From show creator Annie Weisman, the Apple TV+ original series Physical has ramped things up for Season 2, with Sheila Rubin (Rose Byrne) focused on building her business into a fitness empire and turning herself into a brand, with the help of her husband Danny (Rory Scovel) and friend Greta (Dierdre Friel). However, Sheila is finding that she has a bit of competition when it comes to world fitness domination, and she has to decide just how far she’s willing to go for success.
During this 1-on-1 interview with Collider, Murray Bartlett (who plays fitness guru Vinnie Green) talked about the type of characters he’s drawn to, joining a show he was already a fan of, what appealed to him about playing Vinnie Green, doing a scene in a tanning bed, dancing around with Byrne, what he thinks could come next for his character, and how lovely it was to hear the reaction to The White Lotus.
Collider: You played such a specific and such a very memorable character on The White Lotus. Because of that, what was the thought process in finding the next character, and what made this guy seem like an interesting follow-up?
MURRAY BARTLETT: It’s interesting, I’ve done a number of roles since The White Lotus. This is not the first. There were a couple in between that were quite different to The White Lotus character, but there are definitely similarities between Armond and Vinnie Green. I’m just intrigued by characters that are complex and well written, and this character is. I think this is a show where all the characters are complex and well written. I was a fan of the show. I loved the first season. I loved the cast. I think it’s a smart, interesting show that has something meaningful to say. So, there was that, and then this was also such a fun character.
What most appealed to you about Vinnie Green?
BARTLETT: He’s a character I grew up with in the eighties. There was a lot of familiarity with this kind of fitness guru type from the eighties. I knew there was gonna be a lot of joy in playing that, and there is, but Annie Weisman, the creator of the show, is so smart in rounding out the characters in such a beautiful way. Vinnie is such an interesting and smart counterpoint to Sheila. They’re in different stages of their careers, but they have a lot of things in common. They’re both trying to build a fitness empire. Vinnie is just a bit further along the way. They’re also kindred spirits in the way that they present this face to the world, but there’s a lot of darkness and demons underneath that, that they’re sitting on or trying to withhold. They connect on that level, which I think is so smart. It’s such a great opportunity for these two characters to connect, and a great way for Sheila to open up some of those parts of herself to someone who’s having a common experience. I was really excited by that relationship, and also working with Rose Byrne. She’s brilliant and a wonderful person, and she’s a joy to work with.
I love the time that Vinnie and Sheila spend together tanning, in episode eight. What was it like to shoot that? How was it to get into the tanning bed? What was it like to do the scenes with the little pink protective eyewear that you have on?
BARTLETT: I remember going to tanning beds, and I know people still go to tanning beds. When you are looking at those things with an objective eye, when you’re making a TV show and that’s in it, you’re like, “This is weird. If an alien came down, they’d wonder what we were doing.” There’s a built-in comedy to that, so it was hilarious to do that. It was also nostalgic because I remember those things. It’s such a funny and great setup for a scene, with these two people in twin tanning beds. It’s so bizarre, and so emblematic of that decade. It was super cool and super fun.
How weird was it to do a scene where you’re laying side by side, and you have strange goggles on?
BARTLETT: It’s a brilliant setup. It was an odd experience. You can hear each other, but you’re in these weird contraptions. It was hilarious really, but so great.
I also really loved the two of you dancing around the house together. What was that like to do? Was that just fun to do? Did you have to spend a lot of time rehearsing all of that?
BARTLETT: Yes, we did. We have amazing choreographers on this show, so we had a lot of fun coming up with what that would be. I just love that that was written as a scene. I think it’s so brilliant, in that it’s incorporating this form of movement that they are both fully invested in, in their careers. It’s worked into this scene where they cover a lot of ground, in terms of what they’re talking about, and go quite deep in their conversation, while they’re dancing around. It was written as such a unique scene. It felt like doing a movie musical. It was a complex day and a long day, but super fun and playful. It was like doing a Bollywood movie, or something. It was a wonderful, great experience. It’s a strangely powerful scene, in the midst of all this mad fun. That scene is very unique. I love it.
How much fun was it to also have someone like Anna Gunn to work with? Did she have to just be game for anything?
BARTLETT: Yeah. She’s such a fantastic actor, and she’s so brilliant in this season. Those scenes with her, she was just up for playing and for taking risks, so those scenes felt very unpredictable. It’s such a dynamic character, and Anna brings such intensity to what she does. It was pretty wonderful. The cast of this show, across the board, is so fantastic. I only got to play with a few of them so far, so I hope there’s more time for us to all connect. But yeah, she’s a fantastic scene partner, Anna Gunn.
After the end of this season, what do you think comes next for your character? Do you think he grows his empire even more? Do you think he crashes and burns, at some point?
BARTLETT: That’s an interesting question. There are so many interesting possibilities for this. He’s such a fascinating character, and it would be interesting to see him crash and burn, even further. I think it would also be fascinating to see him pull himself together and go further, and then really crash and burn. That would be interesting. Also, I’d be curious to see how, as Sheila’s empire builds, their relationship shifts because they’re competitors, essentially. They’re in the same business. Initially, Vinnie is like, “Who’s the new kid on the block? Is she gonna steal my business?” There are a lot of interesting things to play with, with Vinnie Green.
Were you surprised by the reaction that your character from The White Lotus got? People went wild over him. What was that like?
BARTLETT: It’s interesting, you never really know how people are gonna respond to a show or a character. That’s another show that was really brilliantly written. Mike White is such a genius, and he really gets that balance of comedy and tragedy so well. He disarms you with comedy, and then digs the knife in with things that are quite confronting. That character, on the page, was so detailed and so well drawn and so compelling. I was fascinated to see whether people might find him horrific, so it was wonderful that people really felt for that character. We were really going for that. He is a larger than life character, in a lot of ways, but he’s also broken and vulnerable and very human. There were some really carefully placed moments in that show, where you got to see that. Hopefully, that allowed people in, to identify with him or feel for him, so that was good. It was good to hear that response. He could have just been a horror show, and he was, in a lot of ways. But the fact that people connected with him, in some way, and felt an affinity for him and cared about him, was really something that I was hoping for. That was very lovely to hear.
Physical is available to stream on Apple TV+.