Have you ever thought about how some people are just as captivating offscreen as they are on camera? Well, cast your gaze towards the stars of USA Network’s “Anna Pigeon.” I assure you, the offscreen antics of Ronnie Rowe and Cooper Levy could rival the humor and charm they bring to their roles! Now, let’s set the stage a bit—imagine this: an internet outage, struggling to get a reliable signal, and desperate prayers for the connection to hold just long enough for an interview with these two amazing actors. It felt like some cosmic joke, considering the show’s intertwining of nature’s unpredictability with human connections! With all the mishaps resulting in a delightful exchange, it’s almost like a scene pulled right from the series itself. After all, doesn’t that essence just embody Anna Pigeon perfectly?

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If you thought you’ve been enjoying Anna Pigeon, I assure you that some of the faces behind USA Network’s latest hit series are just as entertaining offscreen as they are on.

To set the groundwork, despite some technical difficulties on my end — an internet outage, a few cell phone bars, and crossed fingers mere seconds before settling in with Anna Pigeon stars Ronnie Rowe and Cooper Levy — a series of mishaps turned into a purely fun, hilarious, delightful exchange.

And truthfully, nothing embodies Anna Pigeon more, right?

Anna Pigeon has been a force of nature as the Nevada Barr book series has come to life, anchored by the talent, grace, and charm of a television veteran, Tracy Spiridakos.

And right there supporting her are Anna’s Men, who each bring something out of the spunky, complex, and wholly endearing character.

On one hand, we have the easygoing, sensitive, and sweet bartender, Jesse, who brings out Anna’s humor and heart.

On the other, we have stable, devoted kindred spirit Frederick Stanton, who manages to pull out Anna’s vulnerability.

And for some viewers speculating about a love triangle on the horizon, Rowe and Levy’s easy banter, warmth, humor, and charm, as well as their passion for their respective characters, will surely endear them to you.

I know they charmed the heck out of me! So, dive into our fun interview with these lovely gentlemen below

Congratulations, of course, on the series because it’s been doing so well. I, for one, am super excited about USA Network getting back into scripted dramas. So, what has been the fan reception to the series thus far?

Cooper: So far it’s been amazing. The online fan base has not only been carried through from Ronnie, from Tracy, from Tricia, from Paulina, from everyone that’s a part of it. All the cast has their own fan bases that have just rallied together over, I like to say, Tracy Pigeon.

And people love it. And I think it’s just such a supportive group of people that want to see more. So that’s really nice.

And it’s cool to see, you know, people posting these fan things. There was a fan that posted something about meeting up from, like, the Netherlands to halfway around the world. They were just all fans of Tracy and the show.

And they made Anna Pigeon bracelets. Stuff like that is cool.

That is so cool. I love that. And of course, I love the show. It feels like the setting itself; it’s like its own character.

So what has it been like, sort of, adapting to the wilderness element and everything else?

Ronnie: I’ll go this time. Honestly, every day going to the set was such a joy and a pleasure because, like, we were probably maybe 45 to 50 minutes out of Calgary where we were shooting. And you really get dropped into the world.

Sometimes you’re on shows, and a lot of the stuff is studio. And it’s created, and they do such a great job. But there’s nothing like being in the actual environment that you’re in. You don’t have to do anything.

You know what I mean? It really is its own character. And it’s so gratifying to be able to just be in that kind of space and around nature and just be in awe of it and then kind of get lost in it. So it’s amazing. It’s amazing.

Adaptations are hard to do because there are book loyalists. Some people want creative liberties taken. There are so many different factors. But how did both of you approach your respective roles?

Did you try to stick to the script, pull from the books, or something else entirely?

Cooper: I think there’s a little bit of, like, an interesting answer on my end. But, Ronnie, you definitely have more of a smart answer, I want to say.

Ronnie: What the heck?

I want both answers!

Ronnie: There you go. Let’s get the Coop answer. Let’s go.

Cooper: Jesse doesn’t really exist in the books.

And, you know, in Track of the Cat, which is more so what this season is adapting, it’s definitely pulling pieces from — I mean, there are 19 books with Anna Pigeon.

So they’ve got a lot of material to pull from. And Morwyn’s done an excellent job of combining all the tone and the essence that Nevada Barr gave.

