As Malloy family patriarch and con artist extraordinaire Wayne Malloy on FX's hit series "The Riches," comedian/actor Eddie Izzard gave one of the most enjoyable performances of this past television season.

This should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with his body of work. Izzard is regarded as one of the smartest stand-up comedians around, with a breezy, story-based, whip-smart approach to the art form.

As an actor, he has appeared in such films as "Ocean's Twelve," "Ocean's Thirteen" and "The Cat's Meow," and he has trod the boards of both Broadway and London's West End. Along the way, he has won two Emmy Awards and an Olivier Award, and earned perhaps the ultimate honor for a comedian when "Monty Python's" John Cleese referred to him as "the lost Python."

With the release of Season 1 of "The Riches" on DVD this week, Bankrate spoke to Izzard about the role of Wayne Malloy, and how his upbringing made him just as sharp in the ways of business as he is in comedy and drama.

Bankrate: How did you develop the character of Wayne Malloy?

Eddie Izzard: It was kind of written with me -- I developed it with two other executives through the pilot stage. I think about 60 percent of Wayne is me, and 40 percent is someone else, but they do tend to write toward you. It works well. There should be an amazing character sense between the actor and the character, and it's an adventure to see where we can take it. I'm a kind of an Energizer Bunny. I'm really driven. I just will not ever, ever, ever give up until I get to where I want to go, and I just melted into Wayne's character.

Bankrate: Being a comedian, do you approach Wayne thinking about the comic possibilities?

Eddie Izzard: No. I've kind of shot that in the head. I feel we're about 90 percent drama, and 10 (percent) to 15 percent comedy.

Bankrate: What has been the greatest challenge for you in playing Wayne?

Eddie Izzard: To try to honor him, I suppose, to honor his character, and to try and take that audience there. Also, to try not to lean on anything comedic -- which might be an easy way -- is always a problem. To stay away from that, and just keep him grounded and real. It's quite a challenge, but I love it to death.

Bankrate: Shooting comedy in the head -- does that mean there's nothing happening for you in the near future on the stand-up front?

Eddie Izzard: No, I'm doing it hand in hand. I'm gonna be doing more (stand-up) now, with the strike on. I have been doing it in L.A. on the weekends. So I'm actually doing both at the same time. I'll probably do some stuff in New York as well. I want to stay match-fit in stand-up. I don't want to let either one go, but I keep stand-up at quite a low level.

Bankrate: Any specials planned in the near future, then?

Eddie Izzard: No, not really. I want to keep all the stuff on the movie and television screens dramatic at the moment. The specials I'm keeping in my back pocket.