In White Collar, Matt Bomer quickly makes the transition from bearded and clad in orange prison garb to clean-shaven and wearing vintage suits designed by the legendary Sy Devore.
The quick change occurs because the show, which airs Fridays on the USA Network, has to hastily establish its premise: Bomer plays Neal Caffrey, a master con artist who gets nabbed twice by the same FBI agent (Tim DeKay). After sending Caffrey back to jail, agent Peter Stokes strikes a deal with him: Caffrey can have his freedom in exchange for helping the FBI solve crimes. On paper, it's a little like Numb3rs with a con in place of the mathematician.
Last week's series premiere will be repeated today at 11:30 a.m., and can be watched online at usanetwork.com; the second episode will make its debut at 10 p.m. today.
Bomer has a lot to work with on the show. Caffrey has enough mystery to make him compelling over the span of a season, and he and DeKay (Carnivale, Tell Me You Love Me) have an edgy but often humorous chemistry.
"We had a quick and easy camaraderie," Bomer said, "which isn't surprising because he's such a great actor. And there are great complexities to their relationship. There are obvious differences but also things they respect and admire about each other. It's not a story about the bumbling agent and the genius con.
"Their skill sets complement each other well. And they like each other at the end of the day. The guy who took Neal's freedom away is the only guy he ends up trusting."
For Bomer, the role follows some close calls. After some daytime-soap work, he was a regular on Tru Calling and had a prominent role in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning in 2006. He won the lead in the short-lived Traveler, followed by an arc in Chuck.
Bomer, 32, said he fell into acting in the sixth grade. "Miss Crowe's class called theater arts," he said. "It was really a form of escapism for me."
He became good friends with two other actors in his high school, Lee Pace (Pushing Daisies) and Lynn Collins (True Blood, X-Men Origins: Wolverine).
"We've always had each other to lean on," Bomer said.
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