Act of war triggers tears
BILLY CRUDUP IS SO EXCITED TO BE BACK ON THE NEWS BATTLEFRONT
BILLY Crudup was brought to tears on the first day back on set for the second season of Morning Wars. The production had been shut down just weeks into the next chapter of the series set behind the scenes of a breakfast TV show which also stars Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon. Cast and crew did not know when, or even if, they would get back to work. So it’s understandable emotions were high when they finally reunited – New York still very much suffering as the pandemic epicentre in the US.
“There was scene in the very first episode where I had to go up and hug (Witherspoon’s character) Bradley and, you know, with my friends, I’m a very tactile person,” Crudup shares.
“I realised just how much I missed putting my arms around my friends. I can remember the first time I rehearsed the take with Reese, I was starting to well up because I was so excited to be with people again. The experience of something so familiar that was lost for a short period of time, to have it come back – it was personally truly, truly gratifying and lovely.”
Crudup won an Emmy for playing Cory Ellison the first time around. He tells Midweek Binge how shocked and overwhelmed he was by the honour. “When you’ve been in this business for 30 years you realise how rare an experience that is,” Crudup explains.
“We were still in the midst of so many things especially here in New York, so it felt sort of like a parenthetical moment for me. There were so many other complex things to manage on a day-to-day basis, that just getting a pat on the back like that for something that I loved doing was incredibly rewarding.”
This second season picks up in the aftermath of the explosive cliffhanger where co-anchors Aniston’s Alex Levy and Witherspoon’s Bradley Jackson hijack the broadcast to expose the toxic culture of sexual harassment at UBA. Crudup, whose chaotic energy stole almost every scene as the newly arrived network executive, locks the door against his boss – the head of UBA.
Cory is now CEO of the multinational conglomerate and Crudup agrees he’s lost a little of his enthusiasm and light.
“We refer to him becoming a real boy,” he explains. “He was sort of a Puck-ish, fantastical creature who lived in the fringes and allowed himself to walk into uncomfortable rooms just to test the limits. So what happens when that kind of personality ascends to the absolute position of power and the weight of that responsibility is part and parcel of how he negotiates the second season.”
Would Crudup ever seek that level of power in real life?
“No, no – it’s a hard no from me, Lisa,” he laughs, adding he assiduously avoided that responsibility even at school, leaving it to his brother Tommy to become student body president.
He’s eternally grateful to Aniston and Witherspoon and their producing partners for giving him the opportunity of a lifetime.
“… to have an opportunity to play someone so extravagant on a show with such ambition is beyond remarkable,” Crudup says. “I’m truly, truly grateful so when I see them it’s hard to do anything but fawn over their collective energy, their generosity, their expertise and their work ethic.”
There’s a few new fabulous additions to the strong ensemble with Julianna Marguiles as hardhitting journalist Laura Peterson, Hasan Minhaj as The Morning Show’s new co-host Eric Nomani and Greta Lee as the straight-talking President of News Stella Bak. Was there any initiation ceremonies to join the tight-knit tribe?
“I really wish we had this conversation before they joined,” Crudup says, with a laugh. “Then I would have thought to do some. In reality I was too busy panicking about my life and my lines. But Greta deserves some and Hassan also – Julianna doesn’t, she’s already been through the wringer.
“There was a new energy which was exciting which they brought straightaway. But I should have hazed them, you are absolutely right, that was poor judgment on my part. That’s what you should actually do in a position of power – use that power for your own joy.”
I realised just how much I missed putting my arms around my friends
Morning Wars, new episodes drop Fridays, AppleTV+