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SANTA CLARITA, Calif. -- Acclaimed playwright David Mamet approaches his first TV series like a book: Each episode of The Unit, which follows a top-secret counterterrorist military team, is one chapter.
"This is a novel that's 13 chapters long. Each chapter stands on its own," Mamet says during a break in directing an episode of the CBS drama (premiering Tuesday, 9 p.m. ET/PT), starring Dennis Haysbert, Scott Foley and Regina Taylor. "There's a cumulative effect, like some epic depiction of these men and women that's also satisfying over the course of the book," he says.
Mamet has limited TV experience, but has reliable partners in his creative unit, including fellow executive producer Shawn Ryan (The Shield) and Eric Haney, a Delta Force member in the '70s.
Mamet found inspiration in the stories told by Haney, with whom he had worked on the film Spartan. Mamet got to know Ryan while directing an episode of The Shield.
For Ryan, The Unit is a chance to work with one of his idols, a man known for such plays as Glengarry Glen Ross and American Buffalo. "I'm worshipful of his work," he says. (Mamet's works will be showcased in a seven-week festival opening at Chicago's Goodman Theatre Saturday.)
The Unit's squad members shuttle between dangerous missions and family life. Mamet, known for his strong male characters, says an intriguing aspect will be life on the base, where wives must deal with normal family pressures -- and then some.
"The spirit of the men carries over to the women," says Abby Brammell, who plays one of the military wives. "We have our own sisterhood. And you can't talk to anyone" outside of it.
Though The Unit doesn't have a political message, Ryan says, it may provide viewers a timely glimpse of the demands made of military families in time of war. For Mamet, who wants to portray the characters "honestly and respectfully," and not as comic-book characters, it's also the chance to tell fascinating stories while learning to navigate an unfamiliar medium.
In TV, "you're basically writing blackouts, not 20-minute scenes and 40-minute acts. It's three- to five-minute scenes, structured into a drama," he says. And "they have commercials."
Known for the rough talk of some of his characters, Mamet says he hasn't found network TV confining: "I haven't felt any restrictions except (in being able) to get some sleep."
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