Courtney B. Vance talks about parallels between “grotesque” and elections

[This story contains major spoilers from the season finale of Grotesquerie.]

Over the course of 10 episodes, GrotesqueMarshall Tryon (Courtney B. Vance) has gone from a sympathetic, unfeeling coma patient facing the threat of his wife Lois (Niecy Nash-Betts) pulling the plug on him to a lucid, self-righteous husband who doesn't forgive indiscretions marital relations of his wife. , despite having a years-long relationship (with Lesley Manville's character). In the season finale, he ends up facing a potential criminal charge of sexual assault, and then finds solace in a men's rights group known as the Mexicali Men's Club.

The finale, which calls for a second season of the FX drama, left everyone perplexed, including Vance, who didn't reveal any theories about who the “Grotesquerie” serial killer is or how his character might manifest in potential future seasons.

“I don't know where Messy Marshall will be,” he says The Hollywood journalist after the finale. “I hope it's not that messy, but knowing Ryan Murphy's world, it will be, I have to pray, in season two and on and on, hopefully, to other seasons.”

Despite the sexist underpinnings of the men's support group that are revealed in the season finale, the concept of discussing how to reconcile one's differences is important ahead of Tuesday's presidential election, says Vance, who spoke with THR earlier this year on the importance of voting while working on AMCs 61st Streetsaying at the time: “We have a choice to make. Either we… continue the chaos, or we go in and say, 'no, we're going back to a time when people fixed things, or at least tried to.'”

Today he feels the same way, drawing parallels between the horror series and the current political climate. “We need to sit down and talk about how we're going to do this thing called life. That's what I think we're in the middle of [when we vote]. This election is truly about our future; what direction people see this country going in.”

Below in a chat with THRVance talks about canceling another project to join Grotesquewhether he thinks his character is a victim or a villain, the conversation he had with Kelce on set, and his hopes for future seasons, whether Grotesque (as planned by Murphy) is renewed.

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You saw the ending of Grotesque and are you satisfied with how things went?

I didn't see it. I'm not caught. I'm driving around a little crazy right now, but I'm on episode seven and I'm completely in awe of everything Grotesque; the production values, design, acting and casting. I'm just in awe of how Ryan Murphy manages to put it all together with all the different shows he has, and I know how he does it. He does this because he has absolutely amazing people around him to be able to organize and lead all these amazing projects. Nothing is diluted or lost in the sauce. This is his genius. While it can't be everywhere all the time, it has amazing people who make sure the production value and level of quality are higher than anything else on television.

How did you come to play Marshall?

He called me and said he wanted me to be a part of it and I said, “OHokay,” because I was about to do something else. So I said, “Let me make a couple of calls and I'll get back to you,” and I called the creator/showrunner of the project I was about to do and said, “Mr. Ryan called me, he's my boyfriend and I'll have to treat him with respect [decline],” and the showrunner was very appreciative of me calling him, not hiding behind my agent, manager, publicist, whatever, to call him. He said, “You know, things go in circles in this world, see you in the next one,” and I'm so happy to know that I had to call him myself.

Niecy Nash, Courtney B. Vance and Lesley Manville.

Prashant Gupta/FX

When you first saw the scripts of Grotesque and what were your initial thoughts?

Ryan told me that my character wasn't complete, so I wouldn't see everything he wanted me to see in terms of what the character was like and what he was about. He said: “Don't be discouraged”, and I said: “I'm not, it's a journey of faith, I understand you. I know that will be what it will be, but it will be something that we will develop together as we go forward. So it was a complete faith walk, like most of these, and I'm so glad and happy that I joined. For my acceptance at the Emmys [The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story]the first thing I said was, “Ryan Murphy, Ryan Murphy, Ryan Murphy.” So here it is.

Since you've made it to the seventh episode where the big twist is revealed, what were your theories about who Grotesquerie was before seeing the reveal?

Oh, I didn't have a clue. I still haven't the faintest idea. I think the fact that I'm not trying to figure it out is probably for the best. I love that he will keep us waiting. They need to make a second season for us to find out. What a wonderful thing to say, you have to wait until season two. We have to have a second season! I think it's very beautiful. I'm excited.

The ending raises further questions about Marshall and his true character. Do you think he's a victim? Is he a bad guy?

