Born and raised in South Central, Los Angeles, Tristen J. Winger discovered his love for acting at a young age.
Photo Credits: Jen Garcia
Growing up he attended the Amazing Grace Conservatory (AGC) co-founded by Wendy Raquel Robinson, where he was able to further hone his craft in theater, bringing characters to life on stage. Tristen went on to attend the King Drew Magnet High School of Medicine and Science. There he became friends with Issa Rae, the woman would eventually give him his first big break with The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl. While Tristen originally thought he would go into the medical field, even studying science, math, and engineering at California State University Northridge, but the arts kept calling his name. While working at the Apple store he landed one of his first big jobs on Insecure, and he has been booking back-to-back film and television projects ever since.
Currently he can be seen starring on CBS’ brand new, comedy series So Help Me Todd opposite Marcia Gay Harden and Skylar Astin. The series which premiered in late September follows Todd (Astin), a private detective who is offered a position as an in-house investigator at his mom’s (Harden) extremely successful law firm to get his act together. He reluctantly agrees, if Mom promises to let her adult son be who he wants to be. Tristen shines on the show as Lyle, a silently judgmental, veteran know-it-all detective whose arched nemesis quickly becomes the newest addition to their team: Todd.
You can check out the trailer here!
Aside from working in front of the camera, Tristen frequently lends his voice to projects. Recently, he starred in the award-winning podcast We Stay Looking (6 episodes), which was produced by HBO Max.
Chilled had the pleasure of chatting with Tristen to learn more about his favorite champagne, his newfound appreciation for the French 75 and his bartending past.
Tell us about the projects you are working on.
I’m up in Vancouver, BC, Canada filming our show So Help Me Todd. We got picked up for a full season, so I’m very excited!
With your busy schedule, what do you like to do with your downtime?
Where I stay is a block from the marina, so I love going on walks there and watching the dogs at the park. But I also really enjoyed going jet skiing on the open water. I had no idea they went that fast, I love it.
When you go out to eat, where do you like to dine?
I’m usually too tired to cook so I order from Cactus Club Cafe or walk around the corner from me in Yaletown to get pizza from Capo and Spritz.
What types of dishes do you typically order?
I love seafood so I’ll get a branzino. I try not to do “basic.” When my friends visited me, I took them to Capo and one of them came up with the idea of getting the Margherita pizza with pepperonis. Genius idea!
Any favorite bars?
I really like Banter Room in Yaletown. They have bomb-ass cocktails.
What drinks do you order when out? Favorite drink?
I love a Whiskey Sour, and I was recently introduced to a French 75. It’s so refreshingly perfect.
Do you prepare drinks at home?
I’ll drink at home on occasion. I love a glass of champagne or red wine. Every glass of champagne should be a celebration so it’s Veuve Clicqout for me.
Tell us about your home bar. What is it stocked with?
The home bar is fairly simple: Uncle Nearest whiskey, Casamigos Reposado, a pinot noir, and my Veuve Clicqout champagne of course. I don’t like super sweet mixers so just sparkling water for my home cocktails.
Have you ever been a bartender?
About 15 years ago my girlfriend at the time convinced me to go to a week-long bartending class, to eventually earn some extra money. I had just turned 21, wasn’t really drinking and when the instructor asked about everyone’s favorite drink, I said mine: Piña Colada. Everyone in class laughed.
If you could share a drink with anyone, who would it be?
Samuel L. Jackson seems like he has the BEST stories. I’d love to sit down with him!
The post Chillin’ With Tristen J. Winger of So Help Me Todd appeared first on Chilled Magazine.
Source: Mixology News
