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Michael Ealy on TLAM Cast: Fame Is 'Finally Starting to Catch On'

The actor talks bonding with his co-stars.

When the cast of Think Like a Man reunited in Las Vegas last summer to shoot the film's sequel, their personal lives had changed as much as their characters. In the couple of years since the ensemble comedy rocked the box office, Kevin Hart has become a global superstar, BET's own Terrence J is on his way to becoming the next Ryan Seacrest and Gabrielle Union is busy Being Mary Jane while prepping to become Mrs. Dwyane Wade in real life. As for Michael Ealy, the blue-eyed hunk headlined the big-budget Fox series Almost Human and became a husband and father.
Ealy talked to us about what it's like being part of such a tight group and how each of his co-stars from Think Like a Man Too has changed over the years.
There seems to be a ton of chemistry among the TLAM cast onscreen. How often do you guys see each other between projects?
We are a tight knit crew, but we're like family. And you don't have to see your family all the time. But all the same, whenever we see each other, it's like nothing changes. I can't say that we're hanging out at clubs on the weekly…that's not happening. We got lives of our own, families and such. But the work brings us together often, and that's okay. 

Who from the cast are you closest to?
Whenever I see Regina [Hall], we pick up where we left off like no time has passed. It's been like that with Regina since 1998 when I first met her. We were in New York at the same time and I'd see her on the audition circuit, and Regina hasn't changed. That's what I love about her. But the closest...I would say probably Kev. We've actually gotten to work on other stuff together. Kev, despite becoming a huge, huge star, it's just the same with us. Besides having a lot more money and a lot more…well, money, he just has a lot more money. Besides that, he's the same guy I knew.

But on Think Like a Man TooJerry Ferrara and I really clicked. And Rom, aka Dos Equis, me and Romany [Malco]…we haven't changed since our Showtime days. He was on Weeds and I was on Sleeper Cell. We've been cool since then. 

It's interesting that none of you were an overnight success, but you're all doing so well now.
It's kind of a forgotten truth. It takes time to make it in this business and to succeed at that level. It's a slow burn. In this world of reality TV, everybody expects to become a star overnight. Everybody that's in this crew, we've all been plugging away since the late '90s. Now it's starting to catch on. 
Is it exciting to see what your co-stars have been up to since the last film?
Absolutely. The beautiful thing is, whenever somebody from the crew has something going on, everybody is there to support. If Kev has a comedy special, we're all tweeting about it, when Gabrielle's show Being Mary Jane came on, we were all watching. We've been more supportive of each other in the last couple of years since doing Think Like a Man. I'm happy about that.
Would you come back for a three-quel?
[Laughs] Let's see how this one goes.
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(Photo: Kevin Winter/Getty Images for NAACP Image Awards)

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