TV stars, producers weigh in on the year that was

Television series teach plenty during the course of a year. But what about producers and actors? In 2024, we talked with a number of them about their series, their private lives and their goals. Here is what they had to say:

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“It was one of the most magic days I’ve had in 25 years of working as an actor. I was so giddy with excitement. I couldn’t believe I was getting done up to be the Penguin.”

Colin Farrell, on the first day as “The Penguin”

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“In the first few episodes, I’m in a coma and I still got paid. So it was a slam dunk.”

Carol Burnett, on why she took a role in “Palm Royale”

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“The hardest thing about Jamie is that he’s an empty vessel and he never got to find out who he really was. There’s an emptiness and a sort of sadness that permeates everything. I just feel lucky that I don’t suffer through that.”

Wes Bentley, the ill-fated Jamie on “Yellowstone”

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“I’ll be sad to see it go, on a human level. But I would hate the show to be good, then drag itself through the mud a little bit at the end. Now that we know the finish is coming, we get to enjoy the job and really soak it in.”

Antony Starr, Homelander in “The Boys,” on the show's final season

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“When this came along, how could I say no? I actually had one foot out of the door. I was doing smaller roles in films, and I thought I was going into semi-retirement. But this was just too exciting.”

Kathy Bates, on starring in CBS drama “Matlock” in her 70s

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“You need to always treat kids like kids. One of the things my parents did well was they never were telling me, ‘You need to do this to be the breadwinner’ or ‘I’m going to take your money,’ or anything like that that can really divide families and create an inverted dynamic.”

David Henrie, star and executive producer of “Wizards Beyond Waverly Place”

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“He’s very smart. He’s almost like, not very dog-like on the set.”

Harriet Dyer, star and producer of “Colin from Accounts," on the dog who plays the title character

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“I’m a terrible secret keeper. When I find out some information about the show, I really want to tell Sue, my wife, about it. But she said, ‘No, I’m watching it,’ so I can’t tell her everything that goes down.”

Jeff Bridges, of “The Old Man”

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“I’d like to think if the show works out and anything terrible ever happened to me, (real healthcare workers) would say, ‘You’ve really got to take care of him. He’s that guy from the show.’”

Mekki Leeper, of “St. Denis Medical”

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“I was in my office, and I walked past (the book shelf) and I was like, ‘What the hell is that award?’ And I had to pull it off the shelf to see that it was a SAG Award. ‘How did this happen?’ We were working and I wasn’t processing how much had changed.”

Quinta Brunson, on the whirlwind success of “Abbott Elementary”

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“To me, it feels a little bit like graduation. It’s this momentous event that fills you with nostalgia. You realize that bubble, that world you created for seven years will never exist in the same way. The flip side of that is, like graduating, you’re excited for new opportunities.”

Freddie Highmore, on the end of "Good Doctor"

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“It’s a bit scary in a way because you’re sitting there going, ‘OK, I’ve been silent for a good 40 seconds. Is that boring?’”

Justin Hartley, on the quiet scenes in "Tracker"

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"After I started producing, I found a great balance. Of course, there was a lot of pressure on my shoulders, but I feel happiness. Dreams do come true."

Hiroyuki Sanada, star and producer of "Shogun"

PHOTOS: The top entertainment images from 2024