With the premiere of the fifth and final season of the American medical drama, New Amsterdam, Dorkaholics had the opportunity to speak with actor Jocko Sims, who plays Dr. Floyd Reynolds on the television series.
Neil Bui (NB): Hey Jocko, my name is Neil. I’m with Dorkaholics, pleasure to be speaking with you today.
Jocko Sims (JS): Great to speak with you, buddy. Thank you so much.
NB: No problem. My first question is what has been your favorite part about New Amsterdam?
JS: Sort of in a way making the dream of mine come true [by] playing this character. I wanted to be a doctor. I believed it was gonna happen so much that I had a medical symbol put on my high school ring and I got to college and 12 years [of] being at school, I was like, “nah, no thanks, let me take a theater class” and I did it. But once I started, I said I always wanted to play a doctor. And I think I was 15 years in as a professional actor and I got to do a couple episodes of The Resident, which was great and then came along Dr. Reynolds within that same year. So it kind of poured out. I think I just grew into that age to play a doctor and it’s just been a dream come true. I definitely will miss this job.
NB: Does the hurricane at the end of season four have any major effects on the rest of season five?
JS: That’s a good question. Well I think the hurricane, in a way, taught the characters a lot about themselves. To give you an example, Iggy had to step up and try to lead the hospital. Well he learned that he can do that and that’s definitely gonna carry over as season five. I just read an episode today, Episode 7, where some of that will have to come to play, him knowing himself and him stepping up and doing what he has to do and fighting for what he believes in. And also during the hurricane what comes to mind is my relationship with my father that begins there and that carries over. Neil, I don’t know if you meant metaphorically, but it turns out to be a damn good question.
NB: I kind of want to follow up on that, so now that your character has met his long-lost father, Horace, what is in store for Dr. Reynolds the rest of the season in that dynamic?
JS: I love being a fan of the show because I don’t ask too many questions of the writers. I just want to see the script and see what happens. And they threw yet another curveball with the father situation. And as I say that I think, what else could they do? We’ll find out later. He’s kind of not your father or something, I don’t know. They’ll do that. We’re gonna get more into that relationship. We’re gonna try to patch things up. We’re gonna try to find some forgiveness. But in the midst of doing all of that, you’re gonna find out something more about Horace that throws Reynolds for a loop. And I’m excited for the people to see that and actually learn from that situation.
NB: Is there anything else you can tell us about your character’s relationship with, let’s say, Dr. Lauren Bloom?
JS: You know what? We’re gonna bring back some old stuff, we’re gonna rehash some more stuff. We’re gonna talk about some stuff with Reynolds and Bloom. I’m looking forward to people seeing that as well.
NB: I guess ultimately for you, where do you want to see Dr. Reynolds ends up at the end of the season. Maybe this doesn’t have to be an indicator of what is to come but where would you like to go?
JS: What I used to answer is, like a couple seasons ago, I wanted to become a father but now he’s now he’s done that maybe not on the terms that he expected or in the way that he wished. I’d like to see him in a happy relationship. I’d like to see him with a woman who’s not married. And start to build a family of his own because he seems to really want that. I want that for him.
NB: I love that. For you as an actor, are there any other dream roles you’re interested in pursuing?
JS: Yeah, that’s a good question. I don’t know specifically what role it would be, but I definitely would not mind if my next job was a comedy because I love it and I can tell I’m longing for it because I’m rarely serious onset, always joking around. It’s so funny at the table read we’re reading all of this emotional heavy stuff, sometimes it’s heavy sometimes, like in the script and by the end of the episode, a lot of us would be tearing up. But all in between, we’re just throwing some jabs and throwing some jokes in. Some of which actually makes it in ’cause the writers are always there and they’re listening and and they make adjustments but we’re just having so much fun. And I think that it’s a good balance but if I could do a comedy that would be great. Movie-wise, I love horror movies. I would love to be in one of those.
NB: I keep trying to press the issue for what is to come, what is to come and dangling these little hints in front of me, so maybe we can talk about kind of what happens like when the cameras are off, any fun stories so far with your fellow cast and crew?
JS: I remember a couple seasons ago I was doing a scene with Helen Sharpe (Freema) and we had Anupam Kher who played Kapoor yet a body double at the time he was there and his double [fell] asleep. In the scene, he was in the bed and he fell asleep and he started snoring. And we were almost done with this scene, but he started snoring so loud but only the two of us could hear him and no one else could hear, the mics weren’t picking it up. And so I looked at Freema. As soon as we looked at each other, we’re like, there’s no freaking way we’re gonna be able to do this. And we started laughing so hard and Ryan comes in at the end of that scene, so now he’s got the laughing fits and I struggled so hard to get through that scene and that was really fun. That’s the moment I won’t ever forget.
NB: It sounds like you found some lifelong friends with your fellow castmates.
JS: Absolutely. They’re the best, they’re fun. Me and Ryan just went on a bike ride across the city not long ago. We’re gonna do that again soon. Man, I love these guys.
NB: Anything you can tell us about this fifth and final season?
JS: We’re gonna get back to what the show is about and what touched people in the beginning. It’s about the people, it’s about the characters, and when I say characters I don’t mean us, I don’t mean the main characters, and we will have plenty of that. It’s about the patients. It’s about their stories, the stories that inspire us and keep us going. And get back to those episodes that you need that box of Kleenex next to you when you watch. You know what I mean? Something touching that brings it all back home. And I’m really excited about that. I think that this is where we’re going to close it out in a way with something that we can all be very proud of.
NB: While preparing for this interview, I was trying to see any existing conversations surrounding New Amsterdam, and I recently found out that they’re having a Turkish adaptation of the series.
JS: No way.
NB: Yes way, I just read this morning. Hopefully it’s not fake news, but let’s assume it is true, which I’m confident it is. Do you have any advice as a five-season veteran from this adaptation of the novel?
JS: Focus on the patients and their stories and educate the public. I don’t mean hit them over the head with stuff, but that’s the thing about New Amsterdam, you know? What makes it magical is the fact that we could laugh and cry and learn. And I think it makes it very unique, especially as a medical drama, not to say that when you watch Grey’s Anatomy or Chicago or whatever’s in med that you’re not learning, but we hit you with some gems. So that’s my advice to any shows that are going to follow in our footsteps and attempt to do a similar thing.
NB: Thank you so much for your time today, Jocko. I really appreciate it. Looking forward to this final season of New Amsterdam.
JS: Awesome. Thank you so much. Thanks for the interview.
Catch Jocko Sims on New Amsterdam, new episodes on Tuesdays on NBC.
