When Dead to Me star Christina Applegate was identified with a number of sclerosis in the summertime of 2021, the Netflix present was midway by means of manufacturing on its third and remaining season, and it was unclear if filming might or ought to proceed.
“We just wanted her to know that it was up to her, whatever she wanted to do we were OK with,” Applegate’s co-lead Linda Cardellini advised The Hollywood Reporter on the present’s premiere on Tuesday of that point. “If she wanted to come back, if she didn’t want to come back, I just wanted her to make a decision that suited herself, not anybody else.”
Production shut down for 5 months whereas the actress began remedy, after which the crew got here again collectively to complete the second half of the present at Applegate’s request.
“Christina wanted to finish the season, she wanted us to tell the story and she wanted to be able to give that gift to the audience,” mentioned creator Liz Feldman. “She wanted to give that closure and she wanted to give us closure, and so we did it on her terms and I’m extremely proud of how it turned out.”
“It didn’t surprise me that she wanted to come back,” added co-star James Marsden. “She’s just one of the most remarkable human beings, with or without the diagnosis; she always has been. And just a tremendous talent and funny as hell and a great friend.”
The darkish comedy, which in its first two seasons noticed Applegate (as Jen) and Cardellini (as Judy) as two unlikely pals navigating grief and a complete lot of secrets and techniques, made no matter lodging Applegate wanted when she returned to set after her analysis, Feldman mentioned, however “we didn’t change anything in the story, really anything in the script; maybe there are scenes where she sits more or leans on a door or something like that but really pretty minimal.”
“To me, Christina is who she’s always been from day one, which is a strong, hilarious, brilliantly talented, tenacious, incredibly supportive and protective den mother. Nothing changed in terms of her role on the show,” the creator added of watching Applegate push by means of to complete filming. “That’s who she is, she’s the best no. 1 you could ever ask for and I can only hope to work with someone that amazing again.”
On Cardellini’s finish, serving as each an onscreen and offscreen good friend, “you never want to see your friends or your family members go through something that is challenging or hurts, so there’s always those feelings, but also we still managed to have all the laughs and tears and we got to do some incredible work,” she mentioned. “I was always just hoping I could be someone she could lean on.”
Shooting these remaining days was a mix of laughter and tears, very like the tone of present, added Cardellini, who had identified how her character’s arc would finish since Feldman advised her her thought in the course of season two.
“It was really beautiful because Liz was directing the last episode and so she saved the scene that Jen and Judy are saying goodbye to each other — but not saying goodbye because they don’t know it’s really goodbye — but she saved that scene for last,” Cardellini remembered. “Christina and I sat in that bed on the Mexico set and had this incredible laugh and cry, and then we looked behind the camera and everybody else was crying and laughing.”
Marsden, who performs twins on the present, mentioned that when he first learn how the present wrapped up, “I thought people are going to lose their minds and all their hearts are going to get broken.”
“I always wondered what she was going to do and how she was going to end it, and as much as you can anticipate twists and turns and anything she might have planned, it was a surprise for me,” he mentioned of Feldman’s writing. “I just thought ‘Wow, you’re really going to crush people with this,’ but I think that’s sometimes how life can work. The show holds a mirror up to what it’s like to be human and find friendship and go through loss and grief and I think that’s why people like it.”
Dead to Me‘s remaining season begins streaming Thursday on Netflix.
