Facetime with Michael Zegen
Michael Zegen just began filming the second season of the Golden Globe-winning “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” in which he plays Midge’s husband, Joel. He also has a big-screen appearance on the docket, playing Mikhail in a star-studded adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s “The Seagull.”
The Jewish family dynamic is a major theme in “Mrs. Maisel.” How does coming from one yourself inform how you approach those scenes?
It’s certainly something that I understand and something I connect with, so that was part of the reason why I wanted the show so badly — I knew that world. It’s not something I want to get typecast with. I’d like to branch out a little bit, but when it’s something this good, it really doesn’t matter.
How do you keep your composure during serious scenes while Rachel Brosnahan throws funny one-liners?
The whole environment is funny. You try to stay in the zone and just try to break yourself off from everybody. I do remember [the day of the breakup scene] Rachel and I didn’t really talk to each other. Even between takes, I remember looking at her, and she was just sort of across the room doing her own thing, and I was doing my own thing and trying not to break that focus.
What do you hope for Joel in Season 2?
I think we’re going to see more of Joel’s redemption through the seasons. I guess that was the plan from the get-go. I just want him to find something he’s good at because right now I think there’s this cloud of mystery over what Joel is going to do with his life. So I want him to find that and to be happy.
“The Seagull” releases May 11. What drew you to the project?
Clearly the caliber of the cast involved. I knew that Annette Bening was doing it. I knew that Elisabeth Moss was in it, and Saoirse Ronan. I almost didn’t audition for it because I didn’t think I was gonna get it. Sometimes I’m my own worst enemy in that regard. But I went in anyway, and I could tell immediately that they liked me. And then filming it was so much fun, I even have panic attacks about the fact that I almost didn’t go in.