Exclusive: Nurse Jackie Star Arjun Gupta Talks About Sam, Feuding With Jackie, and the Rest of the Season

By: Adam Wright

Arjun Gupta made his Nurse Jackie debut in the middle of its first season. He his character Sam was quickly fired, but made his return to the hit Showtime series during its second season.

I had the oppurtunity to talk to Arjun Gupta who plays Sam on Nurse Jackie. Here’s what he had to say.

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Adam: First I have to ask. Sam…does he have a last name? Or is it like Prince, Madonna and Cher? (laughs)

Arjun: It’s funny when I came in for the episode in the first season props had to make me an ID badge. And when I received it my first day on set the name on the ID was, “Sam Ayem.” Which sounded out is “sam-i-am”. I thought it was what the writers had named him so I went with it; but when I started the second season I asked Linda if that was my name, and she laughed and said” No that was just props, messing with ya.” I thought prop’s idea was hilarious so I have taken it as my own. I have no idea what the writers want my name to be though.

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Adam: Sam was introduced late during the 1st season of Nurse Jackie. How did you get involved with the show? Were you a fan before you auditioned for the role?

Arjun: I got involved by sending a new car to everyone at Showtime and asking for a part. No I’m totally kidding. I got involved in a very simple way. I auditioned for the part and somehow for some reason they liked me. I actually didn’t really know a lot about the show when I auditioned because they were in the midst of filming the first season and nothing had aired yet. I didn’t even have the full script when I auditioned I just had my sides. Big fan now though.

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Credit: Phil Caruso/Showtime

Adam: Your character, who is an addict, immediately saw the truth about Jackie’s drug addiction. “Takes one to know one,” Sam said to Jackie. What’s it like working with Edie Falco?

Arjun: Oh man, it’s an absolute pleasure. I mean, alright, I know you are asking specifically about Edie right here but I would be completely remiss if I did not talk about how awesome everyone on set is.  It’s an incredibly supportive and nice crew that has been assembled and it’s a huge honor to work with everyone. I was completely intimidated by working with actors who I have admired immensely to the point where I did not sleep too well before the first few days of filming and my voice was about an octave higher than normal in the first table read. But everyone treated me with respect and as an equal and it’s just so cool. Now about Edie; I mean what can I say, she is the best; she is just so down to earth. I love the opportunity to learn from her on a day to day basis. And it’s not just acting I learn about. Edie is the captain of the ship in a lot of ways with Linda, Liz, and Richie; and the class and grace with which she handles everything, that is something I have definitely taken away from this experience. She is also pretty goofy which is always fun.

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Adam: What’s it like to play one of the few characters who know (or suspects) about Jackie’s addiction?

Arjun: It’s great. I think it brings a different element to the show that is fun for people to see. Jackie suddenly isn’t infallible and it’s fun to see how she deals with that.

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Adam: But then after that one-liner in season one, Jackie got Sam fired, and your guest-star stint was done. Did you know you would be coming back in the 2nd season? If not, when did you find out? How did it happen?

Arjun: No, I had no idea that there was even an idea about it. Richie Jackson (who is the executive producer) talked to me somewhat late in the summer and said, “Hey look, we are thinking about bringing you back for a couple episodes maybe more.” So I was buggin’ and just thought it was going to be on the lower end of that scale. And then about a week later he took me to lunch and told me that they were bringing me back for the whole season and I tried really hard to be cool at the table. I then proceeded to call every single person in my phone book when I got out of lunch (well not EVERY person). I think I walked from 23rd and Park down to City Hall flipping out.

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Adam: Was part of the reason your character was brought back due to the sudden departure of Mohammed “Mo-Mo” (played by Haaz Sleiman)?

Arjun: Oh man. I have no idea bro. That is a question for the powers that be.

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Adam: Season 2, Sam makes his return, fresh out of rehab, much to Jackie’s dismay. Is it fun dueling with Jackie? (laughs)

Arjun: So much fun! I mean its fun for Arjun the actor. It’s a total blast doing the scenes where Jackie and I butt heads. Sam, on the other hand, thinks it sucks. He is simply trying to get by, do his thing, and be a part of the team.  But Jackie keeps “busting his balls”

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Adam: Ok, I’m going to name some of the hospital staff, and I want you to give me a short phrase to describe them:

Arjun: Jackie: power/compassion/whiskey punch to the face.

Thor: total sweetheart/teddy bear

Zoey: quirky kid with a heart of gold.

Dr. Cooper: total man child/complete tool

Gloria Akalitus: does what she has to do to get the job done.

Dr. O’Hara: foxy lady/a balloon full of energy.

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Adam: Speaking of Dr. O’Hara, Sam recently fell off the wagon with her, being a sex addict. But we learned last week that he has a girlfriend. What’s next for Sam?

Arjun: Things are going to get a little crazy for Sam. You’re going to find out a bit more about Sam as a person and things get heated as he gets to know the staff more. It should be fun!

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Adam: What can you tell us about Sam’s growing suspicions of Jackie?  What can we expect from that?

Arjun: Sam’s suspicions aren’t growing; he knows the deal with the drugs all along. She is a drug addict. Thus they have this inherent bond since Sam knows something about Jackie that she doesn’t want anyone to know. It’s really fascinating the journey their relationship takes the rest of the season because it’s definitely a windy road with definite surprises.

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Adam: Anything you want to tell the viewers about the rest of the season? Give us a sneak peek.

Arjun: Oh I am terrible at sneak peeks so I’m just going to say keep watching. The rest of the season is quite a ride and I’m sure y’all will not be disappointed.

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Adam: Finally, I’m beginning to ask this to all my interviewees. What are you watching on TV lately?

Arjun: I got totally hooked on Lost. Big fan of 30 Rock, The Office, and Community; Plus loving Modern Family and How I Met your Mother. Treme has been great and Oh yea, this show called Nurse Jackie is pretty rad. I check it out sometimes!

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TVDoneWright.com thanks Arjun for his time. You can catch on Nurse Jackie, Monday nights on Showtime and TMN.

Exclusive: Nurse Jackie Star Dominic Fumusa Talks About Kevin, Working With Edie Falco, and the Rest of the Season

Posted by Adam Wright on April 30, 2010. Filed under Features, News, Preview. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry