There's been a lot of talk about Travis Kelce's foray into acting since it was announced that the Kansas City Chiefs tight end would be cast in Ryan Murphy's latest horror drama Grotesque. The FX series written and created by Murphy, Jon Robin Baitz and Joe Baken premiered with two episodes on September 25, and it is in episode three of the second week that the NFLer's character is revealed within the small community which has been disturbed by exceptionally gruesome murders. .
At the center of Grotesque is Lois Tryon, played by Niecy Nash-Betts, a detective who feels personally offended by the nature of the evil misdeeds she attempts to solve with the help of an unlikely ally played by Micaela Diamond. Diamond plays Sister Meagan, a nun and journalist for the Catholic Guardian newspaper who has a special interest in crime and cults.
Sister Meagan also has a close relationship with her church's priest, Father Charlie, played by Nicholas Alexander Chavez, who currently plays Lyle Menendez in another Murphy series, Netflix's. Monsters: The Story of Lyle and Erik Menendez. In the second episode, Father Charlie admits to Sister Meagan that he has a “morbid fascination” with true crime podcasts. Later, the audience sees that isn't the holy man's only horrible obsession when he retreats to his priests' quarters and begins masturbating while wearing a pair of leather chaps. Immediately after finishing he begins whipping his back with ropes to which sharp nails are attached while reciting the words: “Then it will come to pass, that if the wicked man deserves to be beaten, the judge will make him lie down, and he will be beaten before his feet.” . do according to the measure of his wickedness according to the number.”
Lois has metaphorical demons in her personal life, each member of her family battles their own individual vices: hers is alcohol, which she habitually pours into her morning coffee and sometimes doesn't even bother to pour into a glass in the evening. Lois has a somewhat emotionally distant relationship with her daughter Merritt Tryon, played by Raven Goodwin, whose food addiction drives a wedge between her and her father Marshall Tryon, played by Courtney B. Vance, when he raises concerns about her health. It is Marshall, however, who ends up becoming seriously ill and needing long-term care after falling into a coma which, at the start of the season, he remained in for 28 days. In a flashback argument in the second episode, Lois kicks her husband out of the house when she informs him that she found out he was cheating on her after following him. Marshall tells Lois, “I still love you sometimes,” to which she replies, “And yet sometimes I pray for a phone call telling me you're dead.” In a disturbing rebuttal, Marshall then says, “I hope you won't regret those words when I do.”
The state of her marriage leaves Lois less than affectionate when she visits Marshall in the hospital, where she meets Lesley Manville's Nurse Redd, a caregiver and administrator who oversteps her bounds in more ways than one when she admonishes Lois for her cold behavior in towards her husband and apparently attempts to provide the physical comfort – and perhaps pleasure – that she claims she needs in his place.
Enter Kelce as Ed Laclan, aka Eddie, a flirtatious orderly who Lois meets in episode three after a disturbing exchange with Nurse Redd who threatens to get a court order to become Marshall's power of attorney so she can give him the care that Lois doesn't give him. True to form, Ed finds Lois drinking in the hospital and repeatedly urges her not to come home, saying, “I don't want you to have any regrets.”
“Who doesn't have regrets, Ed?” Lois retorts before getting behind the wheel of her car and crashing on a deserted road a few minutes later. Lois then wakes up handcuffed to a hospital bed and arrested for having a blood alcohol level of 13. When Ed arrives to deliver her meatloaf dinner, she convinces him to help her escape and the two ride off. of a red sports car. In episode four, Ed takes Lois on a “date” to an AA meeting and the two begin to form a friendship over their shared addiction – Ed tells Lois how he managed to kick his.
In May, Kelce spoke about being cast in the series New heights podcast, saying, “I was a little stunned and a little shocked that he [Murphy] he was willing to give me a role like this, because it's an important role in the show. He seemed very confident that I would be able to do it and he kind of instilled that in me from the first conversation we had. So I hope I don't bomb it for him.
In a behind-the-scenes video posted by Kelce, the professional athlete talked about how he gets into character. “I flip the switch like I would if I walked out onto the football field and got into the zone,” he said.
Kelce's co-stars spoke highly of their experiences working with him, with Nash-Betts, who won the Emmy for best supporting actress for her role in Murphy's Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Storytelling Yahoo Entertainment Taylor Swift's boyfriend was “charming, well-prepared [and] a professional.”
Goodwin echoed that sentiment, adding, “He showed up to work. We welcomed him with open arms and he was kind and amazing. He did his duty.”
Vance also praised Kelce's skills as a beginner on set. “We couldn't go on the football field and do the opposite,” he told the outlet. “I was just in awe of what he was doing.”
Murphy recently spoke with THR on the launches of his latest show, which in addition to Grotesque AND Monstersincludes FX American Sports History: Aaron HernandezABC Doctor Odysseyand the return of 911 on ABC e 911: Lone star on Fox.
“I'm grateful that everything went right — it couldn't have gone better,” Murphy said. “This is what amazes me. I've been working on a lot of these things for two or three years, but because of the strike and the different orders – how things are reported and when things need to strike – it was suggested that they be published by that date. And I thought, “Well, that's kind of fun,” because I don't think anyone has done that, and more importantly, I like the energy that it brings. So much creativity, so much work from our brand at once. All the shows are very different, but they have the same DNA.”
Grotesque will continue to air two episodes weekly on FX until episodes nine and ten, which will premiere on October 23 and 30, respectively.