[Editor’s note: The following contains some spoilers for American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez.]

From executive producer Ryan Murphy, the first installment of American Sports Story is focused on the rise and fall of NFL superstar Aaron Hernandez (Josh Rivera) and based on the podcast Gladiator: Aaron Hernandez and Football Inc. Hernandez grew up with aspirations for a football career, but a family life full of challenges and quickly achieved star status led to struggles resisting temptation. While struggling to figure it all out, he spends some time with teammate Tim Tebow (Patrick Schwarzenegger), hoping to find the guidance he needs.

During this one-on-one interview with Collider, Schwarzenegger talked about how much he enjoys working on projects with Murphy, why he wanted to take on Tim Tebow, being just a sliver of Aaron Hernandez’s story, what he enjoys about playing a real-life person, and the challenge of pulling off the football scenes. He also talked about being a part of Season 3 of The White Lotus and why it’s an experience he’ll never forget.

Collider: There are a lot of layers to taking on something like this. You’re playing a real-life person who’s famous and still around, you’re playing a pro football player, and you’re a piece in the story that’s really still a bit of a puzzle and will probably always stay a bit of a puzzle. When this came your way, what most interested you in it and what made you most nervous or unsure about it?

PATRICK SCHWARZENEGGER: When I think about my career and what my goals are and what I’m really wanting to do, it’s to continue to work with really great filmmakers, great producers, great writers, and work on great projects. I’ve gotten the pleasure to work with Ryan Murphy in the past a little bit, and to have the ability to work with him again and work on one of his projects and with a great team, that was what was really enticing, just off the bat. And then, obviously, this story about Aaron is such a tragic and, at the same time, fascinating story that the sports community, which I’m a huge football fan, but also the world, has known about. There have been other iterations of media stories from the podcast, which this is based on, to newspaper articles, to documentaries and television shows, and so on and so forth. So, to be part of something that is such a large story was really interesting to me. And then, to play Tim Tebow, who I’m a huge fan of and is someone that’s a little more of this humanizing light within the story, was something that was really interesting for me. Those are the three areas that made it really cool for me to be a part of this project. Obviously, I’m such a sliver of the story and really just a small role within this, but I still wanted to do it and was really interested in doing it because of the other aspects that I’ve just talked about.

It’s a particularly interesting relationship dynamic because we see what Aaron Hernandez was going through with his family, and then he comes across your character and doesn’t really know what to make of someone like him. It’s interesting to watch because they couldn’t possibly be more different.

SCHWARZENEGGER: Yeah. I’ve only met Tim Tebow once, but that’s how I felt meeting him. He almost can’t be real, he’s so nice and so genuine and so selfless, and he cares about other people so much. That’s why I thought it was a really fun character to play with because he’s just this ball of energy that can’t contain himself. He’s like this huge teddy bear that’s just so nice. With Aaron, the dichotomy between the two makes you wonder, “How does this relationship go?” Tim Tebow is really reaching out and trying to help someone that’s in need. That’s the kind of person he was and is. This is not a documentary, and it’s a dramatized version of everything, but from my research and from what I’ve understood Tim to be, he’s the kind of person where it doesn’t matter who you are, he’s willing to stick a hand out for you and help you in your need.

Tim Tebow could come across as too much, but instead he seems to come from such a genuine place and he’s so charming.

SCHWARZENEGGER: Right, I totally agree. Unfortunately, they cut out 10 minutes of the story, with Tim back in the Philippines and showcasing his life and work. He was born in the Philippines under very interesting circumstances, and that went on to impact his religious views and life, but then they took that out, for whatever reasons. He’s a very unique human, and it’s a cool part of the story that he’s really there to provide this other viewpoint in Aaron’s life.

Patrick Schwarzenegger Had Played a Real-Life Person Prior to Doing ‘American Sports Story’

Was it more nerve-wracking to jump into something like Gen V, where you’re doing things that you probably never imagined you’d be doing on film, or is it more nerve-wracking to play a real person like Tim Tebow, knowing that he could watch it and that you don’t want to dishonor him in any way?

SCHWARZENEGGER: I did The Staircase on HBO before Gen V, and I played a real person on that as well. I enjoy playing someone that’s real. As actors, it’s fun and it’s part of our process and job to build the backstory for a character that we’re playing. For Gen V, it’s this made-up character and fictional idea, and I create the character from what I think would be fun, shooting off of what I see on the page. For The Staircase or Tim Tebow, and things of that nature, you’re utilizing information that’s out there. You’re utilizing footage that’s out there, and anything and everything that you can research about the person, about the relationship to different people, about their world views, and whatever could be utilized in the show. I actually really like that because there’s just a plethora of information out there on Tebow. I got to read tons of his books, listen to his voice on repeat, over and over, study his body mannerisms and language and how he preaches on a stage in front of thousands of people. All those different things are fascinating for an actor to try to pick up on. So, I wasn’t necessarily nervous. Of course, you get judged, no matter what, on these projects because you don’t look exactly like someone. But at the same time, I got judged on Gen V by the large fan base that’s already there. It’s the same with The White Lotus, which is coming up. It’s just part of the job.

There’s a beautiful sentiment in the third episode when Tim Tebow says, “God doesn’t need you to be perfect. God needs you to try.” That feels like a sentiment that works and you could apply to almost any circumstance, even if you remove the word “God.” It’s essentially saying that you don’t need to be perfect, you just need to try. Does that feel like something that also applies to acting and to your own career?

SCHWARZENEGGER: Yeah, I think that pertains to life, in general. It’s a great lesson, no matter what. Even when you talk about failure, there are so many people that are afraid of failure, but it’s not a failure if you learn from it, grow from it, and you make the changes necessary. I think that’s what he’s saying. He’s like, “Look, man, it’s okay. You made a mistake. We all make mistakes. Jesus wasn’t perfect, and nobody’s perfect. Now, it’s about how you learn from these different errors or faults or failures, and grow and become a better person. That’s what it’s about. It’s about trying. It’s about committing to becoming better, each and every day. I think that Tebow feels that when it comes to religion, but when it comes to being a football player as well. That’s why he was such a brilliant leader, on and off the field. It’s what you learn from certain mistakes and how you grow. So, sure, I can use that when it comes to acting. I have used that when it comes to acting. That’s why I’m in class every week. That’s why I’ve grown as an actor. You mess up on stage in front of 30 people, so that you learn from it and when you go and do a film, you grow.

I read that you and Josh Rivera read together as part of the audition process for this. How did that dynamic evolve, from those beginning stages to when you actually got on set and were doing the scenes together? What was that like to explore with him?

SCHWARZENEGGER: I can’t speak highly enough about Josh. He’s great. My first time meeting him was at the testing for the show. I don’t even remember what year that was now, but we tested together in L.A. in front of the casting directors, the producers, Ryan [Murphy,] and so on, and it was great. Josh was really awesome. And then, I got to watch him transform. It’s one thing to do a table read or a test screening with someone when they’re auditioning, but when they have the hair and the makeup and the full tattoos, all I had to really do was to cut my hair, put on weight, and then they put the eye patches on me. But for him, he went through hours and hours of tattoos and hair and the nose prosthetic to really try to become Aaron. It was wild to watch him transform into becoming this character and this person. I’m really excited for Josh’s career and to see where it goes. He was awesome to work with.

To Play Tim Tebow in ‘American Sports Story,’ Patrick Schwarzenegger Had to Learn to Throw a Football With His Left Hand

What was it like to get to do the football scenes, put on the uniform and be on the field? Is it the most fun to do that when you don’t have the pressure of having to actually win a game?

SCHWARZENEGGER: It was really fun. We had a great time. All the extras and football players were awesome. They were really great in teaching us things. I love football and I grew up playing football, so I had a good sense of it, but you have to remember that Tebow is a lefty, so everything was the opposite for me. I had to retrain myself with trying to throw lefty, and do a run lefty, and do the back steps and three-step drop. Everything was the opposite from what I learned growing up. That was fun to do. Anytime you get to do that pre-training stuff, it’s a lot of fun. On The Terminal List, I got to do a bunch of Navy SEAL training, and tactical and gun and armor training. On this, I got to do football training. It’s just a fun time.

I can’t even imagine trying to switch hands like that.

SCHWARZENEGGER: I know, it’s so awkward.

How challenging was that?

SCHWARZENEGGER: It’s so weird. That was the weirdest part. When I would go to throw, it just looked terrible.

What Made Season 3 of ‘The White Lotus’ an Experience Patrick Schwarzenegger Will Never Forget

You’ve also done Season 3 of The White Lotus. When you sign on for something like that, that you were already a fan of and you’d already watched, what’s it like to walk onto the set? How did you find that experience?

SCHWARZENEGGER: I definitely had some nerves at the beginning, but (show creator) Mike [White] made the set so fun. He’s such a goofball and so talented, and the cast and crew was great. It was like you were on this seven-month vacation in this crazy country of Thailand, with everybody on this island. It’s an experience that I’ll never forget. It was just truly amazing. It felt like it was years, but at the same time, it went by in a blip. Walton [Goggins] is a rock star actor. I think people are gonna be blown away by his performance in it. His character is not easy to play, so I’m excited for that.

With the projects that Ryan Murphy does, and even with each season of The White Lotus, we see actors cast in roles that we haven’t really seen them do before. How fun is that to get to play with?

SCHWARZENEGGER: Mike knows what he wants. I’m sure and thousands of people audition for these roles, and it’s a daunting thing when you get an email about an audition for The White Lotus. You’re like, “Okay, what are the chances I’m gonna get this?” You audition for a hundred things in a year and you get one thing, or however it works. When it’s Superman or The White Lotus, you’re like, “Everyone’s going out for this thing.” But Mike knows what he’s looking for. When you play it a certain way, Mike knows if that’s what he’s looking for. I couldn’t envision myself in the character necessarily because I didn’t know the script or the story at the time that I was auditioning. But I played it the way that he was really looking for, and I did that based on the past seasons and what I thought I could bring that was fun and different. He’s a casting genius, and an editing, directing, and writing genius. He creates this world and everything around it before he starts, and he’s so exact with what he wants.

American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez airs on FX and is available to stream on Hulu. Check out the trailer:

Watch on Hulu