'Leanne': Leanne Morgan thought she'd fail every Monday, by Friday, she was the pro

Yahoo

3 days ago

Leanne Morgan's new Netflix show, Leanne, brings back the multi-camera TV sitcom format, adding her unique Southern twist. Also featuring Kristen Johnston, Ryan Stiles, Blake Clark and Celia Weston, it's one of the most endearing shows to watch right now.
Morgan and Johnston spoke to Yahoo Canada about the bond they quickly established while making the show, leading to a lot of "bed stuff" with the actors, who play sisters, on screen. From a story about marriage, divorce, menopause and taking care of older parents, Morgan's show is a reflection of her dream coming true.
Video Transcript
Hi, how are you?
Good, my darling, how are you?
Good.
I loved this show so much.
I was hollering so loud.
So I can't wait to chat with you.
To dive deep into the specifics, the episode where your character's dating and she's going through menopause, I thought was so funny.
Also something we haven't seen a lot, but I was laughing so hard when you just lifted your arms up in front of Kristen.
Honey, it wasn't hard.
Because I have gone through menopause and I have sweat, and um, wake up in the middle of the night and Chuck Morgan, my husband has said, 'What is that?'
And I go, Touch this.
And he's like, 'Oh.'
So I, that is all real and that came from an authentic place.
Honey, because I have been through a rough menopause.
Now I haven't had to date, thank the Lord.
Because that would be, oh yeah, oh Lord, I can't imagine a jungle.
It's just not gonna happen.
Yeah.
What are you doing?
I'm getting undressed.
That usually happens at the end of the date.
I can't go.
This was a mistake.
Carol, you're gonna have to call him and tell him I'm sick.
We'll just try again in a few years.
He's an FBI agent.
He's gonna know I'm lying.
You're right, he is, because he's so good at his job and he's so good looking.
You are too.
Wait till he tries your meatloaf.
I've got that recipe from Southern Living.
It's not even mine.
I love seeing you two together, but I really can't think of two people that would be greater as parents, as Celia Weston and Blake Clark.
It's just perfect.
Oh, they were magical, magic.
Just every line.
Even when they messed it up, we were like, we don't care, just, just say whatever, man.
You're brilliant, darling.
Yeah, perfect.
I think so much at the heart of this series is the relationship that you two have and to see Kristen, how your character is kind of supporting Leanne's character, but is also like doing her own, which I think is really great.
Tell me a little bit about just what your collaboration was like.
It seems pretty seamless.
We got along right away.
Instant love, love at first sight.
And then I think, you know, another thing that's so great about this writing team is they picked up on all that and I think they bring that into the relationships.
Like, I don't think there were like 30 scenes set in Leanne's bed between us until we started, they started realizing how great those scenes worked.
So there's a lot of bedstone.
Uh-huh, we take to the bed, we take to the bed together, um, but yeah, I think that was it.
I think a great writer watches the dynamic and builds on it and takes what works and I think our relationship definitely bled into the show a lot.
You're stepping into like a pretty iconic TV genre that I think a lot of people We are gonna watch this and they're gonna feel like a little bit of warm and fuzzy to bring back that like sitcom that I think a lot of us remember, but executed, I think, in a great way that really does justice to our favorites that we loved.
But what was it like for you to be able to kind of step into this and to be able to do the kind of multi-cam sitcom and kind of bring that back, I think.
Oh, you angel.
Well, I was.
It had always been my dream and then, um, and I'd had deals before, but they didn't make it.
And, and then when Chuck Lorre came to me, I mean, it went so fast moving so fast and casting and everything just fell into place.
It was meant to be.
Every Monday at the start of the week, she would come in and be like, I can't, it's too, there's so much to remember.
I can't do it.
I'm, this is gonna be a failure.
I'm, uh, uh, and then by Friday, the audience would get there and she'd be like, Rao, you know, like.
She was just the pro.
Like, and finally after a couple of weeks, every Monday, I'm like, shut up.
You've already said it, you're gonna be perfect because you are.
But anyway it was a big challenge.
It was it was a big challenge, but I tell everybody, she had two jobs.
She had her own job and then she had to coach me.
She helped me so much because I didn't know the terminology.
I didn't know anything, and she would say, this is what's happening.
And I, and then, it helped me so much.
But yeah, it was a big challenge, but a joy.
And then I began, I got settled into it, and I want to keep doing it.
It did; it felt like home by the end of it.