Five Questions with Tim Walsh, Co-creator and Showrunner of Prime Video’s ‘On Call’
What do the Las Vegas Raiders, the Hancock Building, and Zen master Takuan Soho have in common? They’re all right here as Chicago native Tim Walsh, co-creator and showrunner of Prime Video’s popular new series “On Call” – and former producer of NBC fave Chicago PD – stops by for a thoroughly entertaining round of Five Questions with SCREEN. Let’s get to it!
SCREEN: Congrats on ON CALL being a big hit on Amazon! For those of us that are brand new to the show, what makes ON CALL such a must-watch show?
TIM: I think, first and foremost, it’s our number one on the call sheet, Troian Bellisario. She gives a performance that will inspire and outlive the show. Secondly, our main goal was to entertain. Not to preach, or politicize, but give the audience a bottle-rocket to hang on to for thirty minutes. I think we accomplished that.
Let’s take a look at trailer for the premiere season of ON CALL…
SCREEN: We know it’s hard to choose but what is your favorite of the eight episodes from the first season of ON CALL?
TIM: This is like picking a favorite child. But if I had to, it would be episode 104. One of the very first things I put on the board when breaking the season was the title of a song by Suicidal Tendencies called Subliminal. The idea was to do a oner when they hit the motel for Maniac, scored to that song. Although that’s not how it was executed, that sequence with Harmon at the helm, leading the raid, is sensational. Shout out to director Brenna Malloy for her “shotgun” cam.
SCREEN: Here in Chicago, we are obviously huge fans of Chicago PD. Do you have a favorite episode?
TIM: At the risk of self-promotion, I have to say it’s episode 219, which I co-wrote. I thought we really found the show in the second season. This one in particular focused on a ghost from Olinsky’s past. There’s a scene when Olinsky is tearing apart his garage at midnight, looking for a clue he thinks he wrote down years ago, hidden in one of the dozens of file boxes. Voight shows up to check on him, and the two men who share a violent past have a beautiful cathartic moment. No music. No quick cuts. Just two old friends who care deeply about each other.
SCREEN: Ok on to some rapid-fire fun! What is your favorite restaurant in Chicago?
TIM: I’m not sure it’s open any more, but the restaurant at the top of the Hancock building was always my go-to. That view, which stretches on forever, is breathtaking.
SCREEN: If you could only be a fan of one sports team, which would it be?
TIM: That’s easy, the Las Vegas Raiders.
BONUS QUESTIONS!
SCREEN: Your greatest athletic achievement?
TIM: My 8th grade basketball team at Immanuel Lutheran, which I was starting forward, took seventh place at State in 1989. It still haunts me that we didn’t win it all.
SCREEN: If you could appoint anyone to be the next President of the United States, who would it be?
TIM: Joseph Goldstein, a meditation teacher and author. We need deep self-reflection and compassion on all sides if we’re ever going to come together again. And he’s the guy who can teach us how to do that.
SCREEN: Best advice you’ve ever been given?
TIM: I’m paraphrasing, but “Mind like flowing water, never congealed like ice.” From the book The Unfettered Mind by Zen Master Takuan Soho. As a storyteller, you need to be open to every possibility.
Thanks for playing, Tim! Click here to watch the first season on ON CALL on Amazon Prime.
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