Feel good TV on Sundays is back. “God Friended Me” returns for the second season (tonight on CBS after 60 Minutes) and Brandon Michael Hall talks to EUR once again about the show’s success.
Hall was named one of Variety’s “Top Ten Television Stars to Watch” in 2017 and has, indeed, risen to the occasion. The son of a Pastor (onscreen and off), Hall plays an atheist in “God Friended Me,” who gets instructions from the Almighty on Facebook.
Over the last year, Brandon, what have you found most surprising about doing ‘God Friended Me’?
I think the biggest thing that’ has surprised me is how much a name impacts something. We shoot in New York and I was always running into people who were like, ‘Yeah, I heard about that show ‘God Friended Me’ but I just don’t know if it’s for me.’ People were taken aback a little bit by the name and thought they were going to get preached to until they watched the show. When they realized it was actually about an atheist teaming up with God to make a change in the world, they got on board with it.
Is the magic for you still there?
Personally, I feel really good working on a show that has such an impact and so rewarding. The first year we touched on some pretty interesting subjects but this year we’re really going into them in more in-depth. We’re really getting to the heart of subjects like religion and spirituality, what does that mean to communicate; the different types of love, and we have special guests lined up. Not to mention, we filmed in Paris for a week.
Can you talk about your passion project?
Yes, I’m a part of this organization called, #Hashtag Lunchbag in Brooklyn. It started in Los Angeles but it’s national now. I definitely felt like I got a God Friended Me calling to go out of my way to use my platform to draw attention to what’s happening. I’ve always had a heart and an understanding for those who are less fortunate. I didn’t come from money; I didn’t come from a luxurious background. I came from a place where I saw the pink flips on the door. I saw my mom struggle. So I’ve always had a heart for those who are in need.
I wanted to use my platform to give them a voice. Yeah, we can go overseas and help people, but there are lots of things that need to be done in our own backyard. Flint and other areas of this country still need water. There are hundreds of thousands of homeless in this country. New Orleans is still recovering after all these years, which is also disheartening because in the political debates you didn’t hear it come up that much. And, there is poverty and unemployment in communities the Administration is not helping. There is so much that needs to be done.
“God Friended Me” airs tonight, Sunday on CBS after “60 Minutes.”
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