WATCH June 2020

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION 2020

{CBS ALL ACCESS}

ALL HAIL CHRISTINE BARANSKI {SHOWTIME}

KIRSTEN DUNST HAS A DEAL FOR YOU {CBS STUDIOS}

Stephen Colbert is Bringing Love to The Late Show

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CONTENTS MAY/JUNE 2020

FE AT U RE S

52

SHOW HER THE MONEY

Kirsten Dunst schemes her way into our hearts in On Becoming a God in Central Florida.

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STEPHEN COLBERT photographed by David Needleman in New York, March 2020. Suit and shirt

by Ermenegildo Zegna. Tie by Prada. Pocket square by Tom Ford. Shoes by To Boot New York

STATE OF GRACE

The Late Show’s Stephen Colbert has a radical idea about what America needs: love and kindness.

76 CB

On The Good Fight, the legendary Christine Baranski has created a character who is equally legendary.

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NATURAL TALENT

In Unbelievable, 23-yearold Kaitlyn Dever gives the performance of a lifetime.

100

THE ROYAL WE

The husband and wife behind The Good Fight and Evil are Hollywood’s reigning power couple.

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CONTENTS MAY/JUNE 2020

DEPART ME NTS

27

CHRISTINE BARANSKI photographed

by David Roemer in New York, March 2020.

Dress and necklace

by Dolce & Gabbana.

Earrings by Dauphin. Cuff

by Hervé Van der Straeten

CLICK

Cue opening credits.

39 SHINE Style that slays

FROM TOP: DAVID ROEMER; CBS; PRETTYLITTLETHING; COURTESY JOEL HARLOW

107 PLAY

Fast forward to fun.

Christine Baranski

photographed by David Roemer in New York, March 2020. Suit and blouse by Ann Demeulemeester. Shoes by Manolo Blahnik via Albright Fashion Library. Ring by David Webb. Earrings by Genevieve Jones 14 /

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Stephen Colbert

photographed by David Needleman in New York, March 2020. Suit and shirt by Ermenegildo Zegna. Tie by Giorgio Armani. Shoes by To Boot New York

cbswatchmagazine.com

Kaitlyn Dever

photographed by Christopher Ross in Los Angeles, February 2020.

Dress and brooch by Louis Vuitton. Earrings by Justine Clenquet. Ring by Maya Brenner

Kirsten Dunst

photographed by Alasdair McLellan

M AY/J U N E • 2 0 2 0

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New York–based watch company Waldan’s new collection of well-made and affordably priced watches are inspired by their lineage of mechanical masterpieces made for companies like Tiffany & Co. and Tourneau. waldanwatches.com

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RACHEL CLARKE

MICHAEL RIZZI

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

PUBLISHER

LINDSAY BROWN

ED MANN

CHRISTOPHER ROSS

EXECUTIVE EDITOR

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY

REBECCA ASCHER-WALSH

SASHA CHARNIN MORRISON

FEATURES DIRECTOR

STYLE DIRECTOR

MONA BUEHLER DIRECTOR, DIGITAL AND LIFESTYLE EDITORIAL

NATALIA RYBKA INTEGRATED ADVERTISING MANAGER DEPUTY EDITORS

RESEARCH EDITOR CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS

CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS PUBLICITY DIRECTOR OF FINANCE

CHIEF COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, PHOTOGRAPHY

VICE PRESIDENT/CONTENT VICE PRESIDENT/BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CLIENT SERVICES DIRECTOR SENIOR EDITOR DESIGN DIRECTOR ART DIRECTOR SENIOR PRODUCTION MANAGER PRODUCTION MANAGER PRODUCTION ARTIST COPY CHIEF OPERATIONS ACCOUNT MANAGER IMAGING SPECIALIST EDITORIAL ASSISTANT

Victoria Kirby (Shine) Susan Pocharski (Play) Alice Ross (Photos) Simon Diamond Cramer Brantley Bardin, Virginia Bell, Marc Berman, Stanley Bing, Lynn Darling, Ryan Devlin, John Griffiths, Alyssa Hertzig, David Hochman, Oliver Jones, Elizabeth Kaye, Nate Millado, Guy Martin, Maria Neuman, Judith Newman, Tom Roston, Liana Schaffner, Fred Schruers, Marshall Sella, Craig Tomashoff, Bill Zehme Kwaku Alston, Derek Blanks, Matthias Clamer, Andrew Eccles, Jason Kim, Timothy Kuratek, Jeff Lipsky, Cliff Lipson, Nino Muñoz, David Needleman, Marie H Rainville, Adrienne Raquel, Lisa Shin, Emily Shur, Peggy Sirota James Bennett, Hildie Plumpepper Barbara Abseck (beabseck@cbs.com) Lia Buchanan

Dana McClintock Chris Ender Gail Plautz

Liz Buffa Matt Chervin Michelle O’Driscoll Kathy Passero Peter Yates Alfredo Ceballos Nestor Cervantes Roger Dapiran Angel Mass Anthony Sacramone Adam Bassano Chai Ming Yu Katey Clifford

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AVAIL ABLE AT BLOOMINGDALE’S, BLOOMINGDALES.COM, SELECT NORDSTROM AND NORDSTROM.COM

NEW

THIS IS LE ROUGE THIS IS COUTURE

CONTRIBUTORS | MAY/JUNE 2020

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The opportunity to visit Michelle and Robert King’s offices and writers’ room was a treat for photographer Jason Schmidt, a self-professed “great fan” of The Good Fight (“The Royal We,” p. 100). “Seeing various plotlines and characters on notes and cards felt like a peek inside their amazing minds,” he says. “They were also very generous in sharing stories about how they take current events and create their own narratives.”

Schmidt, who is based in New York, has had his work exhibited at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, and is a regular contributor to magazines including Architectural Digest, T Magazine, and Vogue.

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Chris Nashawaty says that interviewing Michelle and Robert King, the power couple behind Evil, The Good Fight, and the upcoming Your Honor, was an inspiring lesson in relationship skills (“The Royal We,” p. 100). “It was a bit like being at a dinner party and listening to a couple telling a great anecdote,” says the writer, whose work has appeared in Vanity Fair, Esquire, Sports Illustrated, and Entertainment Weekly.

“Even while juggling the millions of details involved with producing three shows, they still take the time to hear what the other has to say, and they find what the other has to say interesting and amusing.” Nashawaty, who is also the author of Caddyshack: The Making of a Hollywood Cinderella Story, lives with his family outside New York City.

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“I was very excited to work with a legend like Christine Baranski (“CB,” p. 76), and she exceeded my expectations,” says New York–based David Roemer, who shot The Good Fight’s star for her second appearance on Watch’s cover. The photographer, who is a frequent contributor to fashion magazines and the talent behind ad campaigns for Ann Taylor, Michael Kors, and CoverGirl, adds, “She was natural, effortless, and lovely to work with.”

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A native of Washington, D.C., Antonia Xereas moved to New York more than two decades ago to pursue a career as a costume designer and stylist. A fortuitous job on Comedy Central’s Strangers with Candy introduced her to Stephen Colbert (“State of Grace,” p. 64), who subsequently hired her to be the costume designer for The Colbert Report and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. “The Watch photo shoot was a wonderful experience,” she says.

“Everyone’s creative energies were in sync!”

Xereas lives in Brooklyn with her husband and two children.

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Outback. Well-equipped at $26,645.* Subaru, Outback, SUBARU BOXER, and X-MODE are registered trademarks. *MSRP excludes destination and delivery charges, tax, title, and registration fees. Retailer sets actual price.

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CBSWATCHMAGAZINE.COM Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @cbswatch

THIS MONTH ON THE WEB

SPOTLIGHT ON Get to know Tristin Mays and her character, Riley Davis, of MacGyver.

“The beauty of getting older is you don’t have to play games.”

LOOK BACK

— PATRICIA HEATON,

CAROL’S SECOND ACT

INSPIRED BY ZEEKO ZAKI

Super-fit FBI star Zeeko Zaki opens up about his 100-pound weight-loss transformation and what motivates him to work out.

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INSPIRED

BY WILMER VALDERRAMA

SPOTLIGHT ON

From her acting inspiration to vacation goals, get to know Amelia Heinle of The Young and the Restless.

NCIS star Wilmer Valderrama shares what the American flag means to him.

M AY/J U N E • 2 0 2 0

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: ANDREW ECCLES; CBS; EMILY SHUR; NINO MUÑOZ; KEVIN LYNCH/CBS; HOWARD WISE/JPI STUDIOS; MICHAEL PARMELEE/CBS

Aloha! We celebrate Hawaii Five-0’s dynamic duo, Alex O’Loughlin and Scott Caan, in this tribute from the Watch vault.

EDITOR'S LETTER | MAY/JUNE 2020

A

We’re All in This Together

Stephen Colbert photographed

by David Needleman in New York, March 2020

S I WRITE THIS LETTER, THE WORLD HAS BEEN changing dramatically. The coronavirus pandemic has affected millions of people around the world who are living with curfews, travel restrictions, and, most

of all, fear.

During this time of uncertainty, CBS began a new on-air and social media campaign, “We’re All in This Together,” to let people know that despite COVID-19–driven social distancing, it’s important to stay and feel connected to one another.

At Watch, we take this connection with our readers very seriously. We’re focused on bringing you the best, most entertaining, and thoughtful programming out there. This issue features some truly extraordinary talent: Stephen Colbert, Christine Baranski, Kirsten Dunst, Kaitlyn Dever, mega-producers Robert and Michelle King, as well as many of the people behind the scenes who make your favorite shows so great.

All of their work is Emmy Award–worthy. They make us laugh, cry, and think. They make us feel a little less alone.

Here’s to all of you.

Kaitlyn Dever with photographer Christopher Ross in Los Angeles, February 2020

Christine Baranski photographed by David Roemer in New York, March 2020

Rachel Clarke /Editor-in-Chief “Like”

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on Facebook—search for CBS

Magazine—and follow us on Twitter and Instagram @cbswatch.

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THEO WARGO/GETTY IMAGES

HAPPY FEET: Host James Corden dances his way through the opening act of the 70th Annual Tony Awards.

28 30 32 34 35 BEST OF THE TONYS

CAROL’S SECOND ACT

INSIDE INTERROGATION

DEAD TO ME RETURNS

TWILIGHT ZONE’S NEW STARS

Editor’s Note: Interviews took place before COVID-19 took hold in the United States.

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Hard Acts to Follow

The Tonys’ opening numbers are worthy of their own awards.

BY GINA McINTYRE

N

O ONE PUTS ON A SHOW QUITE LIKE BROADWAY’S best, so it’s hardly surprising that the theater world’s biggest night—the Tony Awards—has gifted us with countless outstanding performances from the most talented entertainers to grace the stage. With the show postponed due to the coronavirus this year, it’s the perfect time to look back at some of the most memorable opening acts over the ceremony’s illustrious 73-year history, and anticipate the fun to come with the 74th.

This page, from top: Neil Patrick Harris goes “Bigger” (2013); Angela Lansbury (1989); James Corden and company (2016). Opposite, clockwise from top left: Rosie O’Donnell hosts (1998); Hugh Jackman kicks with the Rockettes (2004); Joel Grey bids audiences “Willkommen” (1967); Tsidii Le Loka leads the “Circle of Life” (2008).

“I Hope I Get It” from A Chorus Line (1976): The backstage musical went in to the ceremony as the clear front-runner with an astonishing 12 nominations, eventually winning an impressive nine awards. A Chorus Line also gave the show its opening and closing

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PHOTO CREDIT HERE

“Willkommen” from Cabaret (1967): Joel Grey put the imp in impresario as he gracefully leaped across the stage while performing the opening song from John Kander and Fred Ebb’s famed musical. Life truly was beautiful that night for Grey, who won the Tony for Featured Actor in a Musical for his turn as the master of ceremonies at a risqué Berlin nightclub. (He would go on to win the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for reprising the role in director Bob Fosse’s 1972 film adaptation.) Also noteworthy: This was the first year that the Tonys were broadcast on television.

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performed “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” from Dreamgirls, and Betty Buckley delivered “Memory” from Cats. It was an astonishing collection of talent showing what the Tonys do best.

“One Night Only” from Dreamgirls (2004): It takes a special man to high-kick alongside the Rockettes, but second-time host Hugh Jackman proved more than up to the task during the spectacular opening number for the 58th ceremony. The four-minute sequence featured talent from shows including Hairspray, Little Shop of Horrors, and Caroline, or Change. Jackman also won Best Actor in a Musical for The Boy from Oz, which marked the Australian’s Broadway debut.

TH E TON Y AWA RDS

Download past Tony Awards shows at Amazon.

“Circle of Life” from The Lion King (2008): The unmistakable Zulu call of Lesotho-born singer Tsidii Le Loka swept the audience away to the African plains, where director Julie Taymor set her stage adaptation of Disney’s much-beloved 1994 animated film. The sequence marked the 10th anniversary of the hit production, but as the musical’s animal puppets ambled up the aisles to congregate onstage, the spectacle felt just as transporting as the day the show debuted.

GREY: EVERETT COLLECTION; OTHERS: GETTY IMAGES. CORDEN, LE LOKA: THEO WARGO (2); HARRIS: ANDREW H. WALKER; LANSBURY: RON GALELLA; O'DONNELL: JEFF CHRISTENSEN; JACKMAN: FRANK MICELOTTA

“Bigger” (2013): Four-time host Neil

numbers. The ceremony kicked off with a seven-plus-minute sequence from the Michael Bennett–directed production in which the stage was transformed into a minimalist rehearsal space where 17 dancers learn a complicated routine under the ever-critical eye of their choreographer. The exacting Bennett reportedly even oversaw the way the sequence was shot for television.

“Everything’s Coming Up Roses” from Gypsy (1989): Dressed in a flattering rose-red, tea-length dress, host Angela Lansbury kicked off the 43rd show with a rousing rendition of the Gypsy showstopper, belting out the lyrics with verve and gusto. It takes a true talent to hold the stage on her own, and in her fifth outing as mistress of ceremonies, Lansbury blew the roof off the theater with her incredible pipes.

“Broadway Divas” (1998): Three of Broadway’s indisputable

queens joined host Rosie O’Donnell and the Chicago dancers onstage for a showstopping medley of iconic songs: Patti LuPone sang “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina” from Evita; Jennifer Holliday M AY/J U N E • 2 0 2 0

Patrick Harris went “bigger” than ever with cheerleaders, contortionists, and even former heavyweight champ Mike Tyson gracing the stage during his jampacked opening number, which also featured appearances by performers in almost every nominated production—from Newsies to Kinky Boots. His return engagement was no less than magical: At one point, he vanished in an illusionist’s trick cabinet, only to reappear moments later at the back of the theater.

“That Could Be Me/This Could Be You” (2016): The evening began with an appropriately solemn offer of condolences to all those affected by the tragic mass shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando that had taken place early that morning, but host James Corden managed to lift the audience’s spirits with a rousing tribute to the inspirational power of theater and his own journey toward success (Corden won a Tony Award in 2012 for Best Actor in a Play for his turn as Francis Henshall in One Man, Two Guvnors). Broadway classics including Les Misérables, Fiddler on the Roof, and Annie all got well-deserved shoutouts, though the evening unquestionably belonged to pop culture juggernaut Hamilton, which earned a record-breaking 16 nominations, winning 11 awards.

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click | UPFRONT

The Doctor Is In

As Dr. Maya Jacobs on Carol’s Second Act, Ito Aghayere delivers the laughs.

BY BRANTLEY BARDIN

You do! The tone of a set is usually created by the top dog.

What’s Patricia Heaton’s tone, and does her being a woman have any visible impact?

There’s a reason why we’ve had so many female directors, department heads, and camera operators on the show, and it has everything to do with Patricia and our showrunners, Emily Halpern and Sarah Haskins. They’re class acts, and they bring generosity, a collaborative spirit, and humility.

What’s the fun factor like on the set?

Big! To have people like Patricia and Kyle MacLachlan, who’ve been doing this for years ... I mean, Kyle [who plays eccentric Senior Attending Doctor Stephen Frost] is so 30 /

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experienced, yet he’s still ebullient every day, like a kid in a candy store. It’s refreshing for me to know you don’t have to lose that joy!

You grew up the daughter of Nigerian-born parents, an educator mom and a civil engineer dad with degrees from Harvard and MIT. You were always on track to become a lawyer, but—

Shakespeare verse like it was written for her. It blew my mind.

And although your decision was made much earlier than Carol’s, becoming an actress was ultimately your “second act” choice, right?

The idea that it was possible to be an actress, yes. When your parents have sacrificed so much to leave their country, it becomes a pretty damn hard conversation to have. “Uh, Mom, Dad, I want to be … an actor.” [Laughs.]

I’m scared just thinking about it. But after starring in another Broadway show, Bernhardt/ Hamlet with Janet McTeer, appearing in a passel of TV shows, and now Carol’s Second Act, you’re a Hollywood success story. What’s the most “Hollywood” thing about you now?

I buy bathing suits like groceries. [Laughs.] I love this Nigerian designer, Andrea Iyamah, so besides trying to pay off my student loans, I’m addicted to buying her designs.

But I was a secret thespian.

[Laughs.] I’m a book junkie who acted out all the parts in the books I read. When I was 14, I saw my first play—a Hilarious. This year you worked Classical Theatre of Harlem a Golden Globes party’s red production of Romeo carpet dressed in a and Juliet—and when ravishing Carolina Juliet came out, she Herrera. Is going CAR OL’S SECO ND ACT was a black woman glam fun for you? streams on with kinky hair Yes, it’s fun to dress CBS All Access. who was throwing up and feel beautiful.

“I was a secret thespian.”

As a kid, I always felt like an ugly duckling. I’d do what they said you should do—wear certain brands of lipstick, put this or that in your hair—and I’d look at myself and think, “Why do I look like Macaulay Culkin?” [Laughs.] That’s not how you want to feel as a darkskinned black girl, so it’s wonderful to feel as beautiful as I now believe I am!

Hoorah! Dr. Jacobs on Carol’s Second Act has a permanent date with a blueberry muffin every Wednesday morning as a sort of anchor in life.

What’s yours?

I know it sounds weird, but my anchor is any public library.

I find them very comforting.

