For the second season of the ABC sitcom “Abbott Elementary,” William Stanford Davis, who plays the always-surprising school janitor Mr. Johnson, has been upped from a recurring role to a regular cast member.
What did he make of the character when he first auditioned? “Mr. Johnson was a little strange!” said Davis. “I was like, wow, this guy’s a little different from me, but I’ll give it a shot, I’m an actor. He’s just so outspoken and he reminded me of my paternal grandmother, who had no filter. That’s kind of the template that I used for him, to see if I could bring some of her ‘isms’ to him.”
Davis’ first screen credit dates back to 1995 on “The Bold and the Beautiful” playing — hang on, is this right: A custodian? “You’re right! It’s a full circle moment.” His resume in the years since includes everything from “Ray Donovan” to “Snowpiercer” to an episode of “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” "Abbott” is an obvious high point in his career. When asked about a worst moment, Davis recalled a memorably embarrassing audition for “NCIS.”
