True Detective actor Stephen Dorff is back on television Thursday night thanks to Deputy, a new police drama on Fox. However, the show would have a different lead if Dorff decided to quit acting. The actor admitted in a new interview that he almost quit the business after the death of his younger brother in December 2016.
“Two years ago, I was pretty much going to stop acting because I was just bored and not liking the parts I was getting,” the 46-year-old Blade star told PEOPLE. “I lost my little brother and I was pretty much done.”
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Dorff’s brother was Nashville songwriter Andrew Dorff, who co-wrote Blake Shelton’s “Neon Light,” Kenny Chesney’s “Save It For A Rainy Day” and other hits. The 40-year-old died of unknown causes.
“I still miss him every day and I don’t understand why certain things happen but life is hard,” Dorff explained. “I was very lucky growing up, I had an amazing family. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve been punched in the gut a few times after losing a few members of my family. If anything, we grow and learn. I put it into my work.”
In 2017, Dorff went back to acting, appearing in Leatherface and 11 episodes of Fox’s Star. He was later cast as Detective Roland West opposite Mahershala Ali in True Detective Season 3 for HBO.
“That changed everything because I went from not wanting to do anything to having a lot of options and a lot of interesting opportunities come my way,” Dorff told PEOPLE of being cast in True Detective. “It was exactly what I needed.”
Dorff said he “needed to create and be with people and get that dream role” after his brother’s death. The role gave him something new to focus on.
“That really got me pumped again in a creative place and I was able to have a new focus,” he said. “Now, I’m in the best place I’ve ever been.”
Deputy was created by Will Beall (Aquaman, Lethal Weapon) and stars Dorff as Deputy Bill Hollister who becomes an unlikely Los Angeles County Sheriff after the sheriff suddenly dies. The rest of the cast includes Yara Martinez as Bill’s wife, BRian Van Holt and Siena Goines as deputies. Bex Taylor-Klaus, Shane Paul McGhie and Mark Moses also star.
“I hate network TV and I would never want to be on a CSI-type show,” Dorff recently told The Wrap. “This show has got a lot more grit… If anything, I think it’s a more cable show, but it’s made for network television with the rules that we have to follow. But we’re pushing it and they’re letting us push it.”
Deputy airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET on Fox.
Photo credit: Erica Doss/Fox
