Monica Barbaro

Dimitri: Congratulations on the new show! FUBAR is the number one rated show that topped Nielsen’s streaming charts for its debut with 1.53 billion minutes of viewing for the week. It has a True Lies feel to it.

Monica: Thank you! I think that’s where the idea was born. Arnold wanted to do his first TV show, and True Lies was one of his favorite projects that he had done. He was looking for something in that world and was close with the people at Skydance, and they had a contract with Nick Santora, our creator, the head writer. Nick came up with this amazing pitch that was along those lines.

Obviously, it’s not a follow-up to True Lies, but the fun of that thing where, especially with the two of us, you have two spies who’ve been living a lie, essentially, with each other, and then all of what comes out when they realize both what they didn’t realize they have in common, and what they didn’t really acknowledge they had in terms of really deep issues with each other. It’s sorting those issues out on the road in a wild way. [chuckles]

Dimitri: It really shows family bickering between you and Arnold. The chemistry on the set, it’s just amazing. Tell us about working with Arnold and the rest of the crew.

Monica: Arnold’s really fun. He’s very professional, but he’s also very relaxed about the process. A lot of our relationship-building was just us giving each other a really hard time. [laughs] We liked to poke a lot of fun at each other. That was really just how we entered into this. That’s how I think we both saw the relationship and maybe had some similarities with our own, my relationship with my dad and his relationship with his daughters. Actually, we had also pitched the show together. They asked me to be a part of it before we had the platform. We pitched it to all the major companies, and then Netflix put in a bid.

Dimitri: Oh, great. Oh, okay. It was packaged, so Arnold was shopping, I guess, and you were attached to the project itself before you had Netflix as a home?

Monica: Yes. I knew the people at Skydance through Top Gun. Dana Goldberg called me up and was like, “We have something to pitch you.” I was like, “That sounds amazing.” Then the writer, he’s so great at pitching. He told me the whole story, and I was like, “God, that’s so fun.” I love that she has this life where she’s living two different identities, and how that merges, I thought, was really fascinating to me as an actor.

Also, all of the potential disguises and all of the spy work itself is just a treat for an actor because you get to play a different person every day. I was really excited about it. Then I had a phone call with– or another Zoom, this was all during the pandemic, a Zoom with Arnold. Then a week or two later, we were pitching it.

Dimitri: Fantastic. How many meetings did you have to do? I would have guessed it was picked it up really quickly.

Monica: Well, actually, everybody was really interested in it, I will say that. It comes down to the highest bidder at that point.

Dimitri: Absolutely.

Monica: It was pretty funny. We were maybe five, maybe six. I can’t quite remember, but it was, again, all on Zoom. I had no air conditioning, so I’m just sweating bullets in these meetings. It was my first pitch meeting too so I was so nervous. Everyone else was very calm, cool, and collected. Nick, again, as I said, is so great at pitching. Then the hilarious thing that happened was Arnold’s donkey, Lulu, would walk into his frame. All of our screens were on right now. You’re listening to this pitch and it’s intense and it’s going and it’s action show and it’s comedy and everyone’s just engaged in it, because Nick really wraps you into a story, and all of a sudden, we’d be, like, “Is that– oh my God, that’s a donkey.”

Dana Goldberg and I would be texting each other like, “Oh my God, oh my God, Lulu’s back.” Everyone would just start to laugh. Eventually, someone would turn their mic and be like, “Hey, I’m so sorry. I stopped listening a minute ago. We got to take an intermission for this donkey.” Arnold would be like, “Lulu wants a cookie.” Then Lulu would leave and we’d get back to the pitch. The one meeting Lulu didn’t show up, it wasn’t as special. Lulu probably sold this show at the end of the day.

Dimitri: I can’t believe it.

Monica: She earned the commission. [laughter]

Dimitri: This is so much fun. Maximum I have my cat walking in.

Monica: Yes, the cat that walks across the screen. Love it. Sits down [crosstalk]

Dimitri: I just grab him halfway. Then have to hold him throughout the interview, but donkey, that’s definitely next-level stuff.

Monica: Walking through the kitchen too. This was indoors. This was not an outdoor thing.

Dimitri: Really? Wow!

Monica: Yes. The donkey. I was invited to his house for Christmas dinner, not actual Christmas but he has a family dinner every Christmas. Lulu’s just walking around. He’s very much a part of the family.

Dimitri: That is so randomly cool. Never heard that kind of stuff before.

