Carl Weathers

The Rocky and Predator star wants his action fans to know that he’s capable of playing other kinds of roles, like the State’s Attorney on the hit drama series Chicago Justice.

- Douglas Tseng

8 DAYS: For some viewers of a certain age, you’re best known as Apollo Creed in the Rocky movies, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s comrade-in-arms in Predator, and Adam Sandler’s golf master in Happy Gilmore. So to see you as the State’s Attorney on Chicago Justice, the latest spin-off of Chicago Fire, is kinda new…

CARL WEATHERS: That’s exactly what I want. I want different characters to play and I want the challenges, and I want you, as a result, to be sucked into what I’m doing — because you came in maybe expecting one thing, but what I deliver is something beyond your expectations.

Did you feel underrated as an actor back in the day when you were synonymous with the action genre?

I don’t know if I was underrated, but I do think there’s much more in the toolbox than many people have had a chance to witness. I wouldn’t want to play the same type of characters I did when I was 20, 30, or 40 years old. To come to Chicago Justice, where my character doesn’t box or shoot machine guns, but uses his mind, is a very nice departure for me, and hopefully for the fans, it’s also an enjoyable experience.

How did you get involved with Chicago Justice? Were you a fan of creator Dick Wolf’s other show, Law & Order?

Of course. When I read the script for Chicago Justice, it was so well-written and the character I play, State’s Attorney Mark Jefferies, is really interesting. He’s both a politician and a lawyer. So that was the impetus for wanting to be part of it.