credit: patrickfabian.com
Actor Patrick Fabian spoke with me from Stage 8, where he was currently wrapping up on the upcoming CMT original sitcom Working Class, in which he’ll play Rob Diamond, the rich owner of his family’s supermarket where love interest Carli Miller (Melissa Peterman), a working class mom who has recently moved her family to the ritzy suburbs, is employed. The sitcom, the first ever for CMT, caps off a terrific year for Fabian, who also has a recurring role on TeenNick’s Gigantic and, of course, has received accolades for his turn as Rev. Cotton Marcus in the hugely successful movie The Last Exorcism.
“My mother finally got to see me on the red carpet, so, for her, that was a dream come true,” said Fabian about the success of The Last Exorcism. “I got to be a movie star…after 20 years of knocking around.”
The film, which he calls “a smart thriller with a horrific ending”, has earned him awards from the Toronto After Dark and Sitges 43rd International Film Festivals. The film itself has received nominations from the People’s Choice 2011 Awards and the Independent Spirit Awards.
The recognition is well deserved for Fabian, who has been in the entertainment industry for 20 years, guest starring or recurring on almost every hit show in that span of time, from Xena: Warrior Princess to Saved by the Bell: The College Years to his most recent roles on Big Love, Rizzoli and Isles, and CSI: NY. Due to landing so many roles on tv’s most popular shows, he’s become known as the guy that everyone thinks they know.
“Either [people think] they’ve dated me, or went to college with me,” he said, laughing. “Usually, it happens in the airport when someone will see me and say ‘Heeeyyy!’, and I’ll say ‘Heeeey…’ I tell them I’ve been on TV, they’ll say, ‘Oh, what show have you been on?’ and then I’ll have to run through all of the shows I’ve been on. Out of the 90 things I’ve done, it’s usually the 90th thing they would have seen. Because I’m on TV, I’m in people’s homes, and it’s like I’ve wormed my way into people’s subconscious.”
On top of the film accolades, TV buzz, and the chance to work with Hollywood legend Ed Asner on Working Class (“It’s an honor to work with him,” he said), Fabian has also witnessed the birth of his first child, Abbey Rae Fabian. Along with his critical success and the announcements of other movie projects, like sci-fi Memento-esque Pig ( in which a man must work backwards to piece the events of his life together) it would seem that Fabian’s long grind at Hollywood has produced amazing results.
Patrick Fabian can be seen on TeenNick’s Gigantic and the upcoming CMT sitcom Working Class, starring Melissa Peterman and Ed Asner and written and produced by Jill Cargerman. Working Class will premiere on Friday, Jan. 28. The Last Exorcism will be available on DVD and Blu-Ray on Tuesday, Jan. 4.
