David Schwimmer's character Tommy Moran and his son meets his friend Dion Patras (Jim Sturgess) in a scene of "Feed the Beast." (Photo : YouTube / TODAY)
In AMC's most recent dark drama, "Feed the Beast," which will debut on June 5. David Schwimmer stars as a troubled but talented sommelier in a restaurant in New York. For his role, Schwimmer sought the help of a pro, his friend Josh Nadel, the beverage director of NoHo Hospitality Group who took part in the "Uncorked" TV series.
Perhaps because of the legacy of his role in NBC's sitcom "Friends" which ended in 2004, Schwimmer is an actor who never comes to anyone's mind when it comes to antiheroes on a cable show. He appeared as Robert Kardashian in "The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story" earlier this year.
In the upcoming drama from Clyde Phillips, Schwimmer stars as Tommy Moran, a single father who is one of the best sommeliers in New York City. He grieves for his dead wife by drinking too much with the groups he supports. His friend Dion Patras (Jim Sturgess), got out of prison and the two opened a restaurant in Bronx.
Moran tries to function for the sake of his son, getting himself back to life and choosing life. He and his friend Patras believed Bronx is ready for upscale dining and gentrification.
"I like wine. I thought I knew a little about it until I started working on this role," Schwimmer said when interviewed by The Wall Street Journal. He spent a few weeks with his buddy Nadel and realized he knew nothing about wine.
"As an actor, I didn't want to be doing something that would make me look like an idiot," Schwimmer told Salon. He wants the show to be realistic and even wanted wine experts to watch it. He would like to have them say, "'Wow, that is a great choice for that dish.'"
Nadel taught Schwimmer basic wine services, from soup to nuts, as well as tasting, service, mechanics, syntax, physical demeanor, proper stemware and all. He ran him through the entire schmear.
Schwimmer also brought the wine pro to be the show's consultant. Nadel helps the writers with all things wine and continues to coach Schwimmer who he sees as a star student.
Schwimmer talks about 'Feed the Beast' on Today in the following video.
