Exclusive Interview: Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman Chats Doogie Kamealoha, M.D.

Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman became an artist to be the representation that he didn’t see on screen growing up and to give audiences permission to be themselves. He’s brought diverse characters to life in projects like Stargate Universe, UnREAL, and American Horror Story.

This fall, he stars as Dr. Charles Zeller, an openly queer character, in Disney+’s Doogie Kamealoha, M.D.

Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to speak with Jeffrey about his admiration for creatives behind the scenes, pushing inclusive storylines forward, and Doogie Kamealoha, M.D.

Career

PC: How did you discover your passion for storytelling?
Jeffrey: That’s an interesting question. So much of it had to do with not necessarily being the one telling the story, but being on the other side. I was so completely enamored by the world of fantasy. I remember Labyrinth was one of the first movies that I watched that really had an impact on me—seeing this weird and mystical land with fairies, goblins, gnomes, and a human girl…it was so bizarre and wonderful. I fell in love with it.

I lived in my imagination as a kid. I always wanted the world around me to be something different than what it was. My love for storytelling came from films/TV shows like Labyrinth and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and always feeling out of place and dissatisfied with the reality of the world around me and wanting to escape into something a little more magical.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
Jeffrey: Definitely the creators behind the scenes. It was something that I was always aware of, and I don’t know how or why. I grew up in a small town in the middle of nowhere in Canada. I didn’t have any reference for the industry or how it worked, but I did have enough wherewithal to look at whatever my favorite projects were and pay attention to who directed them, who wrote them, and who produced them. I always knew that those were the proverbial people behind the curtain making things happen. I always had admiration and respect for the actors in front of the camera, but I knew that they were just only a cog in the machine.

So, I’d say creatives who put the pen to the paper and produce film and television. Marti Noxon was a huge influence on me. She was the executive producer of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the creator of UnREAL, the show that I did for four seasons. Sofia Coppola, Quentin Tarantino, the list is endless. It’s always been the odd ones out; the ones who have always been the outcast themselves and are willing to put our stories to the forefront. Those are the ones that I admire the most and the ones who have influenced me the most.

PC: You’ve had a lot of success already in your career. When you look back, is there a particular moment that stands out to you?
Jeffrey: The moment that always stands out to me is when I first booked UnREAL. We had shot the original pilot for UnREAL in 2013 in Atlanta. A few months after we shot the original pilot, we were waiting to hear if we were being picked up. We did officially get the green light, but along with the green light came a total overhaul of the show.

They fired more than half the cast, recast a lot of roles, and rewrote the whole show. It was a scary night because it was one of those moments where I was getting calls from one cast member after the next. They were like, “I just got the call from the team saying that I got fired,” and I was just waiting for the call. After hours and hours, I was like, “Why haven’t I gotten the call that I’ve been fired yet?”

Then, Marti Noxon called me and said, “We love you. We love the show. We have to make some major changes to it. We are going to start by reworking your character and basing him on you. We like you, Jeffrey, more than the character Jay that we had originally written, so we’re going to take elements of you and infuse that into this new version of the character.”

That was a defining moment for me. As an openly queer actor, there are only so many thoughtfully written queer characters available to play. I always had it in the back of my mind: “If I’m ever going to be satisfied, it’s going to come down to somebody creating something for me.” To have Marti Noxon, somebody who I have admired since childhood, be the one to do that and make that dream come true was a very impactful moment.

PC: Great answer. You’ve said in previous interviews that one of the main reasons why you became an artist was to be that representation that you didn’t see on screen and to give kids the permission to be themselves. What has it meant to you to see the response that you’ve seen and to push these inclusive storylines forward?
Jeffrey: It means so much to me. I’m very much a cog in the machine as well. I’m only one individual who is helping to fill the voice and be that representation for kids out there who don’t necessarily have the privilege of turning their TVs on and seeing themselves reflected back.

I’m very much aware, at this point in my career, that I’m very grateful to be here. I’m very grateful to have the privilege, the career, and the position that I currently find myself in. I’m tremendously blessed.

But it becomes more and more obvious to me, as time goes on, that this industry wasn’t built for people like me. It never intended to let me in. It never intended to create space at the table for queer people, or for Black folks, or just marginalized individuals as a whole. The flaws in the foundation are very obvious to me.

