( CNN ) -- It 's been a busy month for Rob Lowe . His Lifetime movie `` Prosecuting Casey Anthony '' premiered Saturday with him as attorney Jeff Ashton . On Friday , Lowe will tread familiar territory when his indie flick `` Knife Fight '' hits theaters . The actor plays Paul Turner , a cutthroat political strategist who 's trying to keep his candidates afloat amid self-sabotaging drama . Lowe also can be seen weekly as sad-sack health nut Chris Traeger on NBC 's `` Parks and Recreation , '' which is shooting its fifth season . CNN recently spoke with Lowe about his projects , his personal thoughts on the Casey Anthony trial , his dream of playing Ulysses S. Grant and working with Matt Damon on `` Behind the Candelabra , '' the story of Liberace . CNN : In `` Prosecuting Casey Anthony , '' you play Jeff Ashton , the trial lawyer . From your perception , what was the biggest factor in why he lost ? Rob Lowe : It 's a little bit like why the Titanic hit the iceberg . A bunch of little things had to go wrong for the big thing to go wrong . The one I focus on is the jury selection process itself . I think in many ways the trial was over before it began . This is the first big trial in the era of Twitter and Facebook . Not only does information move at the speed of light , but public opinion coalesces at the speed of light through social media . The point is to get a jury who has no opinion . But the thought that they have no opinion when it 's been all over social media , all over the public consciousness , all over cable news ... you have two types of people : Either they have no opinion and have n't been living in the real world , and what does that say ? Do you really want those people on a jury ? Or you have people who have been paying somewhat attention and have heard leaked evidence , which is everywhere . Personally , I think they overreached with charging her with first-degree , special-circumstances murder . CNN : What 's the mental state like of a person who 's tasked with prosecuting such a high-profile , nationwide murder case ? For the moment , he becomes a rock star for people who love prosecutions . Lowe : People went to Orlando just to be a part of this trial . Like it was Disneyland . It 's hard to imagine , but it 's true . People had T-shirts made that said `` Team Ashton . '' To the uninitiated in the realm of the public eye , that 's probably an unexpected complication that people deal with in different ways . CNN : The case was somewhat reminiscent of the O.J . Simpson case in that it took on this sideshow circus element . Lowe : The only difference that I would say -- and I 'd say it 's significant -- is unlike O.J. , Jeff seems to be the perfect man for the job . This is his area . He 's 12-for-12 in death penalty cases . He 's the first guy to use DNA . And yet it did n't happen , which makes it sort of Shakespearean in a way . CNN : Speaking of circuses , in `` Knife Fight , '' you play Paul Turner , a political strategist . Do you have any empathy for people in these professions ? Lowe : Weirdly , I have nothing but empathy for people in those positions . I 've been fortunate enough -- or depending on your political views , unfortunate enough -- to come into contact with everybody from every spectrum , from George McGovern and Michael Dukakis to Karl Rove . And at their core , they 're all real patriots . And they all really believe in what they perceive to be the greater good of our country . It 's not this jaded , cynical power play . That 's not my experience with those people . Now , do they use jaded , cynical power-play tools ? Absolutely . And that 's what my guy does in the movie . CNN : The film explores `` damage control '' as someone 's area of expertise . A hundred years ago , that notion would n't really exist . Lowe : What appeals to me about it , is at its heart , it 's about communicating . How do you communicate when you 're going into a situation that 's already a train wreck ? When you look at Lance ( Armstrong ) or the football dude ( Manti Te ' o ) -- is there a way to communicate their truth or lack of it in a way that brings a greater understanding ? I think it 's really fascinating . CNN : Let 's talk about `` Parks and Recreation . '' Is Chris Traeger going to find happiness ? Lowe : Chris Traeger is absolutely beginning to finally find happiness . We 're a few more episodes down the pike than the audience has seen , and he 's going to have a -- as he 'd say `` literally '' -- a life-changing opportunity for growth , love and happiness . CNN : He 's become such the sad clown of Pawnee ( the show 's fictional town ) . Lowe : ( Laughs . ) I know . He 's become the happiest sad person on network television . He embraces life , even when he 's steering into a depressing skid . There 's a part of him that savors it in a way that I think is sort of sweet and weirdly inspiring . CNN : You 've worked with some comedic giants over the years . Who on `` Parks '' do you learn the most about comedic deliveries these days ? Lowe : I do n't even know where to begin . It 's murderer 's row . I 've worked with a lot of people and I 've come to realize that Amy ( Poehler ) is , without a doubt , the most astute observer of human behavior that I have ever worked with . And has the quickest mind in terms of comedy and the sharpest sense of timing . Without a doubt . I do n't think anyone comes close . So that 's huge . Then you have somebody like Chris Pratt , who I almost think is the funniest person on the show , who can also be a romantic lead movie star if he wants to . You 've got Aziz ( Ansari ) , who has mined such a specific voice for himself that resonates for so many people , that is unique only to him . You have Rashida Jones , who I believe could make Lena Dunham look like an amateur if given the opportunity . And I 'm a huge fan of Lena 's . Rashida 's a crazy talented `` voice of her generation '' type writer . Her movie `` Celeste & Jesse Forever '' was amazing . It just goes on and on . Nick Offerman ? Ron Swanson is a once-in-a-lifetime character he 's created . CNN : It 's been reported that you 're working on a historical film , where you play Ulysses S. Grant . How far along is that ? Lowe : It 's a big , expensive miniseries . Sony will be making it . I think the latest incarnation will be in conjunction with Reelz . It 's something I 've been attached to and wanting to do for a couple of years now . We 're still waiting for the final OK , and I 'm hoping it 's a project I 'd do on my hiatus , and it would be a dream project for me to play Ulysses S. Grant . He 's a very underserved American hero and complicated , dark , flawed . When he died , America gave him the largest public funeral this country had ever seen . He saved the Union . I 'm hopeful that 'll happen . CNN : Are you shooting anything else this year ? Lowe : I have a movie coming out in May with Steven Soderbergh directing and Michael Douglas and Matt Damon called `` Behind the Candelabra . '' It 's the story of Liberace . Matt Damon and I would sit on the set in our makeup and costume and be like , `` Dude , when people see us in this movie , it 's going to be the end for both of us . '' It 's the most outrageous , over-the-top , hilarious , demented and yet weirdly realistic and sweet movie ever made . And , I might add , it 's so gay , it makes an average episode of `` Glee '' look like `` The Expendables . ''
Lowe recently starred in a a busy month movie about the Lowe trial . Lowe 's also appearing as a political strategist in the indie film `` Behind the Candelabra The actor is attached to a role he says he 's wanted to play for years : Lowe .