Colman Domingo is a well respected actor, writer, and director around Hollywood. But before he pursued his dream of working in movies and television Colman worked in the service industry as a server and bartender. Colman has never left the service industry actually as he owns a bar, The Wolves in LA. Now he is combining both loves and invites everyone into his bar talking about life and alcohol. Bottomless Brunch at Colman’s is currently in its second season and can be seen on amc.com and The Walking Dead’s YouTube Channel. I had the lovely opportunity to talk to Colman about the new season and also recommended some new drinks for him to try. Check it out below.
Nancy Tapia: Well, let me take some time from your busy day to discuss a little bit about Bottomless Brunch at Colman’s.
Colman Domingo: Sure. Yeah.
Nancy Tapia: How did the concept start in such a perfect time?
Colman Domingo: Oh, funny enough, I was developing a concept similar to Bottomless Brunch at Colman’s. I’ve been developing it for about a good year with AMC. And it’s another sort of an offshoot, more of a fully produced show that would explore cocktail culture. And so I was developing that and since things were halted, I thought, I approached some of my producing team. Hey, what if we did something, at home version of it. And then the thought actually sort of just became so clear that it should be brunch. Because there’s nothing bad about brunch! Haha Everyone loves to go to brunch… I don’t know of someone who’s angry to go somewhere for brunch because it’s about eating and having great conversations and taking in the week that you’ve had and moving forward.
I thought this would be a great idea to sort of virtually host some of my friends for brunch. Send them a mix for the cocktails and I send them everything. And then we make a cocktail together. And then we have some conversation and for money, I want it to go all over the map from being light, light hearted for you to get some insight into these artists that maybe people know, but they don’t know the way you know them when it comes to someone’s house. And so I thought that was interesting. And I’m sort of pairing people that I want to establish a friendship outside of myself. So even a curation of the pairings, there’s always a little…they all make sense to me because I’m trying to do something to bring us all together in some way. And I thought that this is the best way to do it right now.
Nancy Tapia: I don’t know what the original concept was, but I love the hands on virtual hang out. I feel like when anything hands on is involved it breaks the ice and get people more comfortable.
Colman Domingo: Yeah and I’m like a cocktail culture aficionado. I wanted to make sure that anyone can do it and use tools that you have. That you’re making mistakes, you’re being silly, but also it just gives you a little insight into people and what they’re and what their abilities are. I think it’s just kind of funny and silly.
Nancy Tapia: I haven’t a chance to check out all the episodes, but I hope if not yet, you’ve had a Moscow mule with tequila.
Colman Domingo: Oh, wow! I haven’t yet. But I feel like I’m going to just have to make one for myself tonight because that sounds perfect, haha!! It’s going to be a heat wave in LA this week. That’s perfect!
Nancy Tapia: Yeah., but with tequila. Substitute the vodka with tequila to give it a different taste. Haha
Colman Domingo: Ah, okay cool. I’m a huge tequila fan so you won’t twist my arm on that one. That’s fine, haha.
Nancy Tapia: Yes, it’s part of being Latina. I got to throw in some Latin flavor.
Colman Domingo: Exactly! Always, always! You got to throw in some tequila, you got to throw in some jalapeño. Haha…
Nancy Tapia: Haha…Yes, yes. So how did you come up with the title? In my mind I also thought of, Domingo’s Bottomless Brunch. You know, for Domingo for Sunday.
Colman Domingo: Ah! You know, I didn’t think of that. See, where were you, Nancy? We could have worked this out haha
Nancy Tapia: Well here I am now! Haha
Colman Domingo: That’s right. Domingo, that makes so much sense. Because we wrestled with a couple titles and we just wanted to make sure that whatever title we had was kind of funny and lighthearted. The original title was Boozy Brunch, but we didn’t want to support people just like fall over, getting trashed. We wanted to make sure that the message is also still drinking responsibly, but also just to have some fun. So the idea of bottomless, I love that there’s a take on too. Because even on the poster art, we’re using a shot of me and then sort of blurring out the bottom as if I’m not wearing underwear or pants. So it’s like come as you are, you’re at home, you can be bottomless watching this because you’re in your own home. You can do what the hell you want and then you can have as many as you like It’s bottomless for you as well because you’re at home with no restrictions.
Nancy Tapia: So speaking of Domingo, where does Domingo come from? Because you shared in one of the episodes that you did the 23 And Me. You said you have Ghana, Ivory Coast, you have Nigeria. So where does Domingo come from?
Colman Domingo: And then I have all this other parts of it all come from Belize, British Honduras, and Guatemala. So my dad is formerly British Honduras, which is now Belize. So that’s my whole father’s side of the family. They all Central Americans, that’s the Latin blood right there. Of course we are such mixed people, even the Nigerians and Ivory Coast are embedded with some Native American, some Native as well. Obviously even some Mayan history and all that. But you know how people look like everything. So my family in Belize in particular, they look like the United Nations, haha. So that’s Domingo.
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Nancy Tapia: Haha…Yeah, we sure are a mix. Well, thank you for sharing I was curious.
Colman Domingo: But I just did a research project because I knew that there’s never been really stories about my grandfather. But then I found out through my aunt that my grandfather was part of the lumberjacks that went from British Honduras to Scotland during World War II And my grandfather unfortunately didn’t come back home. There was at least like 900 loggers all from British Honduras, Spanish Honduras, you name it. They all went over there since it’s part of the British colonies. So I just found that out and I have a plan to go and visit my grandfather because I’m quite sure that no one was able to go there But I feel like that’s a pilgrimage I have to make that will link me to my granddad.