So on hard days, I go and sit in a corner and journal or just think. It’s my safe space.

Lovely. Last question: What do you hope Carol’s Second Act’s fans take away from the series?

I want them to imagine what they really want and move towards it. Because when you see possibilities rather than obstacles, you open a world of opportunities.

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JSQUARED PHOTOGRAPHY/CONTOUR BY GETTY IMAGES

J

UST TWO AND A HALF YEARS AGO, ITO AGHAYERE WAS making her Broadway debut in Pulitzer Prize–winning playwright Ayad Akhtar’s Junk, playing a financial shark killing it in a man’s world. Now, as Dr. Maya Jacobs, the no-nonsense chief resident on the hit sitcom Carol’s Second Act, the Canadian-born actress is barking orders at Patricia Heaton’s latein-life doctor.

“It’s been a joyride to play Dr. Jacobs, partly because it’s exciting to wield such power as a woman of color,” says Aghayere (pronounced Uh-GUY-uh-ray), who has a B.A. from Duke in political science and worked as an Obama White House intern while earning her M.F.A. in theater from Columbia University. “So often black actresses get sent scripts to play maids and slaves, so to have the opportunity to play a role that’s like the many black women in my family—who are doctors, engineers, and philosophers—has me in a constant state of, ‘Really? I get to do this every day?!’”

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click | NEW ORDER

Henry Fisher (David Strathairn) and son Eric (Kyle Gallner) with director Ernest Dickerson

From left: Executive Producers John Mankiewicz and Anders Weidemann

Master Plan

The creators of the revolutionary crime drama Interrogation have solved the ultimate creative puzzle, allowing viewers to choose the episodes’ order.

BY GINA McINTYRE

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groundbreaking new CBS All Access series, Interrogation. The 10-episode true-crime drama, which debuted Feb. 6, tears up the procedural playbook, allowing viewers to watch the pilot and then the subsequent eight episodes leading up to the finale in any order they wish. “This is actually how cold case detectives do their work,” Weidemann says, “starting with one interrogation and then following where their instinct takes them.”

Inspired by a real-life cold case that Weidemann and Mankiewicz unearthed during meetings with the Los Angeles Police Department, Interrogation centers on the 1983 murder of a woman named Mary

FOR PHOTO CREDITS, SEE PAGE 120

W

HEN ANDERS Weidemann was in his twenties backpacking across Asia, he stayed one night at a modest home that had been turned into a hotel. Although the proprietor had once lived there with his wife and two children, the man was now the sole occupant. He gave his guest the run of the place—except for one room, which was off-limits. “Of course, I went in,” says the award-winning Swedish writer and producer. “I found a shoebox that contained the couple’s entire correspondence. Love letters, postcards, photographs, divorce papers. Everything was out of order, so I had to put the puzzle together. I thought, ‘One should write a novel like this.’”

Instead, he and acclaimed show biz veteran John Mankiewicz (House of Cards, Bosch) translated the concept into their

Detective David Russell (Peter Sarsgaard) takes in suspect Eric Fisher (Gallner).

The late Mary Fisher (Joanna Going) and her husband, Henry (Strathairn)

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Fisher in Sherman Oaks, California, and the subsequent conviction of her son, Eric (Kyle Gallner). Sentenced to life in prison, Eric maintains his innocence from behind bars. The show’s stellar ensemble cast includes Peter Sarsgaard, who plays David Russell, the lead detective on the case; David Strathairn as Eric’s father, Henry; Kodi Smit-McPhee as Chris Keller, a troubled, homeless teenager; and special guest star Vincent D’Onofrio as Internal Affairs officer Ian Lynch.

Determining how to put together such an ambitious, multilinear narrative required patience and ingenuity. After meeting with detectives and other consultants, the producers assembled a skilled team of writers to pen interlinked installments unfolding over the course of three decades. Each script included a lengthy interrogation that would yield important clues. “We didn’t know if it was going to work,” admits Weidemann.

“Essentially, we had to write nine pilots,” Mankiewicz continues. “If you can watch them in any order, they each need to have all the basic information about the case.

For six months, we looked at how all nine fit together. You had to make them resonate with each other, adding details that bounce back and forth from episode to episode, and different points of view. It was a difficult, but exciting, process.”

As the scripts came together, the showrunners realized that rather than devising a traditional “setup and payoff ” for each episode, they instead needed to rely on character-driven “contrasts” to drive the drama. For instance, explains Weidemann, “You have Detective Russell in one episode [seeing himself as] a sweet, loving married man, but then you see him from somebody else’s perspective in another episode, and he can be a real corrupt bastard.”

The passage of time also amplified the Henry (Strathairn) visits son Eric (Gallner) in prison.

Internal Affairs Sergeant Ian Lynch (Vincent D'Onofrio)

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Troubled teen Chris Keller (Kodi Smit-McPhee)

tension and the mystery—facts that characters felt certain were true can become hazy as the decades wear on. Says Mankiewicz: “Even in our own lives, I’ve known things that have happened for sure and then found out I was completely wrong. If you add the pressure of a murder conviction to that story, the stakes are incrementally raised.”

Rooting the series in an actual case also helps make Interrogation feel authentic, something Weidemann and Mankiewicz believe modern audiences crave. They’re optimistic, too, that offering savvy viewers the chance to play detective—with a sharply drawn story that taps into larger questions about the subjective nature of the truth—helps the series stand out.

“If you’ve seen an episode which another member of the audience hasn’t, you know more,” Weidemann says. “And in that way, you seem smart when you stumble upon the same thing from a different perspective and then you go, ‘Aha! I know that this person is lying.’ But if you flip it and you watch the B episode first, you think that that person is telling the truth. It’s a new structure with many insights,” he adds. “It feels like we’ve been working in a new IN TER R O GATI ON streams on country where nobody has CBS All Access. been before.” cbswatchmagazine.com /

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click | SCENE MAKER Linda Cardellini and Christina Applegate

DE AD TO ME

is produced by CBS Television Studios and returns May 8 on Netflix.

ME TIME: (l. to r.)

Showrunner Liz Feldman; Feldman with Applegate and Cardellini

Linda Cardellini and James Marsden.

The result—which has been described variously as a “tragicomedy,” “black With Dead to Me, Liz Feldman has created comedy,” and “traumedy”— earned immediate cult status the best “traumedy” on television. among viewers, and reviewBY FRED SCHRUERS ers marveled that a show Feldman described as being about “forgiveness” could be so soaked in HREE YEARS AGO, THE irony. (Tauntingly upbeat songs like “Get seasoned writer Liz Feldman Happy” are set against grim, plot-unfolding (2 Broke Girls) was sitting in a montages.) Applegate earned Emmy and pitch meeting with potential Golden Globe nominations for her role as producers, bereft of ideas and motivation.

Jen, whose brave, scalding She had recently turned 40, was four years humor never allows her to into an ultimately unsuccessful quest to dip into mere sentimenget pregnant, and had just lost a beloved tality, and it’s clear from cousin to a heart attack. the beginning that there’s And then, suddenly, inspiration came to more to Judy than initially her: A recently widowed woman becomes meets the eye. While the friends with someone she meets in a grief series is driven by its group. They bond over their shared pain secrets, the characters are until the recent widow learns that—well, the heart of the story—lovlet’s not spoil that. “Forgive me for being able, flawed, and totally woo-woo,” says Feldman, “but that particubelievable. “I’d like to lar idea, it was like I’d channeled it.” think I’m a pretty good observer of humanThe producers passed, but soon thereity,” says Feldman, “and I always try to do after, when CBS Studios comedy head Kate it from a place of understanding, not judgAdler heard the pitch with the surprise ment. I approach all the characters from a twist Feldman had plotted, Adler simply place of empathy. dropped her notepad on the floor—an For Feldman, a former stand-up comic, instant go. Will Ferrell, Adam McKay (Vice), performer in the Groundlings improv and Jessica Elbaum (Hustlers) joined Feldtroupe, and graduate of Ellen DeGeneres’ man as executive producers; Christina writing room, it was a big shift from her Applegate was cast as the widow, opposite

T

stint as a writer and producer on CBS’s 2 Broke Girls. “Working in network television taught me a lot about what a mass audience will accept and enjoy,” she says.

“And at the heart of 2 Broke Girls and its success is the takeaway that a really good central relationship is a great foundation to begin with.”

With the second season of Dead to Me unfolding, there are plenty of questions about how that central relationship will fare. As Feldman says of the end of Season 1, “There’s a lot left to the imagination in terms of what actually happened.”

Now “there’s a role reversal in terms of Jen’s and Judy’s decisions and the wrongs they’ve committed against each other. It was really exciting to dig into what it’s like now that the tide has turned.”

While audiences are riveted by the entertainment value, Feldman calls the show nothing short of “a gift,” explaining, “Allowing myself to be open and vulnerable through my writing, and being as real as possible about these women’s experiences, has really helped to heal me.”

“I approach all the characters from a place of empathy.”

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FROM LEFT: SAEED ADYANI/NETFLIX; SHAYAN ASGHARNIA/AUGUST; LEON BENNETT/GETTY IMAGES

Dead Heat

STARRY NIGHTS | click

TH E TW I L I G H T ZO NE

Coming this summer to CBS All Access.

Tony Hale The former Arrested Development star won two Emmys for playing Gary Walsh in Veep and provided the voice of Forky in Toy Story 4. The comedic actor can also be seen in TZ’s “Downtime” episode.

Christopher Meloni The actor spent 12 seasons on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit before starring as inmate Chris Keller on Oz. Now playing the formidable Commander George Winslow in The Handmaid’s Tale, Meloni lends his presence to the episode “A Human Face.”

Gretchen Mol She was the glamorous, broken Gillian Darmody in Boardwalk Empire and has had roles in more than 30 feature films, including Manchester by the Sea. Get ready to love her in TZ’s “You Might Also Like.”

Jimmi Simpson F Formerly Lyle the intern on The Late Show with David Letterman, Simpson has had Le starring roles in Westworld and star the Black Mirror episode “USS Callister.” Look for him in the Cal episode “Meet in the Middle” epis oopposite Gillian Jacobs (Community).

Colman Domingo The actor and award-winning playwright, who co-stars in the TZ episode “Downtime,” earned a cult following thanks to his role as Victor Strand in Fear the Walking Dead and critical lauds for playing Joseph Rivers in If Beale Street Could Talk.

Billy Porter An Emmy-, Tony-, and Grammy-winning performer who has captivated the red carpet with his boundary-breaking style, Porter takes a beat from his award-winning series Pose to appear in “The Who of You.”

Morena Baccarin She was nominated for an Emmy playing Brody’s long-suffering wife, Jessica, in Homeland and played Vanessa in the Deadpool franchise. Baccarin appears in “Downtime,” written by Peele himself.

Sophia Macy The oldest daughter of Shameless star William H. Macy and Felicity Huffman, Macy makes her acting debut in “Among the Untrodden.”

PHOTO CREDIT HERE SEE PAGE 120 FOR PHOTO CREDITS,

Damon Wayans Jr. The comedian, whose résumé includes Def Comedy Jam and Happy Together, stars in “A Small Town” opposite The Unicorn’s Paula Newsome, David Krumholtz (Numb3rs), and Natalie Martinez (CSI: NY).

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Topher Grace The formerly geeky heartthrob Eric in That ’70s Show has played a reporter in the feature Truth, based on a 60 Minutes report about George W. Bush’s allegedly dodging the Vietnam War, and David Duke in BlacKkKlansman. Here, he stars in “Try, Try” opposite Kylie Bunbury (When They See Us).

In the Zone

Jenna Elfman A series regular in Fear the Walking Dead and a Golden GGlobe winner for her starring role in Dharma & Greg, Elfman ro lends her presence to TZ’s “A Human Face.”

Joel McHale A former star of Community and The CW’s Stargirl, McHale appears in the episode “8” opposite Brandon Jay McLaren (Graceland).

Guest stars light up the second season of The Twilight Zone.

T

HE TWILIGHT ZONE—EXECUTIVE PRODUCED BY WRITER AND NARRATOR Jordan Peele and Simon Kinberg—returns for its second season, boasting a dazzling array of guest stars. With all 10 episodes dropping at once, get ready for a binge that’s out of this world.

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click | PAGE TURNER

watching [when she was trapped in a well].

But I really decided this is what I wanted to be writing when the soccer team was rescued from the caves in Thailand.

I got this idea of somebody who had been part of this huge media story, but what if this person doesn’t want to be?

How does the trauma she experienced affect Arden as an adult?

With her fourth thriller, The Girl from Widow Hills, Megan Miranda keeps up the suspense.

BY YOLANDA CROUS

“

I

WAS THE GIRL WHO SURVIVED.” So begins The Girl from Widow Hills, Megan Miranda’s thrillingly tense new novel about what it means to be famous for a trauma you don’t remember. The little girl in question is Arden Maynor, who sleepwalks into a storm one night and disappears. Two decades after the nationally televised search and rescue, the press continues to clamor for updates. Eventually, Arden changes her name and leaves her old identity behind, but one evening when she sleepwalks again, she wakes up next to a dead body.

“One thing I’m drawn to is whether a character can escape their past and become somebody new,” says Miranda,

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who attended MIT, where she studied biology and anthropology. After beginning her career writing YA (young adult) novels, she made her first appearance on the bestseller list with her debut adult thriller, All the Missing Girls; her novels The Perfect Stranger and The Last House Guest followed.

Miranda, who lives with her husband and two children near Charlotte, North Carolina, talked to Watch about starting over, the slipperiness of memory, and building the perfect mystery.

Where did you get your idea for the book?

Years ago I was watching the news and something popped up—Baby Jessica was getting married. You hear that name and remember how the whole country was

You’re known for your twisty endings, and this one is no exception. Do you know the ending before you sit down to write?

I don’t see the story before I start writing. I see character. I think about my first drafts as my discovery drafts. I loved reading mysteries growing up. Trying to solve them was my favorite part. Trying to craft them is my favorite part as well.

What makes you feel like your latest book is a success?

When I’m able to connect with readers.

Being able to speak with book clubs and having people I don’t know reading my books and talking to me about them is a really great experience, especially because I spend so much time alone writing the book. And I’m always kind of striving to hope each book is better than the last.

How do you celebrate when you finish writing a book?

I have books that I bribe myself with: “Once I finish this, then I’ll read the new Tana French.” I reward myself with reading!

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MIRANDA: MAGEN MARIE PHOTOGRAPHY

Miranda Writes

She wants to move on and isn’t able to until she changes her name. And this puts limitations on her, because she never opens up about who she used to be. Arden doesn’t remember the major trauma in her life, and that is something I’m very interested in, different perspectives of memory. I think back to my own childhood—not really sure if I’m remembering or remembering the stories people have told me.

GET LIT | click

On the Page The newest books filled with wisdom, wit, and wily prose

IF IT BLEEDS Stephen King

The only thing better than having a new King story to dive into this summer is having four of them.

Here, the author returns to novellas that include the title story and three others.

THE BUDDHIST ON DEATH ROW

David Sheff The Beautiful Boy author writes about deathrow inmate Jarvis Jay Masters and his journey to becoming a devout Buddhist.

BIG SUMMER

SHOW THEM YOU’RE GOOD

Jennifer Weiner

Jeff Hobbs

The bestselling author’s latest novel is about the emotional ties that connect us—for better or worse. Perfectly timed for the season, Big Summer is set on Cape Cod during a wedding gone terribly wrong.

Your Second Act

by Patricia Heaton The Emmy-winning star of Carol’s Second Act inspires readers with reflections on her own later-in-life choices.

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Resistance

by Tori Amos The multiplatinum-winning singer-songwriter and popular author issues a call to political action.

The acclaimed author of the award-winning biography The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace follows four Los Angeles high school boys from different backgrounds as they apply for college.

Near Dark

by Brad Thor The master of international espionage returns with the 20th book in the Scot Harvath series.

A Private Cathedral

by James Lee Burke Detective Dave Robicheaux faces his fiercest adversary yet in a time-traveling, superhuman assassin.

More Than Love: An Intimate Portrait of My Mother, Natalie Wood

by Natasha Gregson Wagner The late actress’s daughter reflects on her mother and the ramifications of her tragic, mysterious death.

On Ocean Boulevard

by Mary Alice Monroe The beloved author returns to her Beach House series and the memorable Rutledge family.

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The AARP Automobile Insurance Program from The Hartford is underwritten by Hartford Fire Insurance Company and its affiliates, One Hartford Plaza, Hartford, CT 06155. It is underwritten in CA by Hartford Underwriters Insurance Company; in WA, by Hartford Casualty Insurance Company; in MN, by Sentinel Insurance Company; and in MA, MI and PA,

by Trumbull Insurance Company. Auto is currently unavailable in Canada and U.S. Territories or possessions. Specific features, credits and discounts may vary and may not be available in all states in accordance with state filings and applicable law. Applicants are individually underwritten and some may not qualify.

1 In Texas, the Auto Program is underwritten by Southern County Mutual Insurance Company through Hartford Fire General Agency. Hartford Fire Insurance Company and its affiliates are not financially responsible for insurance products underwritten and issued by Southern County Mutual Insurance Company.

2 Savings amounts based on information reported by customers who switched to The Hartford from other carriers between 1/1/18 and 12/31/18. Your savings may vary. 3Terms and conditions apply. 4Gift is a limited time offer and not available in all states. Email address required in most states. Allow 4-7 weeks for delivery.

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SHINE Editor’s Note: Interviews took place before COVID-19 took hold in the United States.

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TREND: COLORED LEATHER

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FASHION LOOKS OF WHY WOMEN KILL

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THE UNICORN’S RUBY JAY

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DAVID NYANZI

SILVER STAR: The Talk’s Eve in a JW Anderson kimono trench coat, outside the designer’s fall/winter 2020 fashion show in London

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CHRISTINA APPLEGATE & LINDA CARDELLINI

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SUMMER’S BEST BEAUTY

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shine | TRENDING

In Full Color

Buttery leather pieces both real and faux are a warm weather must when they come in shades this vivid, serving as the sleekest way to brighten up your wardrobe.

