Actor evaluates the success of "Me, the Boss and the Children" in Brazil: "It's familiar"

Few comedies from the 2000s achieved such a lasting connection with the Brazilian public as "Eu, a Patroa e as Crianças". Two decades after the end of the series, the characters and catchphrases are still alive in the popular imagination. In an interview with CNN Brasil, Andrew McFarlane, Tony's interpreter, spoke about the reasons that made the sitcom become a phenomenon in the country.

"We were a program about family and I feel that Brazilian culture is very family-oriented. The characters resembled someone I knew. A lot of people message me saying: 'My father was like Michael (Damon Wayans)', or 'he had a friend like Júnior (George O. Gore II)", reflects the actor.

He adds that another point of convergence is the "great sense of humor" of the national public. "(Brazilians) are funny people, they like to joke and the series was really fun. So, I think there were many ways to identify."

For the first time in Brazil this year, he says he has had a warm reception from national fans: "The most special thing has been meeting people. I'm walking down the street and people stop me. The other day I was in a cafe and I saw a girl filming me hidden. I thought: 'This is crazy'.

"People (in Brazil) are very affectionate. They tell me, 'You don't understand how important this series was to my life.' It's very exciting for me to know that something I did had such a positive impact. These interactions are the best part."

The end of his acting career
At the end of the attraction, Andrew lived a few more years as an actor until he left the spotlight in the early 2010s, to focus his career on being a businessman. "I loved acting, but I felt like some of it was very ego-boosting. Money, fame... that no longer interested me as an adult. I was looking for something deeper", he explains and says that he created a juice company in Los Angeles. Ten years ago he moved to Indonesia, where he works in real estate and launched a wellness hotel on the island of Lombok.

"I wanted to have more control over my career. As an actor, you depend on whether you are offered a role or a good audition. If I went back to Hollywood, it would be in this format: I write, produce, write or direct, it would be more in this format", he reflects.

Reunion
Even though he left Hollywood last decade, Andrew said he would love to reprise the role of Tony on a date or in a special celebratory episode. "I would love to, the series was a lot of fun to do. I think today my character would be leading a church, you know? Maybe he was a pastor or something, leading a congregation."

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Source: CNN