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Jane Lynch on her ‘funny and touching' final scene with Steve Martin on ‘Only Murders in the Building'
Jane Lynch was giddy with excitement when Season 3 of Only Murders in the Building ended with the murder of her fan-favorite stuntwoman, Sazz Pataki, because Season 4 of the Hulu comedy would allow her to dive deeper into Sazz's story via flashbacks. The actress tells Gold Derby that her scenes grew "more and more funny and touching" opposite Steve Martin's Charles-Haden Savage.
"It was a lifelong devotion and it would never stop. And in fact, it continued into her death,' explains Jane Lynch of her character Sazz's loyalty to Charles. "She came back as a ghost and continued to take care of him and let him know how much he was loved. He's an insecure guy and he's hard on himself. Sazz is not like that at all. She's one of those free spirits, and she has all that confidence.'
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In their final onscreen moment together, Sazz and Charles sit on the edge of a bed, mirroring each other in one last act of appreciation. "We knew it was special and the scene was written very beautifully," remembers Lynch. "It was so quiet… I thought that they shot it beautifully. He's sitting there alone, and then all of a sudden he changed the camera angle and I'm sitting there with him and we're in the same posture as we always were. We copied. I copied the way Steve moved. There was a bittersweet aspect to the scene, like she knew it was over and that she was going to be moving on now, wherever that was. And he knew that she probably wouldn't be coming back to visit.'
SEE Selena Gomez, Martin Short, Steve Martin, and the Only Murders in the Building cast share their personal highlights from Season 4
In addition to these tender goodbyes, Lynch appreciates that Season 4 finally showcased how Sazz behaved on a film set. "It's just how alive she was and lit up," she gushes, remembering Sazz's energy as a stuntwoman. "She was in her element and just on fire, and that's kind of how I feel in life too when I go to work. I just love it. I'm still thrilled every time I get to park in cast parking!"
Lynch has enjoyed a long career in comedy. That includes over 240 film and TV credits, stints on Broadway in Annie and Funny Girl, and five Primetime Emmy Awards for Glee, Hollywood Game Night, and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. When it comes to her longevity, she believes it's because she keeps finding ways not to take herself too seriously. "When I was younger and just starting in the business, I think one of the reasons that I did well is that I had kind of a weird take. I've probably gotten to know myself more. And I think the more you get to know yourself, the more there's funny in there. ... If you're taking yourself way too personally… it inhibits your growth as a human being and makes you have less value on the planet.'
The actress, whose memoir is aptly titled Happy Accidents, famously lives without any grand plan for the future. This approach has taken Lynch's career in directions she never would have dreamed for herself. "I think it's a blessing as opposed to a curse. I know I do better when I don't plan," she states. "I'd be done with something and I'd come home and go, I don't know what's next. But I knew something would come up and something usually did. And beyond my wildest dreams too! Like the role in Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, I couldn't have designed that for myself. And this role Sazz, it's so weird and out there and juicy. I don't have the imagination for that! I mean… I've hosted two game shows. It's not that I said no to that, it just never crossed my mind. And it's all so much fun. I love it so much."
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