Mansur Gavriel, mini leather bucket bag, $475, shopbop.com

Katy Keene’s LUCY HALE in Sportmax nappa leather trench, $3,790, us.sportmax.com

IRO Hartley leather moto jacket, $1,295, intermixonline.com

Remain Birger Christensen Pirello leather trench, $865, net-a-porter.com

FOR PHOTO CREDITS, SEE PAGE 120

J.Crew midi faux-leather skirt in ruby, $120, jcrew.com Jeffrey Campbell Khara sandals in metallic leather, $135, shopbop.com

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PrettyLittleThing faux leather pleated skater skirt, $28, prettylittlething.us

Tell Me a Story’s ASHLEY MADEKWE in Viparo leather skirt with Jil Sander clutch and Dolce Vita booties

Rejina Pyo Finley vegan leather cropped trousers, $595, intermixonline.com

Riverdale’s CAMILA MENDES in Salvatore Ferragamo leather jacket, shorts, and printed blouse

Stand Studio Gabi leather shirt, $570, net-a-porter.com Black Monday’s REGINA HALL in a lilac leather top and skirt and Valentino pumps

Stand Studio + Pernille Teisbaek Kayla oneshoulder leather mini dress, $610, net-a-porter.com

Federica Tosi leather pleated shorts, $433, farfetch.com

Notes du Nord, Nixon leather jumpsuit, $780, intermixonline.com

Paris Texas mock croco tall boots, $825, shopbop.com Jaggar square heel sandals, $164, shopbop.com

16Arlington Fonda leather pencil skirt, $750, net-a-porter.com Yuul Yie June acrylic neon heel sandals, $365, shopbop.com

Stand Studio Kaitlyn leather mini dress, $715, net-a-porter.com

Mansur Gavriel mini lambskin pleated bag, $695, shopbop.com

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shine | OBSESSION

Lights, Camera, Fashion!

Emmy Award–winning costume designer Janie Bryant, the creative force behind the multi-era looks on Why Women Kill, takes you behind the scenes of the series’ knockout style.

BY SARA SPRUCH-FEINER

T

HE PREMISE OF Why Women Kill may be slightly dark—three women living in different time periods must cope with infidelity and betrayal in their marriages—but the characters’ wardrobes serve as constant inspiration for dressing with cheerful confidence.

Which isn’t surprising when you learn that the show’s costume designer is Janie Bryant, whose work on Mad Men Janie Bryant earned her four Emmy nominations and sparked a renewed infatuation with ’60s style. Now Bryant is once again making fashion diehards’ hearts race with the dynamic looks she creates on the series. The first season’s three leading ladies each reside in a different decade: Beth Ann (played by Ginnifer Goodwin) is living in 1963, Simone (played by Lucy Liu) is living in 1984, and Taylor (played by Kirby HowellBaptiste) lives in the present day. Which means Bryant, who does extensive research for her characters’ wardrobes and is known for her meticulous attention to era-appropriate details, relies on both retro and current pieces to shape their distinct styles. We asked her to share the essence of each character’s fashW HY WOM E N ion vibe, then we found the best items to KILL streams on help you channel some of their flair into CBS All Access. your own timeless look.

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’60s SWEETHEART

BETH ANN STANTON (played by Ginnifer Goodwin) “In the beginning of the series, Beth Ann’s color palette was very beige, celery, and gray, which reflected how sad and dead inside she was at the time. But as her story evolved and Beth Ann discovered herself and started living again, now she’s in bright colors and patterns.

I also changed her silhouette by doubling and tripling the size of the petticoats under her outfits. So her skirts keep getting bigger and the flowers on her silk dresses keep getting bolder, which follow her character’s growth into a more lively, engaging personality.”

Style inspirations: “’50s good girls like Doris Day, Donna Reed, and Debbie Reynolds.”

You’ll never see Beth Ann wearing … “Cigarette pants. She and [her husband] Rob have that early ’60s husband-andwife dynamic where he would probably scold her for wearing pants.”

Her best look: “I love the beautiful redand-white floral silk-print dress that she wears in the last scene of the Season 1 finale. I design a lot of Beth Ann’s clothes, but this was actually a vintage gown. Red was the breakout element of Beth Ann’s color story, and we added three petticoats under that skirt so her dress was extra full. Her shoes were these amazing red patentleather pumps from the 1950s. I adore that entire costume, especially on Ginny.”

SJP by Sarah Jessica Parker fawn satin highheel pumps in Candy, $350, sjpbysarah jessicaparker. com

Stephen Dweck iolite, garnet, and quartz ring, $895, neimanmarcus.com

Bryant’s drawing of Goodwin’s finale dress Lady Mayra Clothing red poppy dress, $50, etsy.com

Absolutely Audrey Scarlett shoe clips, $18 for set, absolutelyaudrey. com

Knotty Crystal Statement Collar Necklace, $58, nordstrom.com

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’80s GLAMOUR SIREN

MODERN SOPHISTICATE

Taylor Harding (played

by Kirby Howell-Baptiste) “Taylor has both masculine and feminine traits, so her wardrobe brings together those two worlds. I put her in a lot of leather and animal prints, and harder-edge jewelry mixed with softer pieces like silk blouses and skirts and beautiful stiletto heels. She has those two sides of her personality, so balancing elements of menswear and womenswear in her look is a very important through line of her story.”

SIMONE GROVE (played by Lucy Liu) “Simone’s look mirrors the ostentatiousness of the ’80s: It starts out elaborate and vivid, with strong statement jewelry, rings all the time, and big shoulder pads. Throughout the course of the show, her style transitions from over-the-top to more somber. She’s still sophisticated, but as her character comes to realize that life is about love and companionship rather than material goods, her manner of dressing becomes more low-key.”

Style inspirations: “The street style of today’s high-powered professional women.”

Style inspirations: “Joan Collins on Dynasty, Elizabeth Taylor, and Tina Chow.”

Alexis Bittar Sputnik cocktail ring, $245, neimanmarcus.com

You’ll never see Simone wearing … “Polyester. It’s just not chic enough for her.”

Her best look: “I designed the gold-and-black gown that Simone wears when she does the tango dance in the third episode, which is such a fabulous episode.

I love the gold fan on the shoulder and the high slit in the skirt, which I made in stretch rayon so that Lucy could really move during the dance scene. Gold is such an opulent color, but it’s also sexy.”

A sketch by Bryant of Liu's gold gown TRE by Natalie Ratabesi bowembellished one-shoulder plissé-lamé gown, $2,610, net-a-porter. com

You’ll never see Taylor wearing … “Ruffles. They’re way too girly for her.”

Her best look: “The bright blue Tahari pantsuit that Taylor wears in Episode 1 makes such a strong statement. It’s this very vivid Moroccan blue that’s just gorgeous on her and represents her character perfectly, because the power-suit silhouette is masculine, but then the color is all woman.”

Cynthia Rybakoff ’80s bangle stack, $148, cynthiarybakoff.com

Ejing Zhang Effie gold-plated and resin cuff, $225, net-a-porter.com PrettyLittleThing blue fitted button-down crepe blazer, $38, prettylittle thing.us

FOR PHOTO CREDITS, SEE PAGE 120

Aquazzura Sundance 140 metallic vegan leather platform sandals, $895, net-a-porter.com

Fleur du Mal asymmetrical cowl top, $295, fleurdumal.com Christian Louboutin So Kate 120mm pumps, $725, neimanmarcus. com

Cynthia Rybakoff Emerald Agate Arrow Pendant, $84, cynthiarybakoff.com

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shine | WE'RE INSPIRED BY

5

6

4

3 7 2

1

Ruby Jay

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The young star of The Unicorn is a vibrant vision who relies on bows, lace, and floral accents to sweeten her charming style.

1. Vintage white jumpsuit, Thom Browne NY shoes; 2. Quaint clothing and Ruthie Davis shoes; 3. Rotate Birger Christensen dress, Schutz pumps; 4. Helen Couture dress; 5. Alice + Olivia dress, Aldo shoes; 6. Little Mistress London dress, Vince Camuto shoes; 7. Asos Design; 8. Club Monaco top, New York & Company pants; 9. Hucklebones dress, Aqua shoes, Wilfred tights, Betsey Johnson jewelry; 10. PrettyLittleThing top and pants; 11. Aunt Funky’s Closet top, Michael Kors skirt; 12. Jay Godfrey dress; 13. Guess; 14. Ezgi Cinar top and shorts, Femmes Sans Peur shoes; 15. C/MEO Collective dress, Onna Ehrlich minaudière

15

9

14 10

13 11

FOR PHOTO CREDITS, SEE PAGE 120

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T HE U NI CO RN

streams on CBS All Access.

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STYLE FILE | shine

Casa de Sasha

Our style director’s guide to all things fashion

BY SASHA CHARNIN MORRISON

WTF

SHOCK JOCK

I have an eye for the ugly, and I can’t wait for the Reebok x Maison Margiela collaboration to drop this fall, which features the athletic brand’s Instapump Fury sneaker combined with Margiela’s split-toe Tabi kicks.

The footwear comes in a heeled version and a flat hightop design, both available in six colors. They are the perfect amount of fugly to get me motoring. shOP TALK

sTYLe CRUsh

CURVES AHEAD

ISA BRIONES

If Star Trek: Picard’s Isa Briones isn’t yet on your fashion radar, she will be now. Her looks are fresh and stunning, and her signature style of floral prints is so endearing. The Filipina actress, shown here in Lela Rose, isn’t afraid to switch things up with the occasional princess moment sparkling in gold.

Never overdone, everything she wears is just right.

I adore retail site 11 Honoré for their luxe, friendly approach to size inclusion. The newest of their many high-end partnerships is with Carolina Herrera, whose iconic brand has a certain poshness. A few pieces from the spring/summer collection will be available on the site in sizes 12 to 2x. 11honore.com

TOTAL OBsessiOn

MINI MANIA

hOT LABeL FOR PHOTO CREITS, SEE PAGE 120

TO DYE FOR

I’m always mixing prints and patterns with my clothing basics, so I’ve fallen for By My Grace, a line of one-of-a-kind, hand-tie-dyed socks made in the U.S. by Ali Grace. They’re perfect with sneakers and square-toe sandals. Each $25 pair is sold via direct message on her Instagram, @by.my.grace.

I love scrolling through her feed to see how she styles her creations.

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When we shot Schitt’s Creek’s Annie Murphy for our Jan./ Feb. 2020 issue, everyone went nuts for the above Rotate Birger Christensen brocade Kim mini. This velvet romper is another flirty must-have from the brand,

by Danish influencers Thora Valdimars and Jeanette Friis Madsen in collaboration with Copenhagen-based store Birger Christensen.

Dress, $390, romper, $335; intermixonline.com

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shine | THE LOOK

Bright Beauties On their hit dark comedy Dead to Me, stars Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini master radiant, Californiacool hair and makeup. Here’s how their glam teams bring their fresh, gorgeous looks to life.

BY SARA SPRUCH-FEINER

Jen hARDinG

(played by Christina Applegate) She may be a hothead, but Jen’s signature beachy waves and soft, rosy glow are as easygoing—and universally flattering—as it gets.

lipstick, rotating between a few shades, including Senna Cosmetics Matte Fixation Lipstick in Sultry and Ilia Tinted Lip Conditioner in Europa.

“Jen cries a lot on the show,” says Applegate’s makeup artist, Kim Greene, who keeps a stash of depuffing essentials on hand to calm the star’s skin post-waterworks. She likes the caffeine-packed eye serum The Ordinary Caffeine Solution 5% + EGCG and Skyn Iceland Hydro Cool Firming Eye Gels, which are stick-on undereye masks that soothe swelling.

To create Jen’s perfectly undone waves, Applegate’s hairstylist, Romy Fleming, turns to the Gold ’N Hot 1" Professional Marcel Curling Iron.

Working on one-inch-wide sections of hair, she alternates the direction in which she curls as she goes around the head. To lock in the ripples, Fleming mists each section with Ouai Memory Mist before wrapping it around the barrel, leaving the bottom a few inches out so they stay straight.

To make Applegate’s complexion look polished, Greene blends on Koh Gen Do Maifanshi Aqua Foundation.

“The coverage is sheer but enough to even out her skin tone,” she says.

“Jen’s no-nonsense personality is reflected in her makeup, so we use mostly neutrals around her eyes,” says Greene, who for many scenes dips into MAC Cosmetics Art Library: Nude Model eye shadow palette with its mix of peaches, mauves, and browns.

The finishing hair touches are Virtue Labs Refresh Dry Shampoo spritzed at Applegate’s roots for volume and a dab of R+Co Two-Way Mirror Smoothing Oil on her ends.

Greene weaves color into Applegate’s look with raspberry

Koh Gen Do Maifanshi Aqua Foundation, $77, kohgendo cosmetics.com

The Ordinary Caffeine Solution 5% + EGCG, $7, sephora.com

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FOR PHOTO CREDITS, SEE PAGE 120

Ouai Memory Mist Heat Protectant, $28, theouai.com

MAC Cosmetics Art Library: Nude Model Palette, $48, maccosmetics.com

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JUDY hALe

(played by Linda Cardellini) With her tousled, ’70s-inspired shag and natural pinkand-nude makeup, the tenderhearted eccentric is a low-key luminary.

To bring a healthy flush to Cardellini’s complexion and relieve any 5 a.m.-call-time puffiness, makeup artist Liz Lash begins by massaging the actress’s face with the Jillian Dempsey Gold Sculpting Bar, a vibrating facial roller.

One of Judy’s staples is shiny lips with a hint of color, so to play up Cardellini’s pout, Lash relies on Beautycounter Sheer Lipstick in Petal, a soft, nude pink. She tops it with one of two Beautycounter Lip Glosses: Peony, a watermelon hue, or Blush Shimmer, a peachy pink with subtle sheen.

“Linda has such expressive eyes,” says Lash, who reaches for Tom Ford Eye Color Quad eye shadow palette in Body Heat to define them and give Judy the occasional smoky look. “Its glimmery gem-tone colors bring out her beautiful brown eyes.”

Beautycounter Sheer Lipstick in Petal, $32, beautycounter.com

DE AD TO ME

is produced by CBS Television Studios and returns May 8 on Netflix.

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The light, airy texture of Cardellini’s hairstyle starts with the right shampoo. The actress loves Briogeo Be Gentle Be Kind Matcha + Apple Replenishing Superfood Shampoo. “It helps her hair look and feel super soft,” says her hairstylist, Courtney Ullrich.

“Judy is carefree and a bit bohemian, so her hair can’t be too perfect,” says Ullrich, who uses a small-barrel curling iron to form relaxed waves on Cardellini’s shag, adding just the slightest bend at her roots to give them some heft.

After curling, Ullrich mists R+Co Balloon Dry Volume Spray, a lightweight texturizer, into Cardellini’s roots to keep them lifted and loosen up the style so it’s a bit wispy. “The volume on top prevents a shag cut from looking triangular,” she says.

Tom Ford Eye Color Quad in Body Heat, $88, sephora.com

R+Co Balloon Dry Volume Spray, $32, randco.com

Jillian Dempsey Gold Sculpting Bar, $195, jilliandempsey.com

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shine | EDITORS’ FAVORITES

Warming Trends

2. Ole Henriksen Banana Bright Vitamin C Serum

Illuminating pigments in this juiced-up vegan serum make your complexion look instantly radiant, then it continues to improve skin over time with a high concentration of antioxidant vitamin C to help fight dark spots and fine lines, plus hyaluronic acid to nourish. $64, sephora.com 2

Healthy skin, lush hair, and makeup that maximizes your glow are all on deck for summer, thanks to these energizing new beauty finds.

BY GINA WAY

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1. L’Occitane Hair Multi-Mask Collection

We often apply more than one face mask at a time, so why not do the same for your hair? That’s the idea behind this trio of essential-oilenriched deep conditioners, which can be used alone or applied together on different areas of your hair. Gel Cream (the blue tube) balances your scalp, Lustrous (the yellow tube) boosts shine, and Whipped (the pink tube) smooths split ends. $14 each, usa.loccitane.com

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3. bareMinerals Mineralist HydraSmoothing Lipstick

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4. Dolce Shine Eau de Parfum

The scent of this citrusfloral perfume is as warm and intoxicating as a summer breeze. The sparkling blend of mango, grapefruit, jasmine, and orange blossom notes smells just like a sun-drenched seaside paradise. $94 for 50 ml., sephora.com

5. Stila Road Less Traveled Eye Shadow Palette

Want to tiptoe into colorful eyeshadow? These eight muted jewel tones let you play around with various looks while keeping things soft. The mix of matte and slightly shimmery hues all complement each other, so try swirling a few together on your lids for an earthy take on smoky eyes, or use the amethyst or hunter green shade as eyeliner for just a wink of color. $39, ulta.com

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Sundress season starts now, and this creamy body wash ensures arms and legs stay silky and supple.

It’s packed with the same all-star hydrators you’d find in facial skincare, including hyaluronic acid, which draws moisture to the skin, and vitamin B3, which helps the skin hold in that moisture. $11, olay.com

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LISA SHIN

6. Olay Cleansing & Nourishing Body Wash with Hyaluronic Acid

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Clean beauty fans, meet your new favorite lip color.

This vegan, mineral-infused formula is made with 40% fewer ingredients than traditional lipsticks, weeding out parabens, phthalates, mineral oil, and synthetic fragrances. What it does have are plenty of botanicals and naturally derived extracts that give all 25 shades a buttery feel and brilliant finish. $20, bareminerals.com

BUY ONE GET ONE FREE Subscribe for one year and get the second year FREE! That’s two years (12 issues) for only $9.99!

To order by phone please call 800.532.8190 and mention code A802HA. For faster service, order online: www.cbswatchmagazine.com Canadian and Foreign orders add $12 per year in U.S. funds (inc. GST). Please allow 6-8 weeks for delivery of first issue. Cover price is $3.99. Watch is published 6 times a year.

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KIRSTEN DUNST SCHEMES HER WAY INTO OUR HEARTS AS STRIVING SINGLE MOM KRYSTAL STUBBS ON SHOWTIME’S

BY DAVID HOCHMAN

ON B ECOMI N G A GOD IN CEN TRAL FLORI DA

streams on SHOWTIME ANYTIME.

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KIRSTEN DUNST SOUNDS REMARKABLY UPBEAT FOR A woman whose day job revolves around a multibillion-dollar pyramid scheme. “It’s freeing for me to awaken some of those darker elements within,” she says, and clearly it’s working.

