Paint, starring Owen Wilson, is an independent comedy that pulls inspiration from Bob Ross' persona to create a soft-spoken darling of public access named Carl Nargle. The story, written and directed by Brit McAdams in his feature film debut, gets going when PBS Burlington hires a hip and talented young artist named Ambrosia (Ciara Renée) in a move that essentially pushes Carl out of his top dog spot at the station.
In his quest to remain relevant, Carl starts to lose his grip on the things that made the women around him fall in love. But in the process, Paint sees him remember the woman who started it all: his first love and producer Katherine (Michaela Watkins, You Hurt My Feelings). Stephen Root (Get Out) plays station manager Tony, whose love for Carl cannot outweigh the needs of PBS in the face of flagging ratings.
Screen Rant spoke to Root about how he viewed his character Tony in Paint, and why he respects costar Owen Wilson's performance so much. The actor also teased what to expect from the upcoming King of the Hill revival.
Stephen Root on Paint
Screen Rant: Tell me a little bit about your character, Tony, in Paint.
Stephen Root: Well, Tony's not doing the job that he wants to do. He is the television manager of this whole shebang, but he always kind of wanted to be in production. I think by the end of the movie, he actually gets to do what he wants to do, but he is a guy who's always looking to make sure everything works well. And if it doesn't work well? “Goodbye. I'll see ya. Got to go.”
What did you want to bring to Tony that wasn't necessarily on the page?
Stephen Root: I just thought I’d [play off] how subtle and wonderful Owen is with this character. Obviously, Bob Ross is really soft-spoken, and we wanted to do that in the film to get an old-timey feel with costumes, the settings, the van and the whole thing. I wanted to just move into a world that maybe felt like the 70s, and everybody was just kind of back in that era. Even the sweaters the costume designer had me in felt like they were from a different era, so I wanted to evoke a different era as well.
Tony knows there needs to be a change, and he brings in Ambrosia who threatens to take Carl's position. How does Carl deal with that?
Stephen Root: Not very well. This is a guy who thinks he has it all. He's had it all for a long time; he has been the king of the roost. He has gone through most of the women in this television station who think he's a God, but he's a guy who's looking for something else, who's trying to paint a picture of perfection that he never quite gets. And along the way, he's missing life.Like John Lennon said, "Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans." And that's what's happened to Carl Nargle, our Bob Ross person.
Owen is great as Carl Nargle. He’s clearly inspired by Bob Ross, but he completely makes the character his own. Can you talk to me about what stood out in Owen's performance?
Stephen Root: The calmness. Owen has an inner sense of calm that's present in all his roles, but with this, it was super present. And to be able to come down to the level of quietness that he had in this thing? That was the challenge, and that was what I think made the film what it was; him leading in that example.And the fact that the hairpiece was its own character!
Brit McAdams wrote and directed Paint, and if I'm not mistaken, this is the first time he directed a feature film. What did his directing style bring?
Stephen Root: I think the fact that it took him 13 years to get this made. He was so familiar with what he wanted to do, since I think this was a Blacklist film from 2010. It's been around a long time, so he's had many years to think of exactly what he wanted to do with this. He found a great, great group and production designer, and costume and hair, and I think an amazing cast of women.There's incredible women in this film, like Michaela and Wendi, and everybody is really well-suited to this very quick movie. 20 days, I think, was how long we had to do it.
What were the advantages of having your director and writer be one and the same?
Stephen Root: That's really a huge advantage, because on most of the TV stuff that I do, there's usually a writer's room and maybe the head writer will be there every once in a while. But to have the creator in charge of the production and in video village was a huge help, because we did do line changes and reworking of scenes on the spot. And to have the writer there as the director was fabulous.
Finally, I'm really looking forward to this King of the Hill revival. What has Bill been up to between that time? There's two things that Bill took pride in: his family's secret barbecue recipe, and cutting hair. Which one did he care about more?
Stephen Root: I think Bill, as the stumblebum that he is, is actually an excellent haircutter. But I think his Louisiana roots make him probably the better barbecue maker. I would have to say the barbecue at this point.If Bill could even remember his name! I think we're going to time jump in this a little bit so that Bobby's going to be older, and it's going to be interesting. We're starting table reads in April, so I'm so looking forward to it.
About Paint
In Paint, Owen Wilson portrays Carl Nargle, Vermont’s #1 public television painter who is convinced he has it all: a signature perm, custom van, and fans hanging on his every stroke… until a younger, better artist steals everything (and everyone) Carl loves.
Check out our other Paint interview with Michaela Watkins & Wendi McLendon-Covey.
Paint is currently playing in theaters.