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The question of what, exactly, constitutes the “best show currently on the air” is a fraught one (thanks, streaming services!), but I’d like to make a humble plug for Somebody Somewhere, the Peabody Award-winning HBO series starring comedian Bridget Everett as Sam Miller, a Kansan woman in her 40s trying to move on and find happiness after the death of her sister. On the show’s third and final season, which premiered last Sunday, the rapport between Everett and Jeff Hiller, who plays Sam’s best friend Joel, is as winning as ever.
This week, Vogue spoke to Everett about embodying grief; celebrating “Bridget Everett Day” in her hometown of Manhattan, Kansas; casting her dog to play…her dog; and her long-held passion for cabaret. Watch the trailer for Season 3 of Somebody Somewhere below, then read the interview below.
Vogue: How does it feel to see the start of Season 3 out in the world?
Bridget Everett: It feels great. We really got to take our time writing this season, and and it’s such a family environment. I was very excited to be together with everybody, and it just felt like a deeper, richer experience this year. It was really incredible.
I, like so many fans of the show, am continually amazed at how beautifully you guys spotlight queer small-town life. To that end, is there a favorite fan interaction you’ve had?
I went back to Kansas for this “Bridget Everett Day” thing they had, and a lot of members of the community came out, but there were a lot of kids aged 18 and under who I talked to who said the show felt special to them, and that felt very meaningful to me.
I love that you cast your dog in the new season’s opening episode! How did you get her ready for her close-up?
Honestly, she was the understudy for the dog that was supposed to do it. [Laughs.] That other dog just could not get away from me fast enough, so we kind of had no choice. Lulu is a world-class beauty, but she’s a wild woman, and for some reason, she just settled in. Even with all those people around, she just kind of sat there and looked cute and was such a perfect little angel. She’s a rescue herself, so it was very special for me to get to use her in that episode of the show; she was a background actor last year, but this year, she’s moving on up.
Your character Sam deals with grief in such a real and raw way. How do you work that kind of processing into your writing and performance?
Well, I think the way that I’ve historically processed grief is by not processing it, so doing the show is a really good way for me to face it and work through it. A lot of times when you watch a show or see a movie, they kind of grieve, they’re sad, and then they move on with their lives. And in my experience, grief pops up in little bits here and there, but it can overwhelm you. I think we try to portray how you live with it—it becomes just part of your life and the hits keep coming, where you’ll think you’re over it and then, all of a sudden, you forgot about what that person smells like, or, you know, you go to call them even though you know they’re not going to answer. And there’s days where you don’t think about them, and that’s just as big a part of the grief, in its own way.
Do you have any specific hopes or dreams for Sam (that don’t constitute spoilers)?
I have ideas of where she would be now and what would be going on with her, and what would be going on with Joel and Fred (Murray Hill) and Tricia (Mary Catherine Garrison) and everybody. To me, the story is not over in the final season; it’s just a snapshot of where they are in their lives right now. If there’s ever a chance where we get to revisit it, I will always be thinking about Sam and where she is, and you know Joel will be right there beside her. [Laughs.]
Is cabaret still a big part of your life?
Absolutely. I just played the Beacon last last week, and that was incredible. It’s a much bigger venue than we normally play, but I guess that’s one of the perks of being on TV! Cabaret really is a vital part of my happiness, and I just love doing it so much, and that will never go away until my knees finally give out for good and I can’t walk across the stage.
This conversation has been edited and condensed.
