Rose Byrne

Dimitri: Congratulations on the show. I’ve binged on all three seasons.

Rose: Oh, good.

Dimitri: From the very first episode and stuff to the last one in the last month, yes. Done them all.

Rose: Wow. Thanks for watching. Thank you for watching.

Dimitri: First of all, I enjoyed it as well. It was a really fun experience actually. It is truly something different. I didn’t expect it to be this way. It was actually quite fun to get into season 3. How do you feel about wrapping up the show with season 3?

Rose: Yes, it is. It’s bittersweet it’s such an incredible job and we’ve had– I’ve been so thrilled to be part of it for the last three years. It’s definitely bittersweet to say goodbye, but knowing that we wanted to finish it the way we wanted to finish it, and we did. The world of Sheila will really stay with me forever. It’s been a very emotional journey, and I’ve really loved every second of doing it. It’s been a wonderful gig.

Dimitri: You have such amazing castmates. Can you tell us what it’s like working with them for the last three seasons? You have Rory, he’s amazing. Deidre, she’s absolutely stunning.

Rose: Deidre’s so wonderful, I know. Again, I was really lucky to know Paul Sparks, who plays John Bream and Rory and Deidre. I missed working with Rory as much because the characters are divorced since season 3, so I didn’t get as many scenes with him, but that was also such a great examination of a marriage.

The show really delves into that and delves into the highs and lows of it. We always had a really easy chemistry and it was very effortless. The tricky part, is Danny, because he’s very smart but self-deluded, so it’s a very tricky role. Rory brought warmth and humor to that character, which was desperately needed for the audience to root for him and root for her.

Dimitri: Yes, exactly.

Rose: I feel very spoiled it’s not every time that you do a job where you really bond with everybody, so I feel even more bittersweet that we won’t have that time together.

Dimitri: You are also the executive producer on the show. Did you start with the show as an EP right from the get-go? Did you pitch it to Apple in the first place or at which point did you get connected with the show?

Rose: Once I came on board then I became involved as an EP. Annie came to me with the script and the pilot, and I was really so daunted and thought, “Oh, my God, how do I do it? How would I not screw this up?” [chuckles] It’s such a daunting part, but once I signed on, she was really gracious in offering me that. It’s been exciting just to have a seat at the table in terms of decisions, whether it’s about casting or about script or about certain character choices, things like that, just having more of a say and more of a seat at the table in terms of what direction they want to go in.

Dimitri: Are you more of a hands-on producer yourself? Was it good to have been wearing two hats on the set? Did you enjoy being as a lead and also as a producer same time?

Rose: On set, It’s pretty demanding Sheila. There’s a certain kind of focus that I have with that, but no, there was certain days where I have to step back. I wanted to weigh in all this or that or I would have phone calls leading up to certain days. I enjoyed it, I enjoyed learning the whole time about how to negotiate what you want as a producer.

Dimitri: Because it is actually a rather interesting. I do truly enjoyed it in the first two seasons, your voiceover helps to understand, because sometimes you don’t know what really happens in someone’s head. It was actually a really great experience to see and go like, “Oh, wow.” This is not always the facade, is not obviously the way people pursue themselves and especially the relationships that they have with people to relationship with food and everything else in their path.

It really got to me. I haven’t seen such a good narration being essentially well-played as a narrative to anything like films. [chuckles] You’re going to laugh, but it’s probably the best narration since the Fight Club.

[laughter]

Dimitri: It’s like Fight Club and Physical to me.

Rose: Fight Club, oh, my God. I love the narration in Fight Club, oh, my God. It’s so good.

Dimitri: But no, seriously, you don’t see it so often these days. It’s always like the first character type of thing. There’s not that much of a narration now. If it is, it’s not what it seems. I truly enjoyed it. I was missing the voice in the third season, to be honest.

Rose: [laughs] I think it’ll be different for different audience members. There’s preferences, about what people prefer, but I like that she’s playing with the device. It’s a bold swing, but I love that kind of stuff.

Dimitri: It’s a good twist, to change and things grew up. Would you call it hallucinations or just imagining?

Rose: Starts out sort of harmless and then ends up becoming something you have no control.

