Sterling K. Brown Says He Was Issued An Arrest Warrant For This

Sterling K. Brown says he was issued an arrest warrant at 19 after “little run-in with the law.” During a Good Morning America interview on Tuesday (Jan. 28), Brown spoke candidly about his teenage years. Before he dove into the story, Brown insisted that he wasn’t “out there in these streets like that,” but despite that, he had his own legal complications.

“A motorcycle cop pulls me over. He goes, ‘Do you know why I pulled you over?’ And I was like, not even being sassy, ‘No sir, I don’t.’ I wasn’t speeding or anything. He goes, ‘I bet you your friend in the backseat does.’ He goes, ‘Oh, ’cause I threw a cigarette out the back?’”

The This Is Us star then explained how his friend, Brian Brooks, stated that he would pay the fine for his petty crime since it was his fault. However, the story didn’t end there for Brown, as the cop stop haunted him for months afterward as Brooks apparently forgot to foot the bill.

“I go off to college, I come home to renew my license. I had a warrant out for [my arrest],” Brown recalled. “Your boy had warrants at 19. That’s not a good feeling. I’m not that dude. I never paid it off.”

Since then, Brown put his legal troubles behind him and became a successful actor—who just so happens to have a new show on the way.

Paradise is a new thriller starring Brown, a secret service agent, and James Marsden, who stars as the United States president. The show debuted on Sunday (Jan. 26) and follows the aftermath of President Cal Benford’s (Marsden) assassination, with Secret Service Agent Xavier Collins (Brown) framed as the primary suspect.

Paradise sees the St. Louis native reuniting with writer Dan Fogelman, who also penned This Is Us, and gushed about his skill in an interview with The Los Angeles Times.

“[Dan] didn’t tell me anything [the show’s plot twist.] He just wants you to read it,” Brown said of his friend and collaborator. “And this is something that he does in general. He doesn’t really tend to pitch things out because I don’t think he wants anybody’s notes. He just wants to present them [with the script] and say, ‘This is what the show is gonna be. If you like it, great. If you don’t, I’ll go somewhere else.’

“So I read it and really just enjoying the world of it — very similar to how I was enjoying This Is Us — then you get to the end of it, and your mind just goes [eyes grow wide]. I couldn’t believe he did it to me again. I did not see it coming. Kudos to him for always finding a way to make something rich that much richer.”

Watch a trailer for Paradise below.