From showrunnerJeff Lowell(The Ranch) and directorAndy Fickman(Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2), the Netflix comedy seriesThe Crewfollows NASCAR crew chief Kevin Gibson (Kevin James), who’s still more old school than new. When the owner (Bruce McGill) of Bobby Spencer Racing steps down and passes the team off to his daughter (Jillian Mueller), Kevin and the rest of the crew must figure out how to adapt to all of her changes, so that they don’t become irrelevant and replaceable.
During a virtual junket for the new series, Collider got the opportunity to chat 1-on-1 withFreddie Stroma, who plays Jake, the main driver for Bobby Spencer Racing, about playing the charming idiot, avoiding the chauvinistic route, starting the shoot in front of a live audience before COVID changed things, wanting to up his game around co-star Kevin James, and his hope for a second season. He also talked about the success ofBridgerton, and why being a part ofHarry Potterwas a real-life magical experience.
Collider:How did this come about for you? Had you been considering or looking to do a sitcom? Was that something you’d ever even thought about doing?
FREDDIE STROMA: Not really. I’ve never done a sitcom, so it’s a whole new thing. I was intrigued by the character. I haven’t done a broader goofball character before, so it was something a little different, but fun as well.
Were you anxious to get out of theBridgertonclothes and into something modern day?
STROMA: Yeah, I was in London shootingBridgertonwhen this came through. I did a tape for it in London and sent it over. It was all at the same time.
Are you aware of the massive love forBridgerton?
STROMA: It’s funny because I knew it was doing well. Sometimes you just get lots of people from out of the woodwork, just coming out and telling you that they’ve been watching you on a show or something.Bridgertonwas one of those where people from everywhere were talking about it. I was like, “Wow, this seems to be doing well.” And then, Netflix started saying the numbers and I went, “Oh, okay.” And recently, they said it was the biggest show they’ve had. So, yeah, it’s crazy.
Is that something that you think about at all, when you’re filming something? Do you think about whether it could be successful, or do you try not to think about that?
STROMA: I try not to think about it. I’ve luckily had very small roles in things that have done well, whether that’sHarry PotterorGame of ThronesorPitch Perfect. Those were things that just happened to do well. You can’t really tell the difference between the projects that just skyrocket and the ones that no one watches because they all kind of feel the same-ish. You just get on with it and see where it takes you.
With a show like this, it feels like these characters could really evolve from what you’re first told they might be. How was this character first described to you and how much did he ultimately evolve, either before you started shooting or during the course of making the season?
STROMA: At first, I was like, “Oh, okay, this is not the sharpest tool in the shed.” He’s that kind of goofball character. I was very aware of figuring out how to approach it. Sometimes he says stuff that, if someone else said it, you’d go, “Wow, that’s a horrible person.” But as long as you have nothing going on behind the eyes and it’s coming from a place of innocence and ignorance, then it’s charming. I was trying to find that balance of playing a charming idiot, as opposed to someone who might end up not being likable.
When you play someone who is as dim as this guy is, that can be really tricky and quite a challenge.
STROMA: I don’t know which lines stuck and which ones didn’t because we improv-ed a lot and they would just toss out different lines, some of which were racier and could go a little bit along the chauvinistic route. But if he doesn’t really understand it — intention is such a key element to that. Andy [Fickman], the director, said, “As long as you’ve got cheese behind the eyes and that’s all that’s going on there, then you may get away with saying ridiculous things and not be disliked for it.”
Have you had much experience doing this many jokes, these kinds of jokes, and doing improv? Was that all weird and foreign to you?
STROMA: I’ve had little moments. I really do love comedy, and I find that a lot of the things that I’ve done in the past have rom-com elements and I usually bring some form of levity to whatever it is. I did a movie calledThe Inbetweeners 2, which was a straight-up comedy. Those guys are just so funny. I got used to watching them bounce off each other while I was playing the annoying douchebag character. I was scared to be going to a live studio audience and send out a joke and then have no one laugh. There’s that fear. Dan [Ahdoot] and Kevin [James] do stand-up, Gary [Anthony Williams] is an improv guy, and some of the others have been on Broadway. I’ve had some elements of it from previous jobs that I’ve filmed, but this was definitely a new venture.
Did you actually get to be in front of a live studio audience?
STROMA: We started shooting in January [2020], so the first seven episodes, we shot in front of a live studio audiences of 200 people or something. And then, COVID happened and we shut down. We came back around September and shot the last three episodes with complete COVID protocols, no audience, and masks and shields for the rest of it. For the last three episodes, we couldn’t have an audience anymore.
Did you have a designated laugher to help you know when the jokes were funny, since you couldn’t have an audience there?
