Kevin Caliber Talks Hulu’s ‘Future Man’ [Exclusive Interview]

For Kevin Caliber, one of the best things about acting is that a new challenge presents itself nearly every day. You might recognize Caliber from roles on Supergirl or My Crazy Ex, and now you can see him on Hulu’s Future Man.

Future Man follows Josh Futturman (Josh Hutcherson), a janitor by day and a gamer by night, who is recruited by mysterious visitors to travel through time to prevent the extinction of humanity. Caliber can be seen recurring on the series as Blaze, a character he says is incredibly fun to play.

I recently had the chance to speak with Caliber about changing careers to become an actor and his role on Future Man.

“I started acting in theater like most people back in high school,” Caliber began. “It wasn’t until I started playing music that I really fell in love with performing in front of people. And when the music career didn’t follow through, it was the acting that really stood out a little bit later on.”

Caliber said that with acting, he enjoyed “being creative and not doing the same thing every day.”

“I was an engineer throughout my twenties, and it felt like the same thing every day, whereas acting is different, and every day is a new challenge. And I’m the type of person that needs to have the challenge in front of me to keep me interested and motivated,” Caliber continued.

“As sad as it sounds, I barely remember — I don’t have any lasting memories of the ages of like 25 to 30 because it was just the same thing and the same place, taking the same route to work. I feel like every week in L.A., since [I got] here five plus years ago, every week provides me with lasting memories — more than what I had in the previous five years combined.”

Making the decision to leave his career as an engineer to become an actor was terrifying, but was it worth it.

“You’re never too young. A lot of people feel stuck whenever it comes to, ‘well I’ve already done this’ or ‘I’ve already started a family.’ They get scared to try and live their dreams, and they try to take the safe way out. I’m glad that I didn’t do [that],” he said. “It’s not easy, but it’s so rewarding and fulfilling when it goes right.”

Caliber also spoke about this time in the Marine Corps and how that experience has helped him with his acting career.

“I joined the Marine Corps out of high school, and I was getting on a plane and going off to where — you know, you’re nowhere near anybody that you’ve ever known or anything that you’ve ever known, and they strip you of any identity that you’ve ever had. It’s a military thing. That’s why they shave your head. We all have the same uniforms. They strip you of any individuality that you have, but it allows you to grow as person,” Caliber explained.

“I can be whatever I want now. Growing up in Missouri, it’s a very conservative way of thinking,” he continued. “What was almost as hard as coming out to L.A., was telling people that I was gonna do it.”

As for getting a part on Future Man, it as an opportunity Caliber couldn’t turn down.

“I was so excited for this one because thus far I’ve always [done] drama, and I enjoy drama, but this was something that I got to have a lot of fun with.”

Caliber had also been a fan of Seth Rogen and his team for a long time. “He started producing more shows a couple of years ago, and this was one of the first original series he had done. It was the first project that he had ever directed that he wasn’t the main writer or acting in, so it was just an opportunity to work with Seth and his team. They’re just so phenomenal, and so funny, and it’s just such a good time.”

Caliber admitted that oftentimes being on a set can be stressful, but that’s not the case with Future Man. “With these guys it’s just a lot of laughs. They want you to have fun, and you can really tell. I think it really shows on the screen,” he noted. “They pay homage to so much, the nostalgia factors are through the roof. It’s just, they weren’t holding back.”

Blaze is also a really fun character for Caliber to be able play. “My favorite thing about the character is that he means no harm whatsoever. He is aloof, and sweet, and would do anything for Wolf. It was just so fun.”

“The surroundings are insane,” he continued. “And he’s just along for the ride and does it with a smile.”

In addition to the fact the Future Man is funny and entertaining, the time travel element is something that’s always fun to see. “It’s fun because you take modern people, and then put them in the other times,” Caliber said. “We’ve all asked the question, ‘if you could go anywhere any time where would you go?’ It’s something that everybody has thought about.”

In addition to Future Man, Caliber is recurring in Season 5 of The Haves and the Have Nots on OWN.

“With the Cryer family, they are one dramatic family, and I get tossed right in the middle of it. It’s pretty fun. It’s great working with Tyler Perry. You know, he’s so good at what he does that to enter that world was definitely a blast. I’ve loved ever minute of it.”

Caliber will also star in an upcoming film called Ugly Sweater Party, which he describes as a “Christmas, comedy, horror movie.”

“That’ll be finished up by this Christmas. They don’t have a distribution deal yet. I believe it’s going to be in the festival circuit next year but that was a whole lot of fun,” he continued. “Ugly sweaters are so hot these days that it’s kind of funny that there hasn’t been an ugly sweater movie yet!” he laughed.

Finally, Caliber shared some of his current favorite television shows, including one he felt he could relate to because of where it takes place.

“I just finished Ozark. I thought it was phenomenal. It was in the vein of Breaking Bad. I’m from Missouri, and it takes place in Missouri, so I could definitely relate to it,” he said.

“I am [also] a really big fan of Silicon Valley. Those guys make me laugh,” he shared. “It’s something like that that I would love to be a part of in the future and doing the full character work. Which is ironic because I don’t like computers, and tech goes over my head, but somehow they make it work. And Mike Judge is just so phenomenal. I respect him so much as a comic and creator that I just fell in love with the show.”

Be sure to catch Kevin Caliber as Blaze on Future Man, which is currently available for streaming on Hulu.

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