“Supernatural” actor Mark Pellegrino spoke about the comedy series “Underdeveloped,” which will be released on September 8 on Tubi.
Pellegrino shared his thoughts on the digital age, and the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on the future of the industry.
He is known for his acting work in such series as “Supernatural,” “Dexter,” “13 Reasons Why,” and “Lost.”
‘Underdeveloped’
“Underdeveloped” was directed by Brian Metcalf, and it also stars Thomas Ian Nicholas, and Tom Arnold, among others. “This comedy series has been great. It is weird territory now because of the strike,” he said. “The strike has been crazy but Brian has been making a big bang.”
“I was an unusual character in this,” he admitted. “My character in this series communicates with the production office via Zoom. All of my scenes are on Zoom, and I had to film them on my iPhone. I have found Brian Metcalf to be really smart and really energetic. He is really great with narrative and I love what he brought to the table.”
“I think this show is going to be good, it will be a fun show,” he foreshadowed.
The digital age
On being an actor in the digital age, Pellegrino said, “I love the digital age. It gives everybody the ability to make a film. The movie ‘Tangerine’ was a hit at Sundance and it was filmed entirely on an iPhone.”
“I know that there are other films doing the same thing. Now, there are streaming networks that buy this type of content. It’s a lot easier for people to create entertainment that is actually accessible to everybody, so that is really exciting,” he elaborated.
“Technology has always resulted in more opportunities, more jobs, more inventiveness and more creativeness. I don’t think AI can come up with all of the stories that are available now. Right now, we really are in a ‘Golden Age of Television.’ There is so much creativity out there and the stories are truly outside the box,” he elaborated.
“My wife and I are experimenting with ChatGPT right now, and it can’t give you outside the box content. It doesn’t have that capacity and it is never going to do that. It is only going to do whatever somebody inputs into it. We have to make sure that our laws reflect that awareness,” he said.
“Eventually, I think it will free writers to be even more creative,” he added.
San Diego Comic Con
The cast of “Underdeveloped” just appeared at San Diego Comic Con (SDCC), where they participated in an official panel along with the supporting cast, which included Samm Levine, Kelly Arjen, Shelley Regner, Jason Faunt, Lulu Jovovich, Luke Edwards, and Charlene Amoia.
“Ironically enough, I never got the chance to meet the cast in-person until the San Diego Comic Con,” he said. “Otherwise, I had no contact with any of the cast or crew. That was a very novel situation for me, one that I have never been in before.”
“Our panel was filled with a vibrant conversation because Brian led the way. It was cool,” he said.
The Guardian Project
Pellegrino is also involved in the documentary “The Guardian Project,” along with Andrew Rossow, which stands up against bullying.
“This project is going well,” he exclaimed. “It is still there and it is always on our minds. We have done about 23 interviews so there is a lot of footage compiled for it, and the narrative is coming together. It is just coming slow.”
Stage of his life
On the title of the current chapter of his life, Pellegrino said, “Get it done, man.” “I have three script ideas right now,” he shared. “I am trying to get a lot of reading done too… I have 70 books in my queue that I want to get through, and all of these books are very thick.”
“I also enjoy teaching,” he said. “I love working on scenes with kids. That is probably the most rewarding thing I do. I love teaching more than anything on the planet. I hope I do it until I’m 100. I don’t want to retire.”
Success
Pellegrino defined the word success as “Eudaimonia,” which is a “certain type of happiness.” “It’s a kind of contentment with your life. That’s my goal right now, to achieve eudaimonia every day,” he said.
To learn more about actor Mark Pellegrino, follow him on Instagram.
