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07/06/2022 08:30 AMMost folks would surmise that if you finally achieved a dream after years of hard work and dedication that you would broadcast it to the world, especially when that dream is of being cast in a major Hollywood movie. But Madison native and actor Cooper Rivers didn’t tell anyone but his family when he was cast in a featured role in the latest Matrix installment, Matrix: Resurrections.
Cooper’s love for performing goes back to his Daniel Hand High School (DHHS) days when he performed in shows with the DHHS Drama Department and Choir. Those lessons, many learned from his fellow students and his music teacher Ron Soja, helped instill in him not just a desire to perform, but confidence as well.
“I did theatre in high school. The first thing I did was actually in Branford at the Puppet House Theatre. I did a show there when I was young and acting just kind of took over from there,” says Cooper. “I just really got into it. I did theatre in middle school, and then in high school at Hand and Show Choir at hand as well. Honestly, for almost as long as I can remember I’ve wanted to act. I really didn’t have any interest in other subjects. After a senior year production of The Wiz and Father Knows Best, and I got cast as the father in Father Knows Best, and I think that was the first time I had a lead role being all of 17 years old and having that responsibility, and I think that was the moment where I said, ‘This is something I really want to pursue.’”
Cooper’s family has a strong history in acting. His uncle, Robert Mailhouse, is a well-known face in Hollywood having appeared in numerous roles from Melrose Place to Seinfeld-(he plays Elaine’s boyfriend in “The Beard” episode. He also plays drums and toured the world in Keanu Reeves’ rock band-Dog Star). Cooper says his uncle’s talents had a big impact on him as he began to develop as a performer.
“I would see him in stuff when I was really young and I think that got implanted in my brain,” says Cooper. “Just knowing someone who was actually doing that and working as an actor definitely affected me.”
Cooper majored in acting at Pace University and then started auditioning. Cooper says it took years of dogged determination and remaining focused to pursue his dream.
“I studied in college in New York, and did some theatre there and some small parts in some independent films, after graduating I wasn’t really doing anything, but then a buddy of mine who I was living with presented the idea of driving across the country to LA and moving there indefinitely,” says Cooper. “I said ‘Yeah, let’s do it!.’”
Cooper says he auditioned for years for commercials and had some success. He also worked in the hospitality business.
“As most actors do, I have been working in that industry (hospitality) for my whole life pretty much, and doing that and slowly started getting some random auditions on my own without any representation, and that’s how the Matrix audition eventually came about,” says Cooper.
Despite the high profile audition, Cooper’s experience kept him grounded as months went by with no word. Cooper had pretty much forgotten about that audition and was concentrating on managing a restaurant.
He auditioned in October of 2019, and “I heard nothing back. Then I got called by the casting director to come in and do some more reading,” Cooper says. “And I never got called back and I just assumed I didn’t get it. Then the pandemic came, we were in lockdown for a few months and in late May I got call from a producer and said they wanted to hire for this small part, but it was a speaking role. They had already started shooting and were filming in Berlin, because everything was shut down. But I didn’t tell anybody until after it came out. I didn’t even tell my friends until it came out and they started asking me. I think the only people I told my mother, my brother and my wife….”
Cooper says the filming in Berlin was an incredible experience, especially in light of the pandemic shutdown. Working with some of the best talent in the business, including the actor Keanu Reeves, and Lana Wachowski, the director/writer, was a dream come true for Cooper.
“It was wild in terms of size of the movie. I had never been on a set that big before, so it was so cool to see that team work, and watching them do it in the middle of a pandemic,” Cooper says. “It was so fun to wake up every morning and work in Berlin. It was a really special time for me. Reflecting on why I was there and the fact this it what I really wanted to do.”
He says he suffered from occasional bouts of imposter syndrome, or feeling like he might not be truly worthy of the role.
“But everyone there made me feel so welcome, from the top down, everyone associated with the project was so welcoming and professional. It was a truly a fun time. It was really special and I met so many hard-working people…getting on set for the first time was just incredible. It was such a team vibe, and I felt so comfortable with everyone.”
Cooper remains pretty philosophical about it all. Though the Matrix gig was exciting and is leading to more work, Cooper says he is content working in the hospitality field where he has developed a fulfilling career. He also enjoys surfing with friends.
“It’s such a volatile industry. I have a lot of friends who work as waiters and they will land a big role, a TV shoot, or some big project and they will shoot it, and then out of nowhere it gets canceled and they’re back to being unemployed. It’s a competitive industry,” says Cooper. “When I booked the Matrix role the pandemic was in full force, the restaurant had shut down and none of us were really doing anything. And then it came about I had booked the Matrix, so it came at the right time… because I’ve heard so many horror stories about people getting cast in big movies and then getting cut out of it, I wanted to keep it all on the down low until it actually came out. My thing nowadays is if I get a booking I don’t tell people. It’s great to get random messages from old friends who’ve seen something and reaching out to me after they saw something I was in. It was great to go to the premiere and see I didn’t get cut out of it.”
Cooper says for him it was the experience of working in a foreign country, working with some of the best talents in the industry, and especially all of it occurring during COVID shutdown that meant the most to him. Cooper says enjoying the ride is what brings him satisfaction, not fame or seeing his name in the credits.
Cooper doesn’t consider the Matrix role to be his big break, but it has led him to better representation and other work.
“You go, you read and audition, and once you do it, you just have to forget it and move on to the next one. There are so many moving parts in this industry,” says Cooper. “You can read something really well, and it can be a harrowing process sometimes, because there’s very little over-night successes. I love working in the food industry and have a passion for it so I have a great situation with that. We work at night, audition during the day, and try and perfect the craft. But there is no better feeling than doing something you were meant to do.”