Dunst’s new SHOWTIME dark comedy, On Becoming a God in Central Florida, is heading into Season 2 with the sort of wildeyed devotion you’d find among recruits of the show’s cultlike Founders American Merchandise company.

Set in the acid-wash ’90s on the scrappier side of Orlando, the series centers on waterpark employee Krystal Stubbs, a single mom out for revenge on a get-rich-never racket that brought her family to ruin. FAM bills itself as a ticket to the American Dream but consumes its desperate sales drones, sometimes literally.

(Krystal’s brainwashed husband—played by Alexander Skarsgård—gets chomped by an alligator in the pilot episode; that’s not really a spoiler.) Now Krystal is working her way “upline,” in FAM-speak, to outscam the scammers from the inside and proEditor’s Note: This interview vide for her daughter, Destinee, at any cost. took place in February, Dunst, 38, is an executive producer on the show (along before COVID-19 took hold with George Clooney and others), but it is her “life-giving perin the United States. formance,” as The Wall Street Journal called it, that makes On 54 /

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INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE (1994) “I was such a selfassured little thing.

I can now step back and be impressed that an 11-year-old child did that. The capability that I had at that age or that any good young actor has, it’s awe inspiring.”

THE VIRGIN SUICIDES (1999) “It was the first time I was seen as a woman rather than a kid, and to be in that position under a female director, Sofia, it was like kismet. She helped me transition to become an adult.”

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KIRSTEN DUNST | FOCUS

SPIDER-MAN (2002–2007)

BRING IT ON (2000) “It’s the movie people quote to me the most. I’ll hear ‘Brr! It’s cold in here,’ or ‘I got the door, Tor,’ or ‘spirit fingers.’ It’s one of those movies, and I’m so proud of it.”

“Things got really big. I saw the world on these giant press tours, places I’d never thought I’d see. But what I remember was the group of actors—Tobey Maguire, Willem Dafoe, Alfred Molina, James Franco.

They all kept this giant story emotionally grounded, almost like in an independent film, which is hard to do when you’re standing in front of a green screen all day.”

FARGO (TV SERIES, 2015) “The entire role, for me, was about the musicality of that particular accent. I had done a more cartoonish version of it in Drop Dead Gorgeous.

The way someone speaks contains the poetry of who they are. As an actor, that’s often how I find my way into the character.”

HIDDEN FIGURES (2016) “The story was so incredible, and I was thrilled to be part of it. It’s one of those movies that almost goes beyond acting.

You’re really bringing a piece of history to people, and that made it incredibly special.”

Becoming a God her star vehicle. Rocking adult braces, teased hair, and a spray tan, Dunst goes all-in, whether she is teaching splashersize water aerobics classes at Rebel Rapids to her FAM acolytes or skinning an alligator like a champ. Watch Krystal for a few minutes and you, too, will be buying whatever the former Miss All-Terrain Vehicle pageant winner is selling. As FAM’s villainous founder, Obie Garbeau II (played with Colonel Sanders–level charisma by Ted Levine), says on his motivational cassettes: “Go-getters go get.”

The series was a pet project of Dunst’s for several years, bouncing from AMC to YouTube Premium before SHOWTIME gave it a home. Patience paid off. Dunst earned a Golden Globe nomination for the role this year and is enjoying what the media like to call “a moment,” complete with a gleaming new star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

In the midst of everything, she gave birth in 2018 to her first child, son Ennis, with her fiancé, actor Jesse Plemons.

Dunst chuckles at the idea of her “resurgence as a pop culture icon,” as Vogue dubbed it. “People are going, ‘Hey, where’s she been?’ or ‘Oh, wow, she’s good in this new show,’” she says. “But I’m, like, ‘Wait a minute, I’ve been here the whole time.’ It shows you that people really watch television more than a lot of the quirky movies I’ve been in.”

Dunst made her big screen debut at age 6 in Woody Allen’s New York Stories, and at 12 was cast from among 5,000 hopefuls to play a child bloodsucker in Interview with the Vampire. She went on to eternal cool-kid status with films such as The Virgin Suicides, Bring It On, and Marie Antoinette and had probably her biggest hit playing Mary Jane Watson in Sam Raimi’s SpiderMan trilogy. In 2017, Dunst won a Screen Actors Guild Award for her performance in Hidden Figures.

After a season finale with more twists and turns than a slide at Krystal Stubbs’ water park, Dunst spoke to Watch about On Becoming a God’s return, being a new mom, and pulling off the ultimate success feat: making a pyramid scheme work in her favor. cbswatchmagazine.com /

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FOCUS | KIRSTEN DUNST

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FOCUS | KIRSTEN DUNST

It took more than three years for On Becoming a God to find its place on television. You must feel like the queen of the Sunshine State as the series heads into Season 2.

Oh, it was definitely a long road, but it’s worked out great. I almost walked away a couple times, but I kept coming back because I loved the world of the show. I loved the writing. I love dark comedies. I love satire, and I knew I would have a great time playing Krystal. I’ve been offered TV shows before, but the characters were always too depressing. Krystal is so much fun. You get the good, the bad, and the ugly with her, and she’s eccentric enough and outthere enough to keep things light. The woman has no shame.

What are you learning about yourself from her?

Honestly, it’s like therapy for me, playing Krystal. She lets it all hang out. She’s not afraid of her rage.

She’ll scream and cry and tell you to *%^* off. Like when she’s screaming at that alligator after her husband got killed, or when she has to tell off Cody [Théodore Pellerin, Krystal’s FAM higher-up].

Her life is messed up, but there’s something very healthy about the way she expresses herself. She’s a very forceful woman. When you’re in touch with your power, you can make anything happen. That’s very therapeutic for me, even by extension.

How does Krystal’s Sony Walkman–era wardrobe get you into character?

We wanted to stay true to the period, so we asked Stacey Battat [a costume designer who works with Sofia Coppola, Dunst’s frequent collaborator] to create something that felt authentic and not forced or self-consciously cool. Krystal doesn’t have a lot of money, so she’s wearing denim; she’s wearing thrift shop clothing. In the beginning she had braces and the period hair, and I couldn’t stop giggling whenever I looked at myself in the mirror. She has zero vanity, and the wardrobe reflects that. I couldn’t believe it at first. Now I just say, “Oh, that’s just Krystal.”

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ALL IN THE FAM: From top: Krystal Stubbs (Dunst); Krystal and FAM boss Cody (Théodore Pellerin); Krystal and husband Travis (Alexander Skarsgård)

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What does your son think of seeing his mom like that?

Ennis is still too young to notice, but we did have a situation with him and Krystal’s makeup.

What happened?

My mother-in-law was with us on location in New Orleans, taking care of him. She texted to say, “Hey, I think Ennis is getting a little reddish-brown hair in the back.” Jesse and I figured out it was Krystal’s spray tan. Every time I get home from work, there’s spray tan all over me. You can’t really wash the stuff off M AY/J U N E • 2 0 2 0

completely, and it turned Ennis into sort of a redhead for a minute.

Being a mom must make it easier playing a mom.

Oh, God, yes. More than anything, this show is about a mother’s survival instincts. Krystal is a working-class woman all alone with a child. It’s one of the hardest positions ever, trying to keep her house in order when she has no one. Our situations are obviously completely different, but I know what it means to want to protect and care for your baby, and how that comes before anything. cbswatchmagazine.com /

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KIRSTEN DUNST | FOCUS

Is it hard finding balance between parenting and your relationship and your busy work life?

I’ll be honest, it’s been exhausting. I’d just had a baby when production began, and I was literally crying to my friends that I hadn’t recovered enough to be the lead of a show. But what I like about playing Krystal is that she’s so fed up and exhausted herself that I’m allowed to let that stuff creep into the character. Not wanting to be in a situation. Being a little cranky. It’s all great for the role.

The other good thing in general about being an actor—and the hard thing, too—is that you have chunks of time when you’re not working. We ended the show in February of 2019, and I didn’t start work again until January 2020. So I got to be home doing all the amazing things you do as a mom, like laundry. Then we all went to New Zealand together to film Jane Campion’s new movie, The Power of the Dog, which Jesse is in, too.

Did you see any Hobbits?

No, but it’s definitely a world apart from our usual life in L.A., where we might go to Griffith Park and visit a horse. I worked with Sam Neill on the movie Wimbledon, and he has a vineyard where

Meanwhile, you had no problem killing the [fake] gator that ate your husband.

That was all about handling the gun properly. We did it all in one long shot, basically, and you want to make it smooth and look like you know what you’re doing. I had weapons training, and a scene like that becomes a dance where you’re moving to the rhythm of the “pop pop pop.” You don’t want it to be rushed. You want to create tension. You want to make it look like that alligator has nothing on you.

Before TV, you had a long and illustrious film career. But do you find it odd, or maybe even a little insulting, that Jumanji, Spider-Man, and Little Women were all remade after you starred in versions of them?

Not at all. I feel like there are no new ideas, honestly. People love a sure thing in Hollywood. Hey, can we make more money out of this?

Great. Let’s do it again. I think TV is probably where the freshest ideas are right now.

What are you watching?

Well, me, I’m watching a lot of zone-out television. That’s all I want after a long day. This show called Love Is Blind on Netflix is addictive. I’m someone who watches The Bachelor and those weird TLC shows like 90 Day Fiancé. That therapy show on Netflix. I like watching real people. It helps me find good character moments to incorporate. we’re staying. There are all kinds of animals around. Ennis is learning what pigs say and what cows say and all the names of everything—although he calls tractors “yai-yos.” I realized it’s because we always sing “Old MacDonald,” and he associates tractors with ee-i-ee-yai-yo.

Do you have any hobbies?

I’ve been learning to play the piano for The Power of the Dog, and I really enjoy it. But mostly I’m doing whatever my kid wants to do.

He loves trucks. I know more about excavators and heavy machinery than I ever thought possible. We also watch a lot of Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood.

That’s hilarious. Speaking of the animal kingdom, is it true you nixed a scene on your show because the script called for you to dance with a snake?

What can you say about Season 2 of On Becoming a God in Central Florida? Where is Krystal headed?

Oh, yeah. “The sexy snake dance.” I was like, um, that’s not gonna happen. I’m terrified of snakes! I read the scene and said, “We’ll have to use a rubber one or bring in a double, because otherwise I’m out.” But I think everyone pretended they didn’t hear me, because the director goes, “It’s not going to look good without a real snake.” Thankfully, Robert [Funke, the co-creator] came up with the alternate idea of Krystal dancing alone with life-size puppets, which ended up being way more nuanced and sad. We’ve seen plenty of women snake dancers. Trust me, I’m never going to be as good as Britney or Salma Hayek.

You’ve got to keep her in fighting mode. She’s still out for justice, even if she’s tangled up in FAM and falling over to the darker side of things. It’s definitely going to be a push and pull with her and Obie, and with doing the right thing and feeling tempted to get rich. When you reach the top level, it makes an impact on you.

Krystal could easily fall in love with power in a way that could be detrimental. I won’t give too much away, but the plan is to have a family member introduced this season, which will be a fun role. I imagine it could cause some complications—not that anything’s going to stand in the way of Krystal getting what she wants.

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FOCUS | STEPHEN COLBERT

IT’S A FRIDAY AFTERNOON AT THE ED SULLIVAN THEATER in Midtown Manhattan. The Late Show with Stephen Colbert has been off the air for a few nights, but the busy offices still hum with staff preparations for next week’s episodes.

Stephen Colbert—clad in a soft sweater and chinos, hair slightly tousled under a baseball cap—grins as he admits he was getting a little restless during the time off. “I love being with the audience,” he says. “And it’s the work that I like. I like to be with everyone else who is paying attention in the same way and together trying to craft a comedic response.”

Certainly 2020 has not given us a lot to laugh about, but The Late Show has nimbly been findTHE LATE SHOW WITH ing the funny in even the darkest of times. Colbert sat down ST EPHE N COLB ERT to talk politics, Lana Del Rey, and how The Late Show is really airs weeknights at 11:30 p.m. ET/10:30 p.m. a show about love.

PT and streams on Editor’s Note: This interview took place in February, before COVID-19 took hold in the United States.

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CBS All Access.

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STEPHEN COLBERT | FOCUS

You are currently in the middle of Season 5. What’s been the biggest surprise about doing this show?

The first one that comes to mind is that I don’t have to make every decision. Part of the success of the show is me trusting the staff.

Don’t get me wrong: I’m a huge fan of me. [Laughs.] And a huge fan of control. But at [The Colbert Report], I’d look at a pen and be like, Why is that part blue? Shouldn’t it be clear?

It was that level of control about everything, and that’s simply impossible with this kind of show. Earlier this week my wife, Evie, said to me, “Are you OK not being in the office?” I said yes. I haven’t the slightest doubt that everything that needs to be done is being done. Not that it wasn’t true before; I just didn’t allow it, and people couldn’t do their best work because I wasn’t allowing them to. I work here. I’m one of the people who gets to work at this show.

I also get to have my name on the front of the building. But I really do feel lucky to be one of the people who gets to work here and be a part of this team.

When the show began in 2015, I’m guessing you could not have foreseen where it would be today and what so much of the show would be focused on.

No. I couldn’t have imagined where we are now from where we started, because I specifically remember thinking: I wonder if I could do a show like this that isn’t about the news. And by that, I don’t mean could I do it—could anybody do it. It was crazy to think you could leave politics out of that, because it’s so consuming our culture right now. It’s become the most common subject: politics and sports.

I don’t know if I remember a time when politics was all anyone talked about.

I think paying this much attention to politics—not by me, but by the American people—is not a good idea. I really don’t think it’s a good idea. [In the show] I’m not breaking news or setting an agenda. I go up there every night and talk about what people have been talking about all day. And all day this is what people are talking about. I think it’s unhealthy. In some ways our show is a pressure valve to that internal anxiety. We’re lancing the boil. We’re not curing anything: We’re cortisone.

Does a heavy sense of responsibility come along with that?

I don’t know. I have a responsibility to do my job the best I can.

I’m really grateful to learn the show means something to people, because it means a lot to us. But in some ways my responsibility isn’t to the audience, it’s to the show—and to do the best we can and to do it an honest way. I was going to say truthful way, but that’s a little highfalutin’. [Laughs.] Just an honest way. It takes a lot to know the truth. It takes very little to know if you’re being honest.

Y L Y L L L A E A E R M R FU ““II’M L U E T E T A GRR EEA N R R A L O W T O W T E SH O H H NS TH N A E G G E I M N M METTH I , H OM OPLLEE SSO E P E P E TTOCA E S U U A C E A S BB MEEA N N A ” .

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Do you look forward to whatever happens in November being over and the show no longer being entangled in an election cycle?

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S S E K A T I T ““I A LLO OT W O N N K O .

T H TO TRU H T U S HE TA E TH E K A T T IT TTLEE I T L L Y Y KNO W O V ERO T K U’’REE II F YOEEIIN G N B T.” S T S E N ON HO

No, I’m indifferent, because I don’t do the show for what happens in November. I do it for yesterday and today and what might happen tomorrow. So whatever happens in November is what happens in November. We’ll write our jokes then. Personally, I look forward to him being dragged out in leg irons, and if it happens, fantastic.

If it doesn’t, we’ll be here doing what we do.

The audience has a chance to talk to you before the show begins.

Do you tend to get the same questions?

They ask me about religion, about South Carolina. They ask me marriage advice and sometimes about The Lord of the Rings. These are things that I talk about! And they ask me about grief. Those are rarer, but it happens.

I’d imagine it’s hard to be a spokesperson for grief, especially when grief is such a private thing.

It is. I think of myself less as a spokesperson for grief than someone who is willing to speak about it at all. People mostly don’t want to talk about it. Who would want to? It’s terrible!

But it must be comforting if you are going through it to be understood.

That’s the most important thing.

Last year you did an interview with Anderson Cooper, and you both spoke quite candidly about grief, and the reaction to it was overwhelming.

I was quite surprised by the reaction. I don’t do interviews that often, but I really like him and he’s such a great guest and he’s been so good to us. I knew his mother had passed shortly before [our interview]. It was just a good conversation. When it was over, my publicist—my dear friend, Carrie Byalick—said: “Are you OK?” I was like oh, yeah, fine. I think that went well! She said, “I think so too. I think people will like it.” And then I went and did the show. I had no idea it would be resonant for so many people.

But why not? Why shouldn’t it be? Everybody dies. Everybody knows loss. Which is kind of the nature of the conversation that we were having. So I shouldn’t have been surprised, but I was, I really was.

I think, especially within the world of celebrity, seeing you and Anderson Cooper having such an intimate and honest conversation was surprising.

There’s such fear of weakness, and kindness. Softness can be perceived as weakness. It’s what you said: It’s comforting to people to know they are not alone. That’s everything we’re trying to do here.

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FOCUS | STEPHEN COLBERT

These shows are traditionally nighttime companions before you go to bed—a joke before sleep! Especially now in such a fractured social and entertainment space, it’s nice to provide some place where people have a sense of community, and to know that you’re not crazy. We can try to remove the thorn of today’s news.

There is a comfort in that—to know others feel the same.

Before I did the show, back in 2015, a mutual friend told me that [director] Spike Jonze was interested in helping in any way he could. I’m a fan of his, of his art and ambition. He came and interviewed me. One of the things he asked me was, “What do you want to do?” I said: “I don’t know how to do it, but I want to do a show about love. I don’t know how to do a comedy show, let alone a late night comedy show, about love.”

I also had this conversation with [writer] George Saunders, too.

He talks about radical kindness: to try and love, and radical kindness being an expression of that. Radical in that kindness is an act of grace because it’s not necessary or expected. I was talking to him about it, and I said, “I don’t know how to do that with the show. I know how to do the show but not that.” And he said, essentially, you’re being kind to the thing that is threatened by talking about it, and doing jokes about the gaslighting of the American people. You are being kind to their sanity. Kindness doesn’t mean rolling over and accepting what anybody says.

This past summer I was on a trip with my family. We picked my daughter up at the airport, and she got in the car and said:

Starring with Grover from The Muppets in a short film by Spike Jonze that the director created as an introduction for his 2016 guest spot on Colbert’s show (above); on set with Gayle King of CBS This Morning last year (right)

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STEPHEN COLBERT | FOCUS

“Nobody talk. We’re all going to listen to Norman F***cking Rockwell! by Lana Del Rey, and then we’re going to talk about it.” One of those songs was “The Greatest.”

