Checking in with DAVID GIUNTOLI

One of the great challenges for an actor is to empathize with and find the humanity in a despicable character.

For David Giuntoli, who plays wheelchair-bound alcoholic in recovery and consummate selfish jerk Eddie Saville in the ABC ensemble drama “A Million Little Things,” that was red meat into which to sink his acting chops.

“You know, there’s this saying,” the 42-year-old St. Louis area native explains, “(that) nobody thinks that they are a jerk – people think that from the outside. But people have motivations and behaviors come from psychologies and so you become this character as much as you can . ... It’s like you don’t judge your character, is what it is. Bad guys don’t think they’re bad.”

As the series opens its fifth and final season Wednesday, Feb. 8, a sense of normalcy is just returning to Eddie’s life when he receives a mysterious phone call from the woman who hit him that rocks his world. While Giuntoli could offer no further details on that lest he give away spoilers, the actor does disclose that Delilah (Stephanie Szostak) will return, as will the daughter she had with Eddie, Charlie.

Giuntoli feels fortunate to play such a rich character for five seasons and says he will miss Eddie and his castmates when filming wraps for good in March. For him, to end the series when it did feels right and he’s glad showrunner DJ Nash got to do it his way.

“He didn’t want it to go forever and ever and ever,” Giuntoli says, “He wanted it to remain grounded as much as he possibly could. So the fun thing is you really get to write to a close and there are going to be some very satisfying endings of some storylines.”

Name: David Giuntoli

Birth date: June 18, 1980

Birthplace: Milwaukee (raised in a suburb of St. Louis)

Family ties: Has a 4-year-old daughter with wife and actress Bitsie Tulloch (“Superman & Lois”)