Warren Anderson had a heart too...

Paul Costello as Warren Anderson, Chairman of Union Carbide

Everyone has a heart and so too did Carbide Int'l Chairman and CEO, Warren Anderson.

I approach every character that I perform by trying to get in touch with their heart.  Cold characters without an ounce of humanity don’t move and capture audiences.  I think the job of an actor is to dig deep inside of a character, no matter who that character is or whatever deed they have done, and find humanity, decency and yes, a heart that will move and touch an audience.

At a pause in recent evening rehearsal, I scanned my iPhone and Warren Anderson’s obituary popped up.  "Wow, I’m dead", I thought.  The New York Times reported that Anderson died quietly in late September in a nursing home in Vero Beach, Florida.  The Hindu headlined news of his death:  Anderson dead, no tears in Bhopal.

At the time of the Bhopal chemical disaster, Anderson was given credit for flying to India to personally assess the situation four days after the disaster occurred. He went there against the recommendations of his legal team. I hope I can embed that spirit, that humanity, in the tone I bring to his character. 

- Paul Costello