So I was also like... curious about that i was like are they setting something else up or i didn't really know what that was supposed to mean but i guess that was a little bit of like insight into who buddy is but i didn't really understand it

Yeah, I feel like it's one of those things where it's like this movie is like relying heavy on like nostalgia of like understanding.

Like it's like to me, that's like that.

That's the thing.

It's like relying on like the satire was like, you know, Barney or, you know, Teletubbies, you know, these kinds of shows.

So you get what this is and you get like.

so many times with, like, these kinds of shows, like, the person, it's like, Buddy is just, like, represents, like, like, Dan Schneider, the Nickelodeon, whatever, like, all those kinds of people or whatever.

When you were a kid, do you remember, you know, obviously, you know, like making stuff with your friends or like projects that you would make with your friends when you were young? Do you remember any of that kind of

[laughs]

Yeah.

And, and, and Co- uh, Courtney Storer and Matty were really instrumental, especially in the beginning, where we leaned on them a lot, 'cause they had so many stories, so many specifics where if, if you had any insecurity a- about, like, how do I hold this, or what's, like, the physicality of this, they're like, "Yeah, this." Or they'll just give you a story.

And it was just a way to keep our, us out of our heads with, and, like, focus on, like, the character and the story as opposed to, like, can I do this? But it also helped us 'cause it was just a place to train.

And, like, I wanna work on specifically, like, understanding this, how you do this cutting or XYZ.

Um, but I'd say, I'd say I worked with Courtney throughout every season, and then season three, I believe, three or four, worked with Malcolm Livingston, who is this incredible pastry chef who I feel is, like, a guru of creativity in this way where it was so many isms about, like, life and approach to creative practice, where be- I think before meeting him, I understood baking as science.

And it's just that-

What are you thinking about as the show enters its final season? What went through your mind as you were shooting, like, "This is the last time we'll do this"?

What kind of character arc will we see in season five?

I think Marcus has been on this journey of, A, this culinary explosion that came to a head last season, like you said, when he won this award.

And there's always been external forces that kind of come in play with that.

Whether it's like earlier, it's like managing time in the restaurant with his passion.

And then the few seasons after that, it's just the grief that comes with his mom.

I think we see him balance an external force with what's going on inside, his own personal one, as well as the obvious big one that Matty described as wet.

What do you think it is about food that lends itself to being able to bring people together and have these kinds of of tough conversations in almost a metaphorical way.

I think everyone, for the most part, has a relationship to food in some one way or another.

Mm-hmm.

And uh, it was, I was grateful that they did that with Marcus, where you kind of got to understand this person, and it's also this kind of aha clicking moment.

And it's a point of inflection for him and his career, 'cause this is the thing that kind of, I think they ignite the spark season one.

In season two, meeting Luca in Copenhagen, having this experience, being out in this place on his own, that's kind of the thing that really, like, sends him on this journey of confidence to be like, "I can do all these things in the kitchen myself.

I want to do this.

I can get after it." And it's a thing, like, I think you...

It is funny 'cause it's similar to sports, where you have these moments where you're, you're practicing and there's, like, something you wanna do.

And what was that for your character in that episode, do you think?

Yeah.

It's cool.

I think I felt that I've had this similar journey where it's like an understanding of, I felt like my career has coincided with Marcus's where he's like discovering, I didn't grow up wanting to be an actor to get into like writing any of these things.

And discovering it did feel like it was the second one of life.

You come from – I came from playing sports similar to Marcus.

And when I discovered it, I was like, I never cared about sports as much as I care about this.

And I just want to figure out how do I do this for the rest of my life.

What does that mean for your character in this show?