Well, sort of.
Noah and Joanne meet at a mutual friends event, and they have instant, impressive chemistry.
The writing was really fresh and interesting.
Kristen Bell as Joanne and Adam Brody as Noah in ‘Nobody Wants This.‘Stefania Rosini/Netflix
And the second I read it, I was like, Well, duh, this is Brody.
We have to get Brody.
I thought it was very charming, and I also liked the idea of playing a rabbi.
Even though Ive played Jewish characters before, Ive never played somebody so faith-based.
It really came down to the charm that I thought this character would have to have.
He would have to be so likable, and Adam is so likable.
You want to watch him more.
You dont care where his storyline is going, because hes so charismatic.
You dont know until you know.
Ive worked with Kristen in semi-romantic pairings twice before, and I know her personally.
Not Quite YetComedian Caleb Hearon Is a Big Lover Boy.
Not Quite Yet
Comedian Caleb Hearon Is a Big Lover Boy.
Was that ever an issue here?Brody:I dont think so.
In fairness, we knew each other, but it was that friendly familiarity and respect.
We werent such incredibly close old friends, so there was nothing fresh about it.
Bell:What worked so well, I think
Brody:Ted Dansons full of shit!
Bell:Dont believe a word he says.
In any of our romance scenes, I wasnt nervous.
I felt safe, because I know this person.
That helps a lot when you’re gonna wanna jump into a character and outside yourself.
Do you remember when and how you first met?Brody:She doesnt.
We were both inScream 4, albeit not sharing any scenes.
And my longtime agent is a good friend of hers.
Bell:Adam claims I got in a trunk, which I dont remember.
Brody:You were a presence, while we were driving.
I could just lay there.That sounds very on-brand.
Was there any crossing of paths during that period?Brody:None.
Bell:Sort of.
Brody:You were UPN trash.
Bell:Yeah, we were like the stepchild, as UPN.
But we were making it work, for very many years.
I mean, I wasnt by myself.
I was with mutual friends, and I was like,Oh, this is Brodys apartment.
Brody:I guess not.
and my wife [Leighton Meester].
Bell:My husband [Dax Shepard] put [Brody] inCHIPS.
Theres more of a crossover in our adult lives, from ancillary friendships that have brought us together.
Brody:We havent really talked about our teen shows.
Bell:We havent sat down and hashed that out yet.
But there was this period where you were being asked to play characters substantially younger than you.
What was that like?Brody:Im sorry, are we talking aboutNobody Wants This?
Bell:Its funny, because were both doing it now as well.
Were playing substantially younger characters in age, and we both have a bit of a hang-up about that.
Constantly, between scenes, were like, Do we look as old as we feel?
Kristen, Adam has told me he doesnt like watching his work from that period of his life.
Do you ever go back and look at earlyVeronica Marsepisodes?Bell:Not voluntarily, no.
Partly, thats because I have a mirror.
I know what I look like.
And also, theres so much other good content out there.
My kids watchThe Good Place, and thats pretty fun.
Theyre not quite old enough to watchVeronica Mars, because thats more pre-teen topics.
Kristen said before that she wanted to bring back the rom-com.
What flavors of rom-coms do you like?Bell:Complexity for me.
Not just, They meet at a Starbucks and they flirt, but they have different work schedules!
How will they make their dates work?!?!
Brody:Thats very well said.
I think nothing matters more than chemistry.
It has to be a wonderful pair.
Other than that, I like complexity but I donthaveto have complexity.
He provides input all the time, which I love.
Podcasting is a very good line of work for him to have fallen into.
He loves talking and debating and just chatting with people.
But no, he didnt really give me any advice, per se.
Bell:I could as well.
Look, I value authenticity a lot.
I really believe in reducing shame.
And I think thats a beautiful one to have.
Brody:I have an inability to keep any thoughts to myself.
I felt like I had a decent responsibility on my hands.
As light tonally as this show is, I wanted to try and do it justice.
Unfortunately, between the time I got this part and we filmed, both strikes happened.
But that allowed me ample time to read up and listen up and watch a bunch.
Im much wiser for it.
I was appreciative of the education I gave myself.
Thats just the nuts and bolts.
The other thing is, Ive never played necessarily quiet or shy characters, except maybe once or twice.
I am somewhat boring, if you were to look at that on paper.
But, yes, I gravitate towards characters who, on the page, are messy or even unlikable.
Maybe not
Brody:Thats what I was gonna say: cartoonish.
Bell:You dont think Im going to hurt you at any point.
So because of that, when I swear, it becomes funnier.
You dont think its going to come out of my mouth.
Theres a juxtaposition that I can play with a lot.
How do you do that?Brody:Oh, boy.
The short answer is, I dont know.
A longer answer is, Im kind of their lawyer.
Im gonna argue for them and their point of view.
Also, it depends on the goal of the story.
Its not that you cant root for or follow a character whos a terrible person, because you could.
But some stories are designed for characters to be very likable, and some are not.
Bell:it’s possible for you to soften an edge or sharpen an edge.
Without having a scene in front of me, I cant break it down mathematically.
But when Im acting, thats exactly what Im doing.
Obviously, time has passed and there was a whole pandemic in between.
I went back to focusing completely on my real life.
I was still doing some producing here and there, which I love.
I just woke up one morning and said, Maybe I want to act again.
Lets see how this goes.
And the timing was correct.
Brody:This is the last time, for sure.
Bell:For sure.
This will be the end.
I dont make a run at plan things out.
I just go on my gut.
If it feels right, I say yes, and if it doesnt, I say no.
I wanted to take a break, I did.
And then this just felt right.
Its just kind of as simple as that.
Brody:Yeah, till our faces fall off.
All 10 episodes ofNobody Wants Thisbegin streaming Sept. 26 on Netflix.
Ive seen the whole season.
