Covert Affairs Star Chris Gorham Reveals Why This Season Is the Most "Emotional" Yet

CG: No, not a thing! laughs

OK!: Are you happy with how your character has evolved over the series, and where would you like him to go next?

CG: Yeah, I am happy. I like that he's stayed very consistent. He's still basically the same guy as when we started, meaning that he still loves what he does. He still an incredibly loyal and reliable friend. He's a great leader. And I think we've also been able to explore the emotionally vulnerable parts of his personality. We've explored that he dates quite a bit when he's single, but a lot of that comes out of the fact that he's lonely. Frankly, I think his relationship with Annie has made that even harder. I don't know that any relationship he's going to have will live up to the connection he has with her. We get into that a bit this season.

OK!: What do you see as his biggest character flaw?

CG: I guess that depends on who's asking! I think his great strength, which is how good he is at his job, he's great at keeping secrets. He's a great spy. That very much sabotages his personal life. I've always described him with the writers, when it comes to relationships: he's an amazing guy to date and meet. He's a terrible boyfriend. He's a mystery, he doesn't open up a lot about who he is or where he's been. In the first couple of seasons we had so much fun every time Annie was asking about how he lost his sight and he'd tell her a different story, because that's who he was. In a a relationship, that can be very different.

OK!: Speaking of relationships, we got some tweets about people shipping for Calderson. What are your feelings on that? Have you ever watched the YouTube videos of you guys touching?

CG: laughs No! I haven't! I will now. That is amazing. Listen, I think the heat between those two is undeniable.

youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1FU3vZK9ho&w=560&h=315

OK!: Do you enjoy your scenes together?

CG: Yeah, we have a great time. Hill Harper was such a great addition to the show last year. He's a blast to work with. A true pro, but he has so much fun. He likes to try different things. We're able to play and find new colors.

OK!: The show has gotten so much bigger every season. Was there a location, or stunt, or storyline that showed you how far the show has come?

CG: Based on the first episode, which I just saw last night, I think it's maybe the most emotionally engaging season we've done so far. There are a couple of different moments in this episode that surprised me. As Annie comes back into the fold and tries to find her place again, it turns out to be much more difficult than I think she was hoping it would be. Our team is hit in a personal place, and they suffer some very personal losses. It kicks off this season with them coming to grips with that, and trying to get to the bottom of something that hits close to home. It's just ripe for big, big emotions. We still go abroad! We're still in Colombia and Paris and in the French Alps and Istanbul. The world is still big but the difference is the emotional impact is bigger.

OK!: This is the little show that could. TV has gotten so much grittier and nastier. Do you feel like you have to compete with the grittier Breaking Bads of the world?

CG: No. No. I don't feel that way. Listen, our show is not Breaking Bad and we're not Game of Thrones. That's just not what this show is. All we've ever tried to do is continue to try and make our show the best version of our show that we know how to make. What that has translated into is opening up the world of the show with the visual side, going abroad, going to Colombia, going to Spain, going to Venice. And then trying to make the emotional truth of our show as honest as we can. We've really found a sweet spot in season 5.

OK!: There was talk during the upfronts of using Kari Matchett's real baby on the show.  Did that happen, or—

CG: Yeah, we do! Yeah! That's him.

OK!: Did you work with him? Is he a little diva?

CG: I'm dying to work with him. I'm constantly pitching, 'Please let Auggie baby-sit. Please let Auggie baby-sit.' That hasn't happened yet, but my fingers are crossed. No, he is just an absolute joy to be around. We all turn into babies when he comes on set. There are pictures of us crawling around on the floor. The whole day is about making Jude laugh.

OK!: You have a new character, with Nic Bishop being on the show. What can you tell us about his role and are you working with him directly?

CG: Nic's a fantastic addition to the show. He's obviously this roguishly handsome, obnoxiously charming dude, and he's a fantastic actor. He's playing this role that's a lot of fun. He's kind of a dude's dude. He's incredibly wealthy. He runs this highly successful security firm. He loves to get his hands dirty. He loves to work in the field. Of course, he's probably going to be attracted to Annie like a moth to a flame. Which is going to be very interesting! When we meet him, we're in the same boat as Annie. He's confident, he's good at what he does, but what are his motives? We don't know. We don't know if he's on our side or not. That stays unclear for quite a while.

OK!: As an actor, where do you enjoy Auggie being with Annie? Do you prefer the more difficult scenes apart, do you like them together? Which is more fun to play?

CG: it's always more fun when we're in the same room. When we're on the phone, we're actually talking to Margaret, our script supervisor. Margaret is so wonderful! She's highly underrated as an actress! But it's always more fun when we're in scenes together and standing together and can play with each other. And it doesn't matter what the scenes are so much, because we work so well together and we have a familiarity after doing it for so many years. There's an ease to it that allows a lot of freedom to explore and play and find those little kernels that make the scenes fun.

OK!: What is your favorite location you've ever filmed? It sounds like you have exciting ones coming up.

CG: Oh my God. Istanbul is my favorite, but I've got to say there are a lot of close seconds. Hong Kong was pretty fantastic. In fast, our second to last epiosde was one of my favorite episodes of all time. That city was such an active part of the episode. Stephen Kay, our directing producer, did it in such a way that really took advantage of where we were. Berlin was fantastic. It's really hard to choose, but if I had to pick a top, it would be Istanbul. I'm happy we're going back next year.