‘Somebody Somewhere’ Cast Says Goodbye, Celebrates Jeff Hiller’s Emmy Nomination: ‘You’ve Never Seen Someone Like Joel on TV’
When filming began on HBO’s “Somebody Somewhere” back in 2021, co-creator and writer Paul Thureen remembers he and collaborators Bridget Everett and Hannah Bos were still battling doubts they had a show at all. “When we first made the pilot, we were like, ‘Does this count as a TV show? Can you do a TV show about these people and these moments?’” he says.
Feeding those intrusive thoughts was a lack of precedent. Simply put, there was nothing up against which to hold the story of Sam (Everett), a 40-something moving back to her small Manhattan, Kan., hometown with no clue what’s next. But three seasons later, that’s what made it such a singular experience: a quiet slice-of-life story that became a booming echo of originality for the admittedly small but mighty audience that watched and heralded it to anyone who would listen.
“I can walk down the street just fine, but then, like, every 25th person will hold their hand over their heart and say, ‘Thank you,’” says Jeff Hiller, who plays Sam’s best friend, Joel. “It’s the perfect kind of interaction. We don’t have the numbers of Marvel or whatever, but the people who did watch it, they freakin’ love it.”
Each season brought new critical champions and fans who wouldn’t give up until the series was recognized by the Television Academy. It paid off for the third and final season, which landed Emmy nominations for Hiller for supporting actor in a comedy series, and a writing nod for Everett, Bos and Thureen’s series finale script. While two nominations are far fewer than what its most ardent supporters wanted, the creative team celebrates this moment as an affirmation of an experience they are still in awe of.
“It’s a job that we would all do for the rest of our lives, but I also feel like we achieved something that we’re kind of surprised by and proud of,” Everett says. “We did three seasons of an HBO show, which, I think, is pretty wild and pretty spectacular.”
The nominations also give them a reason to delay this journey’s end. “It’s just really fun that we all get to keep going a little bit longer, and maybe we get a couple more viewers out of it,” Bos says.
The series exists squarely in the dramedy genre, mixing its sense of humor with a deeply felt honesty about life’s highs and lows. But don’t be mistaken. In the age of dramas masquerading as comedies at award shows, “Somebody Somewhere” always brings it back to a laugh.
“Personally, I have almost never had a conversation that hasn’t ended in laughter,” Everett says.
Over the course of the series’ 21 episodes, Sam resurrects a childhood friendship with Joel, rebuilds the prickly relationship with her sister, Tricia (Mary Catherine Garrison), in the wake of their older sister’s death from cancer and forms a small group of friends that encourage her to find her place and purpose in the world. She takes baby steps toward — and giant leaps back from — the love of those around her. She grits her teeth at the hard days in life, while learning to appreciate the good ones even more. That acceptance drove much of the series finale, which closed with Sam performing Miley Cyrus’ “The Climb” for her chosen family at the local Cock N Bull bar.
“The pilot started with Joel inviting Sam up to the stage and we ended with Sam inviting everyone into her space,” Bos says. “There are a lot of parallels that, in our mind, show so much growth for these people, who I consider real.”
The finale ties up a few of the storylines, like having Tricia finally visit their sister’s home to process her loss together. But like life, it doesn’t pretend to have all the answers.
“What felt right was that the show was going to end with Sam just having a good day,” Everett says. “That she felt good and that she wanted her friends to be there, and that she was taking the initiative. We weren’t building to a series finale. The way that it ends, it works that way. But it also sets you up to go to see what happens next.”
The final episode opens on Joel taking a stand in his life. Since starting his relationship with Brad (Tim Bagley) in Season 2, Joel has found himself leaning into his partner’s life and church more than his own. In the finale, he recommits himself to the church he attended in Season 1 while reassuring Brad this is not a rebuke of their life together. Joel’s sweet candor and positivity, channeled through Hiller’s deep well of respect for him, is what Academy members undoubtedly responded to when checking their ballots.
“I love Joel,” he says. “It’s so real to see Joel, and yet you’ve never seen someone like Joel on TV. I know exactly who he is, but I can’t point to any other pop culture person that’s like him. That takes a lot of work, to be like, he’s gay but he also loves the church. The writers did all of this incredible, beautiful work to make that character feel real and lived-in and nuanced.”
The finale starts with Joel’s big step and ends with Sam’s embrace of the life she’s built. But in the middle, the two share, perhaps, the most important moment in the series. It’s a familiar one for fans: Joel and Sam in the car giggling about something or other. But after his own personal metamorphosis, Joel reflects on the ride that is their friendship — “I think you’re my person, Sam.” To which she responds, “That might be the nicest thing anybody has ever said to me.”
“I do think that scene sort of crystallizes the entire series,” Everett says. “As part of what Joel’s going through, he is discovering that she’s his constant. And she has not been understanding that this is what she needed to hear and longed to hear from him or from someone. To me, the fact that they both get to have a moment of discovery together it’s really just a complement to everything they’ve been leading to in my mind.”
Thureen adds, “The central love has always been Sam and Joel. The idea of romantic love, and if that’s something that she’s open to, who knows where that will go. The point is that she’s at a place where she can open herself up to that possibility.”
It’s on the image of Sam’s potential relationship with gentle-giant Iceland (Ólafur Darri Ólafsson) that the series ends, an embrace of the future with all the love of her family and friends at her back. Given the show’s overdue Emmy recognition, fans have now turned their attention to manifesting a fourth season. “We would jump right back in for a movie or another season,” Everett says. “But it would have to be very special. We don’t want to do anything that takes away any shine from what we’ve done. I think we only want to make it even better. I know we can, and maybe one day we will.”