There are a lot of changes that still need to be made in this industry when it comes to equality, representation, emotional abuse, and bad behavior behind the scenes. It’s easier for myself and for other marginalized individuals to see it because, like I said, we weren’t ever intended to be here. The things that are wrong and are flawed in the system stand out to us. The next step is for us to harness the power of this awareness that all of us have and do something about it to create positive change.

Doogie Kameāloha, M.D.

PC: Well said. You’ve got a new series out now. Can you tell us about Doogie Kameāloha, M.D., your character, and what drew you to this project?
Jeffrey: Doogie Kameāloha, M.D. is the new Disney+ series that I’m a part of. I play Dr. Charles Zeller, which is a tongue twister. He’s a resident at the hospital on O’ahu. He’s from the mainland, from Chicago and is in Hawaii for the first time. He left everything that he knew and loved to come and have this new adventure. He’s very much the eyes for the audience from the mainland into the island. Everything that he’s learning about Hawaiian culture and their customs, the audience learns right along with him, which is very fun to play.

He’s still wide-eyed, optimistic, and naive in many ways. He has an opinion about everything. He’s really funny, which I didn’t really know what to expect of him when I signed onto this project. I quickly realized he’s very comical and his comedy comes from his wide-eyed naivete and his inability to hold back his opinions. He wears his heart on his sleeve. Every expression on his face is exactly what he’s thinking, which is so much fun to play.

What drew me to it really was Kourtney Kang. She’s the creator and showrunner of the show. Like I was saying earlier, it’s always the people behind the scenes that I pay attention to and attract me to certain projects. I’ve known Kourtney personally for a few years. I’ve always been aware of her professional achievements, but always just saw her as Kourtney. She was never somebody who I ever intended to work with in any capacity, though I saw the good work she was doing in Hollywood, and I had so much admiration and respect for her.

When the script was sent to me, I saw that Kourtney was leading the ship. I knew it was going to be a really positive, optimistic, fun, good-spirited project that was led by someone with a good heart. I knew it was going to be about female empowerment and AAPI representation, and that she was giving me the opportunity to play an openly queer character on a Disney series, which seems like an unimaginable feat for me and for so many. I knew that it was going to be a really fun, positive experience to go live in Hawaii for a few months and soak up that culture.

PC: There are so many relevant topics that this series is going to tackle in the first season. Is there one in particular that hit home for you?
Jeffrey: What really hit home for me, and what the audience will see as the season goes on, is the reverence and respect for Hawaiian culture. That’s not necessarily one singular story point; it’s the essence that flows through the veins of the series itself. We’ll learn about the history of the islands, the reverence and respect paid to the ancestors that inhabited the island, and the power of spoken word and oral history being an integral part of Hawaiian culture.

I learned a lot about the ways of the people, the respect that they have for each other, for their family, for their community, and for their tribe. It’s not really something that we pay a lot of attention to on the mainland. It’s not really something that’s held in high esteem or importance on the mainland. It’s very telling as to where and how we’ve gone wrong.

PC: Which was your favorite relationship to explore this season and why?
Jeffrey: Oh my gosh. My favorite relationship is, hands down, my character’s relationship with Noelani, Mapuana Makia’s character. We’re in every single scene together; we’re very much a dynamic duo, partners in crimes. We have so much fun playing the comedy together. We had such incredible instance chemistry off camera that it translated onto film.

The writers were so abundant in their jokes that we would come to set with the scripted version of the scene, and then once we shot that, they would throw five or six different alternate jokes at us to try. Playing those jokes with Mapuana and doing them on the fly was so much fun. It’s so fun watching the show now because I have no idea what the writers or editors chose to keep at the end of the day. When I watch the episodes, it’s like a brand-new show to me. All the jokes were improvised in the moment.

PC: If you had to describe the first season in a sentence, what would it be?
Jeffrey: A heartwarming, coming-of-age, family dramedy that is full of surprises and is truly made for everyone.

To keep up with Jeffrey, following him on Instagram. Watch Doogie Kamealoha, M.D. on Disney+.