A Badge With Balls
Introducing Omari Hardwick, certified sports nut and
co-star of the winning TNT drama Dark Blue

by DeMarco Williams

The day of INsite’s interview with budding action star Omari Hardwick happened to be the same day college football powers Florida, South Carolina and Georgia were called out for unscrupulous player and pro agent dealings. The subject matters to Hardwick not just because he’s a big-time football fan, but because he once was a big-time football player at UGA.

“I don’t wanna say it’s a slave system,” laments Hardwick of the strained relationship between wealthy universities and their football stars. Hardwick himself had realistic NFL dreams in the late 90s. “But for a lack of better words,” Omari adds, “it can be looked at as a slave system. It’s pretty embarrassing that [college athletes are] not offered $50 per day for the work they put in. I say it’s embarrassing, but to be honest with you, it’s kinda humorous that you expect these guys to compete at those levels and not pay them anything.”

Thankfully for Hardwick, his story didn’t end like so many other players’ tales have. Omari’s hard work and dedication would ultimately lead him to Hollywood. The young man landed bit movie parts (Miracle at St. Anna) that led to bigger roles (Next Day Air, The A-Team) that led to his current position as undercover cop Ty Curtis on TNT’s underappreciated drama Dark Blue. In this one-on-one, the proud country boy speaks on being a part of one of TV’s best kept secrets, being well-rounded and being a Georgia Bulldog.

What have been some of the best parts of your journey?

You know, I think the initial first two years of trying to get acclimated and trying to figure out [things] and just the adjustments alone meant a lot. Whether it was to wait tables or substitute teach, it was just some of the things you’ve got to do to maintain your dream. I went from trying out with the NFL and having a couple of duckets in my pocket to being broke as a joke. I truly believe that’s been the biggest part of my journey. I remember when there were pennies in my pocket. And to this day, I keep a penny in my right pocket, no matter what I’m wearing. It’s there just to remind me of where it all began and how far I’ve come, I guess. And [the other part of it is] looking at the faces of family members who are now so proud of where I’m at. I’m actually able to support myself and them, in part, by doing exactly what I set my sights on doing when I came 3,000 miles away. Seeing my grandparents’ and my parents’ faces makes it all kind of worth it, really.

How close were you to actually joining the San Diego Chargers in the NFL?

I was a cut away. I was on the developmental squad. I was pretty close. I tore my leg up my senior year at the University of Georgia. That definitely dropped my opportunity to be drafted. I broke my ankle last year. I tore a bone in my foot a few years back, playing in an entertainer’s basketball league. I jumped well. I played defensive back. So, I still did very, very well at the [NFL] Combines, so I went ahead and tried out with San Diego and I was a cut away [from making the team]. I was pretty close.

I definitely hear the passion you have for football. Let’s talk about your love of acting. What do you like most about your profession?

The same stuff I hate about it. What I love most about it is the research that’s required. As an actor, you ain’t dealin’ with locker room prep or dealin’ with coaches on a constant basis. What you are doing is you’re taking all the stuff that those folks ever gave you and all those experiences and you’re walking onto a set. You’re researching a character and you’re able to play him. You’re able to play them and be outside of yourself. You’re able to put pieces in every single character you take on, but the research required to make sure you do a good job. You’re paid a lot of money for something teachers don’t get paid a lot of money to do. It’s sort of a beautiful scenario. It doesn’t make work work. You get to go play. Your imagination is at work, like you’re an eight-year-old. But at the end of the day, that makes it a very difficult thing to be an actor. Often times I come home and I’m very hurt by the same research experience. You give so much away [emotionally] that people in the audience aren’t going to be able to view.

For my readers who haven’t seen an episode of Dark Blue yet, what are they missing?

They’re missing a mini movie every week. This year’s [season] starts on August 4. You got Jerry Bruckheimer at his best, in terms of production value. It looks like a movie. A lot of folks will ask, “What’s different about it? It’s a cop show.” What’s different about it is that the characters are so highly developed that you’re really watching these five characters come to life. There’s a lot of action. There’s a lot of movie regalia, in terms of shoot’em ups and bang-bang and lights and they way it’s colored. It literally looks like a movie. The first time I saw it, I was surprised because I didn’t know the quality, production-wise. Dark Blue truly does look like an hour of a movie every single week.

I applaud you for roles in movies like Kick-Ass and The A-Team. How do you see your movie career progressing over the next few years?

Bigger roles. Bigger movies. I want to become more well-rounded. Not sure if that means in the business sense. I truly think I’m an artist. I want to do bigger, better roles. Leading roles. I want to do characters that are leading the movie, leading the story. Diversity is really big for me. If I’ve done [the role] before, I look at it and see if I can do something differently to it. I typically like doing stuff that I haven’t done before. I’ve done the best job that I can at displaying my range.

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