Pop Culturalist Chats with Matty Cardarople

Matty Cardarople is one of those actors who may not be a household name (yet!), but who is someone you have definitely seen in something.He graduated from the New York Film Academy in Los Angeles and became Luke Wilson’s assistant before becoming an actor. And, his acting resume is impressive; he has been in everything from Dumb and Dumber To and Scrubs to Jurassic World and The Big Sick.

We were able to chat with Matty about one of our favorite roles of his—Henchperson of Indeterminate Gender—in A Series of of Unfortunate Events (we can’t wait for season 2 next year) and how Jim Carrey impacted his life.

PC: Were you familiar with the Series of Unfortunate Events books before you were involved with the Netflix series?
Matty: Yes, I love them. I love the style of Daniel Handler’s writing. It’s effortless and awesome.

PC: Count Olaf’s troupe of evil henchmen that your character is a part of, gets to masquerade as a variety of characters throughout the series (i.e. movie theater workers, ambulance workers, etc.). Did you have a favorite persona that your character had to perform?
Matty: Definitely. My favorite was playing Nurse Lucafont. I got to wear a button that said “Totally A Nurse”. It was really funny to wear a nurse outfit and talk with a high voice. I also loved when my character forgets he’s playing a female nurse, and he accidentally goes back to talking in his regular voice. It was a lot of fun.

PC: Have you started shooting season 2? Is there anything about it that you can tease?
Matty: Unfortunately, I can’t but I can tell you it’s going to be a blast!

PC: What drew you to acting as a profession?
Matty: My first dream as a kid was to be a pitcher for the Boston Red Sox, but I didn’t make in the tryouts for little league baseball. I was devastated and to cheer me up my parents took me to see Ace Ventura. I laughed so hard I couldn’t breath, and the theater was wild. Everyone was dying of laughter. Jim Carrey was my hero. I saw him as Ace, and it changed my world. I knew I wanted to do what he did…make people laugh when they needed cheering up. Also, in high school I would read my poetry at poetry readings. That was my first time performing, and I loved it.

PC: What has been the biggest challenge for you, so far?
Matty: I love what I do, even if there are some challenges sometimes. It’s worth it.

PC: Is there a project that you’re working on currently that you’re really excited about?
Matty: Yes, a few. I’m actually publishing a book of poetry that comes out in September, and I’m also working on a couple scripts…one for TV and one movie.

PC: Do you have a dream project you’d like to work on someday?
Matty: I’d love to star in a film with Jim Carrey and/or star in a Spielberg film.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

Guilty pleasure TV show or movie
The Voice

Favorite Book
The War Of Art

Artist You Could Listen to on Repeat
Bob Marley

Someone You’d Like to Meet
Matthew McConaughey

Hidden Talent
Dancing

Make sure to follow Matty on Twitter and Instagram!

Photo Credit: Birdie Thompson; Grooming: Mandy Perez