[Plays the song.]

That line: “We didn’t know that we had it all, but nobody warns you before the fall/… I’m facing the greatest/The greatest loss of them all/The culture is lit and I had a ball.”

It’s a really interesting idea to me. I wanted to do a show about love, but I’m really doing a show about loss. And how can anything truly be a loss unless you love it? The people who support the president feel like something’s being lost and that’s why they voted for him and they want it back. The people that didn’t vote for him see him as a loss, see what he’s doing as a greater loss.

The song is, as far as I can tell, about certain aspects of the culture that the narrator doesn’t feel connected to anymore. One of the lines is: “The culture is lit and I had a ball/I guess that I’m burnt out after all/… I hope the live stream’s almost on.” And that’s the end of the song. It’s about, again to me, someone trying to remove themselves or being removed from the culture but sucked back in, the live stream is almost on. They can’t leave it—even in the face of all this loss. So, our generation is faced with enormous loss in America. Through this president—a loss of moral and ethical supremacy. Something is changing in the world, and we don’t like it. And that’s what leads to Donald Trump—this loss. Donald Trump is a panic. Donald Trump is a panicky response to the world changing. It’s a response made out of fear, and that’s why he continues to stoke fear, because fear is the fuel that drives the enthusiasm for him. And our job is to make people laugh so they aren’t afraid. It doesn’t mean the loss doesn’t happen.

How hard is it to face the current ugliness and terror in the world with love and kindness daily?

I don’t really respond with love and kindness with my jokes. We try to make those as sharp as we can. But in some ways, that’s trying to be kind and show love to what is being lost by the attempts to get us to accept that something bad is good. This morning I was reading Isaiah, Chapter 5, Verse 20: “Woe to the wicked, woe to those who call good evil and evil good. Who call the bitter sweet and the sweet bitter and the darkness light.” It’s such a simple thesis for the show: There is a reality, things can be known, facts do exist.

This show is not in resistance or in opposition to anything. We are counterprogramming to the bullshit. It gives us a simple place to stand—on the dry land of reality.

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Do you feel hopeful for the future?

Sure.

Do you usually consider yourself a glass-half-full person?

I think I’m a half-full kind of guy. [Laughs.] Not sure what that liquid is though.

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AS DIANE LOCKHART ON THE GOOD FIGHT, THE LEGENDARY CHRISTINE BARANSKI HAS CREATED A CHARACTER WHO IS EQUALLY LEGENDARY.

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AN ACTRESS DOESN’T GET TO BE NO. 1 on the call sheet without the ability to create an air of intimacy, even when “social distancing” is the order of the day. Faced with the unexpected peril of a face-to-face meeting, Christine Baranski picked up the phone. It was the second Friday in March 2020. The repercussions of a worldwide viral outbreak were surfacing in New York City. Schools were closing. Broadway was going dark.

Lines were forming outside grocery stores suddenly bereft of chicken and hand sanitizer. City residents accustomed to teeming sidewalks and sardine subway cars, not to mention up-close-andpersonal interviews, were being advised to stay at least six feet away from each other.

“We were supposed to talk on the set,” Baranski says with such genuine regret that anyone would be tempted to get jimmied into a hazmat suit to make it happen. Baranski was holed up in her Manhattan apartment. CBS had temporarily suspended production of the fourth season of The Good Fight, the streaming-platform hit in which Baranski stars as the sharp-tongued-and-tailored litigator Diane Lockhart.

“When they shut down The Good Fight yesterday,” she says, “one of the actresses actually asked the producers if she could take home some toilet paper. There was a run on toilet paper in Brooklyn.”

On the strength of her voice alone—a tony metropolitan alto gifted with dropdead timing and readily effervesced by her signature brass-and-bubbles laugh—it was easy to imagine Baranski proceeding imperturbably as workaday routines and expectations faltered all around her. And why not? For more

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than 40 years, the Juilliard-trained actress has been a consummately versatile, self-assured pro, elevating musicals, stage dramas, and film and television roles in the course of amassing a résumé as lengthy as her famously long legs. Among her many awards, she counts two Tonys and an Emmy (and 15 Emmy nominations). She manages the paradox of being both regal and down-to-earth, a grande dame happy to hang a teaspoon off her upturned nose. She’s as comfortable handling the boozy, over-the-top rants of Maryann Thorpe on the ahead-of-its time sitcom Cybill from the mid-1990s as she is launching out on grandiloquent flights of Shakespeare and Shaw. As at home as a saucy Mrs. Lovett singing “shepherd’s pie peppered with actual shepherd” in Stephen Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd as she is tendering witheringly crisp assessments of cathected emotion as the Freudian-in-barrettes psychiatrist Beverly Hofstadter, better known as “Leonard’s mother” on The Big Bang Theory.

As if that were not enough, two years ago Baranski was inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame.

At an age—68 this month—when most people are filing for Social Security and glumly wading through junk mail from the American Association of Retired Persons, Baranski seems almost to be sizzling in a second prime, or to have enviably extended her first. She has her pick of projects and parts. (After completing the fourth season of The Good Fight, she’s scheduled to shoot an HBO series, The Gilded Age, and will appear in the coming holiday season as the town grinch in a Dolly Parton Netflix movie, Christmas on the Square.)

Having grieved for her husband, the actor Matthew Cowles, who died in 2014, Baranski often says she’s never been happier in her work. She’s in remarkable shape and still fast on her feet. Consider how she handled a screwball question during a red-carpet TV interview at the premiere of the Mamma Mia sequel in Los Angeles in 2018.

“Strange question,” said the interviewer, catching Baranski who played the character Tanya in the 2008 original and in the follow-up, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again. “‘Big Dick Energy’—have you heard of it?

And that people are saying that you have it?”

“That I have what?” said Baranski, leaning in close. She was wearing a white-dotted brown dress, cut low to show most of her throat, and bright red lipstick, her blonde mane coiffed in a frisky bob. Fans of The Good Fight might have stopped her on the red carpet to ask for legal advice, so much did she look like Diane Lockhart.

“Big Dick Energy,” the interviewer said.

YOU NEVER SEE A WOMAN WHO WALLOWS IN HER VICTIMHOOD. DIANE IS HEROIC WITHOUT BEING JOAN OF ARC.”

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“People are saying you have an abundance. They put you up as the poster child of it.”

“Big Dick Energy? Is that a new saying? Just tell me it’s a good thing.”

“It’s a very good thing.”

“OK, then I’ll take it.”

“Do you have any idea what it might mean?”

“My energy—Big Dick Energy?” Baranski asked, eyes dancing to the right, red lips in a twist as she mulled the question. And then, not unamused, she accepted the challenge, not only willing to go with a kooky left-field prompt as befits a theater improvisor adept at being in the moment, but quick enough to construct an artful answer and carry it to what might be considered a perfect, uh, climax.

“Ah ... staying power,” she said, starting to shimmy as if the choicest way to itemize the elements of “BDE” was to demonstrate them physically. “Passion. Full of life. Ready to explode!”

Albeit under more elegant definitions, Baranski has been bringing such gifts to the character of Diane Lockhart for more than 10 years. Diane, of course, is the same master of the courtroom Baranski played for seven seasons behind Julianna Margulies on the CBS broadcast mega-hit The Good Wife. For six of those seven seasons, she was nominated for an Emmy. In the episode that concluded the series, Baranski smacked Margulies in the face with a slap heard ’round the internet. (As she has explained, the key to not hospitalizing your scene partner is a loose, limp wrist.)

A year later, in 2017, it was Baranski’s turn at the head of the call sheet. In the sequel, the self-assured liberal Democrat litigator discovers that her dream of a house in Provence and a comfortable retirement has been dashed by a trusted friend’s Ponzi scheme.

Compelled by necessity to reenter the workforce, Diane plunges into the fray of a politically fractured culture as a partner at an all-black law firm. The setting, as before, is Chicago; the new show retains many familiar faces in front of and behind the camera.

One reason Baranski jumped into The Good Fight was that the show was earmarked for CBS’s then-new streaming platform, CBS All Access, which meant working from scripts unfettered by network prohibitions on characters cursing and disporting in ways that might make you blush if you were watching with your mother.

Freed as well from the grueling 22-episodes-a-season schedule of a network show, Baranski has had summers off to work on other projects, take courses at Oxford on Oscar Wilde and Lawrence of Arabia, and spend time at her lake house in northwestern Connecticut with her two daughters, Isabel and Lily, and her three grandchildren.

(Isabel, who trained as a lawyer and worked as an assistant district attorney in Brooklyn, is now the mother of Baranski’s grandchildren; younger daughter Lily is an actress on the CW show Roswell.)

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WHY ARE CERTAIN PEOPLE ABOVE THE LAW? WHAT IS HAPPENING TO THE RULE OF LAW IN THIS COUNTRY?”

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THEY HAVE NOT WRITTEN MY CHARACTER AS AN EDGY, ANGRY, FEMINIST QUOTE-UNQUOTE BITCH.”

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Suit by Alice + Olivia.

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What really sealed the case for continuing as Diane was Baranski’s esteem for Robert and Michelle King, the show’s creators and main writers, whose scripts dramatize the pro-and-con arguments of polarizing hot-button issues like abortion, the alt right, fake news, unqualified judges, a mendacious president, and what increasingly seems to many people the unraveling of American norms and institutions.

“If we can go back into production, I will have finished my 11th year as Diane, with the possibility of a few more,” Baranski says. “I think it’s the only show streaming or on the air that addresses this dystopian moment in history. Diane can’t cope with living in the age of Trump. She joined a resistance movement last year. This year we go even deeper into the rabbit hole and ask why certain people no longer have to honor subpoenas. Why are certain people above the law? What is happening to the rule of law in this country? It’s an incredible story arc I have this season. I’m very excited about it. I hope we get to finish it.”

Actors, of course, shouldn’t be mistaken for the characters they play, but anyone who has watched Baranski stride through courthouses and conference rooms in Diane Lockhart’s uncompromisingly high heels for 10 years might be excused if they find it hard to distinguish the performer from the part.

“I would that I had Diane’s brains and her legal expertise,” Baranski says. “I love playing someone so much sharper in that department, but I am not that person, it’s not how my mind works. I don’t think I could pass a bar exam. Nor do I need to dress as well as Diane does every day. But the nice thing is that, because Robert and Michelle King are such gifted writers, and because I’ve been playing the role so long, they have kind of tailored it to me. They use my human qualities. They use my sense of humor. They use my laugh. They often have it scripted that ‘Diane literally guffaws.’ I have a very robust laugh, as you’ve heard. They have not written my character as an edgy, angry, feminist quote-unquote bitch. You never see a woman who wallows in her victimhood. Diane is heroic without being Joan of Arc. Heroic on a daily basis. She’s got terrific equilibrium, and sanity and clarity, and when she loses it, you think, ‘Wow, things must be really bad if Diane is losing it.’”

Baranski’s scriptable laugh and comic talents don’t bespeak a childhood of unbroken joy. She and her older brother were raised in blue-collar Buffalo. Her mother, Virginia, took care of the kids; her father, Lucien, worked as the editor of a Polish-language newspaper. Both her parents sang in amateur choruses. It was her paternal grandmother, “my Nana,” who left the mark of the theater on Baranski. Her paternal grandparents

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I REMEMBER DISTINCTLY LOOKING ONSTAGE AND THINKING, ‘WOW, HOW DO THEY DO THAT?’”

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had been actors in Buffalo’s Polish theater, and for a number of her early years Baranski shared a bedroom with her grandmother.

“She was my Auntie Mame; she had all these friends from Poland with very effusive personalities,” Baranski says. “She loved getting together for nights of singing and drinking. I remember being in the bedroom and my mom and I couldn’t sleep because Nana was making so much noise. She loved music and theater and ballet; she wore colorful clothing; she wrote her own comedy show and did skits. She taught me so much about life.”

In 1960, when Baranski was 8, her father died of an aortic aneurysm (a malady that later claimed her brother’s life as well, at age 48), and Nana moved out.

“My father’s death was awful in retrospect,” Baranski recalls. “I went into survival mode. Unlike my grandmother, my mom wasn’t physically affectionate or very communicative emotionally. She was a strong woman; she was raised in the Depression and got through the war, but she wasn’t good at comforting. She was suddenly a single mom and had to raise kids on her own and find work. She held us together. But I remember suffering a sense of shock and fear that we weren’t going to be OK. I knew my grandmother and my mother were at odds. I would often hear arguments. We moved, and that meant changing schools and making new friends. I chewed my nails down to the bone—I was very nervous. I wasn’t an outstanding student. But by seventh grade, I became this achiever. That’s the way I coped. I was president of my class all through high school.”

At Villa Maria Academy, an all-girls Catholic high school in Buffalo, Baranski was drawn to theater but initially too shy to audition for roles, so she worked backstage, helping with costumes and makeup. “I remember distinctly looking onstage and thinking, ‘Wow, how do they do that?’” She’d known since she was a kid that she could make people laugh—“I was a smart aleck”—and by junior year she’d overcome her fears and was getting leading roles.

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Her mother had sprung for once-a-week ballet and tap lessons.

What really enlarged her horizon was getting into an experimental-theater workshop run by the University of Buffalo in the summer of 1969.

“Suddenly, at the age of 16, I was acting and dancing and doing improvisation and drumming with Jewish kids and African American kids and kids from other parts of Buffalo,” Baranski says. “It just opened my life up in a way that might not have happened if I hadn’t done it—I would have just been the girl from the Polish Catholic neighborhood. I don’t even know if Juilliard would have happened, because the workshop was so liberating. I was so passionate. It empowered me. I remember reading about Juilliard in the Buffalo Evening News and putting the article on the wall and saying, ‘That’s my goal, that’s where I want to go.’”

Go she did.

In May 2016, Baranski returned to Juilliard to give the commencement address. She told the story about how she had been waitlisted in 1970 because the drama division, led by the formidable actor John Houseman, was concerned about a gap in her teeth that was causing an unpleasant sibilance on her S’s. It was suggested she get speech therapy and have her teeth capped; her mother, who was pressed to make ends meet, came up with the $500 to fix Baranski’s teeth. After a few months of speech therapy, she auditioned at Juilliard again and clipped crisply through a page of S-words put before her, and owlish Houseman turned to the voice and speech teacher and said, “Well, Elizabeth, what do you think?” Baranski saw her nod almost imperceptibly and began to shake with what one day would be known as BDE. She ecstatically found her mom, who was waiting in the lobby of Philharmonic Hall, and they went off together to celebrate at the Algonquin Hotel, where they each knocked back two cherry-garnished Southern Comfort Manhattans, the only time mother and daughter ever got drunk together. Baranski missed her own graduation in 1974 because she already had a gig at the Shakespeare Theater in Stratford, Connecticut. And years later, when Baranski was one of the school’s face cards, the head of Juilliard planned to surprise the star with her diploma at an alumni event. She missed his speech, too, because she was in the women’s room. Ruminating over what to say to the class of 2016, she wondered if there wasn’t some “quintessential observation” she could share about life in the performing arts, and she realized her theme was staring her in the face. It was the importance of “showing up.”

“That is simply, essentially, what our life is. It is all about showing up. That is our passion, our task, our responsibility, our privilege.

Our presence with a capital P is required. ... The most glorious aspect is this: on cue, on point, on the downbeat, or on action, we get to show up in the fullness of our being and present not just our talent and technique but the depth of our character, the force of our personality, the breadth of our life experience, our point of view.

And this is worthy of a lifetime of discipline and exploration, to refine that presence with a capital P.” When she was finished, there was a huge ovation, and if there had ever been any social distance in the hall, it was gone.

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This page: Coat and pants by AliĂŠtte. Ring by Spinelli Kilcollin.

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IN UNBELIEVABLE, 23-YEAR-OLD KAITLYN DEVER GIVES THE PERFORMANCE OF A LIFETIME. AND SHE’S ONLY GETTING STARTED.

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KAITLYN DEVER | FOCUS

ASK INDUSTRY INSIDERS and entertainment critics to name today’s most promising young Hollywood star, and you’ll hear Kaitlyn Dever’s name over and over. The 23-year-old actress—who has the dry wit, worried shrug, and Gala-apple cheeks of a young Geena Davis—wowed viewers with daring turns in three projects last year alone and has become an awards-season red carpet fixture.

For Netflix’s miniseries Unbelievable, she earned Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations. For the bigscreen high school hit Booksmart, she landed an award from the Hollywood Critics Association. The Austin Film Society crowned Dever their Rising Star. And the National Association of Theatre Owners— the trade organization that relies on its stardom-predicting prowess to help rack up big bucks at the box office—named her one of the world’s Female Stars of Tomorrow.

It’s easy to understand the hubbub. In Unbelievable, a true-crime drama based on an acclaimed podcast, she’s heartbreakingly raw as Marie Adler, a Washington state teen in foster care who is raped but has trouble getting anyone to believe her until two female detectives, played by Toni Collette and Merritt Wever, latch on to the case. “Wait,” a legion of sitcom diehards no doubt said, “That’s the girl who played Tim Allen’s youngest kid on Last Man Standing?!”

Sitting in a makeup chair in a plush movie star trailer, where she’s getting her chestnut locks combed and twirled ahead of her Watch photo shoot, the soft-spoken Dever—Phoenix-born, Dallas-raised—is obviously worlds away from Unbelievable’s grim setting. But being a Rising Star in 2020 comes with its pressures. Social media trolls, the dizzying amount of TV content and competition, expectations to be a role model in the #MeToo era—it must be overwhelming, no?

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“ All of it feels like a dream.”

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her bangs and another lightly brushes Dever’s brows, the actress makes it clear she’s looking at her newfound fame from a solid perch. “First, I’m lucky just to be a working actor. And then it’s a rarity to be working on projects that I am actually genuinely passionate about, that I really, really love.

And then for those projects to be loved by a lot of people is also a rarity. And then to be recognized for your performances … I’m just blessed,” she says with sincerity.

