USA TODAY International Edition
Groban trades music for murder on Netflix
Danza does most of the singing as Grammy nominee fights on ‘Good Cop’
NEW YORK – “The Good Cop” is a kid-friendly police procedural, with its gentle humor, earnest drama and ... old ladies impaled in elevator shafts? “Other than the murders, it’s a family show,” laughs Tony Danza, who co-stars with Grammy-nominated singer Josh Groban in the new Netflix series (now streaming). Created by Andy Breckman (“Monk”) and recalling classic cop shows such as “Columbo,” the 10episode dramedy centers on straight-laced detective Anthony “T.J.” Caruso Jr. (Groban) and his father, Tony Sr. (Danza), an affable but crooked ex-cop. The loosely plotted series follows a case-of-the-week format, as T.J. and his partner, Cora Vasquez (Monica Barbaro), investigate often kooky crimes. Groban, 37, and Danza, 67, chat with USA TODAY.
Question: How would you describe the relationship between Tony Sr. and T.J.? Josh Groban: The great thing about Tony Sr. is that, through all of the under-the-table dirty business that happened, there is still nothing in the world more important to him in the family. Even though there were things Tony Jr. discovered that were shady, to say the least, he was raised in a loving home. We butt heads a lot on philosophies, and there’s a “Who’s the parent now?” thing of just trying to keep my dad out of trouble, but that’s what keeps the dynamic fun.
Q: How similar to T.J. are you in real life? Groban: I don’t like to ruffle feathers. I’m pretty by the book, but I do curse a lot more than T.J. Tony Danza: You don’t have a swear jar? Groban: I don’t have a swear jar; I do drink. T.J. hangs on to some of his neuroses by a thread, but he wants to be invited to the party and be the cool guy. That I have in common with T.J. I was able to draw on a lot of my awkward, sad high-school moments, for sure.
Q: Josh, did you watch Tony in “Taxi” and “Who’s the Boss?” growing up? Groban: Absolutely. You look at his body of work, and it’s so impressive.
Q: Tony, were you similarly a fan of Josh’s music? Groban: He was at my first concert at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. They told me backstage Danza’s in the audience, and I said, “Man, that rules.” Danza: I know his work. I mean, it’s hard to avoid it – he’s everywhere. To be honest, when I first heard Josh Groban for the part, I was already attached to the show and wasn’t sure (whether he could act). But they sent me a few clips, (and) while you can’t tell if anybody’s Laurence Olivier, you can tell if somebody commits. And that’s what he brings to the show: a tremendous commitment to the part.
Q: You both have music and Broadway backgrounds. Who sang more on set? Danza: Interestingly enough, I was doing most of the singing in the show. It’s kind of ironic that I’m in a show with Josh Groban, and I’m singing and he’s fighting. Groban: I had just come out of the recording studio when I was asked to do the show, and I thought the expected thing was, of course, I go out and be the singing cop. But to be honest, I was excited to take on a role that was fun and funny that didn’t have the singing to stand behind.
Q: Any ideas for a musical you could star in together? Groban: “Odd Couple: The Musical?” Maybe we could have a musical episode of “The Good Cop.” Danza: We really take that as a compliment, that (critics) are saying “Odd Couple” about us. “The Odd Couple” is quite a high bar to reach, so we’re going to try.