In the new Apple TV+ psychological thriller “Before,” which premieres Friday, Billy Crystal takes on a darker side than viewers have ever seen. But it wasn’t the role the actor and comedian expected.
Known for her light-hearted roles in When Harry Met Sally, City Slickers, and Monsters, Inc., Crystal is a child who meets Noah (Jacobi Jupe), a troubled boy who has recently lost his life. He plays Eli, a psychiatrist. his wife, Lynn (Judith Light); As Eli tries to help Noah, their mysterious bond deepens, haunting memories are awakened, and disturbing secrets from the past are revealed.
He told TheWrap that the series, which he executive produced and developed in collaboration with Eric Roth, went through many twists and turns to get to where it is today.
“[Eric] And I was working on a show called “Death Bed” with Sam Sprecker and Howie Miller. It was a show where a 100-year-old man told the story of his life to an aide who was in charge of telling his story, and he had a list of people who would help him tell his story. “It became like a romance novel about decades of this man’s life,” Crystal said. “It was based on a tape my grandmother made before she passed away about her life and how she and her family came to America from Russia.
It would have been a really great series, but it never solved the story. ” he added.
During the development process, Mr. Miller asked Crystal what books she would recommend to her grandchildren. He recommended a book he read in middle school called “Looking for Bridie Murphy,” about a 28-year-old woman who is hypnotized.
“In it, she talks about her life as a woman living in Ireland 200 years ago. And when we looked into everything she said, it turned out to be true. It was true. How did this happen? And it was a big mystery,” Crystal recalled. “So he said, ‘That’s unusual, but it’s perfect for me, because at the University of Virginia I studied children who had past lives.’ And he wrote a book called ‘Life Before Life.’ So I read it, and there were some great things that young kids were presenting. So, in the middle of a writing meeting with Eric, I said, “What if he did that? What if he’s not 100 years old?’ What if he’s eight years old and still has these memories that can take us anywhere?’ And we moved on. . ”
So Ross brought on Sarah Thorpe, who will serve as series creator and showrunner. Crystal said that within 10 days of being asked to participate, she returned with a story and description of Eli’s hard-hitting, fact-based and science-based approach to dealing with patients. And Noah is a mysterious, troubled boy who shows up unannounced in front of Eli’s house.
“It turned out to be a really cool mystery with all the surreal, horror elements that she was talking about, and halfway through it I said, ‘Sarah, I’m going to play him,'” Crystal continued. Ta. “I wasn’t looking for it, but when it came to me I thought, ‘I have to do this.’ It’s such a wonderful, rich, interesting world to play in. ‘I want to do something different.’ That decision was never made. When I saw it, I knew it was the right thing to do. ”
Crystal appeared in Broadway’s “Mr. Saturday Night.”
“Before, I think there was probably more humor,” Thorpe told TheWrap when asked about how the show evolved during the writing and development process. “What we discovered was that we really wanted to piss people off from the get-go, and that’s what made us say, ‘Look, this is going to be something you’ve never seen with Billy before.’ We thought it would be a great way to get you started already by telling them, ” I’m a little nervous in that sense. ”
Thorpe told TheWrap that he is most interested in letting viewers see the relationship between Crystal’s Eli and Jupe’s Noah develop and develop over time.
“Eli is completely disconnected from himself because of his trapped grief, and this mute child is being pursued by something terrible,” she says. “What’s interesting about this relationship is that they face all kinds of challenges in communicating with each other from the beginning, but there’s a huge need on both sides to break through and communicate. is.”
“I thought it was really fun to play a character that’s like, ‘I’m a scientist, I’m a doctor.’ I believe in facts, I believe in evidence, I’m always right, I’m in every room. But you’re always the smartest person,’ and you keep throwing things at him that he’s hell-bent on explaining in a scientific way,” she added. .
While he acknowledged that Eli’s role deviates somewhat from the audience’s general perception of Crystal, he insisted that’s exactly what an actor should do.
His other recent projects include Standing Up, Falling Down, in which he played a pot-smoking dermatologist plagued by life’s failures, and Here Today, in which he played a comedy writer on the verge of dementia. He mentioned his role in. As an example of an opportunity that allowed him to stretch and grow as a performer.
“Eli Adler is the epitome of that for me right now. The demands of this role on me physically and mentally are exhausting and unrelenting, but Jacobi Jupe and I have always loved Rosie. “They work very well together with Perez, Hope Davis, Judith Light and Robert Townsend through some very tense and emotional scenes,” he added. “It’s a great group of people and a great group to work with.”
When evaluating future roles, Crystal says she wants to continue playing characters that excite and surprise her.
“I want to do things that are good, that are challenging, that allow me to continue to grow and continue to develop,” he said. “It’s a great feeling when you do something and say, ‘I never thought I could do that,’ or ‘I’ve always wanted to do it, and now I can do it.’ It’s very satisfying. , I’m really happy to have found something I’m so excited about at this point in my career and life.”
“Before” premieres Friday on Apple TV+.