Monica: Yes. I sometimes forget. Then as I remember, I’m like, “Oh, this is wild. This is not normal.” I have a great video of it actually. I’ll probably post it at some point of him just saying, “Lulu wants a cookie.”

[laughter]

Dimitri: What did you shoot on the location? I don’t know if it’s all been shot in the US because Netflix cuts the credits pretty quickly. I’m one of those people that actually do watch credits until the last minute. Until the last second, I’m just like, “Yes, give respect,” especially if it’s for the film. Just seeing it’s quite interesting actually. People think it’s weird but…

Monica: No, it’s fascinating. All the different countries that come up and all the crews, clocking the names, you’re like, “Oh, we’re in the UK now.”

Dimitri: Exactly. Absolutely.

Monica: It’s very cool.

Dimitri: Where did you guys shoot?

Monica: Not to take any of the magic away, but the first episode, in Belgium. I believe they shot almost all of that in Antwerp.

Dimitri: And the rest of the show?

Monica: The rest of it was in Toronto. Our studios and stages were in Toronto. I’m hoping if there’s a second season, I can be like, “Let’s shoot. There has to be an outdoor portion in Japan,” or something so that we can get some travel out of it. We shot so quickly. They had a lot of extra time for the pilot but we– it was eight days an episode, just like it is for a courtroom drama. It was a lot packed into a very tight schedule.

Dimitri: Definitely action-packed. Did you have to do a lot of training as well? Did you have to hit the gym and have special personal training to prepare for the fight scenes?

Monica: Yes. That’s another second-season thing. I’ll ask for a personal trainer. I trained myself where I could on lunch breaks and things like that. Then the stunt training was crazily happening between scenes. It was like, “Oh, you have a scene off for this hour of the day. Can you run over to the stunt facility and learn how to parkour off a car?” I’m like, “Okay. Yes, sure.” It was pretty, pretty intense. I also was just amazed by what they were able to pull off in such a short amount of time.

Dimitri: Can you tell us about Top Gun experience and working with such an amazing team?

Monica: With Top Gun, we were so in a military world and our characters were so specific. There was a very testosterone environment in general. Then to see each other blossom in this– There was also a lot of time and we’ve stayed in touch throughout all of that, and I think even became closer. Every time it pushed our understanding of the necessity of that but also our personal devastation and waiting for so long and not to– again, absolutely required.

We really leaned on each other throughout all of that and became so much closer in a very different way than the way we had bonded in the film. Then going through the award circuit was like, “Oh, cheers. We celebrate now.” We get to high-five about this thing, and we’re dressed up. I love the way male suits have become– there’s a lot of stereotypical gender stuff being thrown out in the fashion world and on red carpets. I loved getting to see the ways in which the guys were expressing themselves with the designs that they chose. They were like, “Oh, you wear dresses?” I was like, “Yes.” [laughs]. All of that was just– it was just so fun to see that side of each other away from the pressures of the movie itself.

Dimitri: I was in Cannes for your premier of Top Gun.

Monica: I sadly had to miss the Cannes premiere because I was shooting FUBAR.

They gave me a week to go to San Diego and do the world premiere, It was massive and very fun. I even got to run to Mexico City very quickly to have that premiere there, which I love because I have– my grandma was from there. I love any chance I get to go. That was a whirlwind. It was in out. You’re barely in the city. That night I overnighted back to Toronto to work the next day. It was that kind of intense schedule. Yes, sadly I missed Cannes, but then there again, it was nice to get to do the awards and get to really celebrate.

Dimitri: Now, you have worked with two of the biggest names. You had Arnold and you had Tom Cruise. What is it like working with them?

Monica: They’re almost on complete opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of personality types. I know that we both like major ’90s action stars, but they could not be more different. I think the common thread is a really strong work ethic and also that they’re just very charismatic, bold people. The way they do their work is just– their approach is so completely different. Both so great in their own ways. Tom has a really– he has a lot of specificity in his work, and attention to detail. He asks a lot of questions and gets very involved. I think I’m a little bit more like that. Arnold is like, “Better not to know.”

[laughter]

He’s more like, “No.” It works for him. I think he has that specificity and attention to detail in other areas of his life. They just have a very different approach to their work but both really giving in answering whatever questions I had. I can reach out and pick their brains about whatever it is I am struggling with. I have no family in this industry, so it’s really nice to be able to have those friendships and mentors.

Dimitri: You can’t ask for bigger, better mentors. Those guys went through everything.