I think both. The family unit is definitely in crisis and unfortunately we don't help it [Nash-Betts’ character, Lois] in terms of what it needs to do. You would think that hopefully when someone has a stressful job like that, home life isn't stressful. Unfortunately, our home life is completely stressful. So I'm not surprised that he started drinking. We took her to drink. And we all have our problems. I have sexual addictions, Merritt's [Raven Goodwin] I had food addictions. My wife and daughter have an alcohol addiction. She's a genius, but she comes in drunk and tells people what to do and how to work at the crime scene. Watching his work is like a microcosm of watching Ryan Murphy work with the 10 shows he's airing at the same time. It's a beautiful thing.

Travis Kelce and Courtney B. Vance in Grotesque final.

Prashant Gupta/FX

The Mexicali Men's Club is introduced in the finale. What do you think of this overall theme of men's rights that is explored in the episode?

You know, I don't know. This is a time when any opportunity for a man to talk about anything is a good thing as far as I'm concerned. We need to talk more anyway. I wrote a book called The invisible pain about men needing to talk and get it off their chest. It doesn't surprise me that men feel somewhat victimized. Ultimately, we all need to talk and support each other. Men feel they need to be supported. It all depends on how people come together. None of us are going anywhere. We need to sit down and talk about how we're going to do this thing called life. That's what I think we're in the middle of [when we vote]. This election is really about our future, about the direction people see this country going. So I'm excited to hear that men are speaking out. This is a good thing. Men need to talk.

What other messages do you think audiences can take away from this series?

Make your own iced tea with sugar and honey together. Talk to your spouses, talk to your people. We must transform this world. I think that's what Niecy's character is trying to do. He's trying to stop all this madness. We need to figure out how to talk to each other. Nobody is going anywhere. We're not going anywhere. They won't go anywhere. We need to figure out how to come together and agree to disagree, but get some work done. This is what our family needs to do. Stop the hate. Stop hating, as the young people say, and start celebrating. Figure out how to celebrate each other and get to the next level.

Travis Kelce's character introduces Marshall to the Mexicali Men's Club, and Lesley Manville's Nurse Redd is an important part of your character's story. How was your experience with them on set?

Oh, I love them. I love them for so many different reasons. Lesley made a film about a young woman who was a housekeeper, [Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris]and I told her I had seen that movie on a plane and it transformed me, so the opportunity to work with her after seeing her in that movie and being so in love with her, was just wonderful. And then Travis: The Kansas City Chiefs are not my team. Let me say it out loud. Detroit Lions: Go to Detroit, go to Detroit. But he's so humble.

Ryan told the story of how he came into his office and said he wanted to do something different, and Ryan said, “Okay, we'll keep that in mind,” and he said, “No, no, no, no, Ryan , I want to do it now. I have 30 days.” And Ryan was like, “Oh! Okay, let's see what we can do here. But he arrived so prepared, trained; he entered the world of football just as he approaches it. The only thing that I think didn't really stick with him is that yes, we did your coverage, now we have to go back and get Courtney, then we have to get Niecy, and we have to get the wide [shot] then we have to turn our attention to the audience and he said, “Oh my God, how many times do I have to do this?” [I said]“A lot. So be patient and go get a Twinkie” – well, not a Twinkie, because he's a football player. But I think that was the hardest thing for him to understand, the process of the job. It's very exhausting and boring.

Given how things will end, what do you see for your character if there was a second season?

Oh, I haven't a clue. I mean, that man is everywhere. That's a question I'd like to ask Ryan, where he sees Marshall going. Ultimately, I would like him and Lois to work out their marriage and their daughter. To understand the family unit. I'm in crisis. How will it be resolved? I really, really don't know what's going to happen because it's very complicated now. This is a very personal show for him because he doesn't often write all of his own shows, but he wrote this one. He's very, very passionate about this show. So it will be, with the other two writing partners, very, very interesting to see how they resolve all the characters. But the reversal of the coma was brilliant. And the idea that while you're in a coma you can hear, it's just confusing, completely confusing. You are all messy. So I don't know where Messy Marshall will be. I hope it's not that messy, but knowing Ryan Murphy's world it will be, I have to pray, in season two and on and on, hopefully, to other seasons.

It's the idea of ​​doing multiple seasons of Grotesque attractive to you?

I'll work with Mr. Ryan Murphy until the cows come home.

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All episodes of Grotesque are now streaming on FX. Light THRfeaturing Murphy and FX boss John Landgraf's interview on the twist reveal, Lesley Manville on the ending and more.

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