Overcompensating Star Adam DiMarco Isn’t Playing the Nice Guy Anymore

Adam DiMarco was ready for a role “very different from anything I’ve done” before.

The 35-year-old Canadian actor, known for his breakout role as “nice guy” Albie Di Grasso in season two of Mike White’s The White Lotus, is now portraying a stereotypical “toxic college frat bro” in the new Benito Skinner-created comedy, Overcompensating. Though DiMarco admits he was a “little unsure” about the role at first, once he read the script and established the tone, he was all in.

“I was hanging out with this hockey player at one point at an afterparty, and he kept dapping me up mid-conversation. In the course of a minute, he maybe dapped me up four to five times, and I was like, if I ever play a character like this, I’m definitely gonna steal that,” he tells The Hollywood Reporter of the inspiration for his character Peter. “So I tried to dap Benny up in as many scenes as possible.”

Below, DiMarco opens up about bringing back “pure comedy” with Overcompensating, working with Skinner, his thoughts on The White Lotus season three, if he would return for an all-star season and teases what people can expect from the Duffer brothers’ forthcoming series, Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen.

What initially led you to star in Overcompensating?

I got the audition request and I think Benny had asked for me specifically, so that was a vote of confidence kind of going in, but the character is very different from anything I’ve done, so I was a little unsure before working on it, [playing a] toxic college frat bro. So it took a second to find it and then I read the scripts and I loved it. I thought it was hilarious. I think Benny is a comedic genius and just got to read the scenes with him on Zoom a couple of times, trying a few different ways because when it’s a new show, everyone’s establishing the tone together. Something like White Lotus season two, we can all watch season one and kind of know what the tone is and what they’re going for. So we tried one Zoom where it was a little more underplayed comedy and we tried one Zoom where they were like, just be as manic as possible and I ended up like rapping at the end of my audition (Laughs). It wasn’t in the scripts, but I was rapping Drake and Big Sean, and they were like, that was crazy.

What preparations did you make to play Peter, a stereotypical frat guy?

I played high-level hockey most of my life, before being an actor, and then I played lacrosse one year. I don’t even know where it came from, but the NHL does an all-star game and I ended up going a couple of years in a row and I was hanging out with this hockey player at one point at an after party, and he kept dapping me up mid-conversation. In the course of a minute, he maybe dapped me up four to five times, and I was like, if I ever play a character like this, I’m definitely gonna steal that. So I tried to dap Benny up in as many scenes as possible. Also trying to tap into the character’s insecurities. I guess, every character in this show is overcompensating in their own way and once I kind of realized that, it made it easier to portray someone who’s also performing a little bit. 

What’s your perspective on how Overcompensating is like an exaggerated and satirical take on the college experience, but with an underlying, deeper meaning of finding yourself and figuring out your sexuality?

It has a lot of heart in it, honestly. It is a show about identity and finding yourself. I think when people go to college, they have a chance to be whoever they want to be. If you didn’t like who you were in high school, you can just choose to be a different person in college, or you can also just choose to be yourself and that’s the best version of you that there is. I think some characters in the show just kind of figure that out and double down on being themselves and some characters are trying to be someone they’re not and some characters are just bouncing back and forth trying to figure it out and then all versions of that are OK. 

What do you hope viewers take away from the show?

I hope they laugh (Laughs), it’s a comedy. I hope they enjoy it. I think it’s a really funny show. It also has an amazing soundtrack, which for me is huge when watching something. The music kind of draws me in, it helps me connect with it. I think Benny created really lovable, memorable characters that are easy to root for and kind of fall in love with and connect with. Like every episode kind of ends on a cliffhanger, which is rare for a comedy. It really makes you wanna hit next and see what happens. … It is funny and people need a laugh now more than ever. I think it’s nice because everything is just a dramedy I find these days, a drama or a dramedy. So it’s nice to have something out there that is a return to pure comedy, but ultimately has a lot of heart behind it. 

Turning to The White Lotus, having starred in season two, what are your thoughts on the latest season?

Oh my God, it was so fun to watch. I didn’t really know much going in. I had heard a couple of things, I don’t wanna get anyone in trouble so I won’t say what I knew going into it, but it was really fun to watch. I was just blown away by the scale and like every season the show keeps getting bigger and deeper and it’s just the best. It’s the best show on television, and I feel like it’s the only show that still has people watching it the night of, so that they can have those water cooler conversations the next day. 

I love how Mike always gives every character a journey and gives every character an arc and a little bow on their storyline at the end. Definitely, I was unable to predict anything that happened in it, so I was just along for the ride as a viewer and I loved the three women storyline, I loved Sam Rockwell — that was a fun surprise. Just one of the greatest monologues ever on television.

Did you find yourself thinking back to your experience with the show when watching season three?

It was like a nice trip down memory lane for me. It’s such an adventure and it’s such a bonding show, you know, it’s just a once-in-a-lifetime experience. It’s really indescribable to any other job. 

Some fans have thrown out the idea of an all-star season, so would you like to return?

Yeah, if Mike White called me, I would definitely answer and pack my bags forever. 

Looking ahead, can you tease anything about the Duffer brothers’ new series, Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen?

I actually can’t say anything (Laughs). I can say that it’s been a very rewarding show, very technically challenging because we’re kind of shooting it like it’s a movie, with the constraints of a TV show, but I’m really excited about this one as well. It has a really great group of people involved, Haley [Boston], Weronika [Tofilska], [Matt and Ross Duffer], and just really the entire ensemble cast is just amazing. Everyone’s bringing their A game. Definitely, people won’t be able to predict what’s gonna happen in the show. It’ll keep people guessing. Just when you think it’s one thing, it’s something else. 

Do you have a dream genre, role or project you would like to do in the future?

I would like to do a play in New York or London or something. I’ve never done theater, but I’m just obsessed with live performance. I love going to concerts or seeing live sports or stand-up improv, anything in the live space is really exciting. I think I would grow a lot as an actor doing a play, so that would definitely be on my bucket list. 

What does your perfect day off look like?

A lot of ordering Uber Eats (Laughs), sleeping and gaming or talking to friends. Honestly, I love doing nothing when I’m working and I have an off day, I don’t wanna do much. 

Is there a moment in your career so far that you’re most proud of?

Just booking that [White Lotus] role was very surreal and getting to film in Italy with an amazing group of people, people I’ve been fans of and getting to work on these amazing scripts. And I think winning the SAG Award as an ensemble was a pretty amazing moment.

I didn’t really realize it for a lot of my career, but these projects you do, they’re almost like little journal entries into your life. They’re kind of snapshots of where you were, places you’ve been and places you’re at in your life. Other people can watch them and then if you ever happen to watch them — which is hard to watch your own work — but sometimes you think about other things that were going on in your life, and you can kind of remember through the lens of these characters or projects or roles. 

If you had to describe what makes Adam DiMarco, Adam DiMarco, what would you say?

Matcha.