Jeff Hiller was not waiting for an Emmy nomination. No, really. This is not a case of a celebrity that got a surprise that their name was read on the morning of the nomination – or claimed that they had not even known that the announcement would come, so they slept right through the broadcast.
No, Hiller really had no reason to think he would serve a supportive actor Nick for HBO’s “Someone somewhere.” His name was near the bottom of most prices for forecasters, if it even appeared at all. So on July 15, the long -lasting character actor used to play what he calls the “Bitchy customer service agent” not at Television Academy’s live feed or monitor social media with butterflies in the stomach.
He was at home in New York and talked to his sister on the phone. As his agent continued to call, he wondered if it was a role in a Fox series that he had recently tried. “I was,” did I get it? Am I the gay restaurant owner? “, He said, referring to another familiar role. He thought he would call his agent. But then his boss called, and in panic, Hiller thought he had missed a talk time on an Apple TV+ series that shoots in Boston.” I was, “should I be there right now?!?”
“I mean, it’s Bonkers,” he said in an office in central Manhattan after a photography for Thewrap. “I say that all the time. It’s not even about, I think I’m worth it or deserve it? It’s just … I can’t believe it.” He pauses for the smallest beats before adding, with a rip-threshing laugh, “people who read about it is like,” we don’t care, girl! We don’t care that you have a moment! “
Which becomes clear during our conversation is this type of self-impairment couple for the course with Hiller, who is personally open and unassuming, despite its 6-foot-5 status. But the truth is that people do Occupation that he beat the odds and was nominated for his work with a treasure of a show that for three seasons gathered lots of critical praise, a Peabody Prize and a modest but loyal viewer.
I used to be a social worker who took care of people who experienced homelessness. And now I’m like “How’s my hair?”
Hiller’s character, Joel, is a church gay man who lives in Manhattan, Kansas, Middle Ages Adrift until he becomes friends with Sam, an acquaintance from high school played by the Exec producer Bridget Everett, whose life loosely inspired series. With the lightest touch and a fly-on-the-Wall realism, “someone somewhere” explores sadness, loneliness, faith and society. The Soulmate friendship between Joel and Sam is the emotional center of the show, and Hiller, who auditioned for the role while he stopped meeting through Cater-Waiter gigs and temp jobs, gives what could have been a one-ton gay sidekick for lively, three-dimensional life.
It helped he understood who Joel was from the moment he read the first script, written by the series co -creator Hannah Bos and Paul Thureen. “In the pilot he talks about how he goes to church, and he is also clearly gay,” said Hiller, 49. “And I thought, Oh mine God. Because a lot of shade is required to discuss it and show it. In popular culture, gay and the church they do not mix. But when you are in the Midwest you see lots of queer who find society in the church. I grew up in church and I knew many queer people who found society (there). So I thought it was fantastic. “
The similarities between actors and character did not end there: Like Joel, Hiller had a Vision Board with a Vitamix, got stress rash as a child and ran a Buick Lesabre in the 20th century. The part was not written specifically to him, but when the role sat down in his roles, Bos and Thureen encouraged improvisation “just to make it more authentic and more real,” Hiller said. “And I really found freedom in it. After season 1 they were all like” Joel Giggle! “And I was like,“ What are you talking about? And then I was like, “I think it’s just me.” “The distinct giggling then rippled out of him as Sonic Ribbon Candy.
What makes the surprise Emmy nomination even sweeter is that it came while Hiller promoted his memoir, “actress of a certain age”, a positive, witty reading that crowns the bullying as he endured as a child in San Antonio, Texas; His mother’s unconditional support; His stint as a social worker in Colorado; His discovery of improv on New York’s upright citizen brigade; And his two decades struggle to be a functioning actor. He talks about the joy of doing “someone somewhere” and how the series helped him land larger parts, including “Gay Serial Killer” which he played during the 2022 season by Ryan Murphy’s “American Horror Story.” Like “someone somewhere” the book leans to the importance of not giving yourself up.
“When I turned 40, I had this moment where I was,” I have to go to the degree school. I have to do something “because I gave up hope of becoming an actor,” he said. “I mean, I worked, like two days a year to act. It was embarrassing. I was afraid it would be pitiful if I was middle -aged and still followed my dream. And so when I wrote the book I wanted to say …” He ends when his voice shakes and his eyes well. “It’s not pitiful to believe in yourself. I think I still had hope and I was embarrassed to still have that hope. But I held it. And I’m glad I did.” Then comes the brand Self -writing: “It feels a bit selfish. I used to be a social worker who took care of people who experienced homelessness. And now I am like,” How is my hair? “
Still, for the first time since “someone somewhere” ended after last year’s season 3, Hiller has allowed himself to feel more than a little optimistic about what is going on. There is the supportive role in the series’ shooting in Boston that he cannot talk about in detail yet, and he is pitching shows that he has written. He would love to go back to Broadway, where he showed up in “Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson” 15 years ago – but “In a game, not a musical”, he said, “Because musicals are hard. It’s the dance. I’m too old!”
He looks forward to participating in Emmys in September with his husband, the visual artist Neil Goldberg, as well as Everett, Bos and Thureen, who were nominated for writing. He would love to meet Pedro Pascal and Rupaul there. And his formal clothes? “You know, I’m a bit of a fashion plate,” he said joking. “I like to dress, so I want to wear something just shy too ridiculous. No one will look at me and be like” who is the straight person? “They will be like,” wow, the gay goes on the rug. “” He blinks the wide, warm smile that helped make Joel such a loved character. “I want it.”
This story first ran down to the Wire Comedy issue for Thewrap’s Awards Magazine. Read more from the question here.
