July 10, 2025 • 53 mins
In part two of their chat with Melissa Fumero, Wilmer and Freddy dig into friendship, advice, and Melissa’s podcast More Better. Melissa opens up about sharing culture with her kids, staying connected with castmates, and finding joy in new roles. The tables turn as Wilmer and Freddy each ask Melissa for advice on how they can be “more better” in their own lives. It’s an honest and heartfelt episode about growth, connection, and leaning on your amigos.
“Dos Amigos” is a comedic and insightful podcast hosted by two friends who’ve journeyed through Hollywood and life together. Wilmer Valderrama and Freddy Rodriguez push through the noise of everyday life and ruminate on a bevy of topics through fun and daring, and occasionally a third amigo joins the mix!
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
Welcome back to do some Amingos podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
This is Freddy Rodriguez and I'm Wilmer Valderama and we
are here.
Speaker 3 (00:10):
With the incomparable Melissa Famero and I am I'm so
interested in hearing about your directing about Mobeta, your your
great podcast.
Speaker 1 (00:21):
But let's let's dive into it.
Speaker 4 (00:23):
The nucleus of that show was when we were on Brooklyn.
We were always in each other's dressing rooms, like during
lunch or breaks, and we would just be talking like forever,
and most of our conversations were like I'm struggling with
this and like giving each other advice or like what
are you how are you handling this?
Speaker 5 (00:44):
Or like what are you doing lately? It's making you
feel good? And so like the podcast kind of came
from that.
Speaker 4 (00:50):
It's like it's like a like a spin off of
our dressing room.
Speaker 6 (00:55):
You were already experienced.
Speaker 4 (00:56):
It was already like part of our dynamic. It was
already part of search. Friendship is like and you know,
and even like now like you know, I mean, we
see each other quite often, so we don't talk on
the phone all the time, but when we do talk
on the phone, it's a two or three hour conversation,
like it's one of those friendships, you know, we can
(01:16):
just talk forever.
Speaker 3 (01:17):
So, yeah, it's when I when I hung out with
you guys in Austin.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
This is before I even heard your podcast.
Speaker 5 (01:24):
Oh yeah, I haven't even come out yet.
Speaker 1 (01:26):
Turn to women and going like, these two need their
own show.
Speaker 6 (01:28):
Man, and.
Speaker 4 (01:33):
That's why.
Speaker 6 (01:35):
That's why they're here. Buddy.
Speaker 3 (01:39):
I know, but but it didn't like I knew that
witnessing it firsthand, Yeah I was. I was like, Wow,
these two the chemistry is like nothing I've seen before.
Speaker 6 (01:49):
You know, I would love to see that like on screen,
on screen. Yeah, I know.
Speaker 4 (01:54):
We're always talking about it. Yeah, I'm always trying to
cook up something.
Speaker 6 (01:57):
What's like that that you know, like you know, like
a like a like a duo.
Speaker 5 (02:04):
Yeah, yeah, I have. It's weird.
Speaker 4 (02:06):
I have some ideas for us, but I'm like, we
have to be older, like like I got this great idea,
but it's for like when we're in our like late
fifties or you.
Speaker 5 (02:19):
Know, so we're just gonna like sit on. Yeah, but
so done.
Speaker 2 (02:23):
So a little bit more about more better, because more
Better has been a very wonderful success story for iHeart
and you know, by the way, More Better is available
anywhere you get your podcast. It's also part of the
Michael Tuda Podcast Network family.
Speaker 6 (02:38):
But but one of.
Speaker 2 (02:40):
The things that was very fascinating is that voices like you,
voices that speak to all communities and all cultures, you
haven't had really the kind of the space to really
kind of explore, you know, the many boxes you check
for not just humanity but as strong family women. You
both are amazing moms, and you're incredible uh professionals. You're
(03:02):
also an amazing director and you're directing someone really amazing stuff,
which I want to talk a little bit more about
your directing stuff. But you know, how would you describe
to our listeners More Better? What do you think that
people come to more Better for?
Speaker 5 (03:15):
Yeah, so on more and Better.
Speaker 4 (03:17):
We tackle a different topic every episode. Some of them
are kind of deep and heartfelt, and some of them
are like what wine goes best with Cheetos? Really run
the gammet, you know, and yeah, and we halfway through
(03:40):
this first season.
Speaker 6 (03:44):
You shouldn't talking, like you should stop talking.
Speaker 1 (03:45):
I just stop talking.
Speaker 5 (03:46):
That's the show. Check us out, get your podcast Wine
and Cheetos.
Speaker 4 (03:51):
We literally did do that, and yeah, and it's really
fun and it's and it's you know, like I said,
it's an extension of us. Both of us have always
I think one of the things that's always connected us
is Stephanie and I are people that are always kind
of working on ourselves, you know, just like I think
(04:13):
we both sort of see life and this job as like,
you know, there's a there's a progression, like you're always growing,
you're always learning, like you're never just settled right like
otherwise we'd be freaking.
Speaker 5 (04:24):
Buddhist monks, like you know, like never have it all
figured out.
Speaker 4 (04:29):
And so yeah, just exploring that in in in tackling
like one topic big or small each episode, and we
started getting suggestions from our audience, which was like the best,
most unexpected kind of turn for the show because we
got the best questions and stories and it was such
(04:53):
a beautiful way to connect with the people that were
listening to the show.
Speaker 5 (04:57):
And also it just like really gave.
Speaker 4 (04:59):
Us ideas, like because we might have went out of
ideas a lot of episodes.
Speaker 5 (05:04):
It's a lot of episodes on a podcast. I was like,
how many episodes are doing Yeah.
Speaker 4 (05:09):
But I was like, that's the standard in which it
is and yeah, and it's so it's been really fun
and I'm excited to bring season two.
Speaker 6 (05:17):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
So how many seasons were Brooklyn n nine?
Speaker 5 (05:20):
We did eight seasons?
Speaker 1 (05:21):
Eight seasons. Yeah.
Speaker 6 (05:22):
How many episodes of the season.
Speaker 4 (05:24):
First five seasons were twenty three episodes?
Speaker 6 (05:30):
Wow?
Speaker 5 (05:31):
Six was I think eighteen?
Speaker 1 (05:34):
Yeah?
Speaker 5 (05:34):
Seven was thirteen and eight was ten? Okay, I think yeah.
Speaker 6 (05:39):
I mean that's when people were really cranking episodes.
Speaker 3 (05:41):
You know.
Speaker 4 (05:42):
It's like, oh, yeah, I was seven months out of
the year, and yeah, it was.
Speaker 5 (05:49):
It was a lot. It was the first season.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
I was that's what you do, right, we do twenty two,
twenty two, we are doing twenty now, okay, but when
I got there, we were doing twenty four. Yeah, and
bro by episode twenty, I'm You're like, yeah, you're literally
beat up.
Speaker 5 (06:06):
Oh my god.
Speaker 4 (06:06):
And when you walk into like table reads and the
writers just they look rough.
Speaker 6 (06:14):
Especially in nineteen it's.
Speaker 3 (06:16):
Usually like after Christmas, New Year's right January, you just like.
Speaker 1 (06:20):
An episode eight.
Speaker 5 (06:22):
I think about it like a hour about your health.
Speaker 6 (06:25):
Like the one hour dramas.
Speaker 2 (06:27):
That one hour dramas are crazy because you're really putting
out an hour of television. Well, you're putting forty two minutes,
which is double the comedies, which is comedies twenty two minutes.
But it is still amount of pages and work that
you've got to come up with, you know, and you
need to do this many.
Speaker 6 (06:43):
Crimes in one year. That's really good, you know.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
But also I went into into your directing career because
you've been able to successfully direct multiple prime time shows, and.
Speaker 6 (06:56):
That's something that guy.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
I haven't directed prime I directed other stuff, you know,
but I look forward today that I get to, you know,
kind of produce and direct at the same time. I
know you're a director as well and producer. When did
you get the bug to direct?
Speaker 4 (07:10):
I think I always secretly had it, but it all
sort of came about.
Speaker 5 (07:17):
I did this one job that long story short.
Speaker 4 (07:25):
The director was all over the place and I like
had a heart out because of childcare, and he almost
blew the heart out, and it was frustrating because I
was like, well, if you and so. On the ride home,
I was called my manager and I was like, if
he had done this, if he had done that, if
he had done this, if he hadn't taken so long
to make this decision, if he had shot it from this,
(07:46):
you know, we would have made the day. And my
manager goes.
Speaker 5 (07:50):
I think you should direct, and I was like, what
this all with this conversation is about. I'm really mad.
So he set up the low stakes.
Speaker 4 (08:00):
There was like a little web series that he had
some friends doing or that he knew of. It was
called Front Seat Chronicles and every episode takes place in
the front seat of a car and it's a different scene,
and so he put me in touch with them. They
were like, yeah, we'd love for you to come direct one,
and they had a writer that wrote this great scene.
They let me cast my two friends because that was like,
(08:23):
I need to direct some people that are going to
like love me and.
Speaker 5 (08:26):
Support me doing this, and they did and.
Speaker 4 (08:33):
It was just like a It was kind of like
for me to dip my toe in and be like
would I enjoy this and would I know how to
do it? And then that thing that happens when you
spend so many hours on a television set you have
no idea the wealth of knowledge that you know that's.
Speaker 5 (08:49):
Already in your brain.
Speaker 4 (08:51):
And I was like, Oh, I know how to do this,
and I'm enjoying doing this and I'm not getting flustered
by any of it, and I know what I want
my shots to be. I know how this is going
to come together. So then season six, Stephanie, Joe, and
I and actually I have to give Joe and Stephanie
credit because we had talked about putting our names in
(09:11):
to direct episodes on the show, but then we got
canceled and rescued by NBC and I chickened out because
I was like, I don't want to ruffle the girl
boss's feathers, like, and Joe and Sevanie were like, oh no,
we put our names in. You should put your names in,
like you should? You should, you know, pitch yourself to direct,
and I was like, oh okay, And I would never
have done it if they hadn't given me that push.
(09:34):
So I did, and they gave all three of us
an episode that season and it was great and it
was so fun and it was so fun to do
their episodes. It was so fun to do mine. I
got really lucky with mine where I was like in
the c storyline, so I only like worked like one day.
Speaker 3 (09:52):
Yes, yes, how was it directing yourself?
Speaker 5 (09:54):
Did you I hated it?
Speaker 1 (09:56):
Did you go back and watch?
Speaker 5 (09:59):
Never want to do it again? Never going to do
it again.
Speaker 4 (10:03):
I hated the feeling. I think some people can just
split their brain that way. I felt like I couldn't.
I felt like I wasn't one hundred percent present in
the scene the way I normally were.
Speaker 6 (10:16):
You watch and then you were like, ah.
Speaker 4 (10:19):
No, I wasn't watching playback because there's no time to
really do that, especially on a comedy set, and you're
like moving.
Speaker 6 (10:25):
Yeah, first thing they needed to Yeah, Well, I.
Speaker 5 (10:28):
Got really lucky.
Speaker 4 (10:29):
The writer of that episode was Phil Augusta Jackson, who
created went on to create Grand Crew, who actually really
helped my directing career kind of move forward. And he
had already directed an episode of Brooklyn and I uh
because at one point I told him like, I think
you're extraordinarily talented and if you ever need me to
(10:50):
act in anything, I will be there. And he was like,
I got this short film that I'm going to do
my first time directing, Like, will you beat it? And
I was like yes, And so I was in his
first short film, and so we had already collapsed. So
this was a third time we collaborated together. And I
just turned to Phil and I said, Phil, these are
the shots. This is what I'm going for like direct
(11:11):
these scenes because I'm gonna lose my goddamn mind right now,
and I hate this so much. I want to just
act in the scene.
Speaker 3 (11:17):
Well, because you felt like you were two in your
head when you were acting in the scene, Like.
Speaker 4 (11:21):
Well, yeah, I couldn't figure out how to mentally like
be in the scene the way I would be as
an actor and also have part of my brain thinking
of what adjustment I mean, I can adjust myself, but
what adjustments do I want my scene partner to make?
Speaker 5 (11:36):
What is the camera doing? Do you know what I mean?
Speaker 4 (11:39):
Like, and then like checking off all the things like, oh,
I hope they pulsed in at this part or did it?
Like I just couldn't do all that math in my
head while I was performing, and I I kind of could,
but I didn't like the feeling of it.
Speaker 5 (11:54):
I felt like I was.
Speaker 4 (11:55):
Doing each job at like sixty percent. I get what
you're bat and I didn't like that feeling.
Speaker 6 (12:02):
Myself to do.
Speaker 5 (12:04):
And I think some people can just do that.
Speaker 4 (12:06):
I think I've watched America Ferra direct and scene she's in,
and she does it bleavy, beautifully and flawlessly, Like I
think some people just have that brain, and I.
Speaker 5 (12:15):
Don't, so I won't ever be doing that again.
Speaker 2 (12:29):
I mean, and someone explained it to me, as you know,
once you put your once you set up your cameras
and you know how you're going to cover your scene.
Once you're in the scene, you take the hat off
and just make sure the scene works as a perform as.
Speaker 6 (12:46):
An actor, and then once the scene is done, then
you go back.
Speaker 4 (12:49):
I also didn't love the feeling of like being an
actor in a scene with another actor and being like, hey,
so you know in that part, you know what I mean,
like noting an.
Speaker 5 (12:58):
Actor while you're also the actor in the scene.
Speaker 4 (13:01):
With them, because normally, like you would never you know, and.
Speaker 3 (13:07):
It just especially an actor who's like, you're you're a
fellow series regularly.
Speaker 5 (13:12):
Right right, That's yeah, it's weird, you know.
Speaker 4 (13:16):
And yeah, so I didn't. It was fine when I
wasn't in the scene and I was approaching my my castmates,
like as a director, and they all were like very
beautifully like supportive, even Andre, like but not even Andre.
Andrea was beautifully gracious to everyone. Actually I probably was
(13:38):
like I thought Andy would give not a hard time,
but I thought he would like tease me throughout the
whole thing, and he did.
Speaker 6 (13:44):
He took it seriously.
Speaker 5 (13:45):
He took it very seriously. He was very professional, which
like a little part of me.
Speaker 6 (13:48):
Was that's what you want to but I was like, come.
Speaker 5 (13:50):
On, I'm not gonna rasp me at all.
Speaker 4 (13:53):
But no, he was like very everybody was like very
sweet and professional. And the cool thing about that experience,
which you know, you never really get again because it's impossible,
it was so nice to direct actors knowing exactly how
they like to hear notes exactly, like what their langua
(14:15):
or unique little languages are. And I think that was
also like important to remember when I went to other shows.
Was like trying to figure out part of that on
day one, right, or like trying to mind that from
a showrunner or you know, someone who's directed on the
show A bunch, Like, so would you.
Speaker 1 (14:32):
Ask ahead of time before you start on another show?
Speaker 5 (14:35):
Would you always? Yeah?
Speaker 4 (14:37):
Act yeah, Like is there anything you can tell me
about how actors like to hear notes or like you know,
you know, because some people, you know, there's actors that
like like really actory kind of note, you know, like
intention and verbs and da da da, And then there's
some actors that are just like faster, like you can
you know what I mean, like higher stake, like you know,
(15:00):
like short things, you know, like so I try to
find that out as much as I can before.
Speaker 6 (15:05):
What about you as an actress? How do you like
to be addressed? How do I?
Speaker 5 (15:10):
How do I like to be addressed? Yes, queen miss?
How do I like to hear? Notes?
Speaker 4 (15:22):
I definitely like the theater kid and me appreciates like
a beautiful, well thought out note that like has depth
or intention in it.
Speaker 6 (15:34):
What about season six? New director?
Speaker 5 (15:38):
Give it to me quick?
Speaker 6 (15:41):
What is it? Oh?
Speaker 4 (15:44):
Yeah, but they're definitely there. Definitely is I do, especially
when you worked in comedy right with somebody's like so
just like more energy and like the stakes higher, and
you're like faster, you want it faster?
Speaker 5 (15:57):
Just say faster, Just say.
Speaker 6 (15:59):
Faster to tie it up a little bit.
Speaker 5 (16:01):
Yeah, just taint it up. Yeah, that's it. You can
say that, you know.
Speaker 6 (16:04):
Yeah? What about you?
Speaker 4 (16:05):
What do you?
Speaker 1 (16:05):
What do you?
Speaker 5 (16:06):
What do you? Yeah?
Speaker 6 (16:07):
Well, so it's two things like drama and comedy.
Speaker 2 (16:10):
For me, had two are phones that I love so much, right,
And I would say that as as when I was
wearing my comedy hat I had.
Speaker 6 (16:19):
You know, I was very.
Speaker 2 (16:22):
When I was playing Fez on seventy show. I had
this director named David Trainer, who they directed one hundred
and ninety nine episodes wow, the exception of the pilot
and David Trainer. You know, I had created this accent, right,
but I also created this vibe which was like such
an ambiguous in his saying, yet like you can get
away a character. So so like, no matter how I
(16:45):
did it, it was like a choice that people are like.
Speaker 6 (16:48):
You're gonna do it like that. Yeah, you're gonna do it.
So but because I was still committed, they're like, he's
gonna do it like that.
Speaker 2 (16:53):
He's gonna do it like that. So they kind of
would let me cook by myself sometimes. But he was
like the Wilmer whisperer because sometimes my accent will get
a little too strong and really hard to understand, and
so he will come into the scene and he'll be like, well,
just like a little mover of the fingers. And he
didn't want to tell me in front of everybody that
(17:15):
like that, like it's hard to understand you.
Speaker 6 (17:17):
Yeah, he didn't want to say that. Yeah, So he
was just like, I don't see it a little.
Speaker 2 (17:21):
More and then okay, we're gonna go again, and just
like an so he will steer the boat.
Speaker 4 (17:27):
Yeah, and I love which is so much of what
it is, especially in comedy.
Speaker 2 (17:32):
Yes, so in comedy and you know, but I also
like a showrunner running in and be like, here's five lines.
Speaker 6 (17:39):
We're gonna this is the new joke. I love that,
Like I'm just okay, it's a sport. To me.
Speaker 2 (17:45):
It's like, Okay, that one wasn't as funny. This is
I'm gonna nail this right now. Okay, there are two
hundred and thirty people are waiting to laugh. Okay, cool ready,
okay said, and you know, so I'm very good with
attention in that.
Speaker 6 (17:56):
In drama.
Speaker 2 (17:58):
Season eight Fancis, it's a little bit of like, you know,
there's so much to shoot in a drama and a
crime investigation show.
Speaker 6 (18:11):
I don't like. I don't know what it is.
Speaker 2 (18:15):
But I don't like when when a director says like,
you know it will be funny.
Speaker 4 (18:19):
Oh yeah, don't say you know it would be funny
the funny guy.
Speaker 5 (18:24):
Yeah, do you get all like.
Speaker 6 (18:30):
No, no, I make them feel like I listened. Yea,
mm hmm, Okay, let's try that. I like to try that.
Speaker 2 (18:39):
Yeah, oh cool, cool, Yeah, we'll run it again, you know.
But I learned so much a lot of the directors
that come in, and this is like basically a big
tribute to all the directors that come into well machines,
like the machines that are like just cranking out episodes.
Like I would say, like, you know, sometimes they have
the thankless job of inherent it in a DP that
(19:01):
knows how to just shoot the show by itself, right,
and then a director's coming to kind of.
Speaker 6 (19:05):
Steer the pace and steer the whatever, you know.
Speaker 2 (19:08):
But there are those directors who really want to collaborate
with the actor, and I think that's always super welcoming,
really exciting. But you know, at NCIAS is an interesting
thing because the actors have you know, double Bachelor degrees
on their characters. Yeah, they've done seven hundred episodes as
this character.
Speaker 5 (19:26):
No one's going to know it more than yes, you know, so.
Speaker 2 (19:28):
They kind of it was a little bit, but you know,
I would say I had this. I appreciate when somebody
can can explain to me in feelings, like you know,
as opposed to like quite literally like some writers want
to say it as scripted, and I have a tough
time saying like I don't know how to sell it
(19:49):
like that, Like I think I'll sell it better this way.
But long story short, I think like comedy, it could
either be like steer the boat or like it could
be like try this different way, you know.
Speaker 3 (20:02):
Uh?
Speaker 6 (20:03):
And I love that sport and in drama I like it.
I don't. I don't need silk gloves. I can take it.
Speaker 2 (20:09):
But it's just like it's like you got to come
with a very specific direction where you want if you
want to steer the scene to go into different pace
or a different thing, like just just say that ship.
Speaker 5 (20:19):
Just say that ship.
Speaker 6 (20:20):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (20:21):
What about if a director comes in is like be better.
Speaker 6 (20:25):
Be better, try not to suck on this, be better?
Does that give me that direction? Yeah?
Speaker 5 (20:34):
So Wimmer, that was great. That was great, just as
an option. Be better?
Speaker 6 (20:39):
Okay, yes, uh, give me a line reading.
Speaker 5 (20:43):
Oh you like line readings.
Speaker 6 (20:45):
No, I'm just saying I want you to tell me
that you can do my job better. I can do better.
Show me show show be better, show me better, tell
me better, show me more better.
Speaker 1 (20:59):
You know what it is.
Speaker 6 (21:00):
Yeah, you know it's coming giming. So what do you
want me? How do you want me to? You know,
but nobody actually has the boss to say that should allowed.
It's like, just be better.
Speaker 4 (21:09):
I'm like, im now, be pitching myself hard for your show,
just so I can come in on every time.
Speaker 2 (21:15):
I love for you to direct show. Yeah, and I
will literally take it very serious. I'd definitely be andy,
you know, I'd be like.
Speaker 4 (21:22):
I'm not going to dreg your show. You that ship
you have to it would jump the sharks. The tone
would be completely different.
Speaker 6 (21:29):
What happened? We have jumped the show?
Speaker 5 (21:34):
Why are they doing jokes?
Speaker 6 (21:37):
They jokes? Why are they so over the top? Why
is he wearing the hat? Wh wh where is he
wearing a hat? Like pushing?
Speaker 5 (21:49):
It was really funny, but just not our show.
Speaker 6 (21:52):
Is seen in boxers. I don't understand why boxers like SpongeBob.
What happened to the show?
Speaker 5 (21:59):
Also, the theme song is different, Freddy, how do you
like to hear it?
Speaker 6 (22:11):
Notes?
Speaker 1 (22:12):
I go off of emotion.
Speaker 3 (22:14):
I just just just tell me what emotion because I'm
always just digging for truth.
Speaker 5 (22:18):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (22:18):
Yeah, at the end of the day, that's.
Speaker 6 (22:20):
All it is.
Speaker 3 (22:20):
You're just digging for truth. So what emotion are you
looking for? Sometimes people are just like, oh, well this
and that, and they you.
Speaker 1 (22:26):
Know, like, just what emotion, dude? What once you give
me that, I'll know what emotion to dig in.
Speaker 2 (22:32):
Here example of that, that's that's actually really you know,
I said many words because we're doing a podcast, but
like that's a very direct way of saying, like, you know,
like where.
Speaker 6 (22:44):
Do you feel? Said the director?
Speaker 2 (22:46):
We are in this story, and what do you think
my character should be feeling right now?
Speaker 6 (22:51):
It's what you're saying, right, yeah.
Speaker 1 (22:53):
Yeah, Like I'll do a scene and maybe, you know,
maybe I'm angry.
Speaker 3 (22:56):
And they're like, oh man, I've had a director going
all to this to that, and they'll they'll go off
and their sort of myriad of notes and I'm like, okay,
so just just real simple man, what emotion are you
going for?
Speaker 1 (23:09):
Yes? Give me the emotion. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (23:10):
So the like better note for you would be like
it I want to I love you know, the anger
is really great, but it's a little too high, so
maybe we infuse some sadness in there, or maybe we
have use some anxiety or something like could you know
what color?
Speaker 5 (23:26):
They want to exactly?
Speaker 1 (23:27):
Colors?
Speaker 5 (23:27):
Yes, and then I use that I know how to
do that, yeah.
Speaker 3 (23:31):
Because it's the well, right yeah, yeah, just go back
into the well and go, okay, they want that emotion.
And then like you know, I find my brain sends
the signal to the well and yeah, like gives you
the emotion.
Speaker 6 (23:41):
You know.
Speaker 4 (23:42):
Yeah, yeah, I find myself doing that sometimes when I
get like a long winded note and then I if
I'm like I'm not, I like, do you ever do that?
Like translate and I'm like do you mean more this
and that and like in your own terms, you.
Speaker 6 (23:57):
Know, yes, so you can hear it in the words that.
Speaker 5 (23:59):
Will actually yeah.
Speaker 4 (24:01):
And then sometimes I feel bad because I feel like
I just told the director how to actually.
Speaker 6 (24:05):
Talk talk director. Here's how you're utimes.
Speaker 4 (24:09):
The reaction is like, well, yeah, yeah, you know I
just said that, And I was like, no, no, no, I'm
saying how what I'm making sure that what I hearing
is what you're saying. So we're on the same page,
like yeah, because I have my own way of hearing
and interpreting and then translating.
Speaker 1 (24:29):
Right.
Speaker 3 (24:30):
Yeah, And what you said earlier about like a new
director coming on your show, about you having a double
bachelor's degree and in the character right like this the
show I did it was the character was pretty external
and I don't know, I abo'd say over the top,
but it was definitely bombastic and electric.
Speaker 1 (24:49):
And and I don't think the director really watched the show.
Speaker 3 (24:52):
And he came on and and was just like, what
are you doing?
Speaker 1 (24:57):
No, man, that's too much.
Speaker 3 (24:59):
I'm like, dude, I'm doing this for likes you watched
the show at all, that's the character, you.
Speaker 5 (25:06):
Know, there's nothing worse. Yeah, doesn't watched the show.
Speaker 3 (25:11):
Yeah, and you can tell like he didn't mean it
in a mean way, but he had no filter and
and he just pretty much told me I was like
sort of overacting or whatever.
Speaker 1 (25:19):
And I'm like, no, man, that's what this is what.
Speaker 5 (25:23):
Yeah, yeah, this is this is what I've been this
is what I've been doing. Yeah, I watched more than
one episode.
Speaker 2 (25:29):
Why is the one thing you you I would talk
about now, like how we want to receive it. But
what is the one thing that when a director does
and and I'll give you an example, but when the
director does that you were just like you took me
out for me? Is when a director just makes you
do it multiple takes without communicating the why.
Speaker 6 (25:50):
They're doing another take.
Speaker 2 (25:53):
Like I had a director a couple of seasons ago.
We were doing a scene where we were going up
this apps of this courthouse, you know, and we're going
up the steps and then I'm talking walking talk, and
then we say, wait, cut, okay, back to one, we're
gonna do it again.
Speaker 6 (26:12):
I was like, all, great, right, we'll go back. We're
doing and I.
Speaker 2 (26:14):
Think two takes for our show. We're nailing it at
two takes. We're neling right back we take. We nail
it at nobody forgets lines and ncyahs by the way,
Like that's amazing, But that's because we in between scenes,
we're getting each other off book. We're rehearsing the stuff together,
which we really set each other up for success, you know,
(26:35):
especially Gary Cole and I like and Katrina and Sean Murray,
Like we all sit down and we're like, okay, let's
run it, around it, run it, because sometimes we're shooting
three and a half pages of just.
Speaker 5 (26:44):
Like I love that though. That's ensemble acting.
Speaker 6 (26:47):
It's amazing.
Speaker 2 (26:49):
But so then we're going to third take and she's like,
let's do it one more time, and now at this point,
we're like six takes and haven't heard award from the director.
He hasn't addressed the actors, She hasn't addressed you know,
the camera. So I look at the camera, our steady operator,
and I go, I go, why.
Speaker 6 (27:08):
Are we doing it again?
Speaker 2 (27:10):
And he's like, I don't know. I said, we not
nailed the movement. Like he goes, I don't know. It's
everything's been fine. We just keep doing it.
Speaker 1 (27:19):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (27:20):
And he doesn't even he doesn't even know. Our camera
operator doesn't even know. And I looked at the DP
and I'm like, is the reason why we're doing it again?
He goes, So then I said, and.
Speaker 5 (27:30):
Then we never saw that director ever again.
Speaker 6 (27:33):
Director, thank you for tuning in to those amigos. It's
very good everywhere you got your podcast.
Speaker 2 (27:42):
So honestly, I was like, hey can I So at
that point I was like shaking because like, you know,
we're losing the sun and we're making us do it
over and over again. This and he's talking up and
down the steps, up and down the steps, so you're
not aware of your actor's band, you know, stamina, you
know you're in location.
Speaker 6 (28:02):
It's like five pm. We're losing the sun.
Speaker 2 (28:04):
We've shot four scenes in this location, like everyone's like drained,
you know. So I said out loud, I'm sorry, before
we even do another take, can we actually get a
little perspective on the why we continue to do this scene?
Speaker 6 (28:19):
Is? Why are we not getting How can we help
you get this?
Speaker 2 (28:23):
And she comes out and she's like, no, I just
feel like, you know, we can do it one more time.
And I said, and this is the first time, probably
the last time I'll do this, but and I hope
to God this last time I do this.
Speaker 6 (28:34):
But I've basically not going to be the first, not
going to trust that, I said.
Speaker 2 (28:40):
So she didn't couldn't give me an explanation, and I
looked at my cast and I was like, actually, know
we're done with the scene.
Speaker 6 (28:46):
We're done.
Speaker 2 (28:46):
I think we're gonna we're gonna move on to the
next day. And she was like, I'm sorry, and I said,
we're done. We're not shooting the scene anymore. We're absolutely
we're wrapping. That was the last eve and I we're
gonna wrap the scene. And she was like, look and
the DP and the camera when we're like they've never
seen me, and like Mark Harmon was then too, so
and he just kind of walk off. It was like
(29:09):
we're done, We're done doing the same.
Speaker 6 (29:11):
I think that's it. I think we have it in
any of the six stays and then you'll be able
to cut it.
Speaker 2 (29:16):
And we walked off and then like everyone started picking
up the equipment or whatever, and it was like that
was the end, and and I felt bad, but I
realized what was missing. Like a director has to command
the crew, giving off information, so we so we get
to the storytelling. When you exhaust your actors, you start
(29:39):
losing the grip.
Speaker 5 (29:40):
I was going to say, did that director like fully
lose the crew? That's there's nothing worse when the.
Speaker 2 (29:45):
Director do you have a steady camera operator going up
the steps.
Speaker 5 (29:48):
Backwards and they don't know why they keep doing it.
Speaker 2 (29:51):
And it's a walking talk yeah, backwards and back down
backwards and back down backwards. And this guy is like
doing stair masters while we're like trying to do this
can talk scenes anyway. So my point is like these
are the moments where you're kind of like, as a director,
like you have to create a certain amount of harmony.
You have to understand like, you know, the harmonic love.
Speaker 4 (30:11):
The crew has power Yeah, the crew was going to
be real slow to get up the next day.
Speaker 5 (30:16):
They're gonna be They're gonna take some time.
Speaker 4 (30:18):
I was like, you know what I mean, they're gonna
you know, they might be like you might come up
with an idea for a new prop and they might
be like, you know, I mean not crews are very professional,
but they work really hard. And when they feel disrespected
that way, sometimes they you know, they're.
Speaker 6 (30:37):
Like, yeah, Nina, stuff is done by remind you you're in. Yeah,
it was. It was. It was a tough thing and
and uh.
Speaker 5 (30:44):
Or just like the morale is down, the everyone's just
it's just like, you know.
Speaker 2 (30:49):
What's your what's the what's the thing that you were
like that took me out that a director can do.
Speaker 3 (30:55):
Yeah, stuff like that, like like unnecessary stuff, you know,
without telling me without It's.
Speaker 1 (31:01):
So funny and we might have Worke took the same director.
Speaker 3 (31:05):
The last show I did, I had to walk into
I had I had to walk up some some courtroom
steps also the same thing, and it was like one
hundred degrees outside, and they wouldn't just like just want more. Man,
I'm like, what's what's wrong? And they wouldn't communicate to
us what was wrong, and they were just trying to
get the timing just right and they couldn't get it.
(31:26):
I'm like, dude, it's it's I'm wearing a suit, yeah,
at a circuit point sweating like yeah, change course or just.
Speaker 2 (31:35):
Except it's communication, Like you just need to be communicator.
Just tell me what you're trying.
Speaker 5 (31:39):
To we're trying to now, Yeah.
Speaker 1 (31:41):
Yeah, totally totally like communication.
Speaker 3 (31:43):
I don't you know, I don't like I don't like
disrespectful directors that really like, oh yeah.
Speaker 4 (31:50):
When somebody like they give you a note and it's
like a little like condescendan Yeah, it's a little like
you know, like the way they say it or.
Speaker 3 (31:57):
The yet yellers or like these directors were like yellers
or you know, oh.
Speaker 5 (32:02):
Like shouting a note across the thing instead of like walking.
Speaker 6 (32:05):
Up to you. Yeah, or just like assholes.
Speaker 3 (32:08):
You know, like like these asshole directors like that takes
me out, man, It completely turns me off.
Speaker 1 (32:13):
And I just, you know, you know, stuff.
Speaker 4 (32:15):
Like that you mine is so cliche. I fucking hate
line readings.
Speaker 6 (32:22):
Oh really, I do.
Speaker 4 (32:25):
I know it is not everyone my husband loves. My
husband really doesn't mind line readings, like sometimes it really
helps him understand a note. A line reading is when
a director, instead of giving you a note for the line,
like says how they want you to say the line, so.
Speaker 6 (32:42):
Like it's exaccurate.
Speaker 5 (32:44):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I.
Speaker 4 (32:45):
Was trying to, Like, I hear line reading, and I don't.
It triggers me me in a weird way, like I
feel like I'm doing a bad job, Like I'm doing
so bad that you have to say the line how
I should be saying it. And I also don't understand
what the note is. Then I try to like, well,
what is what is the note? Like what what is
(33:07):
what is the shift or the adjustment? And I can't
hear it in the line reading because I'm all caught
up in my own ship. And then I get offended
and then and then I get like kind of mad,
you know, Yeah, I start spiraling and I and I yeah,
and it's so cliche and I wish it didn't, but
I mean it bugs me less. I think as I
(33:28):
get older, when I was younger, I would like immediately
get mad.
Speaker 3 (33:31):
But do you think that the line reading comes before
or after they try to convey what the direction or
the emotion is. And the second part is do you
mind them giving you a mind line reading if after
they've given you a direction, it's not it's not resonating.
Speaker 4 (33:49):
Yes, because I had this happen to me, So okay,
if it's just the line reading, like if they come
up and they're like, hey, can you say it? Like uh,
you know, oh, we're going to be late, you know,
if they just give the lit note like that, I'm
like fuck you. But then I did have a director
once who would come up give the note and then
(34:12):
the line reading and the notes were always great that it.
Speaker 1 (34:16):
Drove me crazy.
Speaker 4 (34:19):
I wanted to be like, don't do the line reading
because then I'd be hung up on the line reading.
Speaker 5 (34:24):
Then I'd be like, wait is how they said it?
Speaker 4 (34:27):
Like the note? And I would again be on that
like spiral, you know. So it's like, yeah, I just
wanted to be more excited, you know, like come on, guys,
we gotta go, you.
Speaker 5 (34:36):
Know, and then they walk away and you're.
Speaker 4 (34:37):
Like what, And then I would just be left in
that spiral and like overthinking, you know, We'll wait is
that more excited?
Speaker 1 (34:47):
Now?
Speaker 4 (34:47):
I'm just stuck on how they did it? Should I
just do it? Like that, But is that how I
would do it? Like I get all into that, you know,
it just messes me up.
Speaker 2 (34:57):
In network television, I hate to say, but he's rarely
the director from the writer.
Speaker 6 (35:04):
Oh yes, you're killing the messenger. I'm telling you.
Speaker 2 (35:11):
I would say maybe, I don't know, maybe fifty sixty forty,
I don't know.
Speaker 6 (35:15):
You told me how many who takes the biggest fall?
But writers?
Speaker 5 (35:18):
Most of the time it's the writer.
Speaker 6 (35:20):
The writers like this how it was supposed to be,
I will.
Speaker 5 (35:22):
I will, I will. There is an other? Uh, what
exception to this rule?
Speaker 6 (35:28):
Kids? M hm.
Speaker 5 (35:30):
A lot of times you need to give them My
readings work really.
Speaker 4 (35:33):
Well for kids, and I've done that as a director,
and it pained me.
Speaker 5 (35:37):
Like the show runner I had to tell she was like,
just give her a line reading. I was like, Oh, when.
Speaker 4 (35:40):
I directed on Gordi Da Chronicles, which had a lot
of kids, and Bridget who is the showrunner. Bridget you
know Lebowitz, who's amazing and brilliant, and she was the
showrunner and she was a writer on Brooklyn, so I
already knew her.
Speaker 5 (35:56):
And I remember when.
Speaker 4 (35:58):
She told me with the kids, she was like yeah,
and so like just sometimes a line reading, they're going
to understand a line reading better than note.
Speaker 5 (36:03):
And I was like, oh, are you sure.
Speaker 4 (36:05):
I was like, let me try, you know, and then
you just and then like kids, you have time restraints
and you have to get through things quickly and so
and then I saw it like there were most of
the time I could give them notes and they would
under I'm a mom, like you know, you know, you
know how to talk to kids, like, but then you
would see sometimes and they would ask for it too,
like they were all so old enough where they'd be like,
(36:27):
how can you can you show me? Like they were
smart enough to also be like and I so then
I would do it, but I'd be like, but also,
don't you don't have to do exactly what I did,
you know, Like I would always feel obligated to be like,
you know, you could do that what I just did,
or you can do your version of it, you know,
because I was wanting to give them like autonomy. But
(36:50):
but yeah, but kids they just they understand the note
sometimes better by just mimicking, right, because they're young and
they're still learning.
Speaker 7 (36:59):
Yeah, Switching Gears.
Speaker 6 (37:09):
Do you you have a show that is currently on NBC?
Speaker 2 (37:13):
Yes, and I told you earlier before we started the
show that you are absolutely stunning your performance and this
thing is incredible, Like you're literally pulling.
Speaker 6 (37:25):
Up all your weapons and you're like, this isn't me.
You're literally just bringing everything out.
Speaker 5 (37:32):
Now I just have to sing on the show.
Speaker 6 (37:35):
Exactly exactly you took it from you sing any season?
Did you get to sing noney season?
Speaker 2 (37:45):
So my my question for you is, can you talk
about your show, you know, for the for the listeners
and talk about you know, you know, your character and
what the show's about.
Speaker 4 (37:57):
The name of the show, so it's called Gross Garden Society.
Speaker 5 (38:01):
Quite a lengthy title, but it's on NBC.
Speaker 4 (38:05):
We just wrapped our first season, so all thirteen episodes
are on Peacock Bing.
Speaker 5 (38:11):
It played on every screen in your house.
Speaker 4 (38:13):
And it's about these four unlikely friends that are part
of a garden club that.
Speaker 5 (38:19):
Get mixed up in a murder.
Speaker 4 (38:22):
And the show takes place in two different timelines, So
there's present day where you sort of see how they
all come together and become friends, and then there's flash
forwards to the night of this murder, and little by
little as the season goes on, you get more and
more scenes from that night, more information, possible suspects and
possible scenarios even of how what went down.
Speaker 5 (38:45):
And then in episode.
Speaker 4 (38:49):
Eleven and twelve, because it all takes place during this
big gala, those two episodes happen in regular time. There's
no yeah, there's no time jumping, and you see, like, yeah,
you see the whole night up to the murder. And
then episode twelve is from the murder all through the
(39:09):
next morning, and then thirteen is sort of like a
wrap up, and then another then there's some flashbacks and
another flashboard. So it's a really fun show. It's like
a little bit so. It is like kind of combo
of like all the things I've done. It's a lot
of dark humor. It's a little bit soapy. It's fun,
(39:31):
it's escapist, it's dramatic, it's heartfelt. I play a character
who is a very wealthy socialite in this affluent town
that is all about like the upper class and appearances.
And she is part of the Garden Club as part
of her community service because she drunk drove into the
(39:53):
town fountain, and so to avoid jail, she has to
volunteer at the garden Club and she meets these other
people and they sort of become maybe her first friends
in real life and or ever.
Speaker 5 (40:05):
In her life.
Speaker 4 (40:05):
And and I think we also meet her at like
a real low point in her life.
Speaker 5 (40:10):
We find out that.
Speaker 4 (40:11):
She gave up a baby when she was a teenager,
and she contacts that young man he's now uh, he's
now a teenager, and that she makes like a series
of bad choices.
Speaker 5 (40:23):
And she doesn't really know how to be a grown.
Speaker 4 (40:24):
Up, and so she's kind of messy and toxic and
but also vulnerable. And I like she's one of the
most favorite characters I've ever played because she's so complex
and so I'm so like empathetic to her. She just says,
there's so much she just doesn't know that she's like
trying to figure out. And then she's meeting all these
people in this like crossroads moment of her life.
Speaker 6 (40:48):
So yeah.
Speaker 5 (40:48):
So and then as an actor, it's like dream.
Speaker 4 (40:52):
Because I get to be big and ridiculous and like
kind of funny because she's ridiculous. And then I get
to be real and grounded and heartbroken.
Speaker 6 (41:04):
And your fans haven't really seen you play something.
Speaker 4 (41:07):
No, yeah, yeah, So it's like, yeah, I'm getting to
do you know, it's like I joke that Brooklyn nine
nine was like a very elite comedy school that I
got to go to, and so I'm getting to like
bring everything, Like I don't think I could have played
this character ten years ago.
Speaker 1 (41:24):
You know.
Speaker 4 (41:24):
She's like I've had to have done like everything I've done,
I think, to like bring it all together for her
because she has so many different flavors and colors, and
they really just wrote like such a great character with Bertie.
Speaker 5 (41:40):
So it's been really fun.
Speaker 2 (41:41):
But you're in a spectacle on this show, and I
think people should watch just to kind of experience your performances.
I mean, I think it's like something we also kind
of really need to know that there is a level
of experience and expertise and liberation that you got to
have as an artist to actually get to a point
to bring a character like that to life. One thing
is what's on the page, and the other one is
(42:02):
the instrument that tells that story.
Speaker 6 (42:04):
And you have just done it in such a high level.
Speaker 2 (42:09):
And so I really truly invite friends to go to
Peacock and catch up benj It tell a friend how
everybody discover the show.
Speaker 6 (42:18):
It's you know, your performance is.
Speaker 2 (42:19):
Something like, yes, just for that alone, like you need
to tune in and watch Melissa do her show and
thank you.
Speaker 3 (42:27):
Yeah, you know, you know what I love about it
and what I loved about Brooklyn long Line. I remember
first watching you on that and going like, oh, this
this girl.
Speaker 1 (42:36):
She goes for it. She she don't care man, she
she goes for it.
Speaker 3 (42:42):
And and then this is what I mean by it, right,
this sort of the context behind it is that I
feel that sometimes actresses sort of hold back because they
want to they want to look a certain way or
they want to be a certain way, where where I
feel with you, there's a freedom in your instrument that
you don't you don't give.
Speaker 1 (42:59):
A ship man.
Speaker 6 (43:00):
Yes, you go and you do it.
Speaker 1 (43:02):
And I mean that in the in the most hot.
Speaker 5 (43:03):
No, No, I did I know that is such a
nice compliment.
Speaker 4 (43:06):
Yeah, no breaks, no break down.
Speaker 5 (43:12):
Yeah, I just really love this job, you know.
Speaker 4 (43:16):
And I I you know, I think, yeah, I think
part of that is I do really love to play.
Speaker 5 (43:23):
I do really love I love I love the you know.
Speaker 4 (43:29):
When we were making gross point, it had been a
long time since since Brooklyn that I had done because
I've done streaming shows since then. In a streaming show,
you shoot the whole thing and then it comes out later,
which I love. And so it had been a minute
since I had had the experience of while we were
shooting it. We were going to premiere and I got
(43:52):
really anxious and it was kind of the first time
I was able to articulate it. I was like, oh,
I hate to and I love this feeling of when
we're making the thing and we're all in this bubble
and you're just going for it and you're playing and
you're exploring and you're finding things, and you're not thinking
about what it's gonna freaking look like or you know,
(44:14):
I mean, you're thinking about how it's gonna come together,
because your brain does the like technical dance of you know,
the cameras and all that. But but I love this
like bubble where you're just making the thing.
Speaker 5 (44:25):
And I was like, Oh, this sucks.
Speaker 4 (44:27):
Now it's gonna be on TV and people are gonna
have opinions about it, and then it's not gonna be
ours anymore, and it's gonna be everyone else's and then
the bubble, the bubble's gone, and then we don't get
to live in the bubble ever again, right right, And
I was like, but that's.
Speaker 5 (44:42):
Literally our job.
Speaker 4 (44:44):
We don't get to do this unless people like what
we do and they watch, so we want that. But
I just, yeah, it's like I'm a little at odds
with that, and I just I don't know, like sounds crazy,
but like almost like if I if I could like
still make money and like just like do shows and
(45:05):
like act and things, and like it didn't matter who
saw it or like if it did well, like.
Speaker 5 (45:10):
Dream, that would be like literally the dream.
Speaker 4 (45:13):
I think everyone feels like that, right, Like it's so
it's so anxiety, Like it's so it's hard that part
when like you know the thing you love so much
and then everyone's going to come.
Speaker 5 (45:22):
It's it's not yours anymore.
Speaker 2 (45:24):
So it's like the pressure of it having to perform
for an economical reason.
Speaker 4 (45:28):
Right, like for the for the very practice is the business,
Like it is a business. It has it's a product.
It has to make money, it has to like do well.
People have to watch, it has to hit certain markers,
like right now we're waiting to see if it'll come back,
if it's going to hit these certain markers.
Speaker 3 (45:43):
So why do you find that so anxiety inducing them.
And I don't even mean what you're going through right
now in particular. You just described, you know, you doing
these other shows or Brooklyn or whatever, and it seems
sort of the normal process for you to battle that
in your head, Like why why is it so anxiety
and Doucy, I think.
Speaker 5 (46:02):
I don't know.
Speaker 4 (46:02):
I mean, I guess, right, it's so out of my control,
like there's nothing I can do about it, which in
other ways of my life, right, I should just like
and I normally can like with things I can't control,
like I'm pretty good at like yeah, but for this,
I guess because I get especially if I love it,
Like I really love this show.
Speaker 5 (46:21):
I really love this cast.
Speaker 4 (46:24):
They're amazing, so freaking talented Asian Naomi King, Ana Sophia,
Rob Ben Rappaport. They're like top notch freaking actors and
people like human beings.
Speaker 5 (46:36):
I love the showrunners and I love this character.
Speaker 4 (46:39):
So I think I feel very personally invested. And again
it's that feeling of like it gets taken away from
you a little bit, like I still have ownership of
my character when I get to be her and do
it on set, but all the external stuff is like
out of my control, even though it's this thing that
I hold like near and deer, and it belongs to
(47:02):
other people now and they get to decide if they
like it enough.
Speaker 5 (47:05):
Like it's a weird, frea consuming So if.
Speaker 1 (47:08):
It's control, why allow the anxiety.
Speaker 4 (47:10):
To because I want to do it more, because I
want to go back to my happy bubble. We know
where we're making it and no one knows what we're
going to make it, and yeah, and I you know,
and I just.
Speaker 1 (47:26):
Yeah, I guess ultimately what I'm trying to get back to.
Speaker 5 (47:29):
The bubble man.
Speaker 6 (47:30):
Yeah, but don't let us steal your peace though, Yeah.
Speaker 5 (47:33):
I know, yeah, yeah, no I do.
Speaker 4 (47:34):
I have to get It's the one part of our
job that I have probably struggled the most with, like
my whole career, is the waiting. We did it very
often on Brooklyn. Brooklyn was always on the bubble, even
though we weren't really it was just everyone was watching
us on Hulu. And yeah, the waiting periods of finding
(47:56):
out if this thing this this, especially when it's especially
when it's an incredible experience and you love who you're
working with and you love what you're working on, like
That's what it was with Brooklyn.
Speaker 5 (48:06):
It was just like, I don't want this to end.
Speaker 4 (48:08):
I don't want this ride to end, like there's something
really special happening.
Speaker 2 (48:12):
You get the itch to play different characters at all,
or do you're like like the set.
Speaker 6 (48:17):
And be like, I want to live this character through.
Speaker 2 (48:19):
Uh?
Speaker 5 (48:21):
Well both.
Speaker 4 (48:22):
I definitely love TV more than doing movies for that reason.
Speaker 6 (48:28):
You can really see a character. I like stay.
Speaker 5 (48:30):
Characters longer, you know.
Speaker 4 (48:32):
It always feels like when you do a film or
something and you're just with that character for two months
and you're like, for that, then's what happened to her? Like,
you know, I've always left with that feeling. I like
living with characters longer. But I do like even as
sad as I was for Brooklyn to end, my sadness,
I think was more rooted in anxiety about what happens next?
(48:54):
What does my life look like without this this thing?
Speaker 7 (48:58):
You know?
Speaker 5 (48:58):
But I was ready.
Speaker 1 (48:59):
To move on.
Speaker 5 (49:00):
I was ready to like play someone else.
Speaker 6 (49:02):
I think, oh, really, yeah you felt that way?
Speaker 5 (49:05):
Yeah I did, Yeah, I yeah. I was excited about how.
Speaker 6 (49:09):
Many episodes did you guys do?
Speaker 5 (49:10):
We did like one hundred and fifty five? Yeah? It
was like, you know what I mean.
Speaker 4 (49:15):
I was like, I can tell you exactly what Amy's
probably going to do for the rest of.
Speaker 5 (49:19):
Her life, but like, you know, I feel I have
fully explored this character and now I'm ready to move on.
Speaker 1 (49:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (49:26):
Yeah, And like one last question, where do you think
your character would be right now?
Speaker 5 (49:31):
Amy?
Speaker 6 (49:32):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (49:33):
Oh.
Speaker 4 (49:33):
Amy is definitely a captain of a precinct or very
close to being captain of a precinct. She's also probably
the PTA mom of her kids' school, very good. She's
probably had a second kid by now, and she's yeah,
and she's gotten all their finances in order, like Jake
(49:56):
finally has a four oh one K and they have
a college fund set up and yeah, yeah, and that's
what she's doing.
Speaker 1 (50:04):
That awesome and an rip.
Speaker 3 (50:06):
Rest in peace to Andre, who I've had the distinct
pleasure of working with as well. And he's from Chicago
like me, and he was just a lovely, lovely human
being and obviously an incredible actor, but just just a
lovely human being to work with. And I'm sure you
must have the same experience with him.
Speaker 5 (50:24):
The most amazing, brilliant man.
Speaker 4 (50:27):
And I mean I have countless beautiful memories with him.
But for me, it was also the advice he gave
me and also the biggest gift. And we all have
talked about this on the cast, especially those of us
because you know, Me, Andy On, Joe, Stephanie, and Chelsea,
we all had kids during the run of that show.
(50:49):
We all became parents, and Andre flew back to New
Jersey almost every weekend while we shot Brooklyn, and eventually
they just started giving him Fridays off. But he was
a very devoted family man and he gave us all
this beautiful gift of I do not feel bad telling
(51:12):
a job that I need to get home to my
family and that things need to be worked into the
schedule or this is my expectation. I can't go longer
than two or three weeks without seeing them, you know.
And I'm very like collaborative in that, but like, I
don't feel bad or you know, scared to stand up
for that. And I think our business has gotten better
(51:33):
too in general, with like family and like treating people
like human beings. But yeah, that was the biggest gift
I think he gave me was was that was just
unabashedly being like, yeah, so I'm going to be away
from my family, So this is what's going to happen, right,
you know.
Speaker 6 (51:54):
Yeah, yeah, that's great advice.
Speaker 2 (51:56):
Well, I like to end it on that beautiful sentiment
that we all should definitely find the balance of you know,
continue to cultivate on why we showed up to work
and why we get up in the morning while we
travel to a different city to make you know, the
the runway that we need to keep the light on
for our families.
Speaker 6 (52:14):
But it's also important to going to be with our
families because that's the point, that's the point of.
Speaker 2 (52:19):
Living life, right, Melissa Fumeto, I just want to say
thank you, thank you so much.
Speaker 6 (52:27):
For being here, Thanks for having me. You're a hero
to a generation. I mean, I would you are the
national flower of Cuba.
Speaker 5 (52:33):
I definitely would not go.
Speaker 4 (52:37):
But I am so honored to be the first amiga
ye on this podcast.
Speaker 5 (52:42):
Thanks for having me.
Speaker 6 (52:43):
Thank you so much.
Speaker 2 (52:45):
Yeah, this is Those Amigos about the Rama Rodriguez and
see you in the next episode.
Speaker 3 (52:57):
Those Amigos is a production from WV Sound and iHeartMedia's
Michael through That Podcast Network, hosted by Me, Freddie Rodriguez
and Wilmri Valdorama.
Speaker 2 (53:06):
Those Amigos is produced by Aaron Burlson and Sophie Spencer Zabos.
Speaker 3 (53:10):
Our executive producers are Wilmri Valdorama, Freddie Rodriguez, Aaron Burlson,
and Leo Klem at WV Sound.
Speaker 2 (53:17):
This episode was shot and edited by Ryan Posts and
mixed by Sean Tracy and features original music by Madison
Devenport and Helo boy.
Speaker 3 (53:25):
Our cover art photography is by David Avalos and designed
by Deny Holtzklau and.
Speaker 2 (53:30):
Thank you for being at Third Amigo today. I appreciate
you guys always listening to those amigos.
Speaker 3 (53:35):
A more podcasts from My Heart visit the r Heart
Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you listen to your
favorite shows.
Speaker 6 (53:41):
So you next week
Welcome back to do some Amingos podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
This is Freddy Rodriguez and I'm Wilmer Valderama and we
are here.
Speaker 3 (00:10):
With the incomparable Melissa Famero and I am I'm so
interested in hearing about your directing about Mobeta, your your
great podcast.
Speaker 1 (00:21):
But let's let's dive into it.
Speaker 4 (00:23):
The nucleus of that show was when we were on Brooklyn.
We were always in each other's dressing rooms, like during
lunch or breaks, and we would just be talking like forever,
and most of our conversations were like I'm struggling with
this and like giving each other advice or like what
are you how are you handling this?
Speaker 5 (00:44):
Or like what are you doing lately? It's making you
feel good? And so like the podcast kind of came
from that.
Speaker 4 (00:50):
It's like it's like a like a spin off of
our dressing room.
Speaker 6 (00:55):
You were already experienced.
Speaker 4 (00:56):
It was already like part of our dynamic. It was
already part of search. Friendship is like and you know,
and even like now like you know, I mean, we
see each other quite often, so we don't talk on
the phone all the time, but when we do talk
on the phone, it's a two or three hour conversation,
like it's one of those friendships, you know, we can
(01:16):
just talk forever.
Speaker 3 (01:17):
So, yeah, it's when I when I hung out with
you guys in Austin.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
This is before I even heard your podcast.
Speaker 5 (01:24):
Oh yeah, I haven't even come out yet.
Speaker 1 (01:26):
Turn to women and going like, these two need their
own show.
Speaker 6 (01:28):
Man, and.
Speaker 4 (01:33):
That's why.
Speaker 6 (01:35):
That's why they're here. Buddy.
Speaker 3 (01:39):
I know, but but it didn't like I knew that
witnessing it firsthand, Yeah I was. I was like, Wow,
these two the chemistry is like nothing I've seen before.
Speaker 6 (01:49):
You know, I would love to see that like on screen,
on screen. Yeah, I know.
Speaker 4 (01:54):
We're always talking about it. Yeah, I'm always trying to
cook up something.
Speaker 6 (01:57):
What's like that that you know, like you know, like
a like a like a duo.
Speaker 5 (02:04):
Yeah, yeah, I have. It's weird.
Speaker 4 (02:06):
I have some ideas for us, but I'm like, we
have to be older, like like I got this great idea,
but it's for like when we're in our like late
fifties or you.
Speaker 5 (02:19):
Know, so we're just gonna like sit on. Yeah, but
so done.
Speaker 2 (02:23):
So a little bit more about more better, because more
Better has been a very wonderful success story for iHeart
and you know, by the way, More Better is available
anywhere you get your podcast. It's also part of the
Michael Tuda Podcast Network family.
Speaker 6 (02:38):
But but one of.
Speaker 2 (02:40):
The things that was very fascinating is that voices like you,
voices that speak to all communities and all cultures, you
haven't had really the kind of the space to really
kind of explore, you know, the many boxes you check
for not just humanity but as strong family women. You
both are amazing moms, and you're incredible uh professionals. You're
(03:02):
also an amazing director and you're directing someone really amazing stuff,
which I want to talk a little bit more about
your directing stuff. But you know, how would you describe
to our listeners More Better? What do you think that
people come to more Better for?
Speaker 5 (03:15):
Yeah, so on more and Better.
Speaker 4 (03:17):
We tackle a different topic every episode. Some of them
are kind of deep and heartfelt, and some of them
are like what wine goes best with Cheetos? Really run
the gammet, you know, and yeah, and we halfway through
(03:40):
this first season.
Speaker 6 (03:44):
You shouldn't talking, like you should stop talking.
Speaker 1 (03:45):
I just stop talking.
Speaker 5 (03:46):
That's the show. Check us out, get your podcast Wine
and Cheetos.
Speaker 4 (03:51):
We literally did do that, and yeah, and it's really
fun and it's and it's you know, like I said,
it's an extension of us. Both of us have always
I think one of the things that's always connected us
is Stephanie and I are people that are always kind
of working on ourselves, you know, just like I think
(04:13):
we both sort of see life and this job as like,
you know, there's a there's a progression, like you're always growing,
you're always learning, like you're never just settled right like
otherwise we'd be freaking.
Speaker 5 (04:24):
Buddhist monks, like you know, like never have it all
figured out.
Speaker 4 (04:29):
And so yeah, just exploring that in in in tackling
like one topic big or small each episode, and we
started getting suggestions from our audience, which was like the best,
most unexpected kind of turn for the show because we
got the best questions and stories and it was such
(04:53):
a beautiful way to connect with the people that were
listening to the show.
Speaker 5 (04:57):
And also it just like really gave.
Speaker 4 (04:59):
Us ideas, like because we might have went out of
ideas a lot of episodes.
Speaker 5 (05:04):
It's a lot of episodes on a podcast. I was like,
how many episodes are doing Yeah.
Speaker 4 (05:09):
But I was like, that's the standard in which it
is and yeah, and it's so it's been really fun
and I'm excited to bring season two.
Speaker 6 (05:17):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
So how many seasons were Brooklyn n nine?
Speaker 5 (05:20):
We did eight seasons?
Speaker 1 (05:21):
Eight seasons. Yeah.
Speaker 6 (05:22):
How many episodes of the season.
Speaker 4 (05:24):
First five seasons were twenty three episodes?
Speaker 6 (05:30):
Wow?
Speaker 5 (05:31):
Six was I think eighteen?
Speaker 1 (05:34):
Yeah?
Speaker 5 (05:34):
Seven was thirteen and eight was ten? Okay, I think yeah.
Speaker 6 (05:39):
I mean that's when people were really cranking episodes.
Speaker 3 (05:41):
You know.
Speaker 4 (05:42):
It's like, oh, yeah, I was seven months out of
the year, and yeah, it was.
Speaker 5 (05:49):
It was a lot. It was the first season.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
I was that's what you do, right, we do twenty two,
twenty two, we are doing twenty now, okay, but when
I got there, we were doing twenty four. Yeah, and
bro by episode twenty, I'm You're like, yeah, you're literally
beat up.
Speaker 5 (06:06):
Oh my god.
Speaker 4 (06:06):
And when you walk into like table reads and the
writers just they look rough.
Speaker 6 (06:14):
Especially in nineteen it's.
Speaker 3 (06:16):
Usually like after Christmas, New Year's right January, you just like.
Speaker 1 (06:20):
An episode eight.
Speaker 5 (06:22):
I think about it like a hour about your health.
Speaker 6 (06:25):
Like the one hour dramas.
Speaker 2 (06:27):
That one hour dramas are crazy because you're really putting
out an hour of television. Well, you're putting forty two minutes,
which is double the comedies, which is comedies twenty two minutes.
But it is still amount of pages and work that
you've got to come up with, you know, and you
need to do this many.
Speaker 6 (06:43):
Crimes in one year. That's really good, you know.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
But also I went into into your directing career because
you've been able to successfully direct multiple prime time shows, and.
Speaker 6 (06:56):
That's something that guy.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
I haven't directed prime I directed other stuff, you know,
but I look forward today that I get to, you know,
kind of produce and direct at the same time. I
know you're a director as well and producer. When did
you get the bug to direct?
Speaker 4 (07:10):
I think I always secretly had it, but it all
sort of came about.
Speaker 5 (07:17):
I did this one job that long story short.
Speaker 4 (07:25):
The director was all over the place and I like
had a heart out because of childcare, and he almost
blew the heart out, and it was frustrating because I
was like, well, if you and so. On the ride home,
I was called my manager and I was like, if
he had done this, if he had done that, if
he had done this, if he hadn't taken so long
to make this decision, if he had shot it from this,
(07:46):
you know, we would have made the day. And my
manager goes.
Speaker 5 (07:50):
I think you should direct, and I was like, what
this all with this conversation is about. I'm really mad.
So he set up the low stakes.
Speaker 4 (08:00):
There was like a little web series that he had
some friends doing or that he knew of. It was
called Front Seat Chronicles and every episode takes place in
the front seat of a car and it's a different scene,
and so he put me in touch with them. They
were like, yeah, we'd love for you to come direct one,
and they had a writer that wrote this great scene.
They let me cast my two friends because that was like,
(08:23):
I need to direct some people that are going to
like love me and.
Speaker 5 (08:26):
Support me doing this, and they did and.
Speaker 4 (08:33):
It was just like a It was kind of like
for me to dip my toe in and be like
would I enjoy this and would I know how to
do it? And then that thing that happens when you
spend so many hours on a television set you have
no idea the wealth of knowledge that you know that's.
Speaker 5 (08:49):
Already in your brain.
Speaker 4 (08:51):
And I was like, Oh, I know how to do this,
and I'm enjoying doing this and I'm not getting flustered
by any of it, and I know what I want
my shots to be. I know how this is going
to come together. So then season six, Stephanie, Joe, and
I and actually I have to give Joe and Stephanie
credit because we had talked about putting our names in
(09:11):
to direct episodes on the show, but then we got
canceled and rescued by NBC and I chickened out because
I was like, I don't want to ruffle the girl
boss's feathers, like, and Joe and Sevanie were like, oh no,
we put our names in. You should put your names in,
like you should? You should, you know, pitch yourself to direct,
and I was like, oh okay, And I would never
have done it if they hadn't given me that push.
(09:34):
So I did, and they gave all three of us
an episode that season and it was great and it
was so fun and it was so fun to do
their episodes. It was so fun to do mine. I
got really lucky with mine where I was like in
the c storyline, so I only like worked like one day.
Speaker 3 (09:52):
Yes, yes, how was it directing yourself?
Speaker 5 (09:54):
Did you I hated it?
Speaker 1 (09:56):
Did you go back and watch?
Speaker 5 (09:59):
Never want to do it again? Never going to do
it again.
Speaker 4 (10:03):
I hated the feeling. I think some people can just
split their brain that way. I felt like I couldn't.
I felt like I wasn't one hundred percent present in
the scene the way I normally were.
Speaker 6 (10:16):
You watch and then you were like, ah.
Speaker 4 (10:19):
No, I wasn't watching playback because there's no time to
really do that, especially on a comedy set, and you're
like moving.
Speaker 6 (10:25):
Yeah, first thing they needed to Yeah, Well, I.
Speaker 5 (10:28):
Got really lucky.
Speaker 4 (10:29):
The writer of that episode was Phil Augusta Jackson, who
created went on to create Grand Crew, who actually really
helped my directing career kind of move forward. And he
had already directed an episode of Brooklyn and I uh
because at one point I told him like, I think
you're extraordinarily talented and if you ever need me to
(10:50):
act in anything, I will be there. And he was like,
I got this short film that I'm going to do
my first time directing, Like, will you beat it? And
I was like yes, And so I was in his
first short film, and so we had already collapsed. So
this was a third time we collaborated together. And I
just turned to Phil and I said, Phil, these are
the shots. This is what I'm going for like direct
(11:11):
these scenes because I'm gonna lose my goddamn mind right now,
and I hate this so much. I want to just
act in the scene.
Speaker 3 (11:17):
Well, because you felt like you were two in your
head when you were acting in the scene, Like.
Speaker 4 (11:21):
Well, yeah, I couldn't figure out how to mentally like
be in the scene the way I would be as
an actor and also have part of my brain thinking
of what adjustment I mean, I can adjust myself, but
what adjustments do I want my scene partner to make?
Speaker 5 (11:36):
What is the camera doing? Do you know what I mean?
Speaker 4 (11:39):
Like, and then like checking off all the things like, oh,
I hope they pulsed in at this part or did it?
Like I just couldn't do all that math in my
head while I was performing, and I I kind of could,
but I didn't like the feeling of it.
Speaker 5 (11:54):
I felt like I was.
Speaker 4 (11:55):
Doing each job at like sixty percent. I get what
you're bat and I didn't like that feeling.
Speaker 6 (12:02):
Myself to do.
Speaker 5 (12:04):
And I think some people can just do that.
Speaker 4 (12:06):
I think I've watched America Ferra direct and scene she's in,
and she does it bleavy, beautifully and flawlessly, Like I
think some people just have that brain, and I.
Speaker 5 (12:15):
Don't, so I won't ever be doing that again.
Speaker 2 (12:29):
I mean, and someone explained it to me, as you know,
once you put your once you set up your cameras
and you know how you're going to cover your scene.
Once you're in the scene, you take the hat off
and just make sure the scene works as a perform as.
Speaker 6 (12:46):
An actor, and then once the scene is done, then
you go back.
Speaker 4 (12:49):
I also didn't love the feeling of like being an
actor in a scene with another actor and being like, hey,
so you know in that part, you know what I mean,
like noting an.
Speaker 5 (12:58):
Actor while you're also the actor in the scene.
Speaker 4 (13:01):
With them, because normally, like you would never you know, and.
Speaker 3 (13:07):
It just especially an actor who's like, you're you're a
fellow series regularly.
Speaker 5 (13:12):
Right right, That's yeah, it's weird, you know.
Speaker 4 (13:16):
And yeah, so I didn't. It was fine when I
wasn't in the scene and I was approaching my my castmates,
like as a director, and they all were like very
beautifully like supportive, even Andre, like but not even Andre.
Andrea was beautifully gracious to everyone. Actually I probably was
(13:38):
like I thought Andy would give not a hard time,
but I thought he would like tease me throughout the
whole thing, and he did.
Speaker 6 (13:44):
He took it seriously.
Speaker 5 (13:45):
He took it very seriously. He was very professional, which
like a little part of me.
Speaker 6 (13:48):
Was that's what you want to but I was like, come.
Speaker 5 (13:50):
On, I'm not gonna rasp me at all.
Speaker 4 (13:53):
But no, he was like very everybody was like very
sweet and professional. And the cool thing about that experience,
which you know, you never really get again because it's impossible,
it was so nice to direct actors knowing exactly how
they like to hear notes exactly, like what their langua
(14:15):
or unique little languages are. And I think that was
also like important to remember when I went to other shows.
Was like trying to figure out part of that on
day one, right, or like trying to mind that from
a showrunner or you know, someone who's directed on the
show A bunch, Like, so would you.
Speaker 1 (14:32):
Ask ahead of time before you start on another show?
Speaker 5 (14:35):
Would you always? Yeah?
Speaker 4 (14:37):
Act yeah, Like is there anything you can tell me
about how actors like to hear notes or like you know,
you know, because some people, you know, there's actors that
like like really actory kind of note, you know, like
intention and verbs and da da da, And then there's
some actors that are just like faster, like you can
you know what I mean, like higher stake, like you know,
(15:00):
like short things, you know, like so I try to
find that out as much as I can before.
Speaker 6 (15:05):
What about you as an actress? How do you like
to be addressed? How do I?
Speaker 5 (15:10):
How do I like to be addressed? Yes, queen miss?
How do I like to hear? Notes?
Speaker 4 (15:22):
I definitely like the theater kid and me appreciates like
a beautiful, well thought out note that like has depth
or intention in it.
Speaker 6 (15:34):
What about season six? New director?
Speaker 5 (15:38):
Give it to me quick?
Speaker 6 (15:41):
What is it? Oh?
Speaker 4 (15:44):
Yeah, but they're definitely there. Definitely is I do, especially
when you worked in comedy right with somebody's like so
just like more energy and like the stakes higher, and
you're like faster, you want it faster?
Speaker 5 (15:57):
Just say faster, Just say.
Speaker 6 (15:59):
Faster to tie it up a little bit.
Speaker 5 (16:01):
Yeah, just taint it up. Yeah, that's it. You can
say that, you know.
Speaker 6 (16:04):
Yeah? What about you?
Speaker 4 (16:05):
What do you?
Speaker 1 (16:05):
What do you?
Speaker 5 (16:06):
What do you? Yeah?
Speaker 6 (16:07):
Well, so it's two things like drama and comedy.
Speaker 2 (16:10):
For me, had two are phones that I love so much, right,
And I would say that as as when I was
wearing my comedy hat I had.
Speaker 6 (16:19):
You know, I was very.
Speaker 2 (16:22):
When I was playing Fez on seventy show. I had
this director named David Trainer, who they directed one hundred
and ninety nine episodes wow, the exception of the pilot
and David Trainer. You know, I had created this accent, right,
but I also created this vibe which was like such
an ambiguous in his saying, yet like you can get
away a character. So so like, no matter how I
(16:45):
did it, it was like a choice that people are like.
Speaker 6 (16:48):
You're gonna do it like that. Yeah, you're gonna do it.
So but because I was still committed, they're like, he's
gonna do it like that.
Speaker 2 (16:53):
He's gonna do it like that. So they kind of
would let me cook by myself sometimes. But he was
like the Wilmer whisperer because sometimes my accent will get
a little too strong and really hard to understand, and
so he will come into the scene and he'll be like, well,
just like a little mover of the fingers. And he
didn't want to tell me in front of everybody that
(17:15):
like that, like it's hard to understand you.
Speaker 6 (17:17):
Yeah, he didn't want to say that. Yeah, So he
was just like, I don't see it a little.
Speaker 2 (17:21):
More and then okay, we're gonna go again, and just
like an so he will steer the boat.
Speaker 4 (17:27):
Yeah, and I love which is so much of what
it is, especially in comedy.
Speaker 2 (17:32):
Yes, so in comedy and you know, but I also
like a showrunner running in and be like, here's five lines.
Speaker 6 (17:39):
We're gonna this is the new joke. I love that,
Like I'm just okay, it's a sport. To me.
Speaker 2 (17:45):
It's like, Okay, that one wasn't as funny. This is
I'm gonna nail this right now. Okay, there are two
hundred and thirty people are waiting to laugh. Okay, cool ready,
okay said, and you know, so I'm very good with
attention in that.
Speaker 6 (17:56):
In drama.
Speaker 2 (17:58):
Season eight Fancis, it's a little bit of like, you know,
there's so much to shoot in a drama and a
crime investigation show.
Speaker 6 (18:11):
I don't like. I don't know what it is.
Speaker 2 (18:15):
But I don't like when when a director says like,
you know it will be funny.
Speaker 4 (18:19):
Oh yeah, don't say you know it would be funny
the funny guy.
Speaker 5 (18:24):
Yeah, do you get all like.
Speaker 6 (18:30):
No, no, I make them feel like I listened. Yea,
mm hmm, Okay, let's try that. I like to try that.
Speaker 2 (18:39):
Yeah, oh cool, cool, Yeah, we'll run it again, you know.
But I learned so much a lot of the directors
that come in, and this is like basically a big
tribute to all the directors that come into well machines,
like the machines that are like just cranking out episodes.
Like I would say, like, you know, sometimes they have
the thankless job of inherent it in a DP that
(19:01):
knows how to just shoot the show by itself, right,
and then a director's coming to kind of.
Speaker 6 (19:05):
Steer the pace and steer the whatever, you know.
Speaker 2 (19:08):
But there are those directors who really want to collaborate
with the actor, and I think that's always super welcoming,
really exciting. But you know, at NCIAS is an interesting
thing because the actors have you know, double Bachelor degrees
on their characters. Yeah, they've done seven hundred episodes as
this character.
Speaker 5 (19:26):
No one's going to know it more than yes, you know, so.
Speaker 2 (19:28):
They kind of it was a little bit, but you know,
I would say I had this. I appreciate when somebody
can can explain to me in feelings, like you know,
as opposed to like quite literally like some writers want
to say it as scripted, and I have a tough
time saying like I don't know how to sell it
(19:49):
like that, Like I think I'll sell it better this way.
But long story short, I think like comedy, it could
either be like steer the boat or like it could
be like try this different way, you know.
Speaker 3 (20:02):
Uh?
Speaker 6 (20:03):
And I love that sport and in drama I like it.
I don't. I don't need silk gloves. I can take it.
Speaker 2 (20:09):
But it's just like it's like you got to come
with a very specific direction where you want if you
want to steer the scene to go into different pace
or a different thing, like just just say that ship.
Speaker 5 (20:19):
Just say that ship.
Speaker 6 (20:20):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (20:21):
What about if a director comes in is like be better.
Speaker 6 (20:25):
Be better, try not to suck on this, be better?
Does that give me that direction? Yeah?
Speaker 5 (20:34):
So Wimmer, that was great. That was great, just as
an option. Be better?
Speaker 6 (20:39):
Okay, yes, uh, give me a line reading.
Speaker 5 (20:43):
Oh you like line readings.
Speaker 6 (20:45):
No, I'm just saying I want you to tell me
that you can do my job better. I can do better.
Show me show show be better, show me better, tell
me better, show me more better.
Speaker 1 (20:59):
You know what it is.
Speaker 6 (21:00):
Yeah, you know it's coming giming. So what do you
want me? How do you want me to? You know,
but nobody actually has the boss to say that should allowed.
It's like, just be better.
Speaker 4 (21:09):
I'm like, im now, be pitching myself hard for your show,
just so I can come in on every time.
Speaker 2 (21:15):
I love for you to direct show. Yeah, and I
will literally take it very serious. I'd definitely be andy,
you know, I'd be like.
Speaker 4 (21:22):
I'm not going to dreg your show. You that ship
you have to it would jump the sharks. The tone
would be completely different.
Speaker 6 (21:29):
What happened? We have jumped the show?
Speaker 5 (21:34):
Why are they doing jokes?
Speaker 6 (21:37):
They jokes? Why are they so over the top? Why
is he wearing the hat? Wh wh where is he
wearing a hat? Like pushing?
Speaker 5 (21:49):
It was really funny, but just not our show.
Speaker 6 (21:52):
Is seen in boxers. I don't understand why boxers like SpongeBob.
What happened to the show?
Speaker 5 (21:59):
Also, the theme song is different, Freddy, how do you
like to hear it?
Speaker 6 (22:11):
Notes?
Speaker 1 (22:12):
I go off of emotion.
Speaker 3 (22:14):
I just just just tell me what emotion because I'm
always just digging for truth.
Speaker 5 (22:18):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (22:18):
Yeah, at the end of the day, that's.
Speaker 6 (22:20):
All it is.
Speaker 3 (22:20):
You're just digging for truth. So what emotion are you
looking for? Sometimes people are just like, oh, well this
and that, and they you.
Speaker 1 (22:26):
Know, like, just what emotion, dude? What once you give
me that, I'll know what emotion to dig in.
Speaker 2 (22:32):
Here example of that, that's that's actually really you know,
I said many words because we're doing a podcast, but
like that's a very direct way of saying, like, you know,
like where.
Speaker 6 (22:44):
Do you feel? Said the director?
Speaker 2 (22:46):
We are in this story, and what do you think
my character should be feeling right now?
Speaker 6 (22:51):
It's what you're saying, right, yeah.
Speaker 1 (22:53):
Yeah, Like I'll do a scene and maybe, you know,
maybe I'm angry.
Speaker 3 (22:56):
And they're like, oh man, I've had a director going
all to this to that, and they'll they'll go off
and their sort of myriad of notes and I'm like, okay,
so just just real simple man, what emotion are you
going for?
Speaker 1 (23:09):
Yes? Give me the emotion. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (23:10):
So the like better note for you would be like
it I want to I love you know, the anger
is really great, but it's a little too high, so
maybe we infuse some sadness in there, or maybe we
have use some anxiety or something like could you know
what color?
Speaker 5 (23:26):
They want to exactly?
Speaker 1 (23:27):
Colors?
Speaker 5 (23:27):
Yes, and then I use that I know how to
do that, yeah.
Speaker 3 (23:31):
Because it's the well, right yeah, yeah, just go back
into the well and go, okay, they want that emotion.
And then like you know, I find my brain sends
the signal to the well and yeah, like gives you
the emotion.
Speaker 6 (23:41):
You know.
Speaker 4 (23:42):
Yeah, yeah, I find myself doing that sometimes when I
get like a long winded note and then I if
I'm like I'm not, I like, do you ever do that?
Like translate and I'm like do you mean more this
and that and like in your own terms, you.
Speaker 6 (23:57):
Know, yes, so you can hear it in the words that.
Speaker 5 (23:59):
Will actually yeah.
Speaker 4 (24:01):
And then sometimes I feel bad because I feel like
I just told the director how to actually.
Speaker 6 (24:05):
Talk talk director. Here's how you're utimes.
Speaker 4 (24:09):
The reaction is like, well, yeah, yeah, you know I
just said that, And I was like, no, no, no, I'm
saying how what I'm making sure that what I hearing
is what you're saying. So we're on the same page,
like yeah, because I have my own way of hearing
and interpreting and then translating.
Speaker 1 (24:29):
Right.
Speaker 3 (24:30):
Yeah, And what you said earlier about like a new
director coming on your show, about you having a double
bachelor's degree and in the character right like this the
show I did it was the character was pretty external
and I don't know, I abo'd say over the top,
but it was definitely bombastic and electric.
Speaker 1 (24:49):
And and I don't think the director really watched the show.
Speaker 3 (24:52):
And he came on and and was just like, what
are you doing?
Speaker 1 (24:57):
No, man, that's too much.
Speaker 3 (24:59):
I'm like, dude, I'm doing this for likes you watched
the show at all, that's the character, you.
Speaker 5 (25:06):
Know, there's nothing worse. Yeah, doesn't watched the show.
Speaker 3 (25:11):
Yeah, and you can tell like he didn't mean it
in a mean way, but he had no filter and
and he just pretty much told me I was like
sort of overacting or whatever.
Speaker 1 (25:19):
And I'm like, no, man, that's what this is what.
Speaker 5 (25:23):
Yeah, yeah, this is this is what I've been this
is what I've been doing. Yeah, I watched more than
one episode.
Speaker 2 (25:29):
Why is the one thing you you I would talk
about now, like how we want to receive it. But
what is the one thing that when a director does
and and I'll give you an example, but when the
director does that you were just like you took me
out for me? Is when a director just makes you
do it multiple takes without communicating the why.
Speaker 6 (25:50):
They're doing another take.
Speaker 2 (25:53):
Like I had a director a couple of seasons ago.
We were doing a scene where we were going up
this apps of this courthouse, you know, and we're going
up the steps and then I'm talking walking talk, and
then we say, wait, cut, okay, back to one, we're
gonna do it again.
Speaker 6 (26:12):
I was like, all, great, right, we'll go back. We're
doing and I.
Speaker 2 (26:14):
Think two takes for our show. We're nailing it at
two takes. We're neling right back we take. We nail
it at nobody forgets lines and ncyahs by the way,
Like that's amazing, But that's because we in between scenes,
we're getting each other off book. We're rehearsing the stuff together,
which we really set each other up for success, you know,
(26:35):
especially Gary Cole and I like and Katrina and Sean Murray,
Like we all sit down and we're like, okay, let's
run it, around it, run it, because sometimes we're shooting
three and a half pages of just.
Speaker 5 (26:44):
Like I love that though. That's ensemble acting.
Speaker 6 (26:47):
It's amazing.
Speaker 2 (26:49):
But so then we're going to third take and she's like,
let's do it one more time, and now at this point,
we're like six takes and haven't heard award from the director.
He hasn't addressed the actors, She hasn't addressed you know,
the camera. So I look at the camera, our steady operator,
and I go, I go, why.
Speaker 6 (27:08):
Are we doing it again?
Speaker 2 (27:10):
And he's like, I don't know. I said, we not
nailed the movement. Like he goes, I don't know. It's
everything's been fine. We just keep doing it.
Speaker 1 (27:19):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (27:20):
And he doesn't even he doesn't even know. Our camera
operator doesn't even know. And I looked at the DP
and I'm like, is the reason why we're doing it again?
He goes, So then I said, and.
Speaker 5 (27:30):
Then we never saw that director ever again.
Speaker 6 (27:33):
Director, thank you for tuning in to those amigos. It's
very good everywhere you got your podcast.
Speaker 2 (27:42):
So honestly, I was like, hey can I So at
that point I was like shaking because like, you know,
we're losing the sun and we're making us do it
over and over again. This and he's talking up and
down the steps, up and down the steps, so you're
not aware of your actor's band, you know, stamina, you
know you're in location.
Speaker 6 (28:02):
It's like five pm. We're losing the sun.
Speaker 2 (28:04):
We've shot four scenes in this location, like everyone's like drained,
you know. So I said out loud, I'm sorry, before
we even do another take, can we actually get a
little perspective on the why we continue to do this scene?
Speaker 6 (28:19):
Is? Why are we not getting How can we help
you get this?
Speaker 2 (28:23):
And she comes out and she's like, no, I just
feel like, you know, we can do it one more time.
And I said, and this is the first time, probably
the last time I'll do this, but and I hope
to God this last time I do this.
Speaker 6 (28:34):
But I've basically not going to be the first, not
going to trust that, I said.
Speaker 2 (28:40):
So she didn't couldn't give me an explanation, and I
looked at my cast and I was like, actually, know
we're done with the scene.
Speaker 6 (28:46):
We're done.
Speaker 2 (28:46):
I think we're gonna we're gonna move on to the
next day. And she was like, I'm sorry, and I said,
we're done. We're not shooting the scene anymore. We're absolutely
we're wrapping. That was the last eve and I we're
gonna wrap the scene. And she was like, look and
the DP and the camera when we're like they've never
seen me, and like Mark Harmon was then too, so
and he just kind of walk off. It was like
(29:09):
we're done, We're done doing the same.
Speaker 6 (29:11):
I think that's it. I think we have it in
any of the six stays and then you'll be able
to cut it.
Speaker 2 (29:16):
And we walked off and then like everyone started picking
up the equipment or whatever, and it was like that
was the end, and and I felt bad, but I
realized what was missing. Like a director has to command
the crew, giving off information, so we so we get
to the storytelling. When you exhaust your actors, you start
(29:39):
losing the grip.
Speaker 5 (29:40):
I was going to say, did that director like fully
lose the crew? That's there's nothing worse when the.
Speaker 2 (29:45):
Director do you have a steady camera operator going up
the steps.
Speaker 5 (29:48):
Backwards and they don't know why they keep doing it.
Speaker 2 (29:51):
And it's a walking talk yeah, backwards and back down
backwards and back down backwards. And this guy is like
doing stair masters while we're like trying to do this
can talk scenes anyway. So my point is like these
are the moments where you're kind of like, as a director,
like you have to create a certain amount of harmony.
You have to understand like, you know, the harmonic love.
Speaker 4 (30:11):
The crew has power Yeah, the crew was going to
be real slow to get up the next day.
Speaker 5 (30:16):
They're gonna be They're gonna take some time.
Speaker 4 (30:18):
I was like, you know what I mean, they're gonna
you know, they might be like you might come up
with an idea for a new prop and they might
be like, you know, I mean not crews are very professional,
but they work really hard. And when they feel disrespected
that way, sometimes they you know, they're.
Speaker 6 (30:37):
Like, yeah, Nina, stuff is done by remind you you're in. Yeah,
it was. It was. It was a tough thing and
and uh.
Speaker 5 (30:44):
Or just like the morale is down, the everyone's just
it's just like, you know.
Speaker 2 (30:49):
What's your what's the what's the thing that you were
like that took me out that a director can do.
Speaker 3 (30:55):
Yeah, stuff like that, like like unnecessary stuff, you know,
without telling me without It's.
Speaker 1 (31:01):
So funny and we might have Worke took the same director.
Speaker 3 (31:05):
The last show I did, I had to walk into
I had I had to walk up some some courtroom
steps also the same thing, and it was like one
hundred degrees outside, and they wouldn't just like just want more. Man,
I'm like, what's what's wrong? And they wouldn't communicate to
us what was wrong, and they were just trying to
get the timing just right and they couldn't get it.
(31:26):
I'm like, dude, it's it's I'm wearing a suit, yeah,
at a circuit point sweating like yeah, change course or just.
Speaker 2 (31:35):
Except it's communication, Like you just need to be communicator.
Just tell me what you're trying.
Speaker 5 (31:39):
To we're trying to now, Yeah.
Speaker 1 (31:41):
Yeah, totally totally like communication.
Speaker 3 (31:43):
I don't you know, I don't like I don't like
disrespectful directors that really like, oh yeah.
Speaker 4 (31:50):
When somebody like they give you a note and it's
like a little like condescendan Yeah, it's a little like
you know, like the way they say it or.
Speaker 3 (31:57):
The yet yellers or like these directors were like yellers
or you know, oh.
Speaker 5 (32:02):
Like shouting a note across the thing instead of like walking.
Speaker 6 (32:05):
Up to you. Yeah, or just like assholes.
Speaker 3 (32:08):
You know, like like these asshole directors like that takes
me out, man, It completely turns me off.
Speaker 1 (32:13):
And I just, you know, you know, stuff.
Speaker 4 (32:15):
Like that you mine is so cliche. I fucking hate
line readings.
Speaker 6 (32:22):
Oh really, I do.
Speaker 4 (32:25):
I know it is not everyone my husband loves. My
husband really doesn't mind line readings, like sometimes it really
helps him understand a note. A line reading is when
a director, instead of giving you a note for the line,
like says how they want you to say the line, so.
Speaker 6 (32:42):
Like it's exaccurate.
Speaker 5 (32:44):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I.
Speaker 4 (32:45):
Was trying to, Like, I hear line reading, and I don't.
It triggers me me in a weird way, like I
feel like I'm doing a bad job, Like I'm doing
so bad that you have to say the line how
I should be saying it. And I also don't understand
what the note is. Then I try to like, well,
what is what is the note? Like what what is
(33:07):
what is the shift or the adjustment? And I can't
hear it in the line reading because I'm all caught
up in my own ship. And then I get offended
and then and then I get like kind of mad,
you know, Yeah, I start spiraling and I and I yeah,
and it's so cliche and I wish it didn't, but
I mean it bugs me less. I think as I
(33:28):
get older, when I was younger, I would like immediately
get mad.
Speaker 3 (33:31):
But do you think that the line reading comes before
or after they try to convey what the direction or
the emotion is. And the second part is do you
mind them giving you a mind line reading if after
they've given you a direction, it's not it's not resonating.
Speaker 4 (33:49):
Yes, because I had this happen to me, So okay,
if it's just the line reading, like if they come
up and they're like, hey, can you say it? Like uh,
you know, oh, we're going to be late, you know,
if they just give the lit note like that, I'm
like fuck you. But then I did have a director
once who would come up give the note and then
(34:12):
the line reading and the notes were always great that it.
Speaker 1 (34:16):
Drove me crazy.
Speaker 4 (34:19):
I wanted to be like, don't do the line reading
because then I'd be hung up on the line reading.
Speaker 5 (34:24):
Then I'd be like, wait is how they said it?
Speaker 4 (34:27):
Like the note? And I would again be on that
like spiral, you know. So it's like, yeah, I just
wanted to be more excited, you know, like come on, guys,
we gotta go, you.
Speaker 5 (34:36):
Know, and then they walk away and you're.
Speaker 4 (34:37):
Like what, And then I would just be left in
that spiral and like overthinking, you know, We'll wait is
that more excited?
Speaker 1 (34:47):
Now?
Speaker 4 (34:47):
I'm just stuck on how they did it? Should I
just do it? Like that, But is that how I
would do it? Like I get all into that, you know,
it just messes me up.
Speaker 2 (34:57):
In network television, I hate to say, but he's rarely
the director from the writer.
Speaker 6 (35:04):
Oh yes, you're killing the messenger. I'm telling you.
Speaker 2 (35:11):
I would say maybe, I don't know, maybe fifty sixty forty,
I don't know.
Speaker 6 (35:15):
You told me how many who takes the biggest fall?
But writers?
Speaker 5 (35:18):
Most of the time it's the writer.
Speaker 6 (35:20):
The writers like this how it was supposed to be,
I will.
Speaker 5 (35:22):
I will, I will. There is an other? Uh, what
exception to this rule?
Speaker 6 (35:28):
Kids? M hm.
Speaker 5 (35:30):
A lot of times you need to give them My
readings work really.
Speaker 4 (35:33):
Well for kids, and I've done that as a director,
and it pained me.
Speaker 5 (35:37):
Like the show runner I had to tell she was like,
just give her a line reading. I was like, Oh, when.
Speaker 4 (35:40):
I directed on Gordi Da Chronicles, which had a lot
of kids, and Bridget who is the showrunner. Bridget you
know Lebowitz, who's amazing and brilliant, and she was the
showrunner and she was a writer on Brooklyn, so I
already knew her.
Speaker 5 (35:56):
And I remember when.
Speaker 4 (35:58):
She told me with the kids, she was like yeah,
and so like just sometimes a line reading, they're going
to understand a line reading better than note.
Speaker 5 (36:03):
And I was like, oh, are you sure.
Speaker 4 (36:05):
I was like, let me try, you know, and then
you just and then like kids, you have time restraints
and you have to get through things quickly and so
and then I saw it like there were most of
the time I could give them notes and they would
under I'm a mom, like you know, you know, you
know how to talk to kids, like, but then you
would see sometimes and they would ask for it too,
like they were all so old enough where they'd be like,
(36:27):
how can you can you show me? Like they were
smart enough to also be like and I so then
I would do it, but I'd be like, but also,
don't you don't have to do exactly what I did,
you know, Like I would always feel obligated to be like,
you know, you could do that what I just did,
or you can do your version of it, you know,
because I was wanting to give them like autonomy. But
(36:50):
but yeah, but kids they just they understand the note
sometimes better by just mimicking, right, because they're young and
they're still learning.
Speaker 7 (36:59):
Yeah, Switching Gears.
Speaker 6 (37:09):
Do you you have a show that is currently on NBC?
Speaker 2 (37:13):
Yes, and I told you earlier before we started the
show that you are absolutely stunning your performance and this
thing is incredible, Like you're literally pulling.
Speaker 6 (37:25):
Up all your weapons and you're like, this isn't me.
You're literally just bringing everything out.
Speaker 5 (37:32):
Now I just have to sing on the show.
Speaker 6 (37:35):
Exactly exactly you took it from you sing any season?
Did you get to sing noney season?
Speaker 2 (37:45):
So my my question for you is, can you talk
about your show, you know, for the for the listeners
and talk about you know, you know, your character and
what the show's about.
Speaker 4 (37:57):
The name of the show, so it's called Gross Garden Society.
Speaker 5 (38:01):
Quite a lengthy title, but it's on NBC.
Speaker 4 (38:05):
We just wrapped our first season, so all thirteen episodes
are on Peacock Bing.
Speaker 5 (38:11):
It played on every screen in your house.
Speaker 4 (38:13):
And it's about these four unlikely friends that are part
of a garden club that.
Speaker 5 (38:19):
Get mixed up in a murder.
Speaker 4 (38:22):
And the show takes place in two different timelines, So
there's present day where you sort of see how they
all come together and become friends, and then there's flash
forwards to the night of this murder, and little by
little as the season goes on, you get more and
more scenes from that night, more information, possible suspects and
possible scenarios even of how what went down.
Speaker 5 (38:45):
And then in episode.
Speaker 4 (38:49):
Eleven and twelve, because it all takes place during this
big gala, those two episodes happen in regular time. There's
no yeah, there's no time jumping, and you see, like, yeah,
you see the whole night up to the murder. And
then episode twelve is from the murder all through the
(39:09):
next morning, and then thirteen is sort of like a
wrap up, and then another then there's some flashbacks and
another flashboard. So it's a really fun show. It's like
a little bit so. It is like kind of combo
of like all the things I've done. It's a lot
of dark humor. It's a little bit soapy. It's fun,
(39:31):
it's escapist, it's dramatic, it's heartfelt. I play a character
who is a very wealthy socialite in this affluent town
that is all about like the upper class and appearances.
And she is part of the Garden Club as part
of her community service because she drunk drove into the
(39:53):
town fountain, and so to avoid jail, she has to
volunteer at the garden Club and she meets these other
people and they sort of become maybe her first friends
in real life and or ever.
Speaker 5 (40:05):
In her life.
Speaker 4 (40:05):
And and I think we also meet her at like
a real low point in her life.
Speaker 5 (40:10):
We find out that.
Speaker 4 (40:11):
She gave up a baby when she was a teenager,
and she contacts that young man he's now uh, he's
now a teenager, and that she makes like a series
of bad choices.
Speaker 5 (40:23):
And she doesn't really know how to be a grown.
Speaker 4 (40:24):
Up, and so she's kind of messy and toxic and
but also vulnerable. And I like she's one of the
most favorite characters I've ever played because she's so complex
and so I'm so like empathetic to her. She just says,
there's so much she just doesn't know that she's like
trying to figure out. And then she's meeting all these
people in this like crossroads moment of her life.
Speaker 6 (40:48):
So yeah.
Speaker 5 (40:48):
So and then as an actor, it's like dream.
Speaker 4 (40:52):
Because I get to be big and ridiculous and like
kind of funny because she's ridiculous. And then I get
to be real and grounded and heartbroken.
Speaker 6 (41:04):
And your fans haven't really seen you play something.
Speaker 4 (41:07):
No, yeah, yeah, So it's like, yeah, I'm getting to
do you know, it's like I joke that Brooklyn nine
nine was like a very elite comedy school that I
got to go to, and so I'm getting to like
bring everything, Like I don't think I could have played
this character ten years ago.
Speaker 1 (41:24):
You know.
Speaker 4 (41:24):
She's like I've had to have done like everything I've done,
I think, to like bring it all together for her
because she has so many different flavors and colors, and
they really just wrote like such a great character with Bertie.
Speaker 5 (41:40):
So it's been really fun.
Speaker 2 (41:41):
But you're in a spectacle on this show, and I
think people should watch just to kind of experience your performances.
I mean, I think it's like something we also kind
of really need to know that there is a level
of experience and expertise and liberation that you got to
have as an artist to actually get to a point
to bring a character like that to life. One thing
is what's on the page, and the other one is
(42:02):
the instrument that tells that story.
Speaker 6 (42:04):
And you have just done it in such a high level.
Speaker 2 (42:09):
And so I really truly invite friends to go to
Peacock and catch up benj It tell a friend how
everybody discover the show.
Speaker 6 (42:18):
It's you know, your performance is.
Speaker 2 (42:19):
Something like, yes, just for that alone, like you need
to tune in and watch Melissa do her show and
thank you.
Speaker 3 (42:27):
Yeah, you know, you know what I love about it
and what I loved about Brooklyn long Line. I remember
first watching you on that and going like, oh, this
this girl.
Speaker 1 (42:36):
She goes for it. She she don't care man, she
she goes for it.
Speaker 3 (42:42):
And and then this is what I mean by it, right,
this sort of the context behind it is that I
feel that sometimes actresses sort of hold back because they
want to they want to look a certain way or
they want to be a certain way, where where I
feel with you, there's a freedom in your instrument that
you don't you don't give.
Speaker 1 (42:59):
A ship man.
Speaker 6 (43:00):
Yes, you go and you do it.
Speaker 1 (43:02):
And I mean that in the in the most hot.
Speaker 5 (43:03):
No, No, I did I know that is such a
nice compliment.
Speaker 4 (43:06):
Yeah, no breaks, no break down.
Speaker 5 (43:12):
Yeah, I just really love this job, you know.
Speaker 4 (43:16):
And I I you know, I think, yeah, I think
part of that is I do really love to play.
Speaker 5 (43:23):
I do really love I love I love the you know.
Speaker 4 (43:29):
When we were making gross point, it had been a
long time since since Brooklyn that I had done because
I've done streaming shows since then. In a streaming show,
you shoot the whole thing and then it comes out later,
which I love. And so it had been a minute
since I had had the experience of while we were
shooting it. We were going to premiere and I got
(43:52):
really anxious and it was kind of the first time
I was able to articulate it. I was like, oh,
I hate to and I love this feeling of when
we're making the thing and we're all in this bubble
and you're just going for it and you're playing and
you're exploring and you're finding things, and you're not thinking
about what it's gonna freaking look like or you know,
(44:14):
I mean, you're thinking about how it's gonna come together,
because your brain does the like technical dance of you know,
the cameras and all that. But but I love this
like bubble where you're just making the thing.
Speaker 5 (44:25):
And I was like, Oh, this sucks.
Speaker 4 (44:27):
Now it's gonna be on TV and people are gonna
have opinions about it, and then it's not gonna be
ours anymore, and it's gonna be everyone else's and then
the bubble, the bubble's gone, and then we don't get
to live in the bubble ever again, right right, And
I was like, but that's.
Speaker 5 (44:42):
Literally our job.
Speaker 4 (44:44):
We don't get to do this unless people like what
we do and they watch, so we want that. But
I just, yeah, it's like I'm a little at odds
with that, and I just I don't know, like sounds crazy,
but like almost like if I if I could like
still make money and like just like do shows and
(45:05):
like act and things, and like it didn't matter who
saw it or like if it did well, like.
Speaker 5 (45:10):
Dream, that would be like literally the dream.
Speaker 4 (45:13):
I think everyone feels like that, right, Like it's so
it's so anxiety, Like it's so it's hard that part
when like you know the thing you love so much
and then everyone's going to come.
Speaker 5 (45:22):
It's it's not yours anymore.
Speaker 2 (45:24):
So it's like the pressure of it having to perform
for an economical reason.
Speaker 4 (45:28):
Right, like for the for the very practice is the business,
Like it is a business. It has it's a product.
It has to make money, it has to like do well.
People have to watch, it has to hit certain markers,
like right now we're waiting to see if it'll come back,
if it's going to hit these certain markers.
Speaker 3 (45:43):
So why do you find that so anxiety inducing them.
And I don't even mean what you're going through right
now in particular. You just described, you know, you doing
these other shows or Brooklyn or whatever, and it seems
sort of the normal process for you to battle that
in your head, Like why why is it so anxiety
and Doucy, I think.
Speaker 5 (46:02):
I don't know.
Speaker 4 (46:02):
I mean, I guess, right, it's so out of my control,
like there's nothing I can do about it, which in
other ways of my life, right, I should just like
and I normally can like with things I can't control,
like I'm pretty good at like yeah, but for this,
I guess because I get especially if I love it,
Like I really love this show.
Speaker 5 (46:21):
I really love this cast.
Speaker 4 (46:24):
They're amazing, so freaking talented Asian Naomi King, Ana Sophia,
Rob Ben Rappaport. They're like top notch freaking actors and
people like human beings.
Speaker 5 (46:36):
I love the showrunners and I love this character.
Speaker 4 (46:39):
So I think I feel very personally invested. And again
it's that feeling of like it gets taken away from
you a little bit, like I still have ownership of
my character when I get to be her and do
it on set, but all the external stuff is like
out of my control, even though it's this thing that
I hold like near and deer, and it belongs to
(47:02):
other people now and they get to decide if they
like it enough.
Speaker 5 (47:05):
Like it's a weird, frea consuming So if.
Speaker 1 (47:08):
It's control, why allow the anxiety.
Speaker 4 (47:10):
To because I want to do it more, because I
want to go back to my happy bubble. We know
where we're making it and no one knows what we're
going to make it, and yeah, and I you know,
and I just.
Speaker 1 (47:26):
Yeah, I guess ultimately what I'm trying to get back to.
Speaker 5 (47:29):
The bubble man.
Speaker 6 (47:30):
Yeah, but don't let us steal your peace though, Yeah.
Speaker 5 (47:33):
I know, yeah, yeah, no I do.
Speaker 4 (47:34):
I have to get It's the one part of our
job that I have probably struggled the most with, like
my whole career, is the waiting. We did it very
often on Brooklyn. Brooklyn was always on the bubble, even
though we weren't really it was just everyone was watching
us on Hulu. And yeah, the waiting periods of finding
(47:56):
out if this thing this this, especially when it's especially
when it's an incredible experience and you love who you're
working with and you love what you're working on, like
That's what it was with Brooklyn.
Speaker 5 (48:06):
It was just like, I don't want this to end.
Speaker 4 (48:08):
I don't want this ride to end, like there's something
really special happening.
Speaker 2 (48:12):
You get the itch to play different characters at all,
or do you're like like the set.
Speaker 6 (48:17):
And be like, I want to live this character through.
Speaker 2 (48:19):
Uh?
Speaker 5 (48:21):
Well both.
Speaker 4 (48:22):
I definitely love TV more than doing movies for that reason.
Speaker 6 (48:28):
You can really see a character. I like stay.
Speaker 5 (48:30):
Characters longer, you know.
Speaker 4 (48:32):
It always feels like when you do a film or
something and you're just with that character for two months
and you're like, for that, then's what happened to her? Like,
you know, I've always left with that feeling. I like
living with characters longer. But I do like even as
sad as I was for Brooklyn to end, my sadness,
I think was more rooted in anxiety about what happens next?
(48:54):
What does my life look like without this this thing?
Speaker 7 (48:58):
You know?
Speaker 5 (48:58):
But I was ready.
Speaker 1 (48:59):
To move on.
Speaker 5 (49:00):
I was ready to like play someone else.
Speaker 6 (49:02):
I think, oh, really, yeah you felt that way?
Speaker 5 (49:05):
Yeah I did, Yeah, I yeah. I was excited about how.
Speaker 6 (49:09):
Many episodes did you guys do?
Speaker 5 (49:10):
We did like one hundred and fifty five? Yeah? It
was like, you know what I mean.
Speaker 4 (49:15):
I was like, I can tell you exactly what Amy's
probably going to do for the rest of.
Speaker 5 (49:19):
Her life, but like, you know, I feel I have
fully explored this character and now I'm ready to move on.
Speaker 1 (49:25):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (49:26):
Yeah, And like one last question, where do you think
your character would be right now?
Speaker 5 (49:31):
Amy?
Speaker 6 (49:32):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (49:33):
Oh.
Speaker 4 (49:33):
Amy is definitely a captain of a precinct or very
close to being captain of a precinct. She's also probably
the PTA mom of her kids' school, very good. She's
probably had a second kid by now, and she's yeah,
and she's gotten all their finances in order, like Jake
(49:56):
finally has a four oh one K and they have
a college fund set up and yeah, yeah, and that's
what she's doing.
Speaker 1 (50:04):
That awesome and an rip.
Speaker 3 (50:06):
Rest in peace to Andre, who I've had the distinct
pleasure of working with as well. And he's from Chicago
like me, and he was just a lovely, lovely human
being and obviously an incredible actor, but just just a
lovely human being to work with. And I'm sure you
must have the same experience with him.
Speaker 5 (50:24):
The most amazing, brilliant man.
Speaker 4 (50:27):
And I mean I have countless beautiful memories with him.
But for me, it was also the advice he gave
me and also the biggest gift. And we all have
talked about this on the cast, especially those of us
because you know, Me, Andy On, Joe, Stephanie, and Chelsea,
we all had kids during the run of that show.
(50:49):
We all became parents, and Andre flew back to New
Jersey almost every weekend while we shot Brooklyn, and eventually
they just started giving him Fridays off. But he was
a very devoted family man and he gave us all
this beautiful gift of I do not feel bad telling
(51:12):
a job that I need to get home to my
family and that things need to be worked into the
schedule or this is my expectation. I can't go longer
than two or three weeks without seeing them, you know.
And I'm very like collaborative in that, but like, I
don't feel bad or you know, scared to stand up
for that. And I think our business has gotten better
(51:33):
too in general, with like family and like treating people
like human beings. But yeah, that was the biggest gift
I think he gave me was was that was just
unabashedly being like, yeah, so I'm going to be away
from my family, So this is what's going to happen, right,
you know.
Speaker 6 (51:54):
Yeah, yeah, that's great advice.
Speaker 2 (51:56):
Well, I like to end it on that beautiful sentiment
that we all should definitely find the balance of you know,
continue to cultivate on why we showed up to work
and why we get up in the morning while we
travel to a different city to make you know, the
the runway that we need to keep the light on
for our families.
Speaker 6 (52:14):
But it's also important to going to be with our
families because that's the point, that's the point of.
Speaker 2 (52:19):
Living life, right, Melissa Fumeto, I just want to say
thank you, thank you so much.
Speaker 6 (52:27):
For being here, Thanks for having me. You're a hero
to a generation. I mean, I would you are the
national flower of Cuba.
Speaker 5 (52:33):
I definitely would not go.
Speaker 4 (52:37):
But I am so honored to be the first amiga
ye on this podcast.
Speaker 5 (52:42):
Thanks for having me.
Speaker 6 (52:43):
Thank you so much.
Speaker 2 (52:45):
Yeah, this is Those Amigos about the Rama Rodriguez and
see you in the next episode.
Speaker 3 (52:57):
Those Amigos is a production from WV Sound and iHeartMedia's
Michael through That Podcast Network, hosted by Me, Freddie Rodriguez
and Wilmri Valdorama.
Speaker 2 (53:06):
Those Amigos is produced by Aaron Burlson and Sophie Spencer Zabos.
Speaker 3 (53:10):
Our executive producers are Wilmri Valdorama, Freddie Rodriguez, Aaron Burlson,
and Leo Klem at WV Sound.
Speaker 2 (53:17):
This episode was shot and edited by Ryan Posts and
mixed by Sean Tracy and features original music by Madison
Devenport and Helo boy.
Speaker 3 (53:25):
Our cover art photography is by David Avalos and designed
by Deny Holtzklau and.
Speaker 2 (53:30):
Thank you for being at Third Amigo today. I appreciate
you guys always listening to those amigos.
Speaker 3 (53:35):
A more podcasts from My Heart visit the r Heart
Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you listen to your
favorite shows.
Speaker 6 (53:41):
So you next week
Hosts And Creators
Wilmer Valderrama
Freddy Rodriguez
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