The talent for entertaining runs in her family. Her parents, Tim and Kathy, were professional figure skaters (her dad competed in the 1988 U.S. Figure Skating Championships) before becoming skating coaches in Phoenix, then Dallas. When Dever was 3, Tim randomly auditioned to be the new voice of Barney (yes, the big, purple dinosaur of TV-kiddie-show fame) for a series of videos. Score!

Soon enough, Dever decided to expand her own audience beyond Sunday Bible school plays and acting out funny bits from That’s So Raven for her two younger sisters.

She took acting classes and began nabbing parts in commercials shot in Texas. When her mother was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer, however, Dever—then just 12—took on the biggest role of her life: quasi-mother of the house until Kathy fortunately rebounded. “I couldn’t live without my mother,” she says.

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immediately, as the timid pal of the lead character in 2009’s Chrissa Stands Strong, a film in the popular American Girl family-flick franchise.

Her career took off in earnest when, at 14, she booked the role of feisty Eve Baxter on Standing. Over the show’s seven seasons, says Dever, “Eve became part of me.” The year she started Standing, she also began a recurring role on the gritty modern-day western Justified as tough foster kid Loretta McCready and pal to hero Raylan Givens (Timothy Olyphant). “I’ve probably also got some Loretta in me,” she says.

No lie. While having her picture taken on a mansion’s stately grounds is “definitely fun,” says Dever, she’s thoughtfully keeping her eye on what her clout can give her: scripts that offer her meaningful roles along the lines of troubled Marie.

There’s no doubt that Dever—who lives in a guesthouse on her parents’ L.A. property, along with her poodle-Yorkie mix, Banjo— will have her choice of award-winning parts. But she’s already thinking beyond her contributions as a dramatic actress. She and her sister Mady have a folk-rock band, Beulahbelle, and judging by their live MTV performance of their original song “Caster, Caster” a few years back, Dever could well have a future in movie musicals, which she says she’d relish. She also “loved” directing the band’s first video—and wants more. “I told (actress and Booksmart director) Olivia Wilde I wanted to direct, and she told me, ‘You’ve got to stop thinking about it. You just have to do it.’”

Here, the forward-footed Dever lets us in on her life, work, and the occasional hurdles along the way.

You have an incredibly impressive résumé, and you’re only 23. Do you remember the first job you booked?

It was a [2007] commercial for these Shrek Go-Gurt tubes. There was a picture of Shrek on the outside of the yogurt tube, and then something happened when you turned it upside down to drink it—it would, like, turn into Shrek’s wife, Fiona, or something. So they had this boy eating the yogurt, and he turned into a princess. I was the girl laughing.

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“ I’m trying to learn that there is no controlling anything.”

As the oldest of three sisters—and a commercial star!—did you boss around siblings Mady and Jane?

As the oldest, I think you’re just obligated to be the bossy one because you’ve lived longer. [Laughs.] I hope they don’t consider me to be too bossy. My sisters and I really got along growing up. We were a team.

Your dad was the voice of Barney. Explain.

My parents had been figure skaters and then were coaching when my dad got the Barney job. It was so casual. I remember it not being that big of a deal. I mean, some of my friends knew—but it was just sort of my dad’s job.

Did your parents pressure you to become an ice skater, not like the next Tonya Harding, but—

I loved I, Tonya, the movie about her. No, they never pressured me. But I was on skates as soon as I could walk. And I did compete for a while, but I didn’t love it. I kind of complained about it a lot.

[Laughs.] So my parents were, like, “If you want to do it, do it. If you don’t want to do it, just tell us.”

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“ If I can allow someone to feel seen by watching the show, that’s enough for me.”

So you can sing and ice skate. You could do an ice skating musical!

Yes—I’m dying to do a musical. And I would do an ice skating movie, too.

You’re getting extraordinary praise for your role in Unbelievable. How did that come about?

I was on my last week of filming Booksmart and getting the classic actor panic that I’m constantly getting, which is, “Oh, I’m finishing this project and I have no more work for the rest of this year because I’ve put every, every, every, everything I had into Booksmart,” and it’s all I was thinking about. Then I got an email with a link to the podcast and the first episode’s script, and it all just blew me away. I knew immediately I had to do it—if they’d let me. It was a really hard audition. But it was in a room full of women, which felt really good.

And two of the producers, Sarah Timberman and Katie DiMento, were both producers on Justified. So they basically watched me grow up.

How did you prepare emotionally for playing Marie?

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This person is still very much alive, and I realized [my performance could] affect her life. The most important thing to me was just making sure I was getting her story right and that I was doing her justice. I was really lucky. I had a lot of information about her. And it was also really important for me to understand her life prior to the cbswatchmagazine.com /

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assault. What I learned is that so much of how we’re affected by trauma comes from how we’ve been brought up in the world. And Marie had an extremely, extremely tough upbringing, going in and out of foster homes her entire life. That affected the way she coped.

Have you ever known anybody who grew up in the foster care system?

Well, I had done a movie called Short Term 12 that was heavily based on the foster care system. The director had also worked in the system, so he shared a lot of insight on what that’s like.

Was the role soul-wrenching for you?

My heart obviously immediately broke for her. I didn’t really ever come out of that sadness for the four months of shooting. I’m not a method actor, but I’d have an excruciating headache from doing a scene where I’m crying—and doing it all day. I’d get exhausted and emotionally drained. But none of that compares to what she felt in real life.

Without putting you on the expert pedestal, if someone comes to somebody saying they’ve been assaulted, have you learned the best general advice to give them?

Yes, it’s encouraged me to talk about it, but I also think that you don’t have to do anything that you don’t want to do, anything that you are not comfortable with. If I can allow someone to feel seen by watching the show, that’s enough for me. I’m not an expert and I’m still learning, but it’s been really cool taking the show to Washington, D.C., and meeting with members of Congress trying to get the Debbie Smith Act passed. It’s a very crucial piece of legislation that will eliminate [America’s rampant DNA-testing] rape-kit backlog. There are, like, 200,000 rape kits just sitting there not being tested, not being investigated. And that is another reason why people do not come forward—they think, Well then what’s the point? Why would I even talk about that? when it’s something that is so hard to talk about already.

“ I think I’m getting more confident as I get older.”

You seem so strong. Do you ever get discouraged?

Of course. All the time. I mean, it’s hard having confidence even going into audition rooms and wanting [a part] so badly, but I’ve realized there’s really nothing I can do to change my instincts or change who I am. I can only do my work on the character and then hope that my ideas kind of link up with the creatives’ ideas. I’m trying to learn that there is no controlling anything. And I think I’m getting more confident as I get older.

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You’ve certainly developed a strong fashion presence on the red carpet!

I’ve always loved dressing up. I’ve always loved fashion. I don’t really dress up in my day-to-day life, but I think the one time you can and should is when you’re going out and celebrating—especially because I have an amazing stylist. Her name is Karla Welch [who also styles Sarah Paulson, Amy Poehler, and Demi Moore], and she’s brilliant. She and I have had the best time styling for awards season.

Who’s your style icon?

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cannot leave the house without consulting her first about what I’m wearing. I went on a date last night, and I needed her. [Laughs.] But my very first celebrity style icon was Avril Lavigne. Then I had a really intense Audrey Hepburn phase—she’s so cool and classy, so that obsession is obvious. I’ve always liked edgy, though. Kristen Stewart—I love, love, love her style.

Speaking of mighty women, you’ve worked with directors Kathryn Bigelow and Olivia Wilde, and alongside actresses including Emma Thompson, Olivia Colman, Jennifer Garner, and Toni Collette. Do they all have one remarkable thing in common?

The one through line is that they’re just doing it. They’re not M AY/J U N E • 2 0 2 0

complaining; they’re not holding back. They’re doing everything with determination and confidence. And I think confidence is one of the most infectious things in the world. To be around people with a work ethic, who say what they want and just get it done— what’s better than that?

With all your success so far, do you ever feel like you’re gliding through your own fairy tale?

It’s always up and down. I mean, all of it feels like a dream, but at the same time, there are moments that bring you back to reality. But that’s what makes life so exciting—the ups and downs. cbswatchmagazine.com /

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| FOCUS

THE ROY Michelle and Robert King, the husband and wife team behind

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THE GOO D FIGH T

streams on CBS All Access.

E VIL

streams on CBS All Access.

A PAIR OF ACES: Robert and Michelle King in their New York office

YAL WE The Good Fight and Evil, are Hollywood’s reigning power couple.

By Chris Nashawaty

Photographed by Jason Schmidt

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L

shows. But we’re both equal in the writers’ room …” Michelle takes LONG BEFORE THEY BECAME THE MOST SUCCESSFUL the baton back: “People always ask, ‘Who’s the good cop and who’s husband-and-wife showrunner team on television, Michelle and the bad cop?’ It’s not like that. It’s more like, ‘You can do it? God Robert King were the keepers of a particularly juicy workplace bless you!’” secret. It was 1983, and Robert, a recent college graduate, had Their partnership didn’t always work this way. For the first 15 moved to Los Angeles to try and make it as a screenwriter. To years of their marriage, the Kings kept their work lives separate finance that dream, he’d taken a minimum-wage job at an athletic footwear store in Brentwood called FrontRunners. It was hardly the from their domestic one. Back then, Robert worked as a screenwriter of big-budget features such as 1997’s Red Corner and 2000’s most romantic chapter of his life—that is, until the day he found himself working the same shift as a new, part-time employee about Vertical Limit, while Michelle worked in development at various studios and production companies. Then, in 2001, they began to enter her senior year at UCLA. developing a series at ABC together about the U.S./Mexico border “We met while we were both restocking the sock wall,” says called The Line. The show wasn’t picked up, which they admit Robert. “Our hands connected across the rows and rows of socks.” stung, but their new partnership felt like its Listening to the umpteenth retelling of their own sort of success. unlikely and decidedly un-Hollywood meetThe Kings were surprised not only by how cute, Michelle rolls her eyes and begins to well they worked together, but also by how laugh. Robert looks at her and, encouraged much they liked working in television. The by her reaction, continues: “I was doing the medium’s instant yes-or-no greenlight decilighting on some stage play at the Mormon sion-making was a welcome antidote to the temple. And I asked you if you wanted to go. slow, fickle, death-by-a-thousand-cuts world Remember?” Michelle nods. How could she of the movie studios. They continued crankforget? Four years later, they were married. ing out pilot scripts, some of which made it to That fateful afternoon may have been the series, like 2006’s In Justice. But their biggest first time that the Kings’ personal and prosuccess wouldn’t come until 2009, when they fessional lives overlapped, but it wouldn’t tapped into the zeitgeist with a series about a be the last. As the powerhouse creators and political wife whose husband gets embroiled showrunners behind the acclaimed CBS in a tabloid nightmare and is sent to prison. legal drama The Good Wife and now its CBS “There were all of these scandals, one right All Access spinoff, The Good Fight, as well as after the other,” says Michelle, “Eliot Spitzer, the network’s demons-and-miracles proceJohn Edwards, Mark Sanford, and there were dural Evil, the couple has become the rare so frequently women standing right next to exception to the rule that people should them. In a number of cases, those women never be married to their work. “And just for were very accomplished and attorneys. We the record,” deadpans Michelle, “we don’t –MICHELLE KING just looked at those photos and said, ‘OK, keep our relationship a secret anymore.” who is she? And what’s she thinking about?’”

On a chilly winter afternoon at their production office in a The Good Wife would run for seven Emmy-decorated, waternondescript, industrial section of Brooklyn, the Kings seem to be cooler-buzz-worthy seasons, from 2009 to 2016, and in the process juggling a million different dizzying tasks at once. But if they’re become one of the most acclaimed dramatic series in a decade that spread thin, you’d never guess it from their easy, united-we-stand seemed to have no shortage of acclaimed dramatic series. It was chemistry. Today, for example, they hit the ground running with a the New Golden Age of TV. And all of a sudden, the Kings were part 10 a.m. meeting with The Good Fight’s production designers. Then of a new kind of Hollywood royalty. Just a decade earlier, no one it was straight into the show’s writers’ room to hash out the last knew what showrunners were or what they did. Now, in the new episode of the new season, where they’ll spitball ideas until 6 p.m., calculus, they’ve become the entertainment industrial complex’s only occasionally breaking off to put out fires in the editing room. equivalent of hot celebrity chefs or rock stars. Not that the Kings When asked how they divvy up the assortment of day-to-day had any idea of that. responsibilities involved with shepherding multiple hit shows on “I was really unaware of it because we were in it,” says Michelle, multiple platforms (the Evil writing team is on hiatus until June, without an ounce of faux humility. “You’re just going to the office but a third show—SHOWTIME’s limited series Your Honor, starring and doing the work and then you’re going home. The first season Bryan Cranston—is currently shooting in New Orleans), Michelle premiered in September, and then we had a Christmas party, and says, “There’s enough to do that there’s no preciousness about people from the crew kept coming up to me saying, ‘What does it who’s doing what. Robert tends to take the lead on editorial and feel like to have a hit on your hands?’ I pulled Robert aside and rewrites …” Robert picks up her thought like a relay baton: “And said, ‘Do we have a hit?’”

Michelle handles casting, legal, wardrobe, and the look of the

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“PEOPLE ALWAYS ASK, ‘WHO’S THE GOOD COP AND WHO’S THE BAD COP?’ IT’S NOT LIKE THAT.”

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MICHELLE & ROBERT KING | FOCUS

Editor’s Note: This interview took place in February, before COVID-19 took hold in the United States.

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MICHELLE & ROBERT KING | FOCUS

what inspired Evil’s premise. “We’ve been together 35 years, but By the time they reached the seventh and final season of The religiously, I’m Catholic and I go to Mass every Sunday, while Good Wife, all the Kings knew was that they were exhausted. The Michelle’s …” He turns to his wife, again telepathically handing the grueling, 22-episodes-a-season run had taken its toll. So when baton. “I’m a secular Jew,” she says, finishing his thought. their fellow producers and the network asked if they might be Part investigative procedural, part supernatural horror, and interested in running a spinoff, their initial response was tepid. even part will-they-or-won’t-they workplace romance, the show They weren’t convinced it was the best idea. After all, for every follows an investigative team made up of a skeptical psychologist Frasier, there are a dozen The Tortellis. The Kings took a three-week (Katja Herbers), a priest-in-training (Mike Colter), and a contractor vacation to Edinburgh and Amsterdam to recharge and reconsider, (Aasif Mandvi) who look into creepy cases trying to divine whether and when they returned, they started to take the idea more serithe people who commit crimes are simply bad or there are more ously. The fact that CBS said that the show would be on the CBS All inexplicable and demonic forces at work.

Access streaming network and could be Before the first season ended in January, done in a more manageable, 10-episode CBS greenlit a second. And while the season certainly helped, as did Christine couple is tight-lipped about where the Baranski’s commitment to star. And that’s show is headed in its sophomore year, how The Good Fight was born. other than saying it gets “darker,” they While The Good Wife had grappled with admit that the reaction has been better the liberal mindset of the Obama era, The than they’d ever hoped. Says Michelle: Good Fight would end up being just as “The biggest compliment we’ve gotten topical and button-pushing, addressing is people telling us that it’s too scary to America in the age of Trump. It doesn’t watch at 10 o’clock. And that they have to shy away from politics, but it also doesn’t tape it and watch it during the day.” seem partisan or didactic. In the pilot, As she finishes her thought, an assisBaranski’s hard-charging attorney Diane tant pokes her head into the Kings’ office.

Lockhart is disgraced and pushed out of She’d be tapping her watch if she were her old law firm only to find a new sense –ROBERT KING wearing one. They were due back in The of mission by joining Reddick, Boseman Good Fight’s writers’ room 15 minutes ago. Getting up, they look at & Kolstad—a prestigious African American–run firm and former their phones, which are glowing with a dozen other urgent quescompetitor. The Good Wife’s loyal fanbase followed her. tions that require their immediate yays or nays. Saying goodbye, At the same time that the Kings were redefining what “Good” Robert apologizes for how frazzled they must seem. “The truth is, was, they began flirting with Evil—a second CBS show that couldn’t if Michelle and I weren’t married and working together, we probabe more different in genre, subject, and tone from The Good Fight, bly wouldn’t see each other at all,” he says. Then, right on cue, or frankly anything they’d done before. Inspired by an ongoMichelle picks up the baton one last time to complete her other ing conversation that the couple had been having for years, Evil half ’s thought: “Honestly, I don’t know how anyone does this job asks the question: What makes people do bad things? “Michelle without being married.” and I have very different backgrounds,” says Robert, explaining

“MICHELLE AND I HAVE VERY DIFFERENT BACKGROUNDS.”

THE KINGS’ TREASURES

HERBERS: JEFF NEUMANN/CBS; BARANSKI: PATRICK HARBRON/CBS

Michelle and Robert King have no shortage of imagination, as witnessed by the five stellar series they’ve created.

BrainDead This quirky 2016 sci-fi satire, which ran for one season, put Tony Shalhoub and Mary Elizabeth Winstead into the deliciously out-there premise that asked: What if the bipartisan tension in Washington, D.C., was caused by a race of extraterrestrial insects devouring the brains of politicians? (Streams on CBS All Access.)

The Good Wife The hugely

M AY/J U N E • 2 0 2 0

influential hit drama, which starred Julianna Margulies as Alicia Florrick, the wronged political spouse turned fiercely independent litigator, ran for seven hit seasons on CBS, from 2009 to 2016, and racked up five Emmys in the process. This is the show that put the Kings on the map, turning them into a husband-and-wife showrunning force to be reckoned with. (Past seasons stream on CBS All Access.)

The Good Fight The Kings’ topical show, filming its fourth season, brings back Christine Baranski as the recently humbled and newly reenergized attorney Diane Lockhart. She speaks truth to power alongside some new faces (including Hugh Dancy, Michael J. Fox, and Zach Grenier).

(Streams on CBS All Access.)

Evil After a bone-chilling debut season, this creepy prime-time

procedural starring Katja Herbers, Mike Colter, and Aasif Mandvi as investigators of the supernatural has been reordered for a second season of miracles, demons, and sexual tension. (Streams on CBS All Access. ) Your Honor Breaking Bad’s Bryan Cranston heads up this buzzy, 10-episode limited series (adapted from the Israeli legal thriller Kvodo and written by The

Night Of’s Peter Moffat) about a New Orleans judge whose son is involved in a hit-and-run that leads to a web of lies and deceit. Hope Davis, Carmen Ejogo, and Michael Stuhlbarg co-star. (Airs later this year on SHOWTIME and streams on SHOWTIME ANYTIME.)

