Denis Leary has been preparing his ‘whole life’ for a new show filmed at an active military base

Comedian Denis Leary lifelong study of the military celebrity has paid off when it comes to his latest role.

“I’m a huge history buff and my favorite military figure of all time is George Patton, and the character was kind of developed with Patton as a touchstone,” Leary told Fox News Digital about his role on “Going Dutch.”

In the new FOX comedy, Leary plays US Army Colonel Patrick Quinn, who is reassigned to a base in the Netherlands. He goes from combat command to a base with a staff of misfits he’s tasked with raising, with the help of his estranged daughter, played by Taylor Misiak, and his right-hand officer, Executive Officer Major Abraham Shah, played by the “Community” star. Danny Pudi.

“I said, ‘Look, if I’m thinking about playing this guy, I’m going to lean on George Patton and his characteristics because they fit the colonel, and I know a lot about him.’ So being able to play a comic version of that guy, that kind of vanity and that ego and that kind of self-importance is basically what I used as a reference point,” Leary recalled to series creator Joel Church-Cooper.

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He continued, “I read it any book about George Patton, seen every documentary you could see about him. I guess I’ve been preparing to play this guy all my life.”

Leary was a longtime supporter of the military, in addition to his work with firefighters. His charity, the Leary Firefighters Foundation, was founded in 2000 following the deaths of his cousin and childhood friend, as well as four other firefighters.

WATCH: DENIS LEARY PREPARED ‘ALL HIS LIFE’ TO PLAY A ‘COMEDY VERSION’ OF A SOLDIER IN NEW SITCOM

He also turned his advocacy for firefighters into a critically acclaimed drama “save me” on FX, where he played a New York City firefighter dealing with the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks.

“It’s the same self-sacrificing approach to their job, which is to put their lives on the line to protect others or save others,” Leary said of the similarities between playing a firefighter and being a member of the military on screen. “So that aspect of it totally matches. There’s also the same camaraderie in terms of a team that matches a lot.”

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Of course, playing a fictional soldier is far from real work, as Leary and his co-stars witnessed firsthand while filming at a base in Ireland.

“The Irish Army let us use one of their bases. They were really great. They let us shoot pretty much anything we wanted and they lent us some of their equipment,” Leary said. “But, you know, they’re training at a base like we are, we’re shooting a scene here, they’re a short distance away, they’re actually going through a drill.”

Misiak said it was “so surreal.” to watch soldiers in action.

“We’re putting on makeup, and they’re throwing smoke bombs, they’ve got shields, they’re fighting each other, and we’re like, ‘Excuse me, excuse me!'” she said with a laugh.

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Pudi added, “Just the scale of the equipment as well. I mean, we have full tanks, we have like… these tow trucks that are designed to pull these tanks. Just the scale and it just feels so real and so lived. And then also working with real soldiers and, I mean, what a gift. And it’s so interesting to do these pieces where we walk around the base doing this show about these ordinary people, on this base, who have these arguments, these family disagreements, and in the meantime, real soldiers walk by, and I have one soldier who comes up and says, ‘Hey, I’m a big fan.’ And I think, this is so weird, you’re doing a real job here!”

“I’ve read every book about George Patton, watched every documentary you could see about him. I guess I’ve been preparing to play this guy almost my whole life.”

— Denis Leary

Misiak noted that the consultants were also on set to teach them “how to salute properly and a lot of just general etiquette between the different ranks in the military. That was really fun because it was fun to learn everything properly [protocols].”

“Going Dutch” marks Leary’s first sitcom in five years, after starring in “The Moody” in 2019. It’s also part of his overall larger return to TV, which also includes this year’s limited series “There is no good deed” on Netflix.

However, the 67-year-old does not consider it a comeback.

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“I don’t think about it that way. I think of it as trying to honor the scripts,” he said. “Whenever you do a series, it’s, at least for me, like a game to me, like a hockey game or, you know, any sporting event that you’re involved in, you get a little bit, you get butterflies, you seem to want to do a good job.”

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He continued: “Especially in something like this, where there’s going to be some improv and the other actors are capable. I was more nervous about making sure I could keep [up]especially with the first day of shooting.”

“It’s the same self-sacrificing approach to their job, which is putting their lives on the line to protect others or save others.”

— Denis Leary

The Emmy nominee praised his co-stars, saying he’s a fan of Pudi from his work on “Jajednica” and was delighted by Misiak in the early scene.

“When I looked at her across the table before we started this big fight scene, I was like, ‘F—, she’s locked!'” he said of Misiak.

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“I will say about Denis, he is always so present in our scenes. And so, you create that environment where we know that everything is so alive and ready for anything,” said Pudi. “So a lot of it started with Denis just being on set and always ready to go wherever and if something fun happened, he’d say, ‘Yeah, let’s do that again’ or ‘Let’s go, let’s try this .’ So it created a really fun atmosphere in there.”

Leary said, “To me, it’s like doing a live show in theater or stand up or any other concert, you know, you get butterflies and then you’re like, yeah, especially in a team sport like this, you look at other guys, you’re ready, that’s why I love that feeling, and especially when you’re improvising and they’re good at it, man.

“Going Dutch” premieres Jan. 2 on FOX.