The actor jumped on the phone with ET to dish on Wednesday's episode and beyond.
Could this be the end of Mike Ross’ prison stint on Suits?
For the first eight episodes of season six, the former Pearson Specter Litt lawyer has been behind bars, serving time after being exposed as an attorney with a fraudulent law degree. Now, with the help of mentor and ex-boss Harvey Specter (Gabriel Macht), it seems his time in prison may be coming to an end.
But what does that mean for Mike’s future? Ahead of Wednesday’s episode, Patrick J. Adams jumped on the phone with ET to dish on what his world may look like once he gets out of prison.
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ET: This season has been such a ride for you and your character, Mike Ross. For the first part of the season, it felt like a completely different show with Mike in prison. How has it been navigating through that?
Patrick J. Adams: It was really rejuvenating to feel like I was doing my own new show where we were meeting new characters [and] having a completely new storyline. But as we headed to episode nine, I was definitely starting to feel distant and really far from the show and the rest of the world that we’ve spent so many years building. Like Mike was feeling in prison, I was desperate to get back to it. I’ve really enjoyed the time and I hope we’ve done a great job in creating a parallel universe that people could appreciate. But I’m definitely excited to get back to the show we spent the last few years building and see how Mike fits back in.
When Mike gets out of prison, how will his dynamic will Harvey shift, or will it?
Mike having been to prison for being a fraudulent lawyer will make it difficult to go back to doing the same thing. That doesn’t mean there aren’t creative ways where we can get these characters working together again. Mike stated in his closing statements that he was ashamed of the work he had been doing the past few years -- the majority of the work having been for the 1 percenters. And he was clear that given the opportunity to continue his life, he would not waste an ounce of his energy helping people who didn’t really need help. I don’t know how it’s going to manifest or what that’s going to become, but that’s a part of what Harvey does. We’ll have to deal head-on with that conflict of interest.
Will Mike harbor any continued resentment toward Harvey?
These guys are brothers. While there could be a lot of conflict between them, the love and the loyalty and the trust outweighs all of that. I think for these two characters, they always start from a place of how do we do what’s best for each other and make sure we have each other’s backs.
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You mentioned that Mike isn’t interested in going back to doing what he did before, which was helping the wealthy. Do you foresee a loophole that could allow him to go back to law, but in a different capacity?
I think it’s a longshot. It would be a difficult thing to believe. It was a very public case where he’s been put away and it would probably be difficult for a client to trust somebody who went to prison for practicing law fraudulently. But I think there are a lot of different ways in which Mike can use his skill-set and his intelligence to help people in the meantime. I would never say no, but I don’t think it’s something that can happen overnight. I don’t think it’s just a pull a trigger, Mike will be a lawyer again.
How will Mike’s stint in prison affect his relationship moving forward? It seems like ever since, she’s been coming into her own more and taking on her own projects.
That’s exactly what he wanted. When he left her at the altar, there was the mandate that she go and carry on with her life and do the things that she wants to do and make her dreams come true. I don’t think Mike is a guy who’s threatened by that. Ultimately, I think him coming back out, seeing her do what she does best, Mike has nothing but love and admiration and respect and wants to help her in every possible way. I think it’s only good for them, at least so far.
Is it still a possibility for them to walk down the aisle?
It’s totally possible. One way or the other, when we get to that it’ll be the right time. Obviously there’s still conflict; Rachel’s parents probably still aren’t huge fans of Mike and it’s not an easy thing to disappoint your parents like that, but I imagine we will definitely deal with that. To my knowledge, I don’t think there is any love lost between these two people, except for time. Now they have the ability to really dig in and really begin their life together without anything in the way.
Suits airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on USA Network.
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