Kaley Cuoco interview: ‘Based on a True Story’
The role of Ava Bartlett on “Based on a True Story” wasn’t written with Kaley Cuoco in mind, but the true crime-obsessed character was definitely right up her alley. “Not that I’m trying to promote Peacock, but they have all the ‘Datelines,’ so I’m on the Peacock app every night with my earbuds in because it’s like my own little world,” Cuoco tells Gold Derby (watch above). “Because Tom [Pelphrey], my partner, he thinks I’m insane, like, how are you falling asleep? I’d watch murder and these horrible stories and I’m like, ‘Ah! OK, good night.’ So when this show came around, I was like, ‘This is made for me.’ I love this genre, I love true crime, I love the fact that it’s kind of a funny, scary, all the things. That kind of tightrope that can be tough to walk on a TV show.”
That tightrope is a sweet spot for Cuoco. The Peacock series follows an expectant couple, Ava, a real estate agent, and Nathan (Chris Messina) Bartlett, a former tennis pro and current coach, who are not only in financial straits but in a rut in their 12-year-long relationship. When they (or really, Ava) realize their plumber, Matt (Tom Bateman), is the Westside Ripper serial killer, instead of turning him in, they decide to cash in (no pun intended) on America’s obsession with true crime and spice up their life by starting a podcast with him. It’s an absurd premise, and the satirical thriller can flip on a dime from suspenseful and dramatic to silly and playful and frequently fantastical. It’s a tricky tone Cuoco has shown a deftness at playing since the equally quirky “The Flight Attendant.”
“We definitely created our own vibe on ‘The Flight Attendant,'” the three-time Emmy nominee says. “Half the time … I didn’t know how it was going to look on the other side, so it was doing all these options, all these takes of, like, comedic or really scared or tears or whatever. ‘Based on a True Story,’ I think, is a little more comedic than that, but it has the same tone.”
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The wild shifts call for a lot of experimentation — and oftentimes improv — on set. Cuoco, who thrives on instinct, loves it. Messina is the opposite, preferring to come in prepared. But like every good couple, they balance each other out. “We do laugh because he is so prepared. He’s got his notes and he’s got books. I know he’s talked to his coach on the way home. This guy is on it,” Cuoco shares. “I make him crazy because half the time I don’t know what we’re shooting, half the time I’m like, ‘We’re gonna feel it when we get there.’ He’s like, ‘Let’s rehearse,’ and I’m like, ‘No rehearsal! Let’s do it in the moment.’ He’s like freaking out. I think I’ve gotten him to lighten up a little bit and he’s gotten me to focus in more. We definitely even other out. It’s been an amazing experience with him.”
In the spirit of “going with it,” “Based on a True Story” incorporated Cuoco’s pregnancy. In the initial script, the Bartletts were parents to older kids (“I was like, I don’t have older kids yet!”) and a rewrite eliminated the kids. The pregnancy was written in after Cuoco, who’s also an executive producer, cheekily asked her fellow producers, “What if Ava was pregnant?” “It ended up being a brilliant part of the show because of the stakes,” Cuoco notes. The series also refreshingly never made Ava’s pregnancy a major focal point or indulged in pregnancy tropes. “I also love that we never shined a light on it. A lot of times we see these pregnant characters and it’s all about the cravings and this and that. This was like a total side note,” she continues. “Half the time, I forgot I was pregnant because it was so not a part of the story, but also it not being part of the story was a big part of the story, like we’ve forgotten what’s important here.”
Season 2 is currently in production and all of the Season 1 cliffhangers “are gonna be answered actually very quickly,” Cuoco teases. The Bartletts will, obviously, also be a family of three now. “Ava’s trying to be a mom now. She’s trying to be a good mom and focus on the baby and nothing else, but she realizes very quickly that — she loves her child — but there’s still that side where she wants to be living on the edge and watching all the things and the podcast and she wants to get back in that lifestyle. And Matt is still crazy. He’s gonna go off on his own adventure. Nathan wants to bring the tennis back and he wants to be a star again, and they’re kinda figuring that out. Life just changes with a baby. And because Matt is in their lives, there are some babysitting scenes.”
The actress was a nationally ranked tennis player in her teens, but Ava never hit the court in the first season. Could we also see her pick up a racket Season 2? “I told them last year, like, ‘You guys should have me play. This is my bread and butter. I can actually do this.’ I dunno if they’re gonna have that at the end of the season, but I did tell them. I think they’re just afraid I’m gonna show everyone up,” Cuoco quips.
