The 10-episode Netflix family sitcom Country Comfort follows Bailey (Katharine McPhee), a young singer trying to find success in country music who ends up taking a job as a nanny for a cowboy named Beau (Eddie Cibrian) and finds herself falling in love with his five children. Bailey quickly learns that her Southern charm will only get her so far, and that she’s going to have to put in the work, not just on her road to stardom but also as a mother figure to these kids.
During a virtual junket for the new series, co-stars Katharine McPhee and Eddie Cibrian spoke to Collider about what drew them to the project, the ways they’re similar to their characters, having country superstar LeAnn Rimes (who’s also Cibrian’s wife) guest star, and whether Bailey’s upbeat attitude ever gets shaken.
COLLIDER: When this came your way, since you can’t know what the full story or character arc will be on an ongoing TV show, what was it that reeled you in and made you want to be a part of this?
KATHARINE McPHEE: For me, it was the long speeches and lack of filter that Bailey had, that were written so cleverly and were just fun and funny. It’s something that I hadn’t gotten to do before. Also, musically, I haven’t gotten to do country music. And I don’t know very many sitcoms that have music in them and that give the actors an opportunity to sing. For me, it was a home run. I loved the pilot instantly and I could see where it was gonna go, knowing the story of The Nanny and The Sound of Music. Pulling from those themes, I had an idea of how fun the show could potentially be.
EDDIE CIBRIAN: For me, it was pretty simple, I get to play a cowboy in a sitcom. Who doesn’t wanna do that? That was a pretty easy sell for me. And the script was very funny, and yet very heartwarming. I feel like all of these characters had distinct personalities and were very established. This had a lot of potential and longevity.
Katharine, how much of yourself do you see in Bailey? Are there any stories from when you were struggling to make it that still stand out for you?
McPHEE: The woman that I am now, not that much. But she’s very kooky, and I’m actually pretty silly. I get to embrace my silly, goofy side that I think could come out even more in the character. Maybe her energy and her determination for wanting to be a good nanny. She actually does care about this family and the kids. But her drive for wanting a career really reminds me how badly, in my early 20s, I wanted to do something in the entertainment business. It was probably more on the acting side, which would maybe surprise some people, but I had that drive. I don’t know anyone who has diarrhea of the mouth like Bailey does. I can’t think of a better phrase. And the more they write her that way, the more I find deeper parts of the character. I’m really enjoying playing her.
Eddie, how much of Beau is in you and how much are you different?
CIBRIAN: The commonality for me is the love of his children. I can relate to that, and for wanting the best for your children and sacrificing everything for their happiness, just to make sure they’re okay. That’s what drives Beau, and that’s what drives me, personally, in life. Beau was born and raised in Nashville, Tennessee. He’s a rancher and has a horse farm. I’ve always wanted to be that. It’s just in me, for some reason. I feel at home in that environment, even though I’m a Valley boy, born and raised in L.A. We’re different in that way, but it’s the soul that I connect with, with Beau, and that I have, personally.
When you do a show about country music, of course you want LeAnn Rimes to do a guest appearance. Eddie, how surreal is it to have your wife guest star on the show, but as herself? Does it feel like a weird blend of TV and life together?
CIBRIAN: It is a little surreal, but it’s quite fun, and we do play on that as well. There are a couple of lines that Caryn [Lucas], our showrunner, wrote to play on the fact that in real life, she’s my wife, and yet she looks like my wife on the TV show. It’s fun. She had a really great time doing it. She was a fan of the show before Caryn asked her to do it. She saw the first couple of episodes and she just really loved it. It was a no-brainer. It was inevitable that it was gonna happen, and I’m glad they got it out of the way in the first season.
Katharine, what’s it like to get to sing with LeAnn Rimes?
McPHEE: It’s thrilling. I’ve been a fan of her music for a long time. We’re similar in age, but she made it so young. I remember my mom sending me this article about this young 13-year-old girl who was getting famous from this song “Blue.” I know the whole thing. So, it’s always surreal when you get to work with people you’ve looked up to and idolized. Eddie and I have a lot in common. We’re both Valley kids, we’re both born in L.A., and we’ve both married people who have Grammys and more musical accolades than any of us will ever have. It’s fun. It was really nice working with her.
In order to make a show like this work, you want to care about the characters and you have to believe them, as a family, and five kids is a lot. What is one of the best moments that each of you has shared with one of your younger co-stars?
McPHEE: Getting to know them early on. They’d already been working and doing a boot camp before Eddie and I came in, because they didn’t have as much experience. They were already an established unit when we came in. One of the joys that we got to experience with the first four episodes was having that real sitcom experience of a live audience. It was taken away from us during COVID when we all went back to work, so that was something that we all missed. But seeing the kids experience their first live show, it was thrilling for me as an adult, and seeing them after the taping, there’s a real party aspect of doing a live taping. It’s really celebratory. For me, just watching them, not even doing a particular scene that we did, but to just experience something for the first time was cool.
CIBRIAN: They have a real joy about them and a real joy for being on set and working, and that really resonates with everybody. You can just feel it. It’s a family. When we’re there, we feel like a little family, and it’s very special.
Katharine, Bailey is described as having a never-give-up attitude, but everyone has a limit. What is her limit? How far is too far for her, and will we see that this season?
McPHEE: As far as the first season goes, nothing is too far for Bailey to go, in terms of showing her dedication and love towards the children, but also her career. She has this naïve blissfulness for life, but her managing skills are not so good. She’s trying to do all of these different things at once, but she doesn’t necessarily do them so well. But she tries to do them, so it gets her into a lot of trouble because she’s always trying to do too much. I don’t think she’ll ever really change that. It’s her charm.
Country Comfort is available to stream at Netflix.