Watch Netflix Stars Vincent D'Onofrio and Uzo Aduba in Conversation

Ethan Alter
·Senior Writer, Yahoo Entertainment
Updated

Vincent D’Onofrio’s last name may be Italian for “Insanely talented actor who can play any character” (at least, that’s according to Uzo Aduba’s personal translation), but there’s one role he may not be entirely suited for: talk show host. The veteran character actor and co-star of Netflix’s acclaimed Daredevil series is awkward — charmingly so — in the latest episode of the streaming service’s chat series The Originals, in which he sits down for a conversation with Emmy-winning Orange Is the New Black cast member, Aduba. “OK, so, hi,” D’Onofrio begins, before turning around to acknowledge the unseen crew members off-camera. “Am I saying ‘Hi’ now? There’s no action here. Why should there be? Hi, everybody — and to you guys over my shoulder.”

Related: Kevin Spacey and Charlie Cox Talk Netflix, ‘Daredevil’ Fights, and Frank Underwood’s Superpower

So D’Onofrio won’t be replacing Jimmy Kimmel or Jimmy Fallon anytime soon. Nevertheless, he and Aduba proceed to hit it off quite well over the course of their five-minute chat, which touches on their theatrical backgrounds and how they approach big scenes on their respective shows. D’Onofrio also impresses Aduba when he discusses his 10-year run on Law & Order: Criminal Intent. “How was that as an exercise?” she asks. “It’s long and exhausting,” he replies, matter-of-factly. “We’re talking 10 months of work every year. We averaged about 17 hours a day for 10 months straight every year for almost 10 years.”

Related: Where to Binge the Emmy Nominees

Interestingly, despite his high level of exhaustion, D’Onofrio says he felt like some of his best work was done at the end of those 17 hours. “It was like there was no acting available at all at that time. Everything would seem so real and require no performance whatsoever.” Aduba clearly takes that lesson to heart: “Never thought about it that way: when you’re fatigued, when you’re getting to the end, and it’s like ‘I don’t have anything left to do.’ But there’s actually nothing to do, it’s just to be.” So if Crazy Eyes starts looking extra sleepy in Season 4 of Orange Is the New Black, now we’ll know exactly who to credit. Or blame.

Daredevil Season 1 and Orange Is the New Black Season 3 are available for streaming on Netflix.