“I thought that there was a unique opportunity just to take soldiers out from in front of the flag… and celebrate them as people,” divulges Walton Goggins during our recent webcam chat (watch the exclusive video above) about his new show “Six.” Goggins stars in this History Channel series as Richard “Rip” Taggart, a member of Navy SEAL Team Six who is captured by the Taliban in Afghanistan. In playing a U.S. soldier, the actor hoped to showcase “their sacrifice, not for country, but their sacrifice for themselves and for their family.”

We also talked about his role as Lee Russell in HBO’s “Vice Principals,” which returns for Season 2 this July. Created by Jody Hill and Danny McBride, the comedy series centers on two high school vice principals (McBride and Goggins) fighting to take down their new boss (Kimberly Herbert Gregory). “He’s so damaged,” describes Goggins of his character. “He’s such a man in an arrested state of development, both spiritually and psychologically.” He adds, “If you honor that, and you come from Lee Russell’s place of pain, and that’s in the background of everything that you do, then you’ll have something hopefully worth watching.”

Goggins received an Emmy nomination as Best Drama Supporting Actor for “Justified” in 2011. He first became known for his role on “The Shield,” and has since made a name for himself in several films, including Quentin Tarantino‘s “Django Unchained” (2012) and “The Hateful Eight” (2015). Check out our full interview above for more about his work in “Vice Principals” and “Six.”

Be sure to make your Emmy predictions. Weigh in now with your picks so that Hollywood insiders can see how their TV shows and performers are faring in our Emmy odds. You can keep changing your predictions until just before nominees are announced on July 13. Join in the fierce debate over the 2017 Emmys taking place right now with Hollywood insiders in our TV forums. And visit our home page for the latest in entertainment news.

Related: Watch our interview with Barry Sloane (“Six”)

Related: Complete list of HBO category placements for Emmys

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