But Jesse is originally Rogelio. So there is a suaveness that I knew had to be in — a level of earnest, heartfelt nature. But I really knew that it had to also be my own to some degree.

There’s something special in that. And then, following the lead of Lea, Morwyn, and the rest of the amazing team, they just really guided us to where it needed to be. And that’s where we found it.

Ronnie: Yeah, I would say that it’s a marriage of both. It’s honoring what Nevada created, then honoring the artist, and putting our little flavor and our little sprinkle on our perception of what those things are.

So I think, yeah, it’s a little bit of both to kind of truly honor the characters, but then do what we do and bring it to life.

And of course, I love Anna’s men. Some of the other characters, you know, Jeremiah — I’m not naming names — are shady, but Stanton and Jesse are solid!

They do not play about Anna Pigeon. And they both bring different things out of her. So can you both take a moment to talk about your unique relationship with Anna in the show?

Cooper: Yeah, well, I think something we saw in the last episode [Anna Pigeon Season 1 Episode 3 at the time of the interview] was that we got to see Anna laugh.

And I think there’s something special in that. There is something that Jesse can do that brings out a side of her that cuts up those serious, grueling days that she experiences in the park.

Because Glacier National Park has not been kind to her, throwing her off cliffs, making her, as you’ll see, just putting her through the work.

So I think anything to kind of take her away from that and make her feel like a person and like a human. And I think there’s something really special in the show and in the books that just explores humanity and explores these people and their deep internal needs.

And I hope that Anna’s finding that with Jesse. We’ll see what happens.

Ronnie: My turn?

Yes.

Cooper: I can keep talking! [Laughs] You want me to keep going? I’ll talk about Jesse and Anna just flourishing together.

Ronnie: Yeah. Hey, listen, it’s a beautiful story.

I think the relationship with Frederick and Anna is that they’re mirrors of each other.

I’ve said this previously, but I think part of the reason why Frederick is so drawn to even helping her is because he sees pieces of himself in her.

And with the whole search to look back into what happened in New York, I think part of that is if he can heal parts of Anna, that means that there’s hope for him to heal parts of himself as well.

So, you know, like, that’s a glimmer of hope, and seeing yourself in someone else and then being like, “Man, if I can help with that, maybe she can help with me.” It’s kind of this reciprocal thing. And I think they see each other in each other.

I love that answer. In the show, it does feel like there are glimmers of a love triangle, with other people trying to understand Anna and Stanton’s relationship. And he’s just like, “No.” But I can see the whole mirror thing. So I find that really interesting.

Ronnie: That’s amazing. Good.

Cooper: You know, there’s more than meets the eye with Jesse too, OK?

Ronnie: It’s not a competition, Cooper! It’s not a competition, man.

Cooper: Well, I mean, for Anna’s love, we can make it a competition.

I mean, Anna has two hands. I don’t know. Boy Friday, Boy Monday?

Ronnie: Oh, man. [Laughs]

Cooper: You know…

I do think that what’s been great about Jesse, to kind of echo what you’re saying, is that after everything she’s been through, he pulls a lightness out of her that nobody else seems to be able to tap into.

He gives her a soft place to land. So that does give him an edge. I’ll give you that.

Cooper: Yeah. It’s, you know, life needs to be lived to the fullest and enjoyed. It doesn’t have to be so serious, dealing with murders and FBI stuff. Paperwork.

Ronnie: When you see real stuff, it changes your perspective. You know what I mean? But it takes time. It takes time to get there.

Cooper: I’ll get advice any day.

Both characters are Anna’s biggest allies. And it was exciting when you guys finally got to actually meet onscreen, and there was a mutual focus on Anna. So what was it like getting to kind of play off of each other?

Cooper: It was super fun. Ronnie was great to play with. The whole moment that we had that you guys will see coming up later in the season. There’s some great stuff we get to work with.

Ronnie: Yeah. I kind of feel like our banter started off camera. We already kind of picked up the personas of our characters and kind of been playing joust ever since.

So our playfulness off-camera kind of just reflects on it. I think it just makes it easy. You know, Coop’s great. It was a lot of fun.

I do have to ask because I did get to speak with Morwyn Brebner, and I love how female-centered Anna Pigeon is on screen and off screen. It’s such a rarity in the industry.

What has that experience been like, and how has it differed from other sets you’ve been on?

