Christopher Gorham Talks About Portraying a Blind Character on ‘Covert Affairs’

On the USA series Covert Affairs, Christopher Gorham portrays CIA agent Auggie Anderson, who is blind. Gorham himself is not visually impaired, and he spoke about the challenges of playing a blind character on the show.

christopher-gorham-covert-affairsOn the USA series Covert Affairs, Christopher Gorham portrays CIA agent Auggie Anderson, who is blind.  Gorham himself is not visually impaired, and he spoke to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette about the challenges of playing a blind character on the show.

One of the first hurdles was that Gorham was not allowed to wear sunglasses when auditioning.  However, after being cast in the role there were many others. He says, “When I got the part, it was very important to me to get it right not just as a physicality of my performance but the emotional part and re-create it as close to real life if I lost sight.”  He adds, “I feel like I get better at it every year.  It is just a different kind of focus to ignore visual stimulants. It is exciting as an actor and allows me to see things in different ways.”

Challenges continue to rise as the series progresses.  In the first season, his character encounters an ex-girlfriend from before Auggie lost his eyesight, which was difficult for Gorham.  He confesses,”I wanted to have that visual communication with her, and it was frustrating not being able to do that.”

 
Despite the challenges he faced, Gorham doesn’t think he deserves praise — he thinks any actor would be compelled to do portray the character’s disability accurately.  He explains, “I don’t think I deserve any additional credit for doing this additional work.  When you incorporate something like this disability, it is important to get it right.”

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