After the claimable ‘Together’, Maya Rudolf returns to lead an Alan Yang and Matt Hubbard comedy, ‘loot’ (Apple TV +, from Friday, the 24th), which also produces. Another relative comedy: as expected in Rudolph (best friend of ‘My best friend’s wedding’, among a thousand things), absurd humor goes hand in hand with sincere emotion in this story of a new (even more) rich confronted to her own privilege and launched, not without problems, on a mission of philanthropy and self-discovery.
The characters of too many series, and, dare I say, the creators of them, are too unaware of their own privilege. ‘Loot’ seems to laugh at that unconsciousness.
I agree with what you say, and I wanted the opportunity to explore the privilege. ‘Loot’ is also, on the other hand, a series about the distance between the image we have of someone and their true self. Everyone has a story, and sometimes it’s not the one we think. The heroine of the series tries to reconnect with herself while the whole world watches her, something that is not easy.
Television comedies are no longer just comedies to embrace all kinds of dramatic impulses and gradations. How have you experienced this evolution of the format?
It is true, they have changed a lot, everything has changed on television and will continue to change. On a personal level I love comedy and I love doing it, but I also like the idea of introducing a little extra honesty. Being able to reference real-life challenges. Being able to talk about things that need to be talked about. But without becoming melancholy at all; that’s another thing.
That he would know how to do without a problem, as he demonstrated in ‘A place to stay’, by Sam Mendes. But she hasn’t done big dramatic roles in a while. Do you prefer comedy as a starting point?
If proposals had come to me with all the great directors, I would have accepted them, of course. I’ve worked with a lot of amazing people, but… it’s hard for someone to sign you up to do something you’re not well known for. Many actresses end up creating our own jobs to do what we feel like doing.
Alan Yang and Matt Hubbard wrote the heroine of ‘Loot’ with you in mind. Is it okay for you to see her as a character who has lost sight of reality?
Throughout my career, I’ve played a lot of ‘larger than life’ characters, a lot of disconnected divas from the world. They went down this line, but as they know me, they knew there had to be a balance and there had to be an emotional aspect. Molly Novak is a personality and a person.
Did you use any previous character to build this one?
I love self-confident goofballs. I’m not saying Molly is dumb, but… she doesn’t know anything. And when such a person has a lot of self-confidence, comedy is served. In real life she would punch him in the face [ríe]. But playing her was fun.
And did it help you reflect on your own privilege?
Yes of course. Think about philanthropy, how to use your name for good causes… All of this made me think a lot. I sincerely believe that if you have a lot of resources, you have a certain social responsibility in return.
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‘Loot’ is, especially since the second episode, a workplace comedy. Do you like the subgenre and do you have a favorite example?
My background is sketch comedy and improvisation, and I like being part of an ensemble cast. That’s how I work best; a fantastic back and forth energy is created. When I was doing ‘Saturday night live’ I learned that when creating something, everyone has to leave their mark in some way. Not everything has to revolve around you. If everyone leaves their mark, the result is much more fun. Workplace comedy is like that. My favorites are from my friends, things like ‘Parks and recreation’, ‘Rockefeller Plaza’, ‘The office’… But I also grew up watching ‘Cheers.’