AARP Hearing Center
Emmy-winning actor Blair Underwood, 60, who starred as attorney Jonathan Rollins on the hit NBC legal drama L.A. Law, isn’t afraid to show some skin. In the new Starz drama Three Women, premiering Sept. 13 and based on the book by Lisa Taddeo, Underwood plays a husband in an open marriage with his wife. “We are very polyamorous, and the complexities that brings to a relationship is what we’re exploring and what my character’s dealing with,” he says. “It’s a very interesting agreement they have that she can do what she wants as long as he can watch or be a part of it. And therefore it’s not betrayal.” Underwood shares with AARP how he’s keeping fit for the role, how his real love life is going and how he’s enjoying life in Utah.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Three Women has some sexy scenes. Did that make you work harder to keep in shape?
Of course you’re aware, especially if you’re baring all. You’re aware of: What are you putting out there? Do you want to look your best? But you gotta be true to the character. This character, there’s nothing that said he’s not taking care of himself. So I really just try to maintain some kind of sense of good health and taking care of myself, and it’s better for life.
What do you do to keep fit?
My wife [entrepreneur Josie Hart] and I, when we’re home, go to the gym three times a week. We hike in the mountains. We went hiking yesterday — a much longer hike than we both expected. We’re both very driven and goal oriented. There’s a waterfall way up higher in the Utah mountains called Horsetail Falls, and we were two-thirds of the way there, so we’re, like, “Let’s go further.” So we do that, and then you realize you’ve got to come back down. It’s easier to go downhill, but it’s a much further distance than you remember it would be. We both love being physically active.
Are you doing anything diet-related to maintain your health?
My maintenance plan is intermittent fasting, and that has become a lifestyle. My wife and I do it. I love meat, I love beef, and it’s not that we don’t go to fast-food places, but I think you can get away with more if you’re only eating one meal a day. I live in Utah, and there’s a place called Cafe Rio that I like — bowls with rice and vegetables and that kind of stuff.
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