Jessie Eisenberg and Claire Danes Talk FX's 'Fleishman Is in Trouble'
Moviefone speaks with Jessie Eisenberg and Claire Danes about 'Fleishman is in Trouble.' "What's amazing about the show is it switches perspectives," the actor said.
(L to R) Claire Danes and Jesse Eisenberg star in FX on Hulu's 'Fleishman Is in Trouble.'
Premiering on FX on Hulu beginning November 17th is the new series 'Fleishman Is in Trouble,' which is based on the novel of the same name as Taffy Brodesser-Akner.
The series stars Jessie Eisenberg (‘Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice') as Toby Fleishman, a recently divorced doctor who is new to the world of dating apps. But when his ex-wife Rachel (Claire Danes) disappears, leaving him alone with his kids, he realizes that he will never find out what happened to her if he doesn’t first examine what happened to their marriage.
In addition to Eisenberg and Danes, the series also features Lizzy Caplan (‘Cloverfield’), Adam Brody (‘Shazam!’), Josh Radnor (‘Liberal Arts’), and Christian Slater (‘True Romance’).
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with Jessie Eisenberg and Claire Danes about their work on 'Fleishman Is in Trouble,’ the story, their characters, and taking their work home with them.
Jesse Eisenberg as Toby Fleishman in FX on Hulu's 'Fleishman Is in Trouble.' Photo courtesy of Hulu.
Moviefone: To begin with, Jessie, can you talk about how Toby is dealing with his divorce? It’s not going the way he expected, is it?
Jessie Eisenberg: Yeah, exactly. Nor did the marriage. It's kind of like when you're married, and your hope is that you'll be a single unit, that not only it never disintegrates, but that you'll kind of flourish as one. But for Toby, he was so rigid in what he wanted her to be, that he could be nothing except disappointed. Toby is first attracted to Rachel because she is self-possessed, ambitious in an interesting way, and she stands up for herself and he sees in her an amazing, stable life partner.
But then what he sees happen is all of those great qualities become exaggerated in her, that she becomes ambitious to a fault, that she neglects the family, that she becomes so self-determined and so self-reliant that she doesn't need us and kind of severs an emotional connection. So, it's all of these things that seemed at the onset as wonderful assets turn into something that he considers toxic and unsustainable. What's amazing about the show is that it also switches perspectives and you see the show from her angle. Then you see that actually his assessment of her is completely coming from his own rigid sense of a narrow worldview and narrow set of ethics.
MF: Claire, do you think Rachel is misunderstood? How would you describe your character?
Claire Danes: Sure, I mean, she's misunderstood to herself too. Toby doesn't have X-ray vision. Even if you were an actual analyst doctor, it's very hard to see your partner clearly. But I think she doesn't know how much trauma she's carrying and neither does he. So, neither of them knows that this ambition is also a coping mechanism, and is as largely to do with her not fleeing from a lot of pain and she wasn't sufficiently loved. She's found ways of managing that, which seem very impressive, but are actually kind of feeble.
Claire Danes as Rachel in FX on Hulu's 'Fleishman Is in Trouble.' Photo courtesy of Hulu.
So yes, they both can't outrun it indefinitely. She can't. This is the outcome, and it's gory and it's graphic, and it's very unpleasant. But hopefully they are able to see themselves more clearly, and sadly they can only do that outside of the relationship.
MF: Finally, as actors, do you ever have the experience where you go home and realize you are still acting like your character? Do you ever accidentally take your work home with you?
CD: Definitely. I think because we were arguing, we were bickering incessantly on set and there's something kind of infectious and addictive about that. It's almost like cursing, you can't turn it off. So, occasionally I'd come home and be in a combative mode just because I had been doing those drills all day long. I'd been sort of conditioned to be in that mode. The characters are definitely mired in that pattern.
Claire Danes as Rachel in FX on Hulu's 'Fleishman Is in Trouble.' Photo courtesy of Hulu.
