Megan Ganz is a highly accomplished writer and producer that has worked on several iconic shows such as It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Modern Family. She also serves as the Co-Creator and Executive Producer of Mythic Quest on Apple TV+, and we were fortunate enough to sit down with Megan to discuss the third season of this wildly popular show.
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John Betancourt: Let’s talk a little bit about what got you into comedy, and why you still love it.

Megan Ganz: I mean, really, what got me into it was my dad. He was a big fan of comedy. And when I was younger, he did the thing, which if you have kids, and you want them to be interested in something, I'll give you a tip, which is what he would do is… he would let me stay up a little bit later some nights and watch something like Married with Children, or Letterman or something that was like probably too old for like, how old I was at the time. And he would say like, “Hey, don't tell your mom about this, like, this is just our little secret.” And I was like, “Great, okay, I love this more than anything else in my entire life, then.” Because it's a secret thing that I share only with one parent, you know? I'm getting away with it. So, it was presented to me from a very young age as that, so I always really loved it. And then I just like, I, I was never a class clown.

Like, I never did it for the attention. And sort of, I think most people that get into comedy, maybe were like a little attention seeking, they wanted to make people laugh. And mine was really more, I really enjoyed the writing of it. I really enjoyed like being alone and like crafting jokes. And I would write my own top 10 lists, or little SNL sketches or things like that. And so, it really wasn't until I almost got to college that I ever did stand up or performed in front of crowds. But I love it. I love hanging around funny people I love… like my favorite thing about my job is just that I get to laugh all day at work. We spend a lot of time not working and just making each other laugh about stupid things. And I honestly don't think I have talents anymore to do anything else. I've been doing comedy for too long, now. If I tried to have a normal job, I just, I don't know, if I'd be able to do it.

John Betancourt: Now something I’ve always loved about Mythic Quest is how the show is always bold and pushing the envelope, especially when it comes to realism. What went into the decision to create stories this season, like ‘Sarian’, that are just so dynamic?

Megan Ganz: Oh, well, you know, I think we've found that the audience really loves it. And so, it's given us the confidence to lean into it. Season One, we were really nervous about “A Dark Quiet Death”, because we thought… it's not particularly light. It's not. It doesn't end funny. It's pretty sad. And, you know, gutting, and we put it out there and the audience overwhelmingly said, “We love this.” And then when we shut down for the pandemic, we made a quarantine episode, and had the same thing again, where we're like, “Oh, man, we have Poppy sobbing in this episode in a scene that's not in any way funny, and is very real and hard to watch in a way and how are people