STROMA: Yeah, that was probably Andy, our director. He really helped. He’s got such a great laugh and he’s just such a positive person, so it definitely helped having him there, and the producers and [show creator Jeff Lowell], who would laugh, so that you’d know when you were doing a good joke. The monitors aren’t too far from the set, so you could hear the laughter. It was useful because that’s a whole new skill. The first episode, I was not used to having a scene where someone delivers a line and then you have to stop and wait because there’s laughter. There were a few times that I said the line, and then we had to reshoot it because I said the line during laughter. You realize that you have to stand still and let the laugh happen, and then carry on.
What’s it like to have an experience like this, where you’re jumping into doing a sitcom and you’re sharing the experience with really one of the kings of sitcom, Kevin James? How does he challenge you, as a scene partner?
STROMA: I’ve watched his work and I think he’s just insanely talented, so it’s weird doing scenes with him and then seeing how he can just switch stuff on and he can change a line, here or there. It’s the same with sports, I find. You just want to up your game when you’re around him. I’m probably the worst in the cast for breaking because I find something funny and I can’t help it, and he’s made me break a few times. I would desperately attempt to hold on and not laugh, but there were a lot of times I couldn’t keep a straight face. He’s really, really funny.
Do you find that your own personal gauge for whether something is funny gets better, as you do more episodes?
STROMA: I think so. To a certain degree, yeah. Something I really do like about comedy is that, as you go along, you start to have a little bit more creative space. You’ve got the truth that you need to tell as a character, but then you also just need to make them laugh, so you start improving stuff and using alternate lines. I hope that I’m honing in on something funnier and it’s not getting worse. I hope that I’m getting slightly better at that.
I don’t personally know much about NASCAR, other than the fact that it involves cars that go fast and it can be very dangerous. What would you say the key is, in making a comedy that connects with audiences, no matter what the setting is? Is there a trick to keeping people interested, even if they know nothing or next to nothing about racing?
STROMA: I think it’s not focusing too much on that detail. You don’t have to know that much about NASCAR to watch the show. I didn’t actually know much about it before joining on. The key is having characters that are relatable, who put themselves in funny scenarios, and making it a workplace company, which is what it is, really. It’s the same asCheersorThe Office, where you want to go and hang out with these people. As long as you make characters relatable and you give them decent conflict, it makes for something that people will want to watch, and they don’t necessarily have to have that background information.
A NASCAR crew becomes a family and clearly relies on each other to get the job done. What was it like to find that bond and rhythm with this crew of actors? Do you have favorite memories of shooting with this ensemble?
STROMA: It’s a really good group of people. We just clicked straight away from the beginning, which is really helpful for shows like this. I have so many fond memories of just going to work. You get to rehearse, which is great, because you don’t usually get to do that on single camera stuff. And then, just being on set and sitting at the bar and playing darts with Gary, or doing whatever and just hanging out with everyone, there are moments where we just make each other laugh. And lunch was a great time between rehearsals. We’d all sit at lunch and when you’re around funny people, it’s always just trying to make someone laugh. It’s just such a fun environment. My goal in life is to be around funny people, so I can just laugh. This is a perfect scenario where I can come to work and just be around funny people and joke around.
Have you already thought about what you’d like to see with this character, or what you might still want to learn about him, in a possible second season?
STROMA: I don’t know. It’s just about being able to portray whatever the writers have given me. They’re the ones making these jokes and giving me the storylines. In the last episode, there’s something that could definitely propel another storyline, which would be interesting. I’ve enjoyed playing the character a lot, so I’d love to be able to have a second season and go back and keep playing him.
Early on in your career, you didHarry Potter. What did it feel like to be a part of that franchise at the time you were shooting those films, and does it feel any different now that you can reflect back on it, after having done quite a bit of work since then?
STROMA: I’ve got such fond memories ofHarry Potter. It was such a warm, welcoming group. I came in onThe Half-Blood Prince, which was the sixth movie, at the time. I remember going in for a wardrobe fitting and Daniel Radcliffe walked past, and then he popped his head in and introduced himself to me and had to go back to work. And then, two weeks later, I went in for something else and he popped in to say, “Hi, Freddie.” I was like, “How on earth did he remember my name?” It was just such a warm, welcoming group. It’s great when the lead guy is really such a genuinely nice person. I had a great time onHarry Potter.
It’s weird looking back on it because it does feel like a lifetime ago now. I shot that 13 years ago. It was really just a great group of people and they was so much fun. We were all young. I was 20 or 21, at the time. I loved the scenes where we were all in the Great Hall, just hanging out. It was a magical experience.
