Oliver Platt Is All About Mobility, Mobility, Mobility

What’s your latest binge?

I was blown away by Baby Reindeer, because I had no idea. I thought we were just going to be watching your standard stalking drama, and obviously it is so much more than that. I was blown away by Shogun. I thought Shogun was incredible. I spent a lot of time in the Far East when I was a kid, and I actually read that book when I was a teenager in Japan. I learned more about Japan from reading that book than I had from walking around the country for a couple of years.

You lived overseas because of your father’s career, correct? Do you have a favorite country you lived in?

[My father] was a career diplomat, meaning he was a civil servant who worked for the State Department. His ambassadorships were actually more at the end of his career. We grew up mostly in the Far East — Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, Japan. Hong Kong was amazing. I lived there from [ages] 4 to 8, so it was just the world to me. Back in the ’60s, it was this beautiful island in the South China Sea, with its white sandy beaches and stuff. Japan was where I was a teenager coming of age, if you will. I was a little bit more aware that this was a different country and a different culture, and so I can appreciate it as a place that was different from the United States.

Was it difficult to move around so much?

When I tell people about my upbringing, their first [response is], “Oh my God, that must have been so amazing.” It sounds so glamorous. Moving around all the time — it’s hard; [it] really sucks. Two things happen to families that move around all the time, they either implode very quickly [or] they get incredibly close — I was blessed and I’m happy to tell you that that was what my story was.

Did that teach you any life lessons?

It definitely taught me the importance of family. My father’s extended family is incredibly close, and our family would have been close even if we had just been hanging around the same neighborhood all our lives. It’s the foundation of your life — having that unit and appreciation for each other, the understanding that at the most basic level that you’re stronger when you have a group to rely on. It’s groups that get through life better. Going through life alone, I can’t imagine anything more difficult or depressing.

Kyra Sedgwick told us you were her dream rom-com costar. Who would be yours?

I’ve actually thought about it because — you can’t imagine how many people have sent me that article. Kyra’s an old friend, but I actually thought about this when I knew that we would be talking. And what I would love, is if you could just ask me that question — “Who is my dream rom-com costar?” — as if you didn’t [tell me she picked me] and I would just answer, “Oh, it’s Kyra.” Because, by the way, that would not remotely be a lie. Because I’m so busy, I never actually texted or called Kyra or Kevin [Bacon, Kyra’s husband]. If you’re game, I thought that would be just kind of wonderful because I would love, then, a bunch of people to text Kyra. And then afterwards, I would call her up and go, “Ha ha, I gotcha.”

Go ahead and tell me why she’s your dream costar. She said of you: “He’s so tall. I just think we could have a sexy mind thing as well as a physical thing. So witty, so fast.” What would you say about Kyra?

Well, first of all, because she’s Kyra Sedgwick, she’s actually kind of all those things [she said of me] — not tall, but she’s attractive, she has a deceptive wit, is really funny and smart and she’s really talented. I mean who wouldn’t be so lucky? She’s also the wife of a very close friend. So the only way that I would ever express that is if somebody like you asked me that question.

Are you doing anything to keep yourself healthy as you get older?

I have three words for you: mobility, mobility, mobility. You use it or lose it. It long ago stopped being, Well, one day I’m going to be a triathlete. It’s: I need to keep moving and keep walking. I have to do other stuff too, but I’m not necessarily the most disciplined person in the world, especially when I’m working. Walking has become my default form of exercise. And so that’s what I really try to focus on.

Platt and his fellow cast members celebrated "The Bear" winning an Emmy for outstanding comedy series at the January 2024 ceremony in Los Angeles. Season 3 of the show premieres June 26 on Hulu.

Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Did you have a backup plan if acting hadn’t worked out?

Funnily enough, in my mind, I was always fascinated by advertising, by consumer psychology. One of the ways my dad used to describe diplomacy: “The essence of diplomacy is giving somebody else a good idea and making them think that they had it.” Well, that’s exactly what advertising is. You want to make the person think that it’s a good idea to buy your product. And that’s not necessarily a linear proposition. A terrible advertiser would just say, “Buy this product.“

Maybe you should have been on Mad Men?

Well, I would have been so lucky.