Nancy Tapia: Yeah, for sure!
Colman Domingo: Legacy time.
Nancy Tapia: Well, after all this, you have something on your list to do.
Colman Domingo: Exactly, straight up and that is definitely traveling.
Nancy Tapia: So, you have a lot of stuff coming out this fall?
Colman Domingo: Yeah.
Nancy Tapia: Busy man, you’re going to have so many interviews to do. Maybe I get squeezed into those later.
Colman Domingo: Sounds good.
Nancy Tapia: So can you tell me about everything you have going on?
Colman Domingo: Everything.
Nancy Tapia: You have Fear the Walking Dead to start with.
Colman Domingo: Yeah, I go back to shoot, Fear the Walking Dead season six will be coming out in October and that’s an exciting season. I think that people are going to see some of the old characteristics of Victor Strand, my character. So I think that he’s going to prove and show why he’s sort of been around for so long. Because he’s definitely a survivor and he’s not afraid to change. In October as well, I also have Candyman coming out.
Nancy Tapia: It kept getting pushed, right?
Colman Domingo: It just got pushed one time, but it’s set to still come out October 16th. I just play a character who holds a lot of secrets to the Cabrini-Green projects and a lot of the trauma that happened there. It’s intriguing and that’s all I’ll say. There’s elements that I’m sure that people are going to be very surprised about. Not only in the telling of Candyman, but in the way that I think all of our characters are interpreted. Between myself, Yahya, and Teyonah.
Nancy Tapia: And Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.
Colman Domingo: Yeah, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom will be coming out in the fall, early winter. I look at it right now more than anything as such a legacy piece. Not only for August Wilson and his incredible words that he gave us, but also to my friend, Chadwick Boseman. Who was an exceptional leader and not only leader when it comes to arts, but humanities as well. I know it’ll be such a significant film and I really invite everyone to come in and investigate it, interrogate it the language, the arguments the characters are having.
I think if an artist would leave something as a legacy behind, something posthumously, you can’t do it any better than Levee. The character of Levee in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom who is wrestling with all these things not only as a black man, but as a human being and trying to have agency in the world. I think is a lot of things that Chad stood upon and spoke about.
Also the film Zola is on the horizon. We don’t know when that’s coming out yet, but we had a great time at Sundance earlier this year before the world went to shit. But it’s a dark comedy and I know that people are going to be so ready for this wild, wild road trip to Tampa, Florida. With this group of people that I’m sure you would be challenged to get and go on a car trip with. But that’s also the seductive part about it. They get into some mayhem, and that’s based on the real Twitter feed of a young woman, Zola.
Other then that I’m developing things at home. I have my own production company with a first look deal with AMC. So I’ve been working the whole time actually during the pandemic. Developing television projects and just trying to create something beyond Bottomless Brunch, but other things that sort of bring us together.
Nancy Tapia: You’ve done a lot. You’ve done a lot of things in your career.
Colman Domingo: Yeah.
Nancy Tapia: What would be your next personal career challenge? Since you’ve done a lot already.
Colman Domingo: My personal career challenge, is musicals. Because I’ve done a few musicals. And when I tell you the energy that it takes to do them I mean people who do musicals are superheroes. I think my friends in particular, I always bow down to them. I feel like I sort of got caught up in musicals. I write musicals but as a performer, it takes such discipline. I’m not saying that I don’t have it, but I just know you begin to live like a monk in a way. You can’t enjoy the other things. And anyone who knows me knows that I like to have a good time. I like to have gatherings, I like to eat, I like to go for cocktails. And you can’t do any of that when you’re doing musicals, haha. You can’t. It’s like you’re preparing for the Olympics. So my comrades like, Brandon Victor Dixon, you name it. They’re superheroes to me.
Nancy Tapia: Great! So to finalize, who will we be seeing for your new episode this Sunday?
Colman Domingo: You will be seeing the phenomenal Julia Stiles. And because people know him from the tiny musical, but he does many more things, Daveed Diggs.
Nancy Tapia: Oh, that’s awesome! Can you give a little preview?
Colman Domingo: Yeah, it’s going to be a fun episode. And then looking down the line, we have people like Janicza Bravo and Grammy award winning singer Ledisi and Leisha Hailey from The L Word. And we also have Jonathan Batiste, who was the band leader of Stay Human. We have a really great season two.
Nancy Tapia: Will season two be longer than season one?
Colman Domingo: It will. Season one was only four. We have six episodes for season two and who knows where it goes. I try to just take it day by day, but right now we have six episodes. But you never know, maybe it’ll keep going. Whether it’s in home or it’s in a studio, I have no idea. But right now it’s just been fun to just spread a little sunshine and give a little light and humor on a Sunday when we all need it. Oh my god, we need it! Haha
Nancy Tapia: Haha…Well congratulations with Bottomless Brunch at Colman’s. It’s very enjoyable. With everyone’s at the comfort of their home, it makes everyone a lot more at ease and relaxed.
Colman Domingo: Yeah, thank you, Nancy. I appreciate it.
Nancy Tapia: You’re welcome. Look forward to seeing more episodes and good luck!
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