Dimitri: One thing about your show that really got me, and I took a notice myself, is actually people with eating disorders. I actually realized that I do have a few around me. I just never picked up on clues, to be honest. Really, your character actually showed some things that, as a guy, I just didn’t notice. It was pretty much right in front of me. Did any fans reached out? Any comments that you saw that your show actually made an impact?

Rose: I have. It’s interesting. I’ve had friends reach out who are in recovery, whether it’s from eating or from sex addiction, or from a drug addiction. I think that behavioral trait and that personality trait can really– The show has really resonated with people who are in any sort of recovery from addiction, whatever it may be. Food, drugs, anything. That was really interesting to me. A friend of mine, a guy, was in recovery. He’s like, “Oh, my God. It’s just like being inside my own–” [chuckles] That’s what it’s like when you’re in the throes of a terrible disease like that. That was really very moving and something I didn’t totally predict.

Obviously, I knew it would be striking a quarter nerve with people who are suffering from bulimia and EDs, but to have all forms of that disease, really being able to relate to was great in the sense of any– You can relate to something that makes it less scary, I think unless you’re less alone and you’re more likely to connect with people. That’s the opposite of being in a horrible disease like that where you’re isolated.

Dimitri: Absolutely. The actual premise for the show, there are a lot of fan theories that it’s based on real-life events but I’ve read that it’s actually based on Annie’s personal story. Do you find it to be interesting that because the ’80s, gosh, I’m the product of the ’80s, [chuckles] Basically, we all lived through that period. It doesn’t matter the age. You look at it now and you go, it’s like what they were going through in terms of the technology innovations and everything else to compare to what we have now, it’s such a massive jump in the last 40 years.

It’s it’s incredible. What it’s like to revisit the ’80s from that standpoint? That simple thing is VHS or Late-Night TV, the Infomercials were a big thing. How does it make you feel as both as a producer and as an actor?

Rose: I loved having the period piece of I loved setting it in the ’80s. It’s such an immersive thing. As soon as you get to work and you get on set, you’re like, “Oh.” I get you still get those that butterflies of being– It really just puts you immediately in the framework of where the character is. I love it. It’s so interesting. Wellness lifestyle gurus are now so common in a commonplace in society. The wellness business is such a multi-billion dollar business that we’re bombarded with every day.

This is really the seed of that and how it began. It’s great to really reverse engineer back to that time of the ’80s to examine that because it really was a women-driven process. It was a lot of way that women found economic independence. It was through that that the wellness interviews classically really pioneered by women. I loved doing all that research and learning about that. It was really fascinating. To put Sheila amongst all of that historical stuff was really great.

Dimitri: The show has reached its conclusion. I think it was an excellent way to wrap up the show. It was just a really good ending. It was well crafted. Who wrote the finale?

Rose: Annie Weisman wrote the finale and Stephanie Laing directed it. It was really hard. It’s very hard to finish a show. You know you’re never going to get to please everybody. It’s like a daunting task. I think they wanted to finish joyfully and we wanted to finish in a place of joy. That was the main task, I think, at hand.

Dimitri: The conclusion was perfect, in my opinion. Because sometimes you end up being like, “Why?” They could continue going further or it’s like– I think you guys did perfectly in three seasons. I know it probably does, especially to you now it’s such a bittersweet and you’re probably going to see your classmates on the Awards circuit coming up. Not yet but soon. [chuckles]

It was a perfect run in terms of the seasons– Come on, I binged it myself, to be honest. [chuckles] I have a binging problem in terms of addiction.

[laughter]

Dimitri: I don’t have any other addictions.

Rose: I know. Me, too. I’m the same. It’s good how you can do that. I know you’re just like, ” Oh, I’m just going to watch them all.”

Dimitri: How do you feel like in terms of the platforms and the freedom that you get these days? Not specific to your show, but a lot of shows these days, I feel like that there is more time to flesh out the characters on the platforms rather than if it was on a basic cable or free-to-air because it’s like one continuous film rather than we’re going to commercial break. How do you feel if it changed the industry, in your opinion?

