With the surprise appearance of Milo Ventimiglia’s backside in the trailer for This Is Us, it’s been quite a time for butt promotion on TV. But the naked male backside glimpsed in the trailer for The Good Wife spinoff The Good Fight is not Justin Bartha’s — even if he wishes it were. “He was an ass model … but you can tell people it’s my ass. Please tell people it’s me,†the actor told us at the show’s premiere party on Wednesday night. Bartha does show “some of my ass†later on in the show’s season, however, and he invites us to do a little compare-and-contrast. “You’ll see that it’s not even close to that guy’s ass,†he laughed. “And trust me, I am not being modest here. I’m being realistic.â€
Despite deeming his own backside more “middle of the road,†Bartha’s not shy about doing nude scenes, and he actually wants to do more if doing so will help break down barriers on network television. Even though full-frontal nudity is no longer shocking on cable or streaming television (“everyone is showing their dicks on Netflix,†he observed), it’s still taboo on networks, and Bartha thinks that shouldn’t be the case. “There should be full-frontal nudity on network television,†he said. “Just show it after a certain time. Just keep it to after 10 p.m. I think people should be naked on network television, and it’s ridiculous that they’re not. Any and every gender. Equal rights for genitalia.â€
Bartha recalled the groundbreaking moment when Dennis Franz first bared his bottom on a 1994 episode of NYPD Blue, forever changing the television landscape as far as nudity was concerned. “All of a sudden, there were asses on television, and that was a big deal,†he remembered. If possible, Bartha dreams of being “the new Dennis Franz†when it comes to frontal nudity. “If it were for a network, like CBS proper, I would definitely want to show my dick,†he said. So, any network willing to take Bartha up on his offer?