In the latest of a string of cast interviews, Chris Messina has given an interview discussing his portrayal of numbers-man Reese on HBO show The Newsroom.

Talking with Vulture he says, “I’ve played a lot of nice guys, so it was fun to play the bad guy, especially a bad guy who doesn’t think he’s the bad guy. He’s just concerned about the numbers.”

Messina’s on-screen mother is played by none other than Jane Fonda, and he describes working with the actress:

I mean, she walks in a room and you’re in awe. And then she starts to act. I walked away from those episodes with her thinking, I’m a lazy actor.

It also sounds as if he felt some intimidation going on set, saying “I love being a part of that show, although I was scared on it every day because the language was so hard and the bar was set so high by Jeff Daniels and that cast. I wanted to rise to the occasion.” After seeing Messina’s work on the show, we don’t think he has anything to worry about.

How do you respond to Messina as the Newsroom bad guy? Do his thoughts make Reese a more sympathetic character?