Actor Tray Chaney looks back on career, success of ‘The Wire’

Actor Tray Chaney sits down with Yahoo Finance Live's Allie Canal to reflect on his iconic role in the HBO series "The Wire", streaming innovations in music and movies, and his career.

Video transcript

SEANA SMITH: Well, as the streaming wars heat up, we are taking a look at the state of Hollywood right now, because there's so much at play, when we're seeing these huge shifts within the industry. We want to bring in Alexandra Canal, who is joined by someone who knows a thing or two about some of these changes. Allie?

ALLIE CANAL: Thank you, Seana. Joining me is actor Tray Chaney, a.k.a. Poot from "The Wire." Tray, I know you have a lot of fans here at Yahoo Finance. But there's a lot to talk about within the space right now. I want to first start with access. "The Wire" debuted in 2002, but it's currently streaming on HBO Max. So you now have a whole new generation with access to that content. Have you felt that with fans and people reaching out to you, saying they're just watching the show now, 20 years later?

TRAY CHANEY: Of course. And it's amazing to be on here with you, Allie, with Yahoo Finance. It's just a surreal moment. When I got casted for "The Wire" in 2002, I did not know that they were still going to be talking about this incredible show 20 years later, you know?

And now, like you said, with the social-media era and, you know, with "The Wire" streaming on HBO, HBO Max, so many fans, every single day, are coming up, saying, Poot, you know, 'cause that's the character that I played. And they're like, I'm just watching "The Wire," and it's one of the most groundbreaking, critically-acclaimed shows of all time.

And now, 20 years later, to see me back with the same team-- David Simon, Nina Noble, George Pelecanos, Ed Burns-- with me playing a police officer now on HBO Max's "We Own This City." I play Officer Gordon Hawk. So it's like a full-circle moment for me.

ALLIE CANAL: Definitely full circle. And I think "The Wire" has been praised as one of the greatest shows due to the cultural significance of the series. You guys touched on a lot of heavy topics, like gun violence, crime, police brutality, a lot of things that we're going through today. So how do you think this show would be received if it debuted tomorrow as opposed to 20 years ago?

TRAY CHANEY: Well, you know, "The Wire" was definitely before its time. And while the show was airing from 2002 to 2008, it wasn't really receiving a lot of praise. But like I said, you know, with it being before its time and what you just mentioned, if it was to air again, like, tomorrow, you would see that the same issues that's been going on that David Simon and them pointed out years ago-- they're still going on today. So it was definitely relatable back then, and it's still relatable in this day and age, in 2022.

ALLIE CANAL: And you've been in the business a long time now. I'm curious to get your perspective, as an actor, when it comes to NFTs, when it comes to the streaming revolution, technology at your fingertips. How have you seen all of that impact the industry as well as your work as a creative?

TRAY CHANEY: Well, as far as, like, the NFTs and the streaming industry, I was just having a conversation with an artist a couple of weeks ago. I mean, things were definitely different, 'cause I'm a hip-hop artist as well. So when people had to actually go and buy CDs in the store, of course, that was-- you know, you really could see those numbers and see how many units you were really moving.

But now it's right at our fingertips. You could look at your phone. You can go to Apple Music, Tidal, Spotify, and any of these sites, and it's just a stream, you know? So it's just-- you know, with the whole NFT business and everything, it's just really changed. And it's almost like we have to adapt and adjust to the times that's going on right now.

ALLIE CANAL: In your upcoming film "We Need to Talk," that's been branded as a romantic comedy. I've actually written about how that genre is dead, at least at the box office right now, which I'm very sad about. So tell me how this film can help fill that void. And talk to me a little bit about the distribution, right? Because it's all digital, correct?

TRAY CHANEY: Yeah, it's all digital. "We Need to Talk" is written, produced, directed by a good friend of mine, Todd Wolfe. He's out of Philly. We shot the movie in Philadelphia. And this was, you know, a first time for me playing a video gamer. I play this video gamer, Tango_Unchained. And the star of the movie is James Maslow. He plays Great Scott.

And you know, this video gamer-- he's so involved with just, you know, being this famous guy who runs this business. But at the same time, you can see a little bit of neglect when it comes to, you know, friends and family. I'm like-- I wouldn't, like, call myself the guy that tells it like it is. I'm one of his friends that's like, look, your girl might be out there in the streets. If she told you she needed to talk today, and you didn't pay her no attention, she could be running around with anybody.

It's a rom-com. It's an amazing, amazing, you know, movie. And right now, it is available on all digital streaming platforms. And that's the way-- just like with music, that's the way that it's able to connect with more people, because more people have access straight on their phone.