‘One Thing in the Influencer Space is, There’s Always Going to be Somebody Younger,’ Says Jasmeet Raina, Setting Up Season 3 of LATE BLOOMER

By BILL HARRIS Special to The Lede   Fans of LATE BLOOMER have no reason to worry. There are plenty of laughs and ridiculous situations on display in the third season of the Crave Original comedy, which premieres with two new episodes on Friday, April 24. But there are some significantly poignant moments as well, to the point that star, creator, director, and executive producer Jasmeet Raina was asked a blunt question: does he have any aspirations to become a straightforward dramatic actor down the line? Because he seems to have the chops to take on that challenge. “You think so? Huh. That would be kind of cool,” said Raina, a popular comedian, storyteller, and online content creator. “I feel like there are so many people who started off as funny guys or comedians and went on to do really great dramatic roles. Like, Ryan Gosling started off as a goofball on my Canadian TV, and then just became one of the best dramatic actors. Bill Burr is another guy, I watched him in THE MANDALORIAN and I thought, he’s incredible as an actor.” Might there be any hurdles to such a move? “I feel like sometimes comedy is harder to do, and if you do the harder thing first, then maybe drama would come a little bit easier – but that’s not to say dramatic acting is easy or anything,” Raina said. “So I would definitely, absolutely, 100% take a dramatic role, just to change things up. Regardless of what it is, I’d love to be in something where I’m only acting, and don’t have to worry about, like, what that set light is going to look like, or what pants somebody has to wear.” Raina certainly wears the pants, and much more, on the semi-autobiographical LATE BLOOMER, where he plays 30-something Punjabi Canadian Jasmeet Dutta, an online celebrity trying to balance his budding career, his romantic prospects, and the expectations of his family. Early in Season 3, the lead character admits that he’s on “auto-pilot” professionally, even as new opportunities present themselves. The necessity of keeping up, and keeping ahead, in the online world has the potential to overwhelm a person, as Raina knows first-hand. “You see a bit of that this season, because there’s a younger, cooler, new guy coming up that (the lead character) is constantly being compared to,” said Raina, referring to a character played by Prayag Mishra. “One thing in the influencer space is, there’s always going to be somebody younger. There’s always going to be the new hottest thing. That has been the case in entertainment forever, but it’s whether or not you decide to fall into the trap of thinking like that. And it’s easy to fall into that trap.” There is a path that avoids it, though. “If you are interesting, and unique, and you have a specific perspective, I think people will always want to watch and support you, regardless of what you’re trying to do,” Raina said. “But then, sometimes we just get caught up in the hype cycles, and the trends. You know, I have to beat this guy, I have to be the No. 1 this, I have to be the No. 1 that. Falling victim to that is a tough thing. So just try to be yourself as much as possible, because there isn’t anybody like you. That’s a very, very SESAME STREET motto of the day, a lesson of the day.” As far as the other characters and the wider storylines on LATE BLOOMER are concerned, Raina reiterated that the show deliberately avoids a traditional sitcom format. “I think we’re just being as honest and truthful as possible about certain dynamics and relationships,” Raina said. “I don’t really try to shy away from showing interpersonal conflict within the characters as well. They’re all best friends or family members, but they go through different ups and downs, and I want to be able to show that. Yes, there are moments where they’re all hanging out, and everything’s great, and everything’s fun, but then there are moments where that’s not the case at all. How do they navigate that? It’s not like there’s a conflict that happens in every episode, and by the end of the episode they’re all friends again, and everybody’s great. That’s just not the formula with this thing.” Raina has a great way to sum it all up, with appropriate “dramatic” flair. “There are legit arcs and journeys,” he said. “Everybody on this show is a LATE BLOOMER, and you just kind of see that pan out.”   billharristv@gmail.com @billarris_tv