‘The Sinner’: Bill Pullman On Why He Took The Role Of Ambrose

Bill Pullman plays Harry Ambrose on USA Network’s new drama series “The Sinner.” Ambrose is a detective who finds himself disturbed and uniquely fascinated by Cora Tannetti (Jessica Biel), who impulsively and very publicly murdered a man. Like most TV detectives, Ambrose is a truth seeker, but what makes him different from his counterparts is his secret relationship with a dominatrix.

In a recent interview with the New York Post, Pullman said that Ambrose’s fetish was “both the reason to avoid the role and the reason to take the role.” Although Pullman understands that the role-playing between Ambrose and a dominatrix named Sharon (Meredith Holzman) gives the detective some sort of stability in his life, the actor revealed that he actually consulted his wife, Tamara Hurwitz, before deciding to take the part.

“I needed to get the clarity so that I wasn’t going to surprise my family,” the 64-year-old actor said. “My wife read the script [and then asked me] ‘Is your head on straight?’”

Pullman revealed that he didn’t know for sure, but he was certain that he was willing to take another risk just like what he did when he agreed to portray a married architect who falls in love with a goat in Edward Albee’s play “The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?” on Broadway in 2002.

“Being in love with a goat for a year changed my life and it’s why I’m doing ‘The Sinner,’” said Pullman, who received a Drama Desk nomination for his performance in the play.“ [‘The Sinner’] isn’t just playing the dad of three sons in a sitcom. [And] I’ve always loved noir.”

In this week’s Season 1, episode 4, Ambrose is going to help Cora recover her missing memories of the two months from her disappearance on the Fourth of July 2012 to the time she resurfaced at a Poughkeepsie detox center.

In the trailer for episode, Ambrose consults with Tammy Chin (Mia Katigbak), one of the mental health specialists who conducted Cora’s 730 exam last episode. Ambrose mentions in the promo clip that Tammy did some “memory recovery stuff” in the past, but when the detective tells her about Cora’s case, Tammy says that even if Cora remembers something from that time, those things may not necessarily be the truth. “Sometimes real memories are recovered. Sometimes it’s just the patient’s imagination,” Tammy warns Ambrose.

“The Sinner” Season 1, episode 4 airs tonight at 10 p.m. EDT on USA Network.