JIMMI SIMPSON
As a self-described gothy teen longing for angst soothing anthems, future Emmy nominee Jimmi Simpson was enamored with The Smiths from the first time his skateboarder buddy gave him a copy of the iconic Brit rockers’ album The Queen is Dead in the late 1980s. And all these years later, the now 43-year-old New Jersey native said, during an interview for Under the Radar’s My Favorite Album Issue that he still listens to that LP “at least once a week.”
However there was a recent period where the actor—known for his roles on Westworld, House of Cards, Black Mirror, and a number of other hit series—found himself avoiding much of The Smith’s work, because of the controversy that frontman Morrissey has elicited with a number of far-right political endorsements. This was a major turning point for the TV star, who not only turned to music for solace as a teen, but now carefully curates playlists when creating characters for the series he’s cast in. Then Simpson came to a realization, one that forever changed his outlook on that notorious former Smiths frontman, his disgraced former co-star Kevin Spacey on House of Cards, and other controversial artists whose works have garnered throngs of fans.
Below, Simpson tells us more about that music diehard dilemma, the joys of working with Sir Ben Kingsley in his current series Perpetual Grace, LTD, and his concerns about taking part in cinema’s demise in this Golden Age of TV.
Kyle Mullin (Under the Radar): Why did Morrissey leave a big impression on you?
Jimmi Simpson: Most of us find Morrissey when we’re teenagers. And we think of ourselves as dreamers: “We’re going to meet and write poetry in the cemetery, because we’re
