It’s quite obvious that, while making Dope Thief, Brian Tyree Henry and Wagner Moura developed a friendship that will last a lifetime. In the new Apple TV+ series, the actors play two men who pose as DEA agents to rob drug dealers while both characters battle addiction. The premise is enough to be compelling, but it’s the connection between Henry and Moura that ties it all together.
The show deals with addiction, fraught family relationships and crime. Speaking with Parade, Henry, who is also an executive producer on the project, spoke about the heavy topics of the show. He assured us, “We have each other,” gesturing to Moura. “This support system is tight so we’re good.”
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Their bond isn’t just part of the story; it’s the process. Over the course of the conversation, Brian and Wagner spoke candidly about building trust with one another, portraying vulnerability and creating a set environment rooted in care and compassion. Their mutual respect and shared investment in the work shine through, both in how they talk about each other and in how they bring Ray and Manny to life.
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I was expecting Dope Thief to be a little bit more of a romp. It gets pretty heavy pretty quickly!
Brian Tyree Henry: [Laughs.] We shoot you right through there, right out of the gate.
But it’s the relationship of your two characters that really grounds the show. It feels really lived in. Can you talk about developing that relationship?
Brian: It really is about the person, right? Wagner already, in and of itself, is one of the most amazing talents I’ve ever seen. But then, when you get to meet the man, it just… I can’t say enough about how grateful I am that I now have a friend for life, a brother for life, truly. There was something kindred in our meeting, and something–I don’t want to say otherworldly. But it was bigger than us, and we knew, in order to tell the truth of Ray and Manny, it involved a lot of care. It involved a lot of closeness and involved a lot of vulnerability.
And I’m so grateful that Wagner is all those things as a person. And then when he added those layers to the character, it just elevated everything. Because you’re seeing these two men who have been in each other’s lives in the most dire of circumstances and had so many restrictions placed upon them, and they’re just trying to survive. And I think that it would not have worked in any other way if it didn’t have someone who has the spirit like Wagner and the heart that Wagner has. So I know that I walked away from it a better person. A better actor but a better person, especially because Wagner was a part of it. We really wanted people to see that. If you have this story where you’re following these two, kind of like petty criminals that you know are kind of anti-heroes. If the relationship isn’t there, the care isn’t there, it’s going to be hard to follow. And I don’t know. I’ll spend the rest of my life thanking you, man, for doing this show.
Wagner Moura: Are you recording this?
Brian: I really will. He made me more tender, and he made it safe for me to be vulnerable. And to show those parts and edges of myself, which I think people need to see. Because it’s really easy to see two characters like this who are out here, trapping and doing what they’re doing, and not care about them. But I hope that people, when they watch it, really, truly care about the relationship and the love that many and Ray have for each other.
Wagner: I don’t know what to say. I’m 48…
Brian: Why do you feel the need to tell everyone your age? [Laughs.]
Wagner: [Laughs.] Because you said I was 51!
Brian: I thought I heard someone say it…
Wagner: On the day of my birthday!
Brian: [Laughs.]
Wagner: I’m 48. And in my life, I have been doing this since I was 15. For me, from the bottom of my heart, what really matters nowadays is the encounter. It is the people that I meet. Of course, I want the things I do to be super successful. I want these people to see it. But what really matters to me, the people that I meet, and the relationships, the places that I live and the things that I learned. And meeting Brian was a very, very special thing. He is a very special thing in my life. This dude took care of me since day one till today. I think we sort of mirrored the relationship of Ray and Manny. Because I was in a very vulnerable situation in many moments throughout the show. And I knew I had him there, and I still do.
Brian: You always will, man.
Wagner: And the other thing that you try to do as an actor is to work with the best actors. You want to elevate your game. You want to be with the best. And Brian is one of the best American actors working here, and I couldn’t be happier with that too.
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Brian, this is your first time as an executive producer. Can you talk to me about the things you were really excited to get to do as part of this project from that new perspective?
Brian: There’s a phrase that goes around on sets: “It starts from the top.” That’s the phrase, and that has to do with a lot of things. Mostly it has to do with morale and energy and care. Because I’m on the ground, I know what it’s like to have the 5:00 a.m. pickup, to sit in hair and makeup, what this prep looks. “Okay, then costume happens. How long does it take for these grips to get this up? The setups look like this.” I care about that stuff because there’s every individual involved. It takes an individual in that department to do this thing and make it happen. It’s a collaboration.
No one person is bigger than this show. I would say that all the time; no one person is bigger than the show, and that includes me. We are all coming together. We are all leaving our families, leaving our homes. We’re lying in the middle of the street when it’s 30 degrees. We are doing all these things, and I absolutely cannot do it without them. There’s no way I could do it all. And all I really wanted was for everyone to understand that I knew that. And that I felt that, that they were seen and that they were taken care of. Because we’re asking people to come and run around and follow us in the land of make believe for however many hours a day, for the greater good of hopefully making an amazing show. And because I’ve done it so many times, I’ve been on different sets and been on different TV shows, I knew the inner machinations. But the thing that people can’t teach you is how to care, how to really be there for people. They don’t teach you how to do that. And so what I just wanted to do is just show that part.
I also loved it because I got to go to every department. I was like, “Oh, this is what the set deck looks like. That’s cool.” Or the music that is going to be playing. I can be that bridge and tell my actors like, “Hey man, you have no idea that Little Simz is going to be the theme song!”
The theme is really good.
Brian: Oh come on! Slap slappity slap! So I wanted everyone to feel like they are truly a part of that seasoning and sauce that goes into this special stew that is Dope Thief. Every single person had a hand on a brick that built that foundation. And I just always wanted to always let them know that, because then they come back and they want to be there and they’re all rooting for the show. So this show belongs to every single person that had a hand in it, every single person. And I just wanted to be the bridge to let them know that that’s what it was. It was grueling, but it was also the most satisfying thing I’ve ever done in my career.
The first two episodes of Dope Thief are available to stream on Apple TV+.
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