‘Almost Paradise’ Producer Dean Devlin Takes Bottom Pyramid View Of Leadership

By
Greg Srisavasdi
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"Almost Paradise" producer Dean Devlin. (WGN America)

Producer Dean Devlin’s latest project, the engaging crime action series Almost Paradise, reunites him with Leverage and The Librarians actor Christian Kane. I’ve seen two episodes of the Philippines based show, and aside from the awesomeness of having a predominantly Filipino cast and crew, the show is most importantly an engaging watch. During our conversation, Devlin gave a very insightful take on how he approaches his leadership role. Quote and accompanying audio is below!

Along with his television work, Devlin also directed the features Geostorm and Bad Samaritan (a 2018 thriller that I recently saw and dug – it’s currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video). He is also the head of the production company Electric Entertainment, so he knows a thing or two about being a leader:

I don’t know if I’m a great boss but I believe that when people think of leadership, they usually think of it like a pyramid and how the boss is at the top of that pyramid. I’ve always looked at it the exact opposite; the pyramid is upside down. Each layer of management is responsible for the layer that they are guiding. 

I’ve always looked at myself as the bottom of that pyramid with the weight of all the company on my shoulders.That I have a responsibility to the people who work for me, as opposed to them having a responsibility towards me.

By having that attitude, you earn their respect and then they’re not forced to want to work for you or want to do well. But they want to do it. They’re inspired to do it because they feel they have been treated well and they want to return the favor.

To listen to the audio version of Devlin’s answer, click on the Soundcloud bar:

Almost Paradise, co-starring Samantha Richelle and Arthur Acuña, airs Monday evenings on WGN America (10/9). My full audio interview with Devlin is available to Patreon members of CinemAddicts.