Whatever form it takes, Hiller is ready to reunite with Joel, the HBO way. “Joel will just be living in London and he’ll only phone in.”
Feeding those intrusive thoughts was a lack of precedent. Simply put, there was nothing up against which to hold the story of Sam (Everett), a 40-something moving back to her small Manhattan, Kan., hometown with no clue what’s next. But three seasons later, that’s what made it such a singular experience: a quiet slice-of-life story that became a booming echo of originality for the admittedly small but mighty audience that watched and heralded it to anyone who would listen.
“I can walk down the street just fine, but then, like, every 25th person will hold their hand over their heart and say, ‘Thank you,’” says Jeff Hiller, who plays Sam’s best friend, Joel. “It’s the perfect kind of interaction. We don’t have the numbers of Marvel or whatever, but the people who did watch it, they freakin’ love it.”
Each season brought new critical champions and fans who wouldn’t give up until the series was recognized by the Television Academy. It paid off for the third and final season, which landed Emmy nominations for Hiller for supporting actor in a comedy series, and a writing nod for Everett, Bos and Thureen’s series finale script. While two nominations are far fewer than what its most ardent supporters wanted, the creative team celebrates this moment as an affirmation of an experience they are still in awe of.
“It’s a job that we would all do for the rest of our lives, but I also feel like we achieved something that we’re kind of surprised by and proud of,” Everett says. “We did three seasons of an HBO show, which, I think, is pretty wild and pretty spectacular.”
The nominations also give them a reason to delay this journey’s end. “It’s just really fun that we all get to keep going a little bit longer, and maybe we get a couple more viewers out of it,” Bos says.
The series exists squarely in the dramedy genre, mixing its sense of humor with a deeply felt honesty about life’s highs and lows. But don’t be mistaken. In the age of dramas masquerading as comedies at award shows, “Somebody Somewhere” always brings it back to a laugh.
“Personally, I have almost never had a conversation that hasn’t ended in laughter,” Everett says.
Over the course of the series’ 21 episodes, Sam resurrects a childhood friendship with Joel, rebuilds the prickly relationship with her sister, Tricia (Mary Catherine Garrison), in the wake of their older sister’s death from cancer and forms a small group of friends that encourage her to find her place and purpose in the world. She takes baby steps toward — and giant leaps back from — the love of those around her. She grits her teeth at the hard days in life, while learning to appreciate the good ones even more. That acceptance drove much of the series finale, which closed with Sam performing Miley Cyrus’ “The Climb” for her chosen family at the local Cock N Bull bar.
“The pilot started with Joel inviting Sam up to the stage and we ended with Sam inviting everyone into her space,” Bos says. “There are a lot of parallels that, in our mind, show so much growth for these people, who I consider real.”
The finale ties up a few of the storylines, like having Tricia finally visit their sister’s home to process her loss together. But like life, it doesn’t pretend to have all the answers.
“What felt right was that the show was going to end with Sam just having a good day,” Everett says. “That she felt good and that she wanted her friends to be there, and that she was taking the initiative. We weren’t building to a series finale. The way that it ends, it works that way. But it also sets you up to go to see what happens next.”
The final episode opens on Joel taking a stand in his life. Since starting his relationship with Brad (Tim Bagley) in Season 2, Joel has found himself leaning into his partner’s life and church more than his own. In the finale, he recommits himself to the church he attended in Season 1 while reassuring Brad this is not a rebuke of their life together. Joel’s sweet candor and positivity, channeled through Hiller’s deep well of respect for him, is what Academy members undoubtedly responded to when checking their ballots.
“I love Joel,” he says. “It’s so real to see Joel, and yet you’ve never seen someone like Joel on TV. I know exactly who he is, but I can’t point to any other pop culture person that’s like him. That takes a lot of work, to be like, he’s gay but he also loves the church. The writers did all of this incredible, beautiful work to make that character feel real and lived-in and nuanced.”
The finale starts with Joel’s big step and ends with Sam’s embrace of the life she’s built. But in the middle, the two share, perhaps, the most important moment in the series. It’s a familiar one for fans: Joel and Sam in the car giggling about something or other. But after his own personal metamorphosis, Joel reflects on the ride that is their friendship — “I think you’re my person, Sam.” To which she responds, “That might be the nicest thing anybody has ever said to me.”
“I do think that scene sort of crystallizes the entire series,” Everett says. “As part of what Joel’s going through, he is discovering that she’s his constant. And she has not been understanding that this is what she needed to hear and longed to hear from him or from someone. To me, the fact that they both get to have a moment of discovery together it’s really just a complement to everything they’ve been leading to in my mind.”
Thureen adds, “The central love has always been Sam and Joel. The idea of romantic love, and if that’s something that she’s open to, who knows where that will go. The point is that she’s at a place where she can open herself up to that possibility.”
It’s on the image of Sam’s potential relationship with gentle-giant Iceland (Ólafur Darri Ólafsson) that the series ends, an embrace of the future with all the love of her family and friends at her back. Given the show’s overdue Emmy recognition, fans have now turned their attention to manifesting a fourth season. “We would jump right back in for a movie or another season,” Everett says. “But it would have to be very special. We don’t want to do anything that takes away any shine from what we’ve done. I think we only want to make it even better. I know we can, and maybe one day we will.”
Whatever form it takes, Hiller is ready to reunite with Joel, the HBO way. “Joel will just be living in London and he’ll only phone in.”