Rose: It’s fascinating now seeing these strikes. With the WGA on strike and SAG likely going on strike, it’s reached a real pitch in terms of that side of things, and having to really reevaluate. It’s long overdue to reexamine those contracts that we’re all under because it’s not new media anymore. It’s like the majority of where everybody gets their work. Listen, I’ve been so grateful and lucky to have had success getting jobs on the streamers, but it’s way more complicated than that in terms of what they’re trying to negotiate right now.

A show like Physical, which is a very dark show, it’s a very specific show, it’s a very polarizing show in many ways, it’s very funny, but that show wouldn’t have been made. Our show wouldn’t have been made 10 years ago without the support of Michelle Lee, who’s an executive at Apple, and for Annie to get this pilot made that she’d written 10 years ago. It’s only through these sorts of platforms that stories like this specific kind of thing, a really dark, unusual story have actually been able to get made. I’m very grateful for that.

Dimitri: I think we need to rethink the way we see television in the first place, especially with the platforms. Some people love it, some people don’t. You can’t make everyone happy. I personally love the identity of the platforms and the freedom it gets. It does give more opportunities to stories that will never be told, like if it was just purely relying on the prime time or basic cable type of networks. Yes, I totally agree. Maybe for some films, it’s not suitable and maybe we need to rethink theatrical releases alongside with the platforms.

The stories like yours, you get so much time to actually go into the characters and just discover who they are because I don’t think, not even 10 years or 5 years ago even, it would not last with the commercial breaks. The whole arc of the story of the season, not just season, episodes would just be lost in the commercial breaks. I cannot see your show and then advertisers don’t like it because it doesn’t get enough hits or viewership. It’s one big headache.

Rose: It’s certainly changed the landscape so much. The networks are now trying to catch up with more edgy content and it’s just changed it forever. There’s no going back.

Dimitri: It’s the same thing as the VHS, CDs, and it just progresses. People just have to accept it. Some embraced it, some didn’t. I agree. Like WGA, they definitely need to renegotiate.

Rose: Renegotiate.

Dimitri: Exactly. How was your photo shoot with Mike Ruiz? How effective is Mike?

Rose: Oh, he was great. Oh, he was so wonderful and so fast. He was just cool.

Dimitri: He’s so quick and effective, he doesn’t waste anyone’s time.

Rose: No, that’s all I ask. It’s like, let’s just fucking get it. Let’s get a photo and have fun and look great. I’m like all about just, and he was cool. He was just, knew what he– Yes, he was great.

Dimitri: Do you have any other projects coming up?

Rose: I might be starting a movie in mid-August, but again, it depends on the strikes and stuff. It depends on the stuff happening. We just got back from Australia. We had a little vacation there for a month.

Dimitri: Oh, nice.

Rose: That was lovely. It’s summer, so the kids are going to some camps. We’ll be here through the summer and Bobby starts rehearsals on a play at the end of this month, I think. We’re here for now, but yes, we just got back. We went to Melbourne, Sydney, we went to the Outback, we went out to Uluru. It was gorgeous, incredible. That was fun. Just in recovery from the long flight.

Dimitri: You’re New York-based, right?

Rose: Yes, we’re in New York.

Dimitri: You’re in New York. It’s a little difference between Australia and New York, that’s for sure.

Rose: Yes, I know. It’s a long flight with two little kids too. I was like, “Oh, my God.”

Dimitri: That’s one thing I don’t miss, the long-haul flights, it’s so close here.

Rose: [chuckles] The long-haul flights, just take it out of you, man. We’ll be all right. Just need a few more days to recover.

Dimitri: If you could give your younger self advice, what advice would you give yourself?

Rose: Oh man, so much. Don’t wear that lipstick, that’s a terrible dress on you. [chuckles] I’d start with fashion advice first.

Dimitri: Okay, please do.

Rose: That’s real. I’d start with a lot of fashion, a lot of hair advice, fashion, and makeup advice. then I’d move on to life choices.

Dimitri: Okay.

[laughter]

Rose: I wouldn’t listen. That’s the thing is that your younger self’s not going to listen to you. It’s just going to be like, “What?” I would definitely start with fashion.