From ‘Saturday Night Live’ to ‘Loot,’ Maya Rudolph never took the easy route
There was a scene this week Pillage, Apple TV+’s edgy comedy series feels strangely dated. If you happen to be watching this show for the first time, you will Maya Rudolph And Ana Gasteyer in a manner almost identical to their work two decades ago above Saturday night live. Both embody larger-than-life characters—in this case, misfit billionaires happily going about their new jobs as “businesswomen”—as if the cameras weren’t on or the audience in front of them.
For the show’s consistent viewers, there’s more to it than that — especially when it comes to Rudolph’s work. Over two seasons, she follows the journey of ridiculously wealthy divorcee Molly Wells, who has billions of dollars and is facing an existential crisis—when she finally decides to find cause by re-engaging with your charity. The role allowed Rudolph to embody the character’s most ridiculous and humane aspects, infusing the show’s clever satire of the 1% with a surprising touch of empathy. This is especially the case with the second season, which has been solidified PillageIt’s structured as a workplace comedy and builds toward Rudolph finding an ideal character in Gasteyer—a newly single billionaire who will approach her next act in style. more radical.
The nuances that Rudolph shows when Molly talks about what she’s portrayed on screen since she SNL overate. She shines in independent films like Sam Mendes‘S We go far, won an Emmy for her singing voice Big mouth and her victory SNL return as Kamala Harris ABOVE Saturday night live. But in Pillage, Rudolph gets a role worth savoring, one that allows her to go as deep and nuanced as she wants, tweaking that balance episode by episode. It is the foundation of a professional at her peak. In conversation this week Little golden boys (read or listen below), such an introduction also naturally evokes some reflections on the profession.
Vanity Fair: This show feels like a prime example of what a good sitcom should be, I mean growing in its second season: the ensemble feels more engaging, it feels more refined. Have you noticed that?
Maya Rudolph: Absolute. There’s nothing more exciting about creating a show than the second season, because you’re really checking off so many boxes, especially in the pilot, to introduce it to people. But in the same way that my character Molly is now having the opportunity to really invest in her relationships and understand and know the people who make up the Wells Foundation, so does the audience. We can take people out and do all kinds of fun combinations. There’s nothing I love more than a workplace comedy because it’s all about people’s voices.
I imagine there’s also a lot of calibration that goes along with that and finding the correct tone. You started with a pretty high concept. How did that affect your performance in your second season?
I think it’s just a matter of finding the right tone for Molly. I know where her heart comes from. I know she is a good person and has a smart head, but is also capable [being] Completely lost contact. Those are actually the ones I want to lean on the most, and I find them super fun to figure out how to play together. But it’s difficult. It’s hard to get into that really fun comedy of being a woman who actually lives in her own hemisphere with someone who really cares about other people. But the combination of those two things is what gives the film its relevance. Selfishly, I just try to find joy in that balance because I enjoy playing both.
In some scenes, you’re the most ridiculous person in the room and we love that. Then, in other movies, you co-starred with Adam Scott as your unremarkable tech billionaire ex-husband.
Well, I told him this to his face and he knew that I felt the same way – he was the biggest asshole there. He is Great go there. Damn it. He’s very good. And I mean, I think we quote “Dane Cook, pay-per-view, 20 minutes” [from Step Brothers] constantly at my house. He is the greatest.
When this show aired, we were in the middle of your wonderful interaction with Ana Gasteyer, who is new to the show this season. You guys seem to be having a lot of fun together.
