Your mind doesn’t really start to play tricks on you until you met brothers Ross and Clark Edwards. Mind Games, the new ABC television series, has more twists than you can possible think of. The Edwards brothers found Edwards & Associates on the belief that people’s actions are influenced by their environment in ways they’re unaware of. So the Edwards and their friends decide to help… but on a con artist level. Very slick!
Alongside the Edwards is their fellow friend Latrell Griffin, played by Cedric Sanders. Sanders recently met with EBONY to go more in detail about his character and the show.
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EBONY: Tell us about your character in Mind Games.
Cedric Sanders: I play Latrell Griffin. Latrell is from a roughneck wood of Chicago. He is very smart, but an uptight young man. Ross, the lead character played by Christian Slater, convinced him to take an interest in their business with him and his bipolar brother named Clark. As Latrell, I try to keep them on track. I write the checks, I make the appointments, I pay the bills and do everything. Latrell is very tactical and he thinks he knows what is best. He is the moral sensor of the show, and made a life for himself that was not expected.
EBONY: Do you and Latrell share any similarities personality wise?
CS: Not really. Latrell is really great at math and numbers. That’s definitely not me. But my girlfriend would say I think I am right most of the time, just like Latrell.
EBONY: What type of characters do you like to portray?
CS: I like to portray different characters with high moral standards. I had the opportunity to play a character that wasn’t like that and was away from the norm. I played a character from Law and Order: SVU named Michael Wedmore [a drug dealer who raped a 19-year-old music student.] I really enjoyed playing him because that part was a tremendous opportunity.
EBONY: What else is interesting about Clark and Ross?
CS: They are very dynamic! They are just like oil and vinegar to each other. Clark is a bipolar genius. He knows the science and is the brains behind everything. Ross is the con artist who is very slick. He knows how to convince people to do things he wants with his charm and by the way he talks. That’s something that Clark doesn’t necessarily have. So they need each other.
EBONY: So what is Edwards & Associates about?
CS: We solve people’s problems by changing [some]one’s mind who’s maybe causing grief or drama in someone’s life. We set up scenarios and do the scientific research to make someone’s life easier by changing someone else’s mind. Everybody has a role in this.
EBONY: So what is everybody’s role in the business?
CS:. We have a graduate student named Miles who is just as smart as Clark. He is also Clark’s aide as well. Although he does not do the science as well Clark does, he is next in line. He is like the protégé of Clark and he is the next guy we go to. Then we have the beautiful actress Megan. Megan uses her beauty and her acting skills to con people in whatever scenario we decide to create.
I am the accountant who makes sure we are in good standing and makes sure we are sticking to a moral foundation. Sometimes they drag me into the role-playing, and I always hate it. There is also Sam Gordon. Sam is a con artist from Ross’s past. She is basically a female version of Ross.
EBONY: So do you think these tricks can work in real life?
CS: I think so. I think they can.
EBONY: Are there any twists to catch us off guard with the show?
CS: I think a lot of things might catch you off guard. I believe that the psychology, science and terms they use are real. I think some of them are.
EBONY: How did the group for the business come together?
CS: Miles met Clark in school and I met Ross because I was working for him. Megan came along because when the brothers created the company, they needed an actress. Sam is just from Ross’s past. So when the brothers decided to create the company, they pulled in the people they decided they wanted. Sam just barged her way in.
Mind Games airs every Tuesday on ABC at 10/9c.
