From creator/executive producer Mike Schur (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Parks and Recreation, Master of None), the brilliantly inventive and hilariously funny half-hour NBC series The Good Place (which has my vote for Best Comedy of the fall 2016 TV season) follows Eleanor Shellstrop (Kristen Bell), an ordinary woman who enters the afterlife and, thanks to an inexplicable error, is sent to the Good Place instead of the Bad Place, where she actually belongs. While trying to hide her true self from the completely unaware Michael (Ted Danson), the wise and kind architect of the Good Place, she’s determined to discover whether she has a good person within.
During this exclusive phone interview with Collider, the always ridiculously charming and delightful Kristen Bell talked about how she came to this project, that having a more positive effect on the world is something that’s important to her, what she most enjoys about playing Eleanor, working with a national treasure like Ted Danson, what her own home in the Good Place would look like, how she feels about clowns, and why you don’t have to be selfless to be a good person. She also talked about the status of Frozen 2 and recording an Olaf Christmas special for ABC, as well as how things are coming along with the CHiPs reboot, which was written and directed by her husband, Dax Shepard.
Collider: How did this show come about for you? Had you been looking to do another TV series, or was there just no way to say no to Mike Schur?
KRISTEN BELL: There’s definitely no way to say no to Mike Schur. When he calls and says, “I’d like to talk to you about a project,” on your answering machine, you just text him back, “Yes!” Those are the rules, if you’re smart. But I was actually still shooting House of Lies, at the time, and we didn’t know if we were coming back, so I had to proceed, because my loyalty was to that family first, as if we were going forward. So, I explained that to Mike, and NBC and Showtime had worked out a contract where I could do both shows ‘cause one was network and one was cable. It’s very rare, and it took a lot of time and finessing, but it worked out. So, had House of Lies proceeded, I still would have done The Good Place because there’s no way to say no to Mike, particularly when he has his weirdest idea, ever. And it’s also about something I obsess over, which is the ripple effect you have on the world around you, and how you can make your actions better and have a greater, more positive effect on everyone.
When it came to Eleanor, what most excited you about her, as a character, and what were you most nervous about being able to pull off?
BELL: That’s one in the same. I learned, playing Sarah Marshall, that I am most stimulated when I find a character who, on the page, is not your typical protagonist and is perhaps devious, shady or not doing things that the audience would like. And then, it’s my job to figure out how to get you on her team and root for her. It’s challenging and stimulating. When you can do it correctly, that makes me really proud.
And this show really hinges on that being successful.
BELL: Yeah, if your lead character is not likeable, you have no show. I was immensely flattered that Mike trusted me with that job. It’s when I’m most stimulated, as an actor, so I was thrilled to take on the challenge.
What’s it like to get on this set and play this character, and then have someone like Ted Danson to work opposite?
BELL: Not a lot of people get to work with a national treasure on a daily basis. I have known Ted for six or seven years. We did a movie together (Big Miracle) and fell in friendship love, and we have double dated a lot. I took him to his first escape room and he didn’t know what was going on. We have actually been looking for something to do together since then, and this fell into our laps, so we were overjoyed. Both of us like to be in bed by 9:30, so when we see each other, we have very early dinners. To be able to hang out with one of your friends all day, and then go home to your family at night, it’s an ideal scenario. I’m overjoyed to be able to giggle with Ted, all day. He seems like such a heavyweight ‘cause he brings this extensive resume and all this talent, but no one is lighter or funnier to be around. And he’s so welcoming because he loves his job and he loves people. He’s just joy personified.
Since everything in your assigned community in the Good Place is designed to your personal taste and liking, what would your home look like, if you found yourself in the Good Place for real?
BELL: Well, I’ll tell you, there would be no avocado on all of the counter tops, there would be no dirty diapers, and the house would smell clean and fresh and be tidy, but it would be warm and inviting, and every piece of furniture would look like you could sit on it or put your feet up on it and nothing will break.
Where are you on the clown debate? Do you hate them as much as Eleanor does?
BELL: I don’t have any real feelings towards clowns. They don’t make me laugh, but they don’t terrify me. They just exist in the background. But the clowns in this show have been chosen to terrify Eleanor, which is a brilliant joke that she has to live with what we call a clown nook in her house. She has a corner devoted to all of these disgusting pictures of clowns. I think I name them, in one episode. I named them Psycho, Creepo, Freaky Feet and Nightmare George Washington. Nightmare George Washington is my favorite.
How challenging will it be for Eleanor to continue to try to get a handle on what it means to be a good person, especially knowing that every time she takes the easy way out, something is going to happen, as a result?
BELL: It’s as hard as raising a child, which I think most of us can agree is the hardest job on the planet. Eleanor is an emotional infant who doesn’t understand why she shouldn’t put herself first, all the time. She really has to re-evaluate every instinct that she has, so it will take the majority of the season for her to get a handle on being good.
The fact that she can’t swear in the Good Place, no matter how hard she tries, is just so hilarious. Now that you have kids, do you find yourself using some of the swearing substitutes you say on the show when you’re at home, or do you not censor yourself like that?
BELL: We don’t actually censor ourselves. We certainly don’t attempt to use tons of foul language around our children, but when we slip up, my husband and I have come to the agreement that when our children ask, we will politely explain, “You can’t say that word and there are many things you can’t do, as a 3-year-old. You also can’t vote, you cannot drive a car, and you cannot use the stove. But as you grow up, you will get these privileges.” We don’t want to make them afraid of language because we both believe that words have the power that you give them. But, this will be the perfect fix for any parent looking to effusively swear around their children.
On more than one occasion, Eleanor is accused of being too selfish to be a good person. Do you think you can be selfish and still be a good person, and that it’s just about recognizing that that tendency is there?
BELL: I do, actually. I don’t think the definition of being a good person is always killing yourself to make things better for others. I believe in being thoughtful and generous to those around you, but I also believe in putting your gas mask on first. No one can be good to those around them, if they’re exhausted. So, it’s a little bit of both. It’s definitely a balance. But on the whole, as humans, we could all do better at recognizing how much we impact those around us without even knowing it, particularly in the age of social media and anonymous comments online.
Even though Eleanor does some bad things, she’s not a bad person. Have you been surprised about just how inspiring her journey might prove to be for viewers?
BELL: She’s not malicious or evil. She’s very average. She simply puts herself first and doesn’t understand that her actions have a ripple effect, and I think that’s extremely relatable. It’s also this great metaphor that it’s never too late to change, even after you’re dead.
This show is a bit quirky in its subject, its tone and its look. How did having someone like Drew Goddard on board to direct the pilot and establish how the world would work really help pull all of that together?
BELL: He was the perfect cherry on top. He understands comedy, as good as Mike Schur. His movie, Cabin in the Woods, was a brilliant curve ball in the film industry that no one was expecting. He and Mike speak the same language and find the same things funny, so it was a wonderful collaboration. Cabin in the Woods was a big undertaking. There was a lot of CG in that movie, and it’s a very big world. To have Drew on board to define what we’re going to see for the next, hopefully, seven years was very lucky.
How are things going with Frozen 2? Back in May, you told one of my colleagues that you were about to start recording dialogue for the sequel. Have you done a lot of that recording, since then?
BELL: We haven’t, actually. I thought we were about to start recording, but I was mistaken. So, we haven’t begun yet. They’re putting the finishing touches on the script. We record, as those characters, often. At the change of season at the parks, whether it’s for Disneyland, Epcot, or when Japan opens, we will record new voices for our characters, but we actually haven’t started recording for the second Frozen. But what we have been working on is an Olaf Christmas special that we’re doing for next year (airing on ABC). We’ve recorded that already, which has been a lot of fun to work on.
Are there new songs in that special, or did you just do voice recording for that?
BELL: There’s new music, as well. Yeah, there are new songs.
Frozen really has become this incredible thing, for everyone involved. What’s that like, to get to originate a character like that?
BELL: It’s such a cool feeling! It feels like being a part of a little bit of magic. You just hope that the project you’re working on brings people joy, and then you look at the team around you and you realize that you can’t go wrong with a dream team, like the one they put together to work on Frozen. It’s so much fun!
How are things going with CHiPs? Is Dax Shepard still finishing post on that, or is he all done with it?
BELL: He just delivered it, and it will come out next August 11th. We are thrilled with how it turned out. He has such a specific point of view. He’s weirdly provocative and romantic, at the same time, yet he directs a mean action sequence ‘cause he loves anything with a motor. The movie is very funny and very his specific type of humor, but is also an emotionally connected story. It harkens back to the 1980s action movies, like Lethal Weapon, where the love story is between the two guys. They bicker, but you want to see them make up and solve the crime. It has this delicious nostalgic feel. And I’d collaborate with him on anything. I trust him that much, as a director, and I enjoy being around him, obviously. I would work with him on anything.
The Good Place airs on Thursday nights on NBC.
