Courtesy The History Channel
Courtesy The History Channel
Courtesy The History Channel
Fill 1
Fill 1
January 18, 2017
Online Originals

On Your Six

Barry Sloane, star of History Channel's new show SIX, talks about the real superheroes of our time.

David M. Gutiérrez

According to actor Barry Sloane, the mightiest beings on the planet are not a team of costumed men and women performing superhuman acts that defy physics.

They are much more down-to-earth and all too human. They are the Navy SEALs. “People think they’ve got an idea of who these men [in the Navy SEALs] are,” says Sloane, “but these are the modern-day super-heroes. These are the real deal, as opposed to those Avengers type of things.

“[Being a SEAL] is very grounded and real It doesn’t feel like a 1980’s Chuck Norris movie. That’s a funny thing. These guys could live next door to you for the past 20 years. You have no idea what they do, and you just think they go away on business. They’re very unassuming, very calm, and very tough guys.”

Sloane would know. The Liverpool-born actor eagerly awaits the debut of his new series, SIX, History’s latest foray into hour-long drama.

Sloane has played characters ranging from a member of John Lennon’s Quarrymen to a highly trained assassin and CEO in Revenge to a Department of Defense operative investigating strange goings on in Whispers.

Yet it’s Sloane’s latest and toughest role to date with which he may most closely identify. Sloane plays Joe Graves, the loyal, moral center of Navy SEAL Team Six and its current leader. Along with Graves, Six members Alex Caulder (Kyle Schmid), and Ricky “Buddha” Ortiz (Juan Pablo Raba) embark on a dangerous mission to rescue their former leader, Richard “Rip” Taggart (Walton Goggins), from a terrorist organization in Africa.

Told through a series of flashbacks and present day scenes, SIX features authentic military action and does not shy from its resulting emotional and physical consequences. SIX’s characters are subject to volleys of gunfire and heartache, explore the notions of military brotherhood, and try to reconcile their lives as profession soldiers among their civilian families.

What can you tell us about your character, Joe “Bear” Graves?

He is appointed squadron leader of the assault team that we see on the show. Joe Graves is a husband, a religious man, and is a warrior. Those three pillars of his life are very important to him, and they’re starting to crumble. These pillars are the foundations of his sanity and he’s enduring an incredibly difficult job. It’s been fascinating to live in this world. He’s a good guy. I like him a lot.

You have often spoken about how being raised in Liverpool has grounded you and kept you humble. Was it Graves’ Midwest roots that drew you to the character?

That was something a bit serendipitous to be honest. My upbringing back home is very similar to Joe’s. A lot of these guys who find themselves in the military come from [blue collar] families. It’s not Ivy Leaguers signing up for Navy SEALs. A lot of people from these little farming communities sign up [for service].

I found I could lend some of my experiences to Graves. It allowed me to be confident enough to lend elements of myself and help my understanding of what kind of man he is. I felt very at home with this character. Very relaxed. And it enabled me to very still with him, which is necessary for that type of leader; to sit on the pain that he feels and the outward strength in his turmoil.

Paul McCartney once described Liverpool as being the one place he’s recognized and yet nobody cares that he’s a world famous musician.

I’ve just been back from the holidays. People can see me there and I’ll never get any special treatment.

In general, that applies to people in the arts in the U.K. No one gives a shit, basically. I’m very proud of my city. It’s very intrinsic to who I am. That grounding that McCartney speaks of, and that I will echo, it’s invaluable – especially in the arts.

If you look at what McCartney has done -- and to a lesser extent, myself –- to make a career in the US and in the industry at this level, having the grounding and understanding what this job is comes from [growing up in Liverpool].

Did this series make you more politically aware?

What’s interesting is it doesn’t matter what [a SEAL’s] political views are. They’re employed to do a job. So, if the United States decides to send a force into Libya, whether a SEAL agrees with that war or not, they’re going and they’re going to do that job. These guys swore an oath to serve their country above serving themselves.

I think they have an incredible amount of selflessness and bravery, which is not always appreciated. They’re just kind of hidden figures in the background. 

The war in Afghanistan has been going on for five thousand days now. It’s the longest war in American history. And while this is going on, these guys are going out [into battle] and coming back home – coming back damaged, coming back broke, and coming back an invalid. These are true superheroes.

The one thing I enjoyed about meeting this community and being part of it for a very small time is how humble they are. And they’re not all flawed. Not everyone is the PTSD poster boy. Some of them are using the skills they learned in the military to teach parachuting, or extreme sports. They’re very smart and talented guys. They’re wonderful people. I didn’t allow this to be a political thing for me.

The series has an authentic feel to it. What kind of preparation and training were you and the cast put through for the show?

We had the same producers that did Band of Brothers, who put their actors through a degree of training prior to filming those wonderful shows. The problem with SEAL Team Six is that the top one percent of one percent get selected to be on those teams. The level of proficiency and understanding of what it takes to be a SEAL was important to our producers.

They set up a training camp where we went to test our mettle. You go there and get your ass kicked.

We were there for four days, operating on only three hours of sleep. We were broken down and beaten, and not treated like actors in the slightest. We were subjected to the same treatment as the guys who join the Navy SEALs. That includes taking away a degree of choice that you have.

Those next four days of your life are somebody else’s, where they’re telling you where to go, what to do, and how to do it. It’s very liberating in a lot of ways, but terrifying as well.

It was incredibly important that we did that and we didn’t just walk onto set and start playing a tough guy. It’s dangerous to play the character without preparation for that kind of role.

The lead character in a series with set military hierarchy is often seen as the leader on the set. Did the mood during production mirror this for you?

From an acting standpoint, what’s interesting about the SEALs and our cast is you normally get one of me, or a Kyle Schmid. Or a single Juan Pablo Raba, or a Walton Goggins. Usually, there’s the alpha guy, the leading man, if you like. You normally don’t get six of them at once sharing screen time.

That’s an interesting dynamic for a bunch of men and actors. It’s quite relevant that the SEALs are exactly the same in that they can all lead and all follow at a moment’s notice. There’s no ego there. And that’s certainly something we didn’t have on set. Any one of us could lead that show. Everyone is strong enough.

And that’s what so great about it and so great to watch. Everyone’s got such great screen presence and strong stories across the board.

As the series’ lead, do you feel any pressure about how the show performs?

I’m not worried about the show being a success. I think there’s a core audience that enjoys these kinds of shows. I think the History channel has been incredibly supportive of the show during its entire production. They’re happy to fly their flag on this.

I think the proof is in the pudding. Once everyone saw what we were producing, the excitement level ramped up. You never really know until you’re in the midst of it what it’s going to be.

I’m pretty proud of it. We tell a story that’s truthful and honest to a fault. I think some elements of the story are going to upset some people, and some will excite them.  The veteran community has been terribly important to us on this. They feel that we’ve been respectful of their story and that we’re telling it correctly. Anything that comes beyond that is a bonus to me.

That being said, I’m very excited and can’t wait to share this wonderful show with everyone else.


SIX premieres on History on Wednesday, January 18.

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