“Shrinking” star Christa Miller and “The Bear” star Abby Elliott agree that their “mugging” for the camera days are behind them.
Speaking on TheWrap’s “Leading With Laughter: Crafting Unforgettable Characters” panel at Wednesday’s inaugural Women of Comedy Emmy Showcase in Beverly Hills, the two TV comedy actresses shared that as the small screen has evolved towards highly produced limited series and shifted away from the multi-cam sitcom, their style has adapted, too.
“I started in sketch comedy, I really thought that comedy was, when I was starting out, pushing for a laugh,” Elliott said. “I had never really done anything as serious as ‘The Bear,’ and in that, you know, I really had to kind of act.”
Moderated by Whitney Cummings, the panel also included Wendi McLendon-Covey of “St. Denis Medical” and Brenda Song of “Running Point.” McLendon-Covey echoed the “Saturday Night Live” star-turned-sitcom actress, saying the industry today calls for a higher standard of comedy rooted in reality, even on a series like “St. Denis Medical” that shares DNA with hit sitcoms of the past.
Miller said in her earlier years working on sitcoms the humor was found by beating a joke into the ground, perfecting it and always being on. Specifically working on Apple TV+’s “Shrinking” opposite Harrison Ford, Miller said she found more success in the nuanced comedy by discovering the depth of her character, Liz.
“You’re playing the character, and just doing the writing is making it funny,” she explained. “When I see people mugging and doing a lot of facial things that you would have to do on a sitcom because they’re cutting to you, I don’t like it. It takes you out of it.”
Cummings quipped, “I would just like to say mugging for camera paid for my house.”
Song, who grew up as a Disney-trained child and teen actor performing in “The Suite Life of Zack and Cody” and “Wendi Wu,” said she felt like she learned how to do comedy backwards. Now in Netflix’s “Running Point” she works alongside Kate Hudson and under the guidance of comedy veterans Mindy Kaling and Ike Barinholtz.
“As I get older, I think it’s really about finding the facets of these people. So I feel like comedy really comes from a lot of pain when acting these characters,” Song said. “I don’t think it’s about being funny. I think it’s just about being human.”
Cummings asked the panelists if they felt like throughout their careers they ever felt pigeon-holed into certain types of characters. Elliott noted that in her 20s, she was typecast as “the bitch,” but learned to make it her own by giving them a nice twist.
Song said she was dropped by her agents over a decision post-Disney that changed the course of her career – her supporting role in “The Social Network.”
“I was really upset about it at the time, because I was just living all the Disney stuff, and looking back, you have to follow your gut instinct, because, again, it’s your life,” she said. “It’s not about the outcome.”
“St. Denis Medical” star McLendon-Covey said that she avoided falling into a type because “no one really cares.”
“I can’t say that I’ve been pigeonholed because no one really cares about what I’m doing, not until recently anyway,” the “Bridesmaids” actress deadpanned. “I have said no to some things that I thought might send me down the same character path as before, but you drive the ship. You can say no to anything.”
When Miller looked back on her career, she said that the little positive reinforcements from casting directors and showrunners in her early years kept her going. Elliott surprised “The Drew Carey Show” actress, telling her that her husband Bill Lawrence was that nudge for her.
“Breadcrumbs, Bill Lawrence once told me to keep going in an audition. He said, ‘My wife’s an actress. I know how hard it is,’” she said. “I was nervous and like shaking, and it was so kind, and I never forgot it. It was like 15 years ago.”
“He told me to quit,” Cummings joked.
TheWrap’s Women of Comedy: An Emmy Season Showcase is presented in partnership with Comedy Gives Back and sponsored by ABC, Apple TV+, Disney+, FX, Max, NBC, Prime Video, Universal Television Group, Warner Bros. TV and 21SEEDS, our spirits partner.
