Entertainment
The Cast Of 'Sex&Drugs&Rock&Roll' On FX Brings Some Serious Talent To The New Comedy
FX may have recently lost two of its most iconic shows within four months of each other — Sons Of Anarchy and Justified — but the cable network is already bringing in their replacements. FX is bringing viewers the season's most unique (and least abbreviate-able) new drama: Sex&Drugs&Rock&Roll whose cast alone makes it worth the watch. S&D&R&R ( SDRR ?) tells the story of Johnny Rock, who sounds like the long-lost cousin of Entourage's Johnny Drama, but who FX's website assures me is the "lead singer of a legendary early 90’s New York band called The Heathens [who] were on the brink of becoming famous for their kickass live shows and the release of their highly anticipated first album. Until they broke up. The same day the album dropped."
Of course, the story doesn't end there or there wouldn't be a show! Flashforward a quarter of a century: "That’s when a massively talented young singer named Gigi shows up — with a burning desire to be famous, a throwback appreciation for The Heathens’ only album, and a stack of cash big enough to bring the whole band back into the studio. Only this time, SHE’S the lead singer and Johnny’s just a behind-the-scenes songwriter." Presumably, drug-fueled highjinks ensue.
Before you catch the series premiere, "Don't Wanna Die Anonymous," this Thursday night, find out just who's gonna be rocking and who's gonna be rolling in the show's impressive cast.
Image: Patrick Harbron/FX
Denis Leary As Johnny Rock
Leary’s will be the name most familiar to FX audiences, as he previously starred in the network’s long-running firefighter series Rescue Me. The Massachusetts native started his career as a standup comedian before he transitioned to film in the likes of The Sandlot, Natural Born Killers, and The Thomas Crown Affair. He also voiced the saber-tooth tiger Diego in the Ice Age franchise, and recently got in on the superhero craze as Capt. George Stacy in The Amazing Spider-Man.
On television, he works as both an actor and a writer. The first show he created was the two-season ABC police procedural The Job, which ran from 2001-2002 with Leary in the lead. And, now he’ll be starring as Johnny Rock in his newest creation, Sex&Drugs&Rock&Roll.
Image: Patrick Harbron/FX
John Corbett As Flash
Corbett is known for playing ex-con DJ Chris Stevens in all six seasons of CBS’s North Exposure, but he has quite an extensive resumé outside of that Alaskan dramedy as well. His other iconic TV roles include Carrie’s boyfriend Aidan on HBO’s Sex And The City, Tara’s husband Max on Showtime’s The United States Of Tara, and Sarah’s ex-husband Seth on NBC’s Parenthood.
Corbett’s film roles include a wide variety of genres: Westerns (Tombstone), disaster flicks (Volcano), rom-coms (My Big Fat Greek Wedding), and thrillers (The Boy Next Door). In Sex&Drugs&Rock&Roll, he will be playing The Heathens’ guitarist Flash, who has found work since the band’s breakup playing for the likes of Lady Gaga.
Image: Patrick Harbron/FX
Liz Gillies As Gigi
Johnny Rock’s grown daughter Gigi will be played by former Nickelodeon star and pop singer Liz Gillies. The 21-year-old is well-known for her starring role as Jade West on all four seasons of the Nick sitcom Victorious. When that show ended, Gillies went on to a voice a character in the network’s animated series Winx Club, and also appeared in episodes of Nickelodeon’s iCarly and Sam & Cat.
Before breaking into kids’ TV, Gillies got her start on Broadway, appearing in the 2008 musical 13 by famous composer Jason Robert Brown. She has since focused as much on her music as on her acting, uploading covers of famous songs to her YouTube channel and recording a duet with Ariana Grande for the singer’s EP Christmas Kisses.
Image: Patrick Harbron/FX
Elaine Hendrix As Ava
Viewers may have a nagging suspicion that they’ve seen Johnny Rock’s longtime girlfriend Ava before, even if they can’t quite place where. Was it in her guest appearances on TV shows like Doogie Howser, M.D., Married… With Children, Friends, Charmed, Crossing Jordan, Ghost Whisperer, ER, Criminal Minds, Castle, or The Mentalist? Maybe. But, it’s most likely her supporting role in one beloved ’90s children’s movie that will ring the most bells: The Parent Trap. Yes, the Lindsay Lohan version, in which Hendrix played conniving publicist Meredith Blake who was trying to steal the Lohans’ charming father Dennis Quaid away from their loving British mother Natasha Richardson. Mystery solved! You’re welcome.
Image: Patrick Harbron/FX
Robert Kelly As Bam Bam
Like his co-star Leary, Kelly is a standup comedian from Massachusetts. He toured with Dane Cook, Jay Davis, and Gary Gulman in the 2005 show Tourgasm, and he has appeared in episodes of Law & Order, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Law & Order: SVU, and Leary’s own cop show The Job. He’ll be most recognizable to TV audiences as Louis C.K.’s brother Robbie on FX’s Louie. Kelly has also hosted his own weekly comedy podcast, You Know What Dude!, since 2010.
Image: Patrick Harbron/FX
John Ales As Rehab
Ales has had quite an eclectic career, acting in supporting roles of films like the Leslie Nielsen spoof Spy Hard, the Eddie Murphy comedy The Nutty Professor, the Ang Lee-directed Civil War drama Ride With The Devil, and the South Korean fantasy action movie Dragon Wars. But, perhaps you’ll remember him from his starring role in ABC’s short-lived sitcom You Wish, in which he played a genie named Steve from Canoga Park. The show only lasted for 12 episodes, but it played on the network’s 1997 TGIF Friday night lineup, alongside Boy Meets World and Sabrina, The Teenage Witch.
Image: Patrick Harbron/FX
Josh Pais as "Ira Feinbaum"
Pais has the honor to be the only actor in history to both wear the suit and provide the voice of a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, appearing in the 1990 live-action film adaptation as Raphael. You may have actually seen his face in the likes of Scream 3, A Beautiful Mind, Phone Booth, The Station Agent, Teeth, and Adventureland, or in guest-starring roles on The Sopranos, Damages, Law & Order, The Good Wife, Ray Donovan, and both of Leary’s previous creations, The Job and Rescue Me.
