How to Die Alone It follows Mel, a lonely employee at JFK airport, who has a broken life, has never been in love, and has never given up on her dreams. Everything changes when a near-death experience forces him to rethink his life, opening his eyes to endless possibilities. Mel takes charge of her life and refuses to settle for anything less than the life she wants and deserves, even when the obstacles come her way.
How to Die Alone Co-created by Natasha Rothwell (Wonka, Sonic hedgehog 2), who also starred in the series, Vera Santamaria (BoJack Horseman, Orange is the New Black). Rothwell, Conrad Ricamora (Fire Island, How to Get Away with Murder) and Jocko Sims (New Amsterdam, The Last Ship). How to Die Alone It strikes the perfect balance between the visceral moments of an existential emotional journey and deeply funny comedy and characters that audiences can relate to.
Screen Rant Vera Santamaria was interviewed about her new Hulu comedy seriesHow to Die Alone. He explained what his extensive experience in comedy television series brings to the series and how he balances humor with serious emotional themes. Santamaria also shared how he hopes the series will affect viewers and what the series adds to the story at JFK airport.
Vera Santamaria Takes a Deep Dive into Mel and Her Flaws for Die Alone
“Maybe bring in more of the internal and externalize it and make Mel a little more flawed.”
Screen Rant: Vera, I love this show. Absolutely incredible. I feel like Mel is one of the most relatable characters I've seen in a long time and she has a very inspiring journey. How did you and Natasha Rothwell collaborate to create the character of Mel and his journey of self-discovery?
Vera Santamaria: I started from what was in the original DNA of his script, which is that he wanted to do this very specific exploration, and I think he would say himself that what I brought was a deeper dive. Maybe bringing in more of the internal and externalizing it and really making Mel a little more flawed.
Because Natasha herself is a strong person all together, and so it was pulling from a part of her life that was maybe in her twenties, a part where mistakes were made, and it gave you more of an advantage from those corners of your life. Just to make sure Mel is flawed and makes mistakes, forget that it's those kinds of mistakes that drove us away.
I think that's part of my favorite characters for me, so it was really about getting into that corner of your life, not looking around, patting, pushing. I was like, yeah, but let's look at it because that's the piece we all relate to.
This show is hilarious, but it also deals with some pretty serious topics. We talk about self-worth, personal growth, death, love. How do you balance the comedic element of the show with the more serious introspective moments, especially given Mel's life-changing journey?
Vera Santamaria: I think we had an ace in the hole which was Natasha Rothwell. I think he's going to be the one to play all these very subtle moments, you know he can do comedy and drama in the same breath. So when you have that piece, it really frees you up to write and reflect what you want.
I think what people are saying is that it feels like real life. We've all had that moment when something amazing and terrifying happened at the same time. I think knowing that he was the one to say those words, to embody this character, kind of made him that way. [so we were] he can walk a very fine tone.
The How To Die Alone showrunner hopes to “help you be a little kinder to the world.”
I love that it's set in JFK airport. I'm a frequent flyer and it's interesting to get an inside look at some of the staff there, as they're almost invisible most of the time. Now as a co-showrunner, what was your approach to building the world around Mel, especially JFK airport?
Vera Santamaria: Yes. I think what I did was take more of his original show to the airport. I knew that the airport was going to be a central part of the show, and if it was going to be, and we wanted to set a lot of scenes there, we'd have to get his love interest in the movie. workplace, as opposed to perhaps being in an apartment in Queens.
So what we're doing is really built on what's in the airport itself, so it's a community of its own. There are people who travel, but then there are people who carry luggage or prepare food. There's a lot going on there. So I was able to really pull that out of my own life by building that world and showing the unseen parts of JFK.
I have several family members who work in airports and I know there's a whole hell of a lot to talk about out there, so it's been my primary responsibility to make sure we have a really solid workplace where we can assign lots and lots of staff. scenes and lots of interactions.
As I said before, I think Mel is a very relatable character. What do you hope the audience will take away from Mel's story, especially regarding the themes of self-worth and personal growth?
Vera Santamaria: I hope people see this as an original and one-voice show. I want people to go on thinking about the show and walk away thinking that they really laughed a lot, but that the subject they're still thinking about is being explored.
For me, the best thing that can happen when you watch a TV show is that it kind of changes your mind, it makes you see people differently, sometimes you see the world a little bit kinder. That would be my biggest hope when people watch the show.
“Envy Is A Very Valuable Emotion” When Pursuing Your Dreams
“If you've forgotten how to dream big, I'd say maybe look at these things [where] I wish I had it.
Mel is described as a forgetful, dreamer, what advice would you give to people who may feel similar in their own lives?
Vera Santamaria: Oh, that's a good question. I think sometimes it's weird advice, but we've all experienced envy, and I think envy is a very valuable emotion because sometimes it tells you, I'm jealous of that thing because I secretly want it, but I'm not enough to really achieve what that person can have. don't dream so big.
Sometimes I think we present some emotions as poorly hidden emotions. I can say if you forget to dream big, I would say look at the things you are like sometimes, I wish I had that or why does that person have that? This can be a good sign for something you want deeply.
Sometimes it's just jealousy, and that's okay. But I think going after what we threw, Ooh, I shouldn't have that. But it is, well, ask yourself why you are experiencing this feeling. Maybe there is something about that person that makes you too afraid to say what you want.
How To Die Alone Season 1
Melissa is a neurotic fat black woman who's never been in love, but after a brush with death, she refuses to settle for anything less than the life she wants, leading her to be “that chick” no matter what.
Check out our other How to Die Alone interviews here:
How to Die Alone It debuts on Hulu on September 13th.
Source: Screen Rant Plus