Monica: Yes. For this, I’ll take Tom’s approach, and for this, I’ll take Arnold’s approach.

Dimitri: Tom was at the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Miami and he was practicing changing tires in the pit. He was working with the pit crew. It was quite a scene, to be honest.

Monica: He’s super hands-on. He likes to get his hands dirty. He really wants to understand every element of something. He doesn’t just shoot a scene. He knows exactly what the lenses mean. I think he also just takes a great interest in aviation and vehicles and things like that. He loves to know more. He’s a student of life, and I really admire that about him.

Dimitri: Yes, definitely. It looks like he is, that was your first Grand Prix in Miami?

Monica: Yes, my first F1 race. I’ve seen a bit of Drive To Survive and, I had heard much about it and had met Lewis briefly prior to that but to get to go see that world is just very, very cool.

Dimitri: I hear that you have another film coming up. you’ve been cast with Timothée Chalamet in Bob Dylan’s biopic. This is major!

Monica: I know. I’m geeking out. I’m over the moon. Already, getting deep into guitar and voice and it’s just a dream role for sure. Joan, she’s just a very impressive woman. Big shoes to fill, but I’m excited.

Dimitri:  I heard Bod Dylan signed off himself on Timothée, and James Mangold directing. You definitely look like “queen of folk” musician Joan Baez. Great casting!

Monica: Oh, yes. Thank you. Thanks for that. I hope so. Like I said, big shoes to fill, but the challenge– it’ll be the exact kind of challenge that I would hope for. It is a dream.

Monica: Are you a big Bob Dylan fan?

Dimitri: Yes, I am. Bob Dylan, Doors, Jimi Hendrix. think I was born in the wrong decade.

[laughter]

Dimitri: I love the ’60 and 70s music a lot. It definitely gets me. I screened Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese for the Emmys a few years back. Timothée as Bob and you as Joan are perfect choices.

Monica: Thank you.

BODY SUIT – WOLFORD, OVERCOAT –  KYHA STUDIOS, BOOTS – STUART WEITZMAN

Dimitri: Well, I know you probably have absolutely no time for personal life, so we’re not going to even ask…

Monica: You just assumed she doesn’t have one. [laughs].

Dimitri: With the number of projects, you probably don’t have time. What do you do to unwind? What’s your escape from all this?

Monica: I think I’ve been trying to spend the last 13 years trying to understand what is relaxation. I remember someone said to me– it was like 10 years ago. I was talking about work and getting really excited and then also anxious about certain things. He’s like, “What do you do to relax?” [laughs] I was like, “Uh– It really blew my mind. I still sometimes think about that and go, “Okay, have you taken time?” I wouldn’t work this hard if I didn’t love what I do. For instance, right now, learning the guitar is very intense, and I have so much to learn. I’m nervous about it and excited and all that, but I also find it relaxing to sit there and keep practicing.

I don’t really know. I have a lovely community of friends. I love to host at my place and have everyone over for a Sunday morning, wear your PJs and just come, hang out and watch whatever, sports game or chat, catch up. I love to plan those whenever I can, whenever I’m in town. Luckily, after abandoning my friends so much and leaving town, they’re still willing to come over and hang out.

[laughter]

I’m close with my family and just make time where I can. I really love what I do, and as stressful as it can get, it always feels like it’s where I want to be.

Dimitri: At the end of the day, if this brings you happiness and peace between all the crazy– I know any set can be stressful. It still brings some level of anxiety filming and traveling, you need quality time with your family and friends.

Monica: I was lucky in Toronto. I got to have my dog with me, and I think that made a very big difference to get to have him in my trailer and hang out with the crew. He loves the set. He loves to be around as many people as possible. He was just in heaven. He would follow me to rehearsals and then after a month or two, he was like, “No, I’m good. I’m good at base camp with all the crew here.” The crew really liked him. That also was a very grounding element to have him with me. He’s a sweet little pup. Arnold fed him way too much schnitzel. He gained weight. We’ll have to work on that next season. [laughs]

Dimitri: I want to ask you the last question. If you could give your younger self advice, what advice would you give yourself?

Monica: Maybe the relaxing point is probably a good one. I think it would’ve been helpful to have some reset tools when I was young. I carried a lot of stress, and learning how to compartmentalize my time and allow myself to let go a little bit would’ve been helpful. Also, it’s, probably in some way I can think of certain successes to that intensity. I think everything happens for a reason. All the people that told me I was too hard on myself and that I could take it easy, they were right and I probably wasn’t listening. [laughs]