Cooper: I think there’s honestly been so much care and support. My first day coming into the show was a rather interesting one because it was an intimacy scene. And I think that can be tackled two ways.

And this show handled every single moment that you could feel potentially uncomfortable or whatever with so much care and support.

I really, really love how well Anna’s written. She’s just such a powerful person that I’m not surprised that two good-looking men are fighting for her.

Ronnie: What I’ll say to that is, I think it’s beautiful. And to kind of piggyback on what Cooper was saying, I think it being just spearheaded by such great women, there’s this element of care, like this element of nurture that’s put into it, and the attention to detail.

But I’ve been lucky enough to work with some powerhouses, like Sonequa Martin-Green, you know, she’s a heck of a lady right there, and so I’m not a stranger to being led by powerful women.

I was kind of comfortable in that dynamic, and they do a heck of a job. So, yeah, I think it’s a beautiful thing and should happen a little more often as well.

Of course, the series is juggling so much. We have, like, Anna’s grief, and I think each of your characters is helping her through that in very specific ways. We have so much action with all of these cases.

We have this huge arc in the background with Jeremiah and everything. So what types of juicy details can you tease for me about the rest of the season?

Ronnie: Absolutely none.

You gotta give me something!

Ronnie: Things are going to get more interesting, for sure. There’s going to be a lot of twists, a lot of turns, and a lot of surprises. And I’m not just saying that. When I was reading the script, I was like, “Oh, that person, really?”

You’ll know what I’m talking about when you watch, and you’ll see, but there are definitely some really interesting twists and turns, especially with the characters that I don’t think some people are going to expect for sure. So stay tuned.

Cooper: Yeah, there’s so much internal workings between, like, everyone’s relationships internally within the park. They unfold in a really cool combination at the end of this that you’ll see.

I’m super excited. It’s vague, yet not.

Ronnie: I know!

What has been the most challenging and the most rewarding part about working on this project?

Cooper: Working with this guy. No, I’m just kidding. That’s the most rewarding.

I think this show has really taught me, because initially, going into it being cast as Manny, I knew the set of skills that I had to put aside to play that character carried a different weight.

I knew that there’d be horseback riding, which I’ve done, and playing guitar or ukulele, which was shown.

And stripping, right?

Cooper: Yeah, well, that’s something I was like a little…

Ronnie: It’s something he does. It’s something he does.

Cooper: Exactly. I was really nervous to do that. And I was prepping for a really long time.

And I sent in a few recorded videos of dance routines that I was just kind of like, “Let’s see, what do you guys think? What do we need to do here? What do we need to work?”

And they’re really, like you were saying before, we were saying before, so much care and support that we ended up finding a balance of that. That was kind of daunting at first.

But I think learning all these skills, with everything, has been really rewarding, seeing everyone come together to tackle these issues of just battling nature and other things that might go awry.

But coming together and making a beautiful product at the end of it, it’s been like a wild, fun ride that I’m so excited about where it’s going to go and how it’s going to turn out.

Ronnie: I’ll say that the most challenging thing was probably working with animals. You know, because they’re divas. They got some diva in them!

But the most rewarding thing, honestly, was working with a bunch of really great people. And that’s like from the cast to the crew. Everybody was amazing.

When you’re lucky enough to have that kind of synergy and stuff like that, it translates on camera. Because there’s not the stress, or there’s not people side-eyeing people. We genuinely like each other. It was that was the most rewarding part: work didn’t feel like work.

It felt like fun. When you can do that, I think that’s when you can get some of your best stuff because you’re just so relaxed and you feel so safe. And I think that was the most rewarding part for me: being able to work with such amazing people.

Yeah, yeah. I think that translates well on screen.

Cooper: Ronnie, there was that moment with you and Joker, the horse. Was it Joker? Ronnie was good with that.

I mean, I don’t want to spoil anything, but Ronnie and I do get some screen time. And with that, we do have to… with Joker, you were great. You called it over, and he listened to every command.

You’re a horse whisperer!

Ronnie: I’m a horse whisperer. I’m Dr. Dolittle. You can call me Dr. Dolittle sometimes. I’m a dog owner, so, you know, I speak with this sometimes. So, yeah, Joker was cool. He was a lot of fun.

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You can catch Cooper Levy and Ronnie Rowe in an all-new, exciting episode of Anna Pigeon this Friday, September 4, at 10/9c on USA Network.