Sophia Bush on Law Enforcement Training for "Chicago PD"

Ha. I'm with the lovely Sophia Bush, how are you?

I'm good, my friend. How are you?

I'm wonderful, I'm wonderful. You just mentioned how nice my shirt was.

It's great.

It's lovely, isn't it? Thank you for that. Thank you. Um but what is lovely is your new show. Well not really lovely, it's quite gritty and, you know.

Yeah.

Chicago PD. It's a little messy but

A little messy.

You're very uh very different to what we're used to seeing in you. You're a bit uh

Certainly.

Bad-ass, bad-ass, bad-ass I should say.

Bad-ass.

Bad-ass.

Bad-ass. There isn't a better description.

English. Yes. Um tell us about the role.

Uh I play Detective Aaron Lindsay and as you said, she is quite a badass. She works in the Intelligence Division which is undercover cops in Chicago and they they work all the toughest cases and they invent themselves in very dangerous situations and I sort of feel like uh like I'm on a very grown-up playground all the time running around with guns and sledge-hammering doors open and high-speed chases and it's it's the best job in the world.

Keeps it interesting, keeps it interesting. Um and you're you you're familiar with shooting guns anyway.

Yeah.

Before you went on the show.

Yes.

Um she chased me with a gun down the street once, that's the truth.

It was one time.

It was one time, one time. Drink was involved, it's fine. Um and did you have did you have to still learn a lot about law enforcement for the role?

Yeah. I mean it was a lot of training. We had a full week of boot camp with the SWAT team, with intelligence officers, with technical advisers when we got there and it was crazy and also very exciting. And then we have technical advisers on set with us every day. So we're learning every day.

Right. What's been the toughest thing to learn?

Uh the well, In the way of like using a, using a gun or using a No, it's funny even, I mean our our big rifles don't scare me, the guns don't scare me. The thing that's actually quite difficult is proper handcuffing. And you wouldn't think that that's that hard.

I'm familiar with handcuffing. I won't go there.

It's a very different thing to handcuff a willing participant.

Okay. Okay, sorry.

Then someone who's fighting with you.

You're turning so red.

I'm not turning red. I'm fine. I'm fine.

Carry on. Carry on. Carry on. Move on.

And um and yeah, when when when someone is struggling against you and you've got one handcuff on their wrist behind their back, they're then armed with a deadly weapon. They have a big metal hook in their hand. And it it can be a really scary situation and that wasn't something I'd ever considered.

Right.

Um so really learning how to do that properly and and keep yourself out of harm's way was definitely the the most unexpected lesson in all that training for me.

And you do all your own stunts as well, don't you on the show? Tell us about um any uh any injuries, any

It's great fun. Um the second episode that aired everybody wanted to know if when I got hit with a metal pipe it hurt as bad as it looked like it did and uh it it was a pretty interesting experience but I think we made it, we made it look good. Okay. But it was actually a couple of weeks ago, just, you know, chasing a a man to tackle in the ice and I I I hit

In the show for the show.

In the show. Yes. And uh and I I hit the ground and everything was frozen and suddenly I could see my feet in front of my eyes and I knew that that was a bad thing. Um and so I I cracked up my neck and my back pretty good but everything's okay.

Just a couple of weeks ago?

Yeah.

Oh, you've recovered quite well.

Yeah, I'm all right. For for about a week I had to look at everyone like this. It was a lot of this but now now I can turn my head again. I've got full movement. Which is quite good. You know. Doing pretty good.

Full movement is always good. And um there was just a a crossover with Law and Order. Is that right?

Yeah, we are we're we're doing a big crossover with Law and Order SVU and I'm actually headed to New York to shoot with Mariska tomorrow. So That's only a life-affirming moment for me. Um I'm really looking forward to it. And that airs after the Winter Olympics, I think.

Yes.

I believe it's our first episode back after the Olympics.

Look at that. Look at that. You're you're hugely involved in charity work as well.

Yes.

Tell us about some of the stuff you're doing there.

Uh God it's I think or where do you begin? Well, I think it's a really exciting thing first and foremost for me to be able to use a platform to kind of turn this notion of celebrity being cool on its head and say, no, no, no. The real rock stars are the people who are changing the world every day. And how can all of us do more of that? You know, whether you have a little bit of time or a lot of time, you can actually influence the way that society works by giving back and by being a global citizen and those are really fulfilling conversations for me to have with young people whether we're building schools with Pencils of Promise or we're talking to women about feeling like they are enough and like other women are their collaborators versus their competitors in life with I Am That Girl. We we have a lot of really good things going. So

You use it to do good.

Absolutely.

Use it to do good. Why not? Why not? Perfect. So here for President.

I'm there. I think so. I I I I'm I'm all about Connie Britton 2016, man. Connie Britton around the world. I I would be her vice president in a heartbeat.

Okay. Let's make that happen. Young Hollywood can start a campaign. So yeah. We can do that. Sophia Bush, absolute pleasure. Catch her in Chicago PD. Um see her handcuffing people and shooting. And bending rules. That's what she does.