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PLAY

COURTESY JOEL HARLOW

THE MAN BEHIND THE MONSTERS: Joel Harlow brings Evil’s creatures to life.

108 110 112 115 116 EDIE FALCO

EVIL’S EFFECTS WIZ

EVAN EVAGORA

SABRINA JALEES

LESLEY STAHL

Editor’s Note: Interviews took place before COVID-19 took hold in the United States.

M AY/J U N E • 2 0 2 0

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“I had to learn the nuts and bolts of being a cop, and that meant getting comfortable around a gun,” says Tommy star Falco.

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WATCH & LEARN | play

TO MM Y

streams on CBS All Access.

not traditionally ambitious. I’m not a schmoozer. But I audition and audition and audition, and that seems to do the trick.

EVEN AFTER BECOMING QUOTE-UNQUOTE

Falco on the set of Tommy

Words to Live By

Actress Edie Falco on the art of not always following the rules AS TOLD TO DAVID HOCHMAN

O

N THE NEW COP DRAMA Tommy, Edie Falco plays toughtalking Abigail “Tommy” Thomas, the first female chief of police in Los Angeles. After mob life on The Sopranos and ER mayhem on Nurse Jackie, the Emmy Award–winning actor, 56, tries out some law and order.

FROM LEFT: MAARTEN DE BOER/NBCUNIVERSAL/GETTY IMAGES; CBS

WHAT DO MY CHARACTERS HAVE IN COMMON? Over the years, I’d say they’ve

possessed a certain level of confidence. Or maybe it’s better to say, knowledge of their own value. They tend to be unshakable, strong-willed types and not hazy about who they are.

help viewers go, “Hey, what’s the big deal?”

TV can be a steppingstone like that.

I HAD TO LEARN THE NUTS AND BOLTS of

being a cop, and that meant getting comfortable around a gun. It’s intense, partly because I’ve got so many strong feelings about firearms in general. But I’ll say this: When you’ve got a gun in your hands, the feeling of power is tremendous. It’s almost overwhelming.

PLAYING A GAY CHARACTER isn’t exactly

ON THE NEW SHOW, I play a woman who’s

what I expected. But that’s because it’s just another facet of Tommy’s life. She’s not on a soapbox about it. She knows it might make things more difficult in certain situations. But sexuality isn’t an “issue” for her.

not really thinking about the glass ceiling and all that. Tommy is simply the person in charge. But it’s a big deal for me. You’d be amazed by how few actual female chiefs of police there are out there. Maybe we can

THE SECRET TO MY LONGEVITY as an actor is that there is no secret. I never followed the rules I heard you were supposed to follow. I’m kind of a quiet person. I’m

M AY/J U N E • 2 0 2 0

successful, what I did for a living never really changed. On The Sopranos, they’d fly us around on private jets, we’d draw crowds everywhere, but I still felt like I was doing the same thing I did onstage in a secondstory loft somewhere. I was getting paid to “pretend” with people I respect, and there’s nothing better.

TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO, I wandered into a meditation class in Manhattan, and I’ve been studying Buddhism ever since.

The principles are so counterintuitive to our Western way of thinking. Something as simple as: Happiness doesn’t come from the outside but rather is a mindset we choose for ourselves. In every moment, you have the option to be in charge of your own destiny. It took me a while to believe that, but now I’m sort of living that way.

AS A SINGLE MOM to two adopted kids [son

Anderson, 15, and daughter Macy, 12], you don’t have a ton of time to ponder. It’s like an advanced-level tennis match. Something goes wrong—you fight about someone not doing their homework—and you just have to move on. Apologies make a huge difference. We’re all good about that. And then you wake up the next morning and you try to do better the next time.

I’M A CRAFTER. It’s in my blood. My grandmother was a seamstress and always made things, and I’ve always sewed and collected fabrics. I’ll find a piece of burlap at the beach and shake it off and bring it home.

Someone sent me an article about crafting therapy, and I can totally relate to that. I love the creativity. I even love the monotony of it, and how my mind is free to wander. When the world gets a little stressful, get out the needle and thread and see where it leads.

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play | MY FAVORITE SPACE

Wicked Good

Evil makeup and effects artist extraordinaire Joel Harlow expands his fantasy-filled workspace studio. Bring on the monsters.

BY MARIA NEUMAN

Harlow rates demonst horror the art of makeup.

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The lobby of Harlow’s first studio space

mold-related or prosthetic-related, so if a character comes back, we can use all of it.”

Another bonus of his new-and-improved studio? The extra space helps his crew keep all the different parts of the effects process separated. “In my old space, you’d have someone grinding plaster next to someone who was doing painting, and that was not ideal. Now each department has its own room.” Harlow likens his Morphology FX Inc. to a one-stop shop of sorts, as he’s able to offer special effects and straight makeup, as well as provide and supervise a crew.

M AY/J U N E • 2 0 2 0

FOR PHOTO CREDITS, SEE PAGE 120

T

HERE ARE VERY FEW PEOPLE IN the world who lament the fact that there’s not enough storage in their workspace for a small army of monsters, ghouls, and underworld creatures. In his San Fernando Valley studio, special effects makeup artist Joel Harlow has enough masks and prosthetic paranormal body parts to make anyone else afraid to turn out the lights. Instead, he recently relocated so he could make and store more.

“I moved about four blocks down from my other studio,” says Harlow, who is responsible for designing and crafting (along with a small team) all the creeps on Evil. The one-hour drama tags along with a clinical psychologist (Katja Herbers) who, with the help of a priest-in-training (Mike Colter) and a tech-savvy carpenter (Aasif Mandvi), aims to solve a backlog of New York City mysteries with a mix of faith, skepticism, and science. This is where the fun (and creepy creativity) begins for Harlow, as the series delivers a nail-biting stream of supernatural enigmas.

“Our space is about 3,500 square feet, and we store all the crucial elements of characters that could reoccur,” he says.

“For instance, on Evil we keep everything

A sculpture of the Hellboy (2019) body, which was used to create a foam rubber body suit worn by star David Harbour

George from Evil

Harlow designed 56 alien races for Star Trek Beyond.

One of the most detail-oriented characters Harlow creates for Evil is George, played by Marti Matulis, who is a pro at staying glued into head-to-toe prosthetics for long days of filming. A full-body piece like George takes about two and a half hours to get into. “He has a bodysuit reproduced in foam latex with a spandex undersuit, as well as foam and gusseting so the muscle movement looks correct,” says Harlow of the recurring incubus character.

The headpiece (or cowl) also covers the shoulders but, unlike the body piece, can be used only once.

“After we’ve filmed for the day, we use an oil to get the headpiece off so it’s easy on the skin. When the oil touches the mask, it’s done.” Add to that ear, face, and lip prosthetics combined with teeth, contact lenses, and hair, and it’s easy to see why Harlow campaigned for Matulis—with his sheer patience and acting acumen—to get M AY/J U N E • 2 0 2 0

the role. “There’s a natural tendency for performers to be uncomfortable. If they’re not used to wearing all this gear, they’ll feel like they can’t work through that.”

While Harlow has designed and created for everyone from Johnny Depp in the Pirates of the Caribbean film franchise to superheroes in blockbusters such as Logan and Green Lantern, it’s the monsters that are his favorite. “It’s Frankenstein syndrome,” he says with a laugh. “You get to think of a character, design it, build it in your lab, and once you’ve glued it onto the actor, the monster comes to life!”

Harlow first caught the creature bug as a kid in Grand Forks, North Dakota, when he and his dad went to see the original blackand-white King Kong movie, coupled with other scary faves like An American Werewolf in London and The Thing. “Those films redirected me from animation towards makeup and effects,” he says of his time at Manhattan’s School of Visual Arts. He’s also constantly on the lookout for new inspiration, whether it’s an interesting face on the street or the work of his peers.

Even in his downtime, Harlow confesses to picking horror over a lighthearted rom-com. “I love all kinds of movies and television, but horror speaks to me,” he says.

“And Evil has been a dream come true.” That extra storage is already coming in handy.

EVI L

MONSTER MaSH

Harlow shares some of his favorite creature creations.

Cast, Star Trek Beyond “It’s hard for me to pull out one in particular from this movie because we had 56 completely different characters to do. We started in Los Angeles and brought everything up to Vancouver.”

Bootstrap Bill, Pirates of the Caribbean series “He’s completely encrusted [by sea creatures] and was actually a 250-piece makeup job because the skin was silicone and each barnacle was a separate piece.”

Erik Killmonger, Black Panther “I’m very proud of all the body scarification on Michael B. Jordan’s character, as well as a lot of the older members who have the ornamental plates in their lower lips.”

streams on CBS All Access.

The Devil, Evil “It’s a goat-headed animatronic character with giant horns, and it required a team of three people just to apply the hair.”

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play | TOUR GUIDE

Evan Evagora’s Melbourne

The Star Trek: Picard actor delights in his hometown Down Under.

BY MARIA NEUMAN

CUT A RUG

Melbourne is a big nightlife town; public transport goes all weekend, and there are great clubs if you want to have a boogie. My favorites are Pontoon in St. Kilda for dancing and drinks. Or if it’s a Friday or Saturday night, I like Baroq House (above), which is in the middle of the city. It’s a two- level nightclub that feels intimate, and there are great DJs. I always have a good time, and I’ll be out until about 3 a.m.

The National Gallery of Victoria’s Haring and Basquiat exhibit

POST A PERFECT PICTURE

If you want to take an authentic selfie, go to Hosier Lane in the Central Business District and walk around. It’s one of the most Instagrammable parts of the city, as there is amazing street art and graffiti lanes where both international and local artists come and put up their work.

W

HEN ACTOR EVAN EVAGORA MOVED ACROSS THE PACIFIC OCEAN FROM Melbourne to Los Angeles for CBS All Access’s Star Trek: Picard, he wasn’t exactly prepared for life in Southern California. “The weather is similar,” says Evagora, who plays Romulan refugee Elnor on the critically acclaimed series. “But I’m not used to the sheer size of everything, like the massive freeways, and the little earthquakes—that was a total shock.”

Equally shocking for Evagora were the devastating bushfires that impacted Melbourne and its surrounding area in January. “The air was terrible; it was hard to breathe. And I have family friends in [outlying Victoria] whose entire town was destroyed, and they have to rebuild,” he says. “But it has been great to see people donating and the overwhelming international support.” Here, Evagora shares tips on how to spend the days (and late nights) in the city affectionately dubbed “The Europe of Australia.” “Sydney may have the beaches,” explains Evagora, “but Melbourne has everything else.”

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OGLE SOME ARTWORK

The National Gallery of Victoria is definitely worth a visit. They have amazing exhibitions, and a lot of them are interactive, which is great if you are going with kids. They had an exhibit by Salvador Dalí, who is my personal favorite, in 2009, but there have also been recent exhibits by Keith Haring and Jean-Michel Basquiat. The building is incredible, so there’s always something to see.

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ENJOY A MIDNIGHT NOSH

STAR TR EK: PI CAR D

There are late-night eateries like The Pancake Parlour, which serves pancakes and cocktails—the ultimate combination at 2 a.m. There are also amazing kebab joints everywhere, and they all do a halal snack pack, which is meat, veggies, sauce, and cheese on a bed of fries—it’s one of the best things I’ve ever eaten.

streams on CBS All Access.

DRINK UP

Any pub is a slice of Australian culture.

Whenever I go back for a visit, I always make sure to meet some mates at a pub for a drink and a cheap meal. I’ll usually drink a Victoria Bitter on Brunswick Street in Fitzroy. For cocktails, I like Naked for Satan (right)—I won’t give away the story behind the name, but it has to do with Prohibition. For quiet cocktails and a great view, I’d suggest Blue Diamond, which is [a penthouse bar] in the middle of the city.

GET CAFFEINATED

I grew up in the north part of Melbourne and used to work at a café called Proud Mary, which is one of the top coffee spots in the whole city. They also have another coffee shop right down the street called Aunty Peg’s, which is a black-coffee bar for serious connoisseurs. I spent a lot of time there when I was younger, but my true drink of choice is a simple almond milk latte or a nice cold brew when it’s warm outside.

BE A FAN

FOR PHOTO CREDITS, SEE PAGE 120

If you’re into sports, you should check out an Australian football game, which takes place in the winter. You don’t need to understand the rules to get excited by it; it’s a great spectator sport. We also had the Australian Open [in January], and a lot of money from that went to bushfire-relief charities.

All the sport in Melbourne happens near an area called Richmond, which has stadiums for soccer, rugby, Australian football, and tennis.

STAY ACTIVE

I love running. If you want to get active and have a great view, go for a run around the Royal Botanic Gardens. It’s a runner’s dream come true: There’s a great track and beautiful scenery, but you’re still in the middle of the city, so it’s a great way to see the sights.

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SAVOR A SWEET SOUVENIR

Take home Tim Tam biscuits, and bring some back for me! They are the most delicious chocolate biscuits. I’ll have a whole box sent over [by my family], and even though you can buy most stuff online, it still feels better when it comes from home.

EAT INTERNATIONALLY

Melbourne is a multicultural city, so there are tons of interesting food options. If you want Vietnamese food or dumplings, go to an area called Fitzroy, which has tons of eateries and they are all good. Whenever I’m in town, I go to Mr. Miyagi on Chapel Street—they do an amazing broccoli tempura, and I am obsessed with it. cbswatchmagazine.com /

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play | MIXTAPE

THE LATE LATE SHOW WIT H JAM ES CORD EN

airs weeknights at 12:37 a.m. ET/11:37 p.m.

PT and streams on CBS All Access.

Watts Happening Todd Rundgren

Reggie Watts, the bandleader for The Late Late Show with James Corden, creates his ultimate playlist.

Emma Proulx of Men I Trust

Reggie Watts

Best Classic Song “I’ve been listening to ‘I Saw the Light’

by Todd Rundgren.

It has a good mellow flow and puts me in a good mood, like laying in the sunlight in the grass.”

Best Dance Song “‘If I Ever Feel Better’

by Phoenix”

Best Song for Driving “The Oncle Jazz album

by Men I Trust”

Best Song for Any Playlist “Janet Jackson’s ‘Control’”

Best Song for Jump-Starting Your Day “B-52’s ‘Wig’”

Best Song for Brightening Your Mood “I’ve got to go with ‘If I Ever Feel Better’

by Phoenix again —it will definitely make you happy.”

Best Workout Song “Any song by John Tejada”

Best Song to Perform “Any song that I come up with in the moment”

Phoenix performing in 2018

FOR PHOTO CREDITS, SEE PAGE 120

John Tejada

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BLISS LIST | play

WaTCH ON THE WEB

Find more of Sabrina's favorite things at cbswatchmagazine.com.

1

MOANA

My 2-year-old son, Wolfie, is obsessed with that movie.

His birthday is coming up and we’re making it Moana themed.

We’ve hired a drag queen to be Moana and I’m playing Maui.

The story caps on a core truth about life, which is the importance of knowing, loving, and believing in yourself.

2

DRAKE

Twelve years ago when I moved from Toronto to New York, I would hear his songs on the radio and they would remind me of home.

His music was about the hustle, and I’d be on the subway after a midnight set, and it was cold, and I didn’t have any friends.

Listening to Drake sing, “Started from the bottom now we’re here” would pep me up. In a weird way, I felt like we were peers. One of us just had more diamonds.

7

Things That Make Me Smile Comedian Sabrina Jalees shares her prescription for a happy life.

BARGAIN HUNTING FOR PHOTO CREDITS, SEE PAGE 120

7

BY CARRIE BELL

I come from two immigrant parents whose mentality is to take the bus uptown for two hours to save 50 cents on a pound of chicken. It’s hard to drop that and be frivolous with money, but my wife and I love to travel and relax. So I appreciate a good value and want to shout out this free website I use called Scott’s Cheap Flights. Their email blasts tip you off to mistake fares and sales. Last year we scored $600 round-trip first-class tickets to Bangkok; normally they would have been $20,000.

6

HAPPY HOUR

My wife and I love happy hours, especially when they have food, because we feel like that’s a great hack. When Wolfie was a baby, nothing satisfied him between 5 and 7 p.m.

We realized that if we put him in the stroller and walked to our favorite restaurant, he would fall asleep on the way. We’d have a glass of wine and a bite while totally skipping the witching hour.

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5

THE PAPARAZZI

3

A BASEBALL CAP

I am a flat-brimmed-ball-cap kind of girl.

It helps me feel protected. Everybody knows the top of a girl’s head can be chaotic: Sometimes it’s too flat, sometimes too poufy. A ball cap is a stylish way of not dealing with flyaways.

4

When my co-star Ashley Tisdale and I go for coffee at this one café in L.A., the paparazzi are always there taking pictures. It’s euphoric for me. And I realized the more you perform for the cameras, the more photos they print. I did a cartwheel once and there were articles written about it in Brazil and in the U.K. And the week after I did that cartwheel, I got a call to co-host Entertainment Tonight. I was like, “Wow, so this is how the machine works.” It’s real easy to game the system when your best friend is Ashley Tisdale.

GOLF

When we were filming the pilot for Carol’s Second Act, Patricia Heaton was taking golf swings. I know how to make a friend, so I went next to her and started swinging. I’m sporty, so I could mimic a golf swing, but I’d never played a round of golf before.

She was like, “Do you golf? That’s a pretty good swing.” And I was like, “Yes!” She called me after the pilot wrapped and asked me to be on her team for a celebrity golf tournament. I had to hire an instructor and learn how to play.

I got about eight feet away from a hole-inone. Golfing is like a CAR OL’S secret society: It’s a SECO ND ACT culture of drinking, streams on CBS All Access. hanging, and chatting. cbswatchmagazine.com /

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play | A DAY IN THE LIFE

24 Hours With . . .

Lesley Stahl

Since joining 60 Minutes full time in 1991, Lesley Stahl, 78, has reported well over 400 stories for the most-watched newsmagazine on TV. Here’s how the venerable journalist keeps her cool— and always lands the story.

Interviewin Steve Krof g t segment m for a his retirem arking en from 60 M t inutes

AS TOLD TO DAVID HOCHMAN

6:00 A.M.

On days I’m not traveling for work—which isn’t often—the dreaded alarm goes off and I drag myself into the bathroom to dress with the news on our little TV. After I feed our dog, Parker, I try to get through the papers—yes, real paper!—with multiple cups of coffee.

8:00 A.M.

I go to a slow-weightlifting gym two mornings a week. It’s what it sounds like: You push or pull heavy weights slowly till you cry! I do not love it.

9:00 A.M.

I live 20 New York City blocks from the 60 Minutes office on West 57th Street. If the weather’s good, I’ll walk. I’m determined to lead a normal life. I love being out on the streets: I get a lot of “Hi! We love 60 Minutes!”

10:00 A.M.

One of the best parts of the job is that no two days are the same.

My schedule depends on where I am in the cycle.

After traveling to do an interview, I might be at my desk reading research, or working with a producer on a script or questions, or having our boss look at our finished stories and call for changes— often many. I’ve worked on stories that take a year (like the one on a choir of teenage gospel singers) or a single day. I once did a live interview. This is rare: Virtually all our

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6 0 M INU TE S

airs Sundays at 7 p.m. ET/PT. Streams on CBS All Access and cbsnews.com.

Reporting on commercial seaweed farming off the coast of Connecticut

interviews are on videotape. It was with Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld the day Saddam Hussein was captured.

NOON

I go out to lunch with my girlfriends whenever possible.

When I started out in the early 1970s, there were hardly any other women in TV news. A small group of us—this was in Washington—had lunch once a week. The group included Cokie Roberts, Linda Wertheimer, and Nina Totenberg, all of NPR. I’m in another lunch group in New York. The same women for 30 years.

Guantanamo Bay, Cuba

4:30 P.M.

I’m thrown off when I’m asked about my hobYork but go to sleep in some far off place. Once it was near the North bies. I don’t have any. Lately, though, I’ve been Pole. I woke up in the middle of the night in a toasty warm tent. To FaceTiming with my granddaughters. Does that count? I like to go to the john, I had to get fully dressed in multiple layers and heavy play the piano (though I’m not very good at it), and I did find boots, step out gingerly onto the ice, and find the outhouse time to write two books. Working mothers become (with the wooden toilet seat). There was a really good adept at managing their time. part: The sky was bright emerald green. The most The aurora borealis beautiful sight, at the top of the world. More important than the places are the extraordinary I don’t cook. So my husband people I’ve met and interviewed, from heads of and I eat out a lot, or order state to school teachers. in. After the 6:30 news (we’re creatures of habit) on CBS, we either read in bed or watch TV. We like crime dramas, the History I do think about retirement, channel, and now a show called Servant on just not mine! The job is Apple TV. Our daughter is the producer. my hobby. I still love to travel. I get to work with an A+ team of brilliant journalists who are also decent and honorable. So I plan to stick Because we at 60 Minutes travel around—as long as they’ll have me. so much, I often wake up in New

FOR PHOTO CREDITS, SEE PAGE 120

7:30 P.M.

11:00 P.M.

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play | PASSION PROJECT

Nyambi gets creative at home.

It’s Kind of a Funny Story

How a lifelong love of comic books (and a seriously huge collection) inspires The Good Fight’s Nyambi Nyambi to create his own works of graphic art

BY OLIVER JONES

Nyambi’s sketches of The Good Fight stars

NYAMBI NYAMBI’S GREATEST HITS

THE GO OD FIGHT

streams on CBS All Access.

Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson: “As a kid, I never knew that comic book stores existed. For me, comics were all about the Sunday paper and Calvin and Hobbes, The Far Side, and Hi and Lois.”

Batman: Year One by Frank Miller: “This was the first comic book I bought when I walked into Midtown Comics in New York City in 2005. Nothing has ever been the same.”

Sweet Tooth by Jeff Lemire: “To watch how a story like that can breathe without dialogue and to witness the emotional life that unfolds on the page—panel to panel—is incredible.”

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ALL: COURTESY NYAMBI NYAMBI

S

OME ACTORS DREAM OF awards and accolades; Nyambi Nyambi covets another prize.

“I would love to one day own the first printing of the very first issue of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,” says the star of CBS All Access’s The Good Fight, referring to the 3,000-print black-and-white comic that kicked off an unlikely half-shell revolution in 1984.

If he ever does get his hands on one (an investment that could set him back anywhere from $3,800 to $38,000, depending on its condition), the issue will have plenty of company. Since first landing the part of Samuel the waiter on CBS’s Mike & Molly a decade ago, Nyambi, a first-generation Nigerian American who was a voracious reader of Sunday comic strips growing up in Oklahoma and Virginia, has amassed a collection that rivals many of the comic book shops he frequents every Wednesday.

(For the uninitiated, that’s the day new comic books arrive in stores.)

Along with hundreds of statue collectibles of most of the DC and Marvel characters, his thousands of comic books spill over from his home into storage units.

The 41-year-old explains the nature of his obsession straightforwardly. “For me, comic books have always inspired my imagination in a way that other mediums don’t,” he says.

“And drawing is another creative way for me to explore as an actor or a storyteller.”

Nyambi’s comic book dreams are not limited to collecting. He also takes art classes, draws every day, and is working toward illustrating and writing his first comic. Ultimately, he wants to complete a trade paperback. “My artwork is good for a single page, but telling a story [over multiple pages] is still something I need to learn,” says Nyambi, who shares his artistic talent with his Good Fight character, investigator Jay Dipersia, and whose personal drawings (pictured left) were included in the series.

Adds Nyambi: “I’m an actor who absolutely loves comic books and loves to draw, but it would be a disservice to comic book artists to say I am a comic book artist. At least for now.”

HOROSCOPES | Play CANCER JUNE 22–JULY 22

LINDA CARDELLINI, DEAD TO ME JUNE 25

You may feel like you’re treading water early June, but relax. Your birthday season commences June 21, along with the new moon solar eclipse. Dream big—you’re in an expansive new cycle. Power duo Jupiter and Pluto join in your partnership zone June 29; the love connection you make could last a lifetime.

LEO JULY 23–AUGUST 22 JULIAN MCMAHON, FBI: MOST WANTED JULY 27

In the Stars

Happy birthday, Cancer! Celebrate with your true love!

BY VIRGINIA BELL

The May 22 new moon, plus Mercury and Venus, blaze through your networking zone; it’s time for some self-promotion.

New friends and old contacts reach out to help. The June 21 new moon solar eclipse inspires you to volunteer, perhaps like Maria Bello (NCIS), who supports several humanitarian organizations.

VIRGO AUGUST 23– SEPTEMBER 22 EMMA KENNEY, SHAMELESS SEPTEMBER 14

The sun and Venus align in your professional zone June 3. Someone in authority is impressed with your work, and your career is about to take off. The June 21 solar eclipse is ideal for letting go of old habits, like being hard on yourself.

Remember, we’re all a Work in Progress.

LIBRA SEPTEMBER 23– OCTOBER 23 WILL ESTES, BLUE BLOODS OCTOBER 21

Mercury retrograde in your professional zone starting June 17 can make your job tense, but your work ethic pays off with a promotion or special project.

Jupiter and Pluto connect in your domestic zone June 29, revealing exciting changes at home, whether a move, renovation, or new family member.

SCORPIO OCTOBER 24– NOVEMBER 21 TONI COLLETTE, UNBELIEVABLE NOVEMBER 1

With the June 21 new moon solar eclipse in your higher learning and publishing zone, your mind is on fire. You have more clever ideas than MacGyver.

Scorpios are deep thinkers; find a project that requires study. Surprising Uranus in your love zone brings an unexpected romance late June.

SAGITTARIUS NOVEMBER 22– DECEMBER 21 JENNIFER BEALS, THE L WORD: GENERATION Q DECEMBER 19

The June 5 full moon in Sagittarius is a feel-good time; be social, network, circulate. You’re ready to rebuild your resources, and with planetary power in your financial zone, you could have a windfall June 28–July 4. More important, this is an opportunity to create self-worth.

FOR PHOTO CREDITS, SEE PAGE 120

L

INDA CARDELLINI’S sun is in compassionate and caring Cancer, which makes her sensitive and intuitive with a deep commitment to home and family. Her moon in earthy Capricorn provides discipline, integrity, and a powerful work ethic. Mars and Jupiter in fierce Aries blesses her with courage, ambition, and good fortune.

This is going to be a significant year for Linda. Mars in audacious Aries empowers her chart, showering her with success, as does the June 20 new moon eclipse. Eclipses herald major life events such as births, DEAD TO M E moves, and is produced by CBS unexpected Television Studios and returns May 8 career opporon Netflix. tunities.

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CAPRICORN DECEMBER 22– JANUARY 19 ISA BRIONES, STAR TREK: PICARD JANUARY 17

The May 22 new moon in your well-being zone inspires you to get back to the gym, which will be a real game changer for you. Like Frank Reagan (Blue Bloods), Capricorns radiate strength.

With mega-planets Jupiter and Pluto in Capricorn (June 29), it’s finally time to claim that power.

AQUARIUS JANUARY 20– FEBRUARY 18 DAMIAN LEWIS, BILLIONS FEBRUARY 11

You may feel cramped and want to break free early June, but don’t undermine the progress you’ve made. Find a way to be independent, like a new sport or pastime. June 27 action-planet Mars enters your communication zone. An old idea or project may resurface; give it another look.

PISCES FEBRUARY 19– MARCH 20 AASIF MANDVI, EVIL MARCH 5

Those recent worries of yours will begin to recede during June. But you need faith.

That's a theme shows such as Evil and God Friended Me explore; watch and learn. June 30 the sun and Uranus make a dynamic connection, bringing you a new vision for the future, including a creative project.

ARIES MARCH 21–APRIL 19 DAISY HAGGARD, BACK TO LIFE MARCH 22

You may feel like you’re in The Twilight Zone late May and June since your ruler, fiery Mars, is swimming through watery Pisces. It’s a great time to brainstorm.

Life speeds up June 27, when Mars enters Aries for the rest of the year—an exceptional event!

The possibilities are endless.

TAURUS APRIL 20–MAY 20 MEAGAN TANDY, BATWOMAN MAY 3

Your guardian planet Venus is retrograde in your financial zone through June 24.

Cut back on spa treatments and expensive dinners.

Consider a side gig; it could lead to something profitable.

Stay positive— something special (and romantic) happens in The Neighborhood June 25 to 30.

GEMINI MAY 21–JUNE 21 JAMES CALLIS, BLOOD & TREASURE JUNE 4

The Gemini new moon May 22 initiates your power time. Even Mercury retrograde, beginning June 17, won’t prevent you from planting seeds for later success.

Be patient; some of the setbacks will prove extremely advantageous. The June 21 new moon solar eclipse brings a fresh perspective on your long-range plans.

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Photo Credits NEW ORDER (p. 32-33) Mankiewicz, Weidemann: Cara Robbins/Contour by Getty Images (2); others: CBS (7).

IN THE ZONE (p. 35) All: Getty Images. Clockwise from top left: Steve Granitz; Roy Rochlin; NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal; Presley Ann; Cliff Lipson/ CBS; LISA O’CONNOR/AFP; Roy Rochlin; Bennett Raglin; J. Countess; Santiago Felipe; Stefanie Keenan; Matt Winkelmeyer.

IN FULL COLOR (p. 40-41) Page 40: Clockwise from bottom left: Shopbop; J.Crew; Intermix; Net-a-Porter; James White; Shopbop. Page 41: Clockwise

Clamer/CBS; PRETTYLITTLETHING; Cynthia

Partner. Page 56-57: Clockwise from top left:

Getty Images; DISCOGS.COM (2); The1point8;

Rybakoff; Fleur du Mal; Cynthia Rybakoff;

Warner Brothers/Getty Images; Universal/

DISCOGS.COM; Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images.

Nordstrom; Net-a-Porter (3); Courtesy Janie

Everett Collection; Columbia Pictures/Everett

Bryant; Neiman Marcus.

Collection; Chris Large/FX/Everett Collection; Dan MacMedan/Getty Images; Paramount

7 THINGS THAT MAKE ME SMILE

Classics/Everett Collection. Page 58-59: All:

(p. 115) Clockwise from top left: Christopher

(p. 44) 2: Paul Zimmerman/Shutterstock; 3:

Alasdair McLellan/Art Partner. Page 60-61:

Polk/Getty Images; Sophy Holland; Walt Disney

John Photography/Shutterstock; 8: Paige

All: Patti Perret/Sony/SHOWTIME. Page 62:

Co./Everett Collection; DICK’S Sporting Goods;

Kindlick/Shutterstock; 13: Courtesy Ruby Jay.

Alasdair McLellan/Art Partner.

Douglas Sacha/Getty Images; Phamous/BACK-

RUBY JAY

All others: Getty Images. 1: Arnold Jerocki; 4: Tibrina Hobson; 5: Jon Kopaloff; 6: Rodin Eckenroth; 7: Steven Ferdman; 9: VALERIE MACON/ AFP; 10. Gregg DeGuire; 11, 15: Presley Ann (2); 12: Paul Archuleta; 14: Emma McIntyre.

CASA DE SASHA (p. 45) Clockwise from top left: Hildie Plumpepper; Maison Margiela; Alessandro

from top left: Jason LaVeris/Getty Images;

Viero/IMAXTREE.COM; Apple; Rotate Birger

PrettyLittleThing; Net-a-Porter; Intermix;

Christensen; Christopher Ross; By My Grace;

Victor Boyko/Getty Images; Farfetch; Shop-

Jemal Countess/Getty Images.

WICKED GOOD

GRID; istetiana/Getty Images; Aaron Foster/ Getty Images.

(p. 110-111) Star Trek: Paramount Pictures/Everett Collection; Pirates of the Caribbean: Buena Vista

LESLEY STAHL

Pictures/Everett Collection; Devil: Elizabeth

(p. 116-117) Clockwise from left: Michele

Fisher/CBS; others: Courtesy Joel Harlow (6).

Crowe/CBS; 60 Minutes (2); Mark Wilson/ Getty Images; Dave Moorhouse/Getty

EVAN EVAGORA’S MELBOURNE

Images; Michael Burrell/Getty Images.

(p. 112-113) Map: Sara Mulvanny. Others, clock-

IN THE STARS

wise from left: Tristar Media/Getty Images;

(p. 119) Cardellini: Maarten de Boer/The

ymgerman/Getty Images; Baroq House; The

Licensing Project. All others: Getty Images.

Pancake Parlour; Victoria Bitter; MARGOT

Others, clockwise from top left: Manny

FINK; Visit Roemvanitch/Getty Images; Jack

Carabel; VALERIE MACON/AFP; Andrew

Thomas/Getty Images; Saturated/Getty

Toth; Mike Marsland; Gary Gershoff; Matthew

Chen/Netflix; Dan Doperalski/Variety/Shut-

Images; Mr. Miyagi; Zoya_Avenirovna/Getty

Eisman; Jason Mendez; Paul Archuleta; Gary

terstock; Eddy Chen/Netflix; R+Co; Jillian

Images; Sean Fennessy/Estate of Jean-Michel

Gershoff; Samir Hussein; Jemal Countess.

Dempsey; Tom Ford; Beautycounter.

Basquiat & Keith Haring Foundation.

Clothing; Nordstrom; Absolutely Audey; SJP

SHOW HER THE MONEY

WATTS HAPPENING

by Sarah Jessica Parker. Page 43: Clockwise

(p. 52-63) Page 52-53: Alasdair McLellan/Art

(p. 114) Clockwise from top left: Robyn Von

Flemming/CBS; CBS/Everett Collection;

from top left: Jessica Brooks/CBS; Matthias

Partner. Page 55-56: Alasdair McLellan/Art

Swank; Richard E. Aaron/Getty Images; PYMCA/

Robert Ascroft/CBS; Everett Collection.

bop (3); Net-a-Porter; Shopbop; Net-a-Porter; Intermix; Frederick M. Brown/ Getty Images; Net-a-Porter.

LIGHTS, CAMERA, FASHION! (p. 42-43) Page 42: Clockwise from left:

BRIGHT BEAUTIES (p. 46-47) Clockwise from left: The Ordinary; Koh Gen Do (2); MAC Cosmetics; Ouai; Eddy

Moses Berkson; Aaron Epstein/CBS; Neiman Marcus; Courtesy Janie Bryant; Lady Mayra

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PARENT RAP (p. 122) Clockwise from top: Bettmann/Getty Images; POP TV; Robert Voets/CBS; Sonja

M AY/J U N E • 2 0 2 0

play | LAST WORD

Parent Rap

CBS stars old and new give a shoutout to Mom, Dad, and the art of parenting.

“MOMMy CaN DO WHaTEVER SHE WaNTS.” —Jen Harding (Christina Applegate), Dead to Me

“I was 5 years old before I knew my father could talk. You know the first thing he said? ‘Listen to your mother.’”

“Oh, god, my body’s making milk. It’s like one day discovering you can get bacon out of your elbow.”

—Murphy Brown (Candice Bergen), Murphy Brown

“IF AIRPLANE SAFETY VIDEOS HAVE TAUGHT ME ANYTHING, IT’S THAT A MOTHER PUTS HER OWN MASK ON FIRST.” —Moira Rose (Catherine O’Hara), Schitt’s Creek

RAY: “LISTEN, DAD, WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU SAID I LOVE YOU TO SOMEONE?” FRANK: “WHAT? DO YOU LIVE IN A FREAKING FAIRYLAND?”

—Ray Barone (Ray Romano) and Frank Barone (Peter Boyle), Everybody Loves Raymond

—Rhoda Morgenstern (Valerie Harper), The Mary Tyler Moore Show

“As my mom used to say, ‘When you’re doing a puzzle, it’s like you’ve got a thousand friends.’ She was full of fun lies like that.”

—Amy Farrah Fowler (Mayim Bialik), The Big Bang Theory

—Christy (Anna Faris), Mom

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“all I DO IS lIE TO My KIDS— DRIVE THEM plaCES aND lIE.”

FOR PHOTO CREDITS, SEE PAGE 120

“Some mothers teach their daughters how to bake. Mine taught me how to beat a cavity search and still feel like a lady.”

—Ben (Omar Miller), The Unicorn

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