Nick Jonas‘ lead character will explore and struggle with his homosexuality in Season 2 of DirecTV’s “Kingdom.”
In the series, Jonas’ Nate Kulina is an up and coming prize fighter, who after being sidelined with an injury must rethink his entire life’s existence.
“A big part of that is his sexuality,” Jonas told TheWrap’s executive editor Joseph Kapsch during an exclusive sit-down on the set of the series. “What I think is great is the audience kind of peels the onion apart piece by piece and it’s a slow burn in that sense.”
When asked if he feels a deeper sense of responsibility to the gay community because of the character, Jonas said: “For me it’s about doing all I can to tell the story as honestly as possible in the best way I know how to tell it,” he said.
“I respect the struggle of the character and I know it’s one a lot of people already told me they relate to and have gone through a very similar journey. The struggle for acceptance, which I feel really passionately about.”
In the second part of his interview (below), Jonas talked about the camraderie that he has built with his co-stars as they train just like real fighters.
“I think anytime you fight with somebody, there’s a bond that’s built,” he said. “We did a boot camp before last season where we got thrust into the fighting world. That bond was really built there.”
But there have been tough moments on set as well, according to Jonas. “I think any time art reflects reality it can be incredibly tough,” he said. “My family and I are incredibly close and I’m very thankful for that, but it didn’t come easily after the journey we had together. It’s great when you can channel some of that and use it in your work. It does make some of those tough family scenes a little bit harder.”
“Kingdom” Season 2 debuts Wednesday, Oct. 14 at 9 p.m./8c on the Audience Network for DirecTV and U-Verse customers.
Watch more of Nick Jonas‘ interview here: