Between "NCIS" and "Bull", Michael Weatherly has become a mainstay on audience's screens,
leading to him being one of TV's most recognizable faces.
But even with all the time they spend watching him, how much do fans really know about Weatherly?
This is the untold truth of the actor.
During a 2012 visit to "CBS This Morning," anchor Gayle King reminded viewers that Michael
Weatherly played the roommate of Theo Huxtable on a 1991 episode of "The Cosby Show."
As Weatherly recalled, his manager represented the actor initially cast, and suggested Weatherly
as a replacement when the other actor landed a movie and was no longer available for the
sitcom.
Weatherly went on to say -
"She called me and said, 'Get out to Queens, you're gonna meet Bill Cosby and if he signs
off on you, you're gonna be working this afternoon, they're taping.'"
He added with a laugh,
"I did okay, but they never invited me back...
It was a one shot deal."
In a subsequent interview with the New York Post, Weatherly revealed a possible reason
why his character never reappeared, explaining -
"I taped a subway token on my forehead during rehearsals and Cosby said, 'What's that?'
I said, 'I'm the token white guy.'
They did not invite me back."
In 2000, Weatherly was cast in the Fox drama "Dark Angel," starring Jessica Alba as a genetically-enhanced
young woman with superhuman abilities.
During the course of the show, the co-stars became a couple — and eventually got engaged.
Eyebrows, however, were raised due to the fact that Weatherly, then at age 30, was more
than a decade older than his then-18-year-old co-star.
Speaking about their eventual breakup, Alba told Cosmopolitan -
"It just didn't work out.
I was so young, 18, when I started dating him.
I was a virgin.
I knew I wanted to be in love with the first person I slept with, because for almost everyone
I knew, the first experience made them feel like s---."
Alba also admitted she found it difficult to be working alongside her significant other.
After her experience with Weatherly, she said -
"I've decided I'll never date an actor again."
In a tongue-in-cheek interview with TV Guide, Michael Weatherly recalled the various times
he'd been misidentified as other actors, which turned out to not always be a bad thing.
He explained how his resemblance to Sean Patrick Flanery resulted in a comped meal at Planet
Hollywood.
Instead of correcting them, Weatherly took advantage and ordered extra food, later saying
-
"I had a feeling it was going to be free, and you know what?
Thank you, Sean Patrick Flanery — free lunch."
Having a good sense of humor about it, he also joked with the publication about having
a 93-year-old woman mistake him for George Peppard, the silver-haired "A-Team" star who
died in 1994, while a blind person once thought he was Blair from "Facts of Life".
In addition to his work as an actor, Weatherly has also carved out a niche as a musician
As "NCIS" fans may recall, some of Weatherly's songs have appeared on soundtracks for the
series and are also available on streaming platforms.
He's also translated his songs into music videos: the 2013 video for his song "Under
the Sun" appears on one of the "NCIS" soundtracks.
In an interview with Music Times about that soundtrack, Weatherly said -
"'Under The Sun' is an interesting song.
It has a strange group of meanings, and a whole cluster of ideas about existential journeys
and self-examination."
According to Music Times, he began to write the song after 9/11, but ultimately crafted
the lyrics to mark the exit of "NCIS" co-star Cote de Pablo from the show.
Viewers of "NCIS" no doubt noticed a change in Michael Weatherly's appearance between
the series' 11th and 12th seasons.
"What happened was uh season 11, last year of NCIS, uh, I just - I got fat."
As the actor revealed in an interview with People, he'd embarked on a diet and fitness
regime that resulted in shedding 35 pounds after a weight gain that led him to, quote,
"split five pairs of pants" in Season 11.
He went on to explain -
"This is not an excuse, but the craft-service table is not filled with a lot of super healthy
options.
Then you get to working late, there's pizza and Chinese food."
Weatherly wound up enlisting the services of a trainer, who shaped his exercise regimen
and diet, which included pretty much eliminating carbs.
The actor explained -
"I stayed away from pasta, rice, bread, potatoes, anything that's fun to eat, I did not eat.
And I pulled way back on alcohol consumption,"
All told he was able to bring his weight from 240 pounds down to around 200.
In November 2015, Weatherly was placed under arrest while driving in Hollywood at about
1 a.m. TMZ reported that the actor was pulled over by police for speeding, and the officers
conducted tests that confirmed his blood alcohol exceeded the legal limit.
Weatherly was booked, and reportedly spent close to 15 hours in jail before he was released
and charged with two counts of DUI.
In a subsequent story the following January, TMZ reported that Weatherly issued a plea
of no contest to the charges.
He managed to avoid spending any additional time behind bars; instead, he was reportedly
sentenced to three years probation and ordered to undertake "a three-month alcohol program."
By June 2016, Weatherly completed all requirements imposed by the judge at his sentencing.
In January 2016, fans of "NCIS" received the shocking news that Michael Weatherly was leaving
the show.
Speaking with TV Insider, Weatherly explained that there was no drama behind his exit; he
simply felt that after 13 years portraying Tony DiNozzo, he was done, joking -
"I meet 20-year-olds who were in first grade when we started.
Basically, their entire lives they've known me as, 'Hey, you're on television, playing
that guy.'"
While he was heartened by starring on a TV show that was as successful as "NCIS," he'd
also come to realize, quote, "that I probably had other things that I should be doing."
As it turned out, Michael Weatherly's departure from television was a brief one.
Two months after CBS confirmed his exit from "NCIS," TVLine reported that the actor had
signed on to star in "Bull," a new drama series for the network, based on Dr. Phil McGraw's
pre-television career analyzing juries in court cases and making recommendations to
lawyers.
"Dr. Phil started his career doing this."
"He had a company called CSI before there was a show CSI and he looked into court sciences
and that's really a remarkable thing."
However, Weatherly insisted that while it may have looked like he quit "NCIS" to star
in his own show, that wasn't necessarily his initial plan.
Speaking to reporters at the 2016 Television Critics Association's summer press tour, he
admitted he'd grown tired of the grueling "NCIS" shooting schedule.
As for why he decided to jump from one one-hour drama to another, Weatherly said -
"I was burnt out by 'NCIS' and I was ready for a new challenge.
Sometimes change is as good as a rest."
In the spring of 2017, CBS announced that actor Eliza Dushku was joining "Bull" in a
recurring role, positioned to become a series regular.
But instead, The New York Times later reported, Dushku's character was written out of the
show after she complained about being sexually harassed by Weatherly; she ultimately received
a $9.5 million settlement.
Weatherly issued a statement, admitting he, quote, "made some jokes mocking some lines
in the script."
"Wow, you have no boundaries."
"Come on.
I'm messing with ya."
"Did you miss a sexual harassment seminar?"
"Every year."
He added -
"When Eliza told me that she wasn't comfortable with my language and attempt at humor, I was
mortified to have offended her and immediately apologized.
[…] What I said was both not funny and not appropriate."
Dushku, however, shared her version of events in a scathing op-ed for the Boston Globe,
alleging Weatherly's misconduct was far more egregious than what he'd described, writing
-
"The narrative propagated by CBS, actor Michael Weatherly, and writer-producer Glenn Gordon
Caron is deceptive and in no way fits with how they treated me on the set of the television
show 'Bull' and retaliated against me for simply asking to do my job without relentless
sexual harassment.
I took a job and, because I did not want to be harassed, I was fired."
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual harassment or assault, help is available.
Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline
at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
When news broke about the accusations against Weatherly, there was further fallout.
Most notably, reported USA Today, director Steven Spielberg, an executive producer on
"Bull," announced neither he nor his company, Amblin Entertainment, would have any further
association with the show in the wake of Dushku's allegations.
However, Weatherly was not without his supporters, as some of his former "NCIS" co-stars came
forward to speak out on his behalf.
Pauley Perrette came to Weatherly's defense in a tweet, saying -
"This man...
I love, respect, trust, and I KNOW.
TWO decades of friendship and respect.
... I love you @M_Weatherly Always and forever."
Another former co-star, Sasha Alexander, likewise supported Weatherly via Twitter saying he
was a, quote, "true friend", though the tweet was later deleted.
Weatherly portrayed Jesus Christ in a 2014 comedy video that contained a serious message.
In the five-minute short titled "Sarah Silverman is Visited by Jesus Christ," comedian Sarah
Silverman speaks with Weatherly's Jesus about female reproductive rights while sharing a
bowl of popcorn.
Discussing the video with Rolling Stone, Silverman explained that she wanted to draw attention
to efforts that were attempting to, quote, "make abortion illegal."
She added that her goal was, quote, "to make something that was informational, though obviously
with comedy."
As one might expect, those with opposing viewpoints were predictably offended, as detailed by
the Christian Post, by both the pro-choice message and the comedic depiction of the Son
of God.
Weatherly referenced the video in a tweet he issued shortly after its release, comparing
Jesus to his "NCIS" character, writing -
"Now that I know Jesus more, he is SUCH a DiNozzo!"
In September 2016, James Corden was shocked to see that a billboard on the side of a soundstage
at CBS Television City in Los Angeles, which had previously featured his visage to promote
"The Late Late Show," had been changed.
Instead, the billboard now featured Michael Weatherly's "Bull."
As CBS noted, Corden jokingly grew irked at seeing Weatherly's, quote, "face smirking
down at him every day."
Corden enlisted one of his show's writers to join him on a clandestine late-night mission,
rappelling down the side of the building and spray-painting graffiti on the "Bull" billboard
in some revenge-fueled vandalism.
Weatherly, however, exacted his own payback against Corden when he was later invited to
appear on "The Late Late Show."
Assisted by his daughter, Olivia, and some sharpies, Weatherly vandalized a poster of
Corden hanging in a "Late Late Show" hallway, drawing glasses, forehead wrinkles, and facial
hair on the photo of the British TV host.
When Weatherly announced his departure from "NCIS," one of the reasons he gave for his
exit was a desire to pursue new creative opportunities.
One of these was "Jamaica Man," a 2017 documentary he'd directed.
The film focuses on Nigel Pemberton, a British expat living in Jamaica.
The film made its premiere at the prestigious Telluride Film Festival, and was subsequently
featured in numerous other film festivals.
Among these was the Los Angeles Documentary Film Festival, where "Jamaica Man" won the
award for best documentary portrait.
In addition, Weatherly's documentary won two awards at the 2018 edition of the New York
City Independent Film Festival, taking the honors for best documentary and best cinematography.
Of course, acting is only one of the ways in which Weatherly earns money.
In addition to his directing work, Weatherly is also a producer via his own production
company, Solar Drive Productions, based at CBS Studios.
In 2014, The Hollywood Reporter noted that Weatherly staffed up his production company
with two key hires: Laura Lancaster, who had previously served as executive vice president
of drama programming at NBC Entertainment; and Tiffany Grant, former head of development
at Ping Pong Productions.
In a joint statement, Weatherly and Lancaster said at the time -
"We're going to make inventive, adrenalized, powerful hit series in every platform available
to us, by partnering with the most forward-thinking, visionary creators out there."
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