May 17--Nathan Palmer has lived one dream as an NFL wide receiver, but he'll get to live out another one on the hit drama "Empire" on Wednesday.
Palmer and defensive tackle Bruce Gaston, both of whom were waived by the Bears on Monday, and Giants tight end and Naperville native Matt LaCosse, shot scenes in March and were scheduled to make cameos during the show's Season 2 finale.
All three share an agent who helped them get on the show, which is shot in Chicago, but making an appearance on "Empire" probably means a little bit more to Palmer, who's trying to launch a side career as a singer and has produced several music videos.
"I have not missed an episode. Every Wednesday. It's a good show," Palmer said. "The music industry is something that has always intrigued me being a professional athlete, just to see a show do so well with so many great actors. It's definitely not something you want to pass up given the opportunity to be a part of it."
Palmer goes by the stage name NaPalm, and some of his R stylings reference a "player" of a different type, such as "Casanova" off his most recent album, "Life As A Bachelor." "III Letter" and "Ain't That Something" play on love-lost themes.
Scenes from several of Palmer's videos were shot in Chicago.
"That experience alone is time consuming and takes a lot of planning, so to be able to sit there (and 'Empire's' set) and see all things that they did for that TV show was definitely something that was a proud moment in my life," he said.
All three players marveled at how the cast spent long hours each day shooting and doing re-shoots.
Gaston recalled spending 13 hours on set. "it was a fun experience but at the same time you took note of how much work you see people put into what they do," he said. "It's like any other job, it's hard too."
Palmer agreed. "I got there between 6 and 6:30 in morning, and I didn't leave until 10:40, 11 at night. and they were still shooting. And then they had an early morning call," he said.
Like Palmer, Gaston appears on the show as himself. But the players were sworn to secrecy about their scenes, so as not to spill any spoilers. LaCosse was allowed to reveal his role: a bodyguard. He just couldn't say whose body he was guarding because it might tip off a significant plot twist.
"I was supposed to be a cameo, just like (Palmer and Gaston), but apparently a producer or director saw me and thought would I be good for the part because of how big i am," said LaCosse, who's listed on Giants.com as 6-foot-5 and 261 pounds. "It was pretty lucky."
Palmer was happy too see LaCosse get a bigger role. He was satisfied just to meet actors such as Taraji P. Henson (Cookie Lyon), Terence Howard (Lucious) and Bryshere Gray (Hakeem).
Palmer admired "how she's herself on and off camera and people love her for that. That's definitely a person that I cherished talking to on set."
He also praised Howard's work ethic. "I was able to watch him and how he took control of scenes. He was like a third director out there, knowing the ins and outs of that show," Palmer said. "I kind of compare him to the quarterback. He's basically the quarterback of the show."
Ex-Bear Nate Palmer compared three former teammates to characters on "Empire."
Josh Bellamy as Hakeem Lyon
"He's got the flashiest personality but he's focused, he's dedicated and he's very passionate about everything does."
Jay Cutler as Lucious Lyon
"He pulls no punches, he says what he means, he means well in everything that he does. But when it's time to be guy in the room people might not like, but you respect, that's definitely Jay Cutler."
Kyle Long or Martellus Bennett as Cookie Lyon
"Just the personality," Palmer laughed. "Definitely Martellus would be one (candidate to be Cookie). I love Martellus. That's my man; that's my dog."
plthompson@tribpub.com
