Carrey mixes sunshine and sorrow in Kidding
LOS ANGELES — Jim Carrey isn’t a beloved children’s show host like Jeff Pickles, his character in Showtime’s Kidding (Sunday, 10 p.m.), but he understands the ups and downs of living in the spotlight.
The parallels are “amazing,” he says. “Jeff Pickles is the guy everybody’s known for decades. There’s three generations of people that have grown up with this guy,” and “that’s been happening for me,” says the actor, known for projects from Fox’s sketch-comedy series In Living Colour and Ace Ventura: Pet Detective to The Truman Show.
On set, children of crew members who grew up as fans call him The Grinch, a role he played in 2000.
“I go: ‘I am The Grinch. Do you want to see the face?’ ” says Carrey, offering a demonstration as he instantly transitions into the Dr. Seuss character: eyebrows arched, cheekbones raised, nose scrunched and lips half-circled into a scary U.
Just as quickly, the man of 1,000 faces readjusts, smile downshifted from threatening to friendly: “That’s a joyful thing that’s fun to do with the kids.”
But there’s a private side to Mr. Pickles (aka Jeff Piccirillo), a version of Mister Rogers who’s enveloped in profound sadness after a family death that also destroyed his marriage to Jill (Judy Greer), the mother of their adolescent son, Will (Cole Allen).
Grief is difficult for Jeff to reconcile with his upbeat public persona, especially when outward manifestations of his inner turmoil threaten a multimillion-dollar entertainment empire, a concern for cold-eyed producer Seb (Frank Langella), who scuttles Jeff’s thoughtful show segment explaining death and questions his sanity.
Carrey, 56, says he knows the public/private split.
“It’s a conundrum for people like me, or anybody in a position like Jeff Pickles, to have those things go on at the same time you have to present an image to people,” he says. “That’s a terrible burden when some giant monster is welling up inside you.”
After going through his own difficulties, Carrey says, he feels able to channel Jeff’s pain.
“I had tremendous tragedy in my life. I dealt with things I don’t want to get into, things that were extremely unjust and painful: loss, grief, dealing with greed at the same time,” he says.
He acknowledges the reference to the suicide of former girlfriend Cathriona White in 2015 and a wrongful-death lawsuit filed against him by her family, which was dismissed in January.
The darkness of Kidding is offset by heavy doses of humour, whether it’s innocent Jeff’s awkward appearance on Conan, Seb’s mordant observations or suspicions about whether two actors are having sex in a giant horse costume.
Jeff’s childlike innocence, fan worship and grown-up sexual desire turn his romantic forays into combustible comedy.
Carrey, who grew up with kids’ shows Mr. Dressup and The Friendly Giant (but not Mister Rogers) in Ontario, says Jeff is an original character with his own out-there sensibility, “but the template is something [Fred Rogers] laid down as far as a gentleman who seems to personify gentleness and kindness.”
For his first regular TV role since Colour vaulted him to fame in 1990, Carrey was won over by the script. And it helped that Michel Gondry, who directed the actor in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, signed on to direct six of 10 episodes.
The actor, who’s now shooting a Sonic the Hedgehog movie in Ladysmith, allows himself that freedom in his career. “I want to win, but I’ll fail at trying something amazing and different every time. There’s no shame at all to that.”