--- title: Kal Penn: Here's How 'Battle Creek' Differs From Other Police Shows description: The actor talks to TIME about his new show, co-created by 'Breaking Bad' mastermind Vince Gilligan, and the future of 'Harold & Kumar' canonical: https://time.com/3726408/kal-penn-battle-creek-interview/ author: Nolan Feeney article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-02-27T23:20:25.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T04:47:34.232Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: Kal Penn Explains How 'Battle Creek' Differs From All Those Other Cop Shows og:description: The actor talks to TIME about his new CBS show and the future of 'Harold & Kumar' og:url: https://time.com/3726408/kal-penn-battle-creek-interview/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt084406f85c070d5c/69878175524fc03e77decb0a/kal-penn-battle-creek.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: kal-penn-battle-creek og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Kal Penn Explains How 'Battle Creek' Differs From All Those Other Cop Shows twitter:description: The actor talks to TIME about his new CBS show and the future of 'Harold & Kumar' twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt084406f85c070d5c/69878175524fc03e77decb0a/kal-penn-battle-creek.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Kal Penn Explains How _Battle Creek_ Differs From All Those Other Police Shows > Sponsored content. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account.  by [Nolan Feeney](https://time.com/author/nolan-feeney/)  ## Nolan Feeney Feb 27, 2015 11:20 PM UTC  Kal Penn stars as Detective Fontanelle White on the CBS drama Battle Creek. Kal Penn stars as Detective Fontanelle White on the CBS drama Battle Creek.Mathieu Young—Sony Television  by [Nolan Feeney](https://time.com/author/nolan-feeney/)  ## Nolan Feeney Feb 27, 2015 11:20 PM UTC He spent a few years on _House_, but now Kal Penn — otherwise known as Kumar from the _Harold & Kumar_ series — is trading the lab coat for a detective’s badge in _Battle Creek_, a new police drama from _Breaking Bad_ mastermind Vince Gilligan and _House_ creator David Shore that premieres this Sunday on CBS. TIME caught up with the actor and former White House employee to talk about what he learned from real-life cops, traveling with Obama and the future of _Harold & Kumar_. **TIME: There are plenty of cop shows on TV. What makes** **_Battle Creek_** **different?** **Kal Penn:** It’s a good question, because that was the first thing I was looking for when I was reading the script. It’s very funny, and that’s rare of the long format. I’ve only had the chance to work on either a straight drama or a straight comedy, but I was particularly excited about the humor that’s in this story. I’d say it’s less procedural than _House_. We’re outside of the precinct quite a bit, and you get to see some of the bizarre scenarios that cops find themselves in. The writers have done a really good job of walking the line between things that are bizarre and funny and solving murders. The murders are serious — we’re not making fun of dead people. **With** **_Breaking Bad_** **mastermind Vince Gilligan serving as a co-creator, I bet there are some unusual murder cases.** One takes place at the annual Cereal Festival, which is a real thing in Battle Creek, Michigan. What could go wrong when everyone’s celebrating breakfast? **Someone gets drowned in a giant cereal bowl?** That would probably happen on a Comedy Central version of our show. In reality, a couple years ago there was an actual shooting. **You rode around with real Battle Creek, Mich., cops to prepare for this role. What did you learn?** I had the chance to see the things that make better television — so raiding houses or pulling people over — and also the more banal aspects of police work: what happens when you’re sitting in your office for five hours doing paperwork, how you get a warrant through the process of probable cause. **Sounds thrilling.** This is going to sound hokey, and I really don’t mean to sound like I’m sugar-coating it, but the most surprising thing to me was the way in which officers were treating their suspects with respects. With the national narrative that’s happening police-wise, that’s not often something you get to see. Their approach is very different from the big cities I grew up in, where things probably look more like _Cops_ than _Battle Creek_. **Your upcoming National Geographic show,** **_The Big Picture_** **, is all about maps and data. That sounds like a hard topic to make a TV show about.** The things you see on TV are generally focused on the NSA doing something nefarious. But in reality, we all click _yes_ on our iTunes user agreement, or if you download Google Maps or check in somewhere on Facebook, these companies collect all that data. What do they do with it? This looks at the human interest stories behind that. **So what did you find?** One example: In Florida there was an uptick of STDs in a particular community that then reflected the largest uptick of sexual activity in America. It just so happened that it was taking place at a senior citizens community in Florida. **That** **_is_** **surprising.** They’ve grown up after sex education, they’re not worried about getting pregnant and many of them are newly single. So they’re all having incredibly sex apparently, but they don’t know about STDs. It’s not going down there and going, “Oh my God, look at all these old people having sex!” It’s saying, “This is a really fascinating scenario, let’s see how the data reflects what’s actually happening.” **You recently accompanied President Obama on a trip to India. Did you get to hang with Obama?** I was much more an observer than anything! It was really fascinating to see the work that goes on in a trip like that: a nuclear deal, an environmental deal, the dorky side of things. **But you worked in the White House for two years. You’re telling me you’re not fist-bump buddies?** I imagine once his next two years are over, he’ll have a lot more time for that. He’s exactly what you see on TV, that gregarious side, the ability to shake off things that shouldn’t weigh you down. The fist bumps are definitely part of that. **How’s Air Force One?** I’ve been going to India since I was kid, and the president’s plane _definitely_ beats sitting in a middle seat with a next pillow. **Is that** **_Harold & Kumar_** **cartoon ever going to see the light of day?** Animation apparently takes a long time! We’re working on a pilot for Adult Swim. It’s almost done. I just saw a couple of clips last week. I think we’re finding out in the next two months whether Adult Swim is going to turn it into a series. John and I just shot something last week — we’re all very good friends outside of the workplace and have been now for 10-plus years. We just fall right back into it. I always say playing Kumar is probably the coolest character I’ll have the chance to play, so anytime I have a chance to revisit that, I’m happy. We all have a soft spot for these guys. Mostly because when we shot the first movie, we had no idea if anybody would like it. It totally tanked at the box office — I think it got pulled before the second weekend. And then fans discovered it on DVD and gifted each other, so we really feel it was such a fan-driven franchise. There are good vibes around it, and we’re very grateful. 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