With MacGruber now blessing our timeline with eight new thirty-minute episodes on Peacock, I recently got to speak with Laurence Fishburne (General Barrett Fasoose) and Billy Zane (Brigadier Commander Enos Queeth) about making the series. They talked about why they loved the scripts, what it was like working with Will Forte when he’s so committed to the role, which of their friends and family were the most excited they were part of MacGruber, how much they were told about their characters before signing on, the way they prepare for a big scene, and more. In addition, with Fishburne having recently wrapped on John Wick 4, I asked him what fans can look forward to in the sequel. He said:
“As a fan, not just as somebody who is in it, and this is based on reading the script, it’s going to be the best one yet.”
Needless to say, this makes me very happy.
If you haven’t seen the MacGruber trailer, the series picks up ten years after the events of the film, where MacGruber (Forte) has been locked up in prison for the brutal killing of Dieter von Cunth (Val Kilmer). But when a mysterious villain from his past, Brigadier Commander Enos Queeth (Billy Zane), threatens the world, MacGruber must reassemble his old team, Vicki St. Elmo (Kristen Wiig) and Dixon Piper (Ryan Phillippe), in order to defeat the forces of evil. As you can easily guess, nothing goes according to plan and it’s fantastic to watch. For more you can read Ross’ review.
MacGruber also stars Sam Elliott (Perry), Joseph Lee Anderson, and Timothy V. Murphy (Constantine Bach). Jorma Taccone, John Solomon, and Forte serve as writers, executive producers, and showrunners of MacGruber. Solomon and Taccone direct all episodes. Lorne Michaels, John Goldwyn, Andrew Singer, and Erin David are also executive producers.
Finally, as a longtime fan of MacGruber, I’m happy to say the new episodes are fantastic and loaded with scenes that will make you laugh out loud. I can’t recommend the series enough. Watch what Laurence Fishburne and Billy Zane had to say in the player above and below is exactly what we talked about.
Laurence Fishburne and Billy Zane
- If someone has never seen anything they’ve done before what is the first thing they should watch and why?
- Which of their friends and family were the most excited they were part of MacGruber?
- How the show is unlike anything else on TV, so what was it like reading the scripts for the first time?
- What is it like working with Will Forte when he is so committed to the role?
- What can they say about their roles?
- How do they like to prepare for a big scene that they know will be challenging?
- How much were they told about their characters arcs before singing on?
- What can Fishburne tease about John Wick 4?
