[INTERVIEW] Gary Owen Doesn’t Feel Snubbed By Essence Magazine + Why He Considers Hollywood A ‘Big Temp Job’
rare that all of us guys have been including in everything like whether it’s an interview or a magazine. Like, the last movie was Micheal, Taraji and Kevin and that wasn’t a big deal, it just happened that they wanted 5 guys, and that’s the 5 they chose and I was fine with it because magazines know their readers better than I do. I didn’t look at it like a racial thing, I just looked at it like, ‘Okay, that’s who caters to their readers’. And I was happy that Will Packer got some shine because he’s the producer and some people were like ‘Why did Will Packer get on and not you or Jerry?’. Will Packer is the reason why all of this is happening so, for him to get a little shine, I’m all for it.
theJasmineBRAND.com: Were you surprised with outrage and controversy from everyone else?
Yeah, I got taken back. It was kind of okay because it shows that as a society, we are progressing. That people would notice and people of color would notice something like that. It’s not like, a lot people think it’s one sided and t’s really not.
theJasmineBRAND.com: What’s next after Think Like A Man Too?
Hopefully 3, that’s what we’re hoping for.
theJasmineBRAND.com: What’s the most annoying interview question you don’t like to answer?
I don’t like the ‘Is there beef between me and Kevin Hart?’ Because we’re both comedians in the movie and it’s not like that. We’re boys, I always say it’s like Lebron and D-Wade, we’re teammates. We get along great, he’s one of my friends. So, there’s enough for everybody and there’s enough in this movie where everyone can get their laughs.
theJasmineBRAND.com: What’s the toughest part about working in this industry?
I always say this is a big temp-job. You can be up one year and down one year. I always tell people ‘Just focus on yourself and don’t worry about what other people are getting, and you’ll be fine.’ That’s all I do, I focus on my career and don’t really worry about what’s happening with other people…. If you get a part or didn’t get a part, it’ll all work out in the end, it’s a numbers game.
theJasmineBRAND.com: What’s the biggest misconception about you?
I don’t know, I’m kind of a open book. A lot of people think I’m shorter than I am, I’m actually a tall dude, yeah.
Think Like A Man Too hits theaters Friday, June 19th. For all things Gary Owen follow him on Twitter @GaryOwenComedy