything from disgust to annoyance to occasional contentment -- are one of the most entertaining things about the action-comedy "Chuck," which returns with a delightful third season 8 p.m. Central Sunday (the show begins airing in its regular time slot 7 p.m. Central Monday).

Casey and Sarah Walker (Yvonne Strahovski) are secret agents who have been given the task of teaching spy skills to retail clerk Chuck Bartowski (Zachary Levi), who became an important intelligence asset when he downloaded a cache of espionage secrets into his brain.

Casey, a laconic Marine and veteran National Security Agency operative, would rather be traveling the world and leading dangerous missions with experienced agents. But he's been going on missions with Sarah and Chuck while both men work cover jobs at a Buy More electronics store.

"He's thrown into this situation reluctantly, because of who Chuck Bartowski is," Baldwin said in an August 2009 interview on the show's Burbank, Calif., set. "But orders are orders."

It's hard to say what Casey likes less, working alongside slackers and lunatics at the Buy More or protecting Chuck, who downloaded a new batch of fighting knowledge and spy skills at the end of Season 2. Casey's constantly frustrated by something, but Baldwin's skills as a straight man have made the character's irritation (which hides some ferociously suppressed affection for Chuck) quite entertaining to watch. 

"I've found the biggest challenge in playing Casey is, how do I walk that line between comedy and seriousness?" said Baldwin, 47. "He is the straight man. But what they told me from the get-go is that Casey has to be dangerous, even when he's being handcuffed by a gorgeous Russian model-spy."

In Season 3, Chuck is trying to master that new array of skills, and Casey is still toiling at the Buy More. "Chuck" co-creator and executive producer Chris Fedak said that the dynamic of Casey vs. the Buy More loons was so fun that the writers couldn't resist writing more of those stories.

"John Casey's been out there for 20 years saving America, now he realizes just what he's been saving," Fedak said. "So it's tough for him."

Casey can take a lot of pain -- there's proof of that in the Jan. 11 episode, "Chuck vs. the Angel de la Muerte" -- but the man has limits. Casey wants to save America from bad guys, but not while wearing a green Buy More shirt.

"In John Casey's mind, green is the new pink," Baldwin said with a laugh. But he noted that he loves filming Buy More scenes.

"I'm more of a straight man in my real life too, I guess. I'm not much of a jokester," Baldwin added. "But I love hanging out with those guys, they make me laugh so much. They're always singing or playing games or telling jokes."

Baldwin, who was still attending New Trier High School when he was chosen to star in "My Bodyguard" in 1980 and who has memorably played tough men in everything from "Full Metal Jacket" and "Firefly," said his portrayal of Casey contained a tribute of sorts to his father, a Naval Air Corps veteran who fought in World War 2.

"I'm sure there's a bit of my father in there. He had a dry sense of humor. And he was a bit of a tough guy too," said Baldwin. "I've met many military men and women along the way too and I just try to keep [Casey] as honorable as possible while still remaining within the constraints of the comedy."

Fedak said that viewers will learn "some epic things" about how John Casey became a spy and "who he was before" in "Chuck vs. the Tic Tac," the tenth episode of the NBC show's third season.

"Casey has secrets--some huge, huge secrets," Fedak said. "And Adam is just great in the episode. He's found real depth to a character who isn't terribly comfortable showing emotions or his human side."

Speaking of Casey's human side, I asked what Casey would be like on a date. After laughing for some time, he opined that if the work-obsessed Casey were to date, it would not go well.

"I like idea of rock solid guy being just a pathetic mess in love. You have to have a fatal weakness," he said.

Chuck himself still has some weaknesses -- he finds it hard to control and use all the new skills he's got -- but he shows real bravery and ingenuity as the new season progresses. Even Casey has to recognize that Chuck has come a long way from Season 1, when he often cowered in the car as Sarah and Casey took out bad guys. 

"Chuck's definitely earned some respect at this point from Casey," Baldwin said. "The question is, can he maintain it?"

Of course, any respect Casey has for Chuck is grudging. And unspoken. Except, perhaps, for the occasional grunt.

Spoiler alert: information about upcoming episodes below.

The summaries are from NBC's press site.

"Chuck Versus the Pink Slip" and "Chuck Versus the Three Words" both air Sunday, by the way.

"Chuck Versus the Pink Slip": "As the upgraded Intersect, Chuck (Zachary Levi) trains to become a full-fledged spy but hits rock bottom when he flunks out of spy school and loses Sarah (Yvonne Strahovski) in the process. Meanwhile, Morgan (Joshua Gomez) comes home from Benihana School to help Chuck get over Sarah."

"Chuck Versus the Three Words": "Chuck (Zachary Levi) gets a new mission when Sarah's (Yvonne Strahovski) best friend Carina comes through town with her fiancé Karl (guest star Vinnie Jones). Things get complicated when Chuck wants to hash out his and Sarah's relationship problems while they’re on the mission. Meanwhile, Morgan (Joshua Gomez) finds himself in trouble when he lies to Jeff (Scott Krinsky) and Lester (Vik Sahay)."

"Chuck Versus the Angel de la Muerte" (airs Monday): "Chuck (Zachary Levi) must use hisrelationship with Awesome (Ryan McPartlin) to protect a visitingdictator, Premier Goya (guest star Armand Assante), who is the targetof an assassination. While Awesome is excited about the prospect ofbeing a spy, Chuck (Zachary Levi) is more concerned about Awesome andEllie's (Sarah Lancaster) safety."

Chuck Versus Operation Awesome" (airs Jan. 18): "When Awesome (Ryan McPartlin) is mistaken for a super spy by the evil Sydney Price (guest star Angie Harmon), Chuck (Zachary Levi) must become his handler and show him the spy ropes. While on a mission for The Ring, they meet the mysterious Daniel Shaw (guest star Brandon Routh). Meanwhile, Morgan (Joshua Gomez) gets promoted to assistant manager and must deal with Jeff (Scott Krinsky) and Lester's (Vik Sahay) latest hijinks."

"Chuck Versus First Class" (airs Jan. 25): "CIA agent Daniel Shaw (guest star Brandon Routh) assigns Chuck to his first solo mission in Paris, ignoring Sarah and Casey's wishes. During the flight to France, Chuck befriends Hannah (guest star Kristin Kreuk) and flashes on another passenger -- the imposing Hugo Panzer (guest star "Stone Cold" Steve Austin) Meanwhile, Casey helps Morgan battle Jeff and Lester for control of the Buy More. 

A few other notes:

I visited the "Chuck" set during the filming of "Chuck Versus the Pink Slip." There's much more on that episode in the set-visit story I wrote in August. Fedak said Episode 9 has a prominent story line for Morgan. He talked about Zachary Levi directing that episode in this December story.  Robert Patrick will guest star as Col. Keller, someone from Casey's past, in "Chuck Versus the Tic Tac."In the December interview, Fedak said the first 13 episodes of Season 3 will constitute one block, but that set of episodes will lead into a new set of stories which will take place in the next 6 episodes of the season (NBC has ordered a total of 19 Season 3 episodes). In this July interview, Schwartz said Morgan and Chuck become roommates early in Season 3. He and Fedak also talk about how Chuck's spy skills will work (or not work) in the new season. One final note: I'll probably post a few thoughts about the first three episodes of the season on Tuesday. I'd rather talk about them after everyone else has had a chance to see them. 

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