The Irish actor is well known for his role as Dr. Cormac Hayes in Grey’s Anatomy.
Richard told the Sunday Independent what life in LA is really like working as an actor and why he nearly gave up before landing this role, “It’s great but it’s a different world. I’ve always found it quite a tough, unforgiving place… If you’re working, people love you and if you’re not, they don’t care. There are so many homeless people now and there’s a juxtaposition of people who have massive wealth, and then people who can’t treat their mental health issues and live in extreme poverty”.
Speaking of times when he didn’t think he was cut out for the world of acting he said, “It got so bad I was thinking of packing it in. I was thinking, ‘Enough is enough’”.
“There are big egos in this business. I find the biggest egos are the actors who are nearly famous or a little bit famous. The top guys are more secure,” he continued.
How did he feel when he got this job? He recalled the moment as a relief, “I flew out and landed on the Friday and I had an email from my agent saying ‘Will you meet the Grey’s Anatomy people on Tuesday?” Richard was then offered the part and felt at ease going home to his wife.
“I was just feeling such relief on that journey. I’ve had to take that flight when things haven’t worked out so I was just really grateful that this time they had,” he said.
We are delighted that he got the role, well deserved!