We’d assume there’s not a lot of improv because you’re sticking to the script, but it’s all these great improv actresses. Was there more than we might think?
There was a lot of, yeah, there’s a lot of, I mean, when you have Kathryn Hahn and Aubrey Plaza, there’s going to be some improv.
Is there any scene you remember in particular that made it into the show?
There’s a bit in episode six where there’s the other side version of the interrogation scene and Kathryn is clicking a pen in place and this is the bit I was so proud of because is my improv got in the show and I said something like, “It’s off, it’s on, it’s off again.” And they kept it in. That was my improv. And there was another bit where she throws me in the closet, and I said something like, “Not back in the closet again.” And then I remember telling Jac, I was like, “We should say that.” And she’s like, “I didn’t write that because I didn’t know if we were allowed to say it.” I was like, “No, no, Jack, I’m giving us permission. We can say that.” [Laughs.]
You’ve now done a drama, and you’ve done comedy, and done a stage musical, what do you want to do next?
Yeah, I’d love to do more movies. I want to do a horror film. I want to play a character that dies a really gruesome death. That’s one thing I want to do. And then the acting thing, acting-wise, I think I’ve been lucky in my career so far, and I’ve played parts that are quite close to me as a person. So, I’d love to play something against type. Something, I dunno, like a straight bro role, that sort of thing. I think I actually could do it quite well, but I don’t know if the world knows that.
You have to put it out in the ether. Some writer or producer will see it. But you finished the show. Does Kevin Feige say, “We’re going to call you in a couple of years. Don’t worry about it”? Or are you just completely oblivious to anything next for Billy?
Kevin Feige doesn’t ring you up, but when I signed my contract, I signed for my whole life. But so you sort of wait for them. You’re in limbo to them, which is, there are worse things to be in limbo for.
There are worse things to be in limbo for, for sure. But you’re also playing this iconic character to many Marvel fans, especially many LGBTQ+ Marvel fans. Did you feel any pressure in that respect, and what has their reaction meant to you?
I definitely felt a lot of pressure. You want to do something right, and you want to portray a character in a way that is the way that they’ve seen the character in their heads, but also you can’t let that overtake your own instincts with it. And so it’s finding a happy balance of both. And I hope I did the character justice.
Has there been any reaction that you remember that has touched you most?
I think Billy’s such an important character for a lot of queer people because he was the first to quote superhero they got to see. I remember having the Young Avengers comics and reading about it and seeing myself in them, and so there are a lot of people who will tell me about how they were obsessed with the comics and they’re younger and how important those comics series were.
It was recently announced that “Heartstopper” is coming to an end in a new movie. I don’t know how long you’ve known that, but I’m curious how you feel about it and how you feel about it being a movie as opposed to another eight or 10 episodes?
We are all in such different places. From the moment we filmed the first season, and in our careers, and everyone’s so busy, which is great, it means everyone’s being successful and doing things. I think the time it would’ve taken to film a series, we just wouldn’t have been able to get everyone in the same place for five years. Then by that time, there would be no need for it. So, we realized that the only way to get it made this year is if we do a film because it’s less time commitment, and well, we can still put in a lot of the same love and care into the characters, into finishing off the story. And it’s also, it’s a really nice chapter closer. It makes it feel more cinematic, more grand, and gives it the ending it deserves, which I am really excited to start shooting. And the script is great.
Is it happening sooner rather than later?
Yeah, we start shooting very soon.
Awesome. The last thing I have to ask is, I saw that you had brought Patti LuPone to the quintessential West Hollywood gay bar, The Abbey. Was it your idea?
Yeah, it was my idea. We were at the GLAAD Awards, and then my friend Dylan Mulvaney was like, “Oh, Chris Colfer‘s at The Abbey, we should go.” And I was like, “We should take Patti with us. We have to bring Patti to the Abbey.” And I was like, “Patti, do you want to come to the Abbey? “And she was like, “Doll, I’ll go anywhere with you.” We had some cocktails beforehand, and then we all went to the Abbey, and she had the best night of her life.
Oh, that’s awesome.
She was so in awe of the dancers. Patti LuPone does not give a standing ovation. She’s very famous for that. She’ll not give a standing ovation until she feels a show deserves it. She was standing for the dancers of the Abbey and clapping for them.
“Agatha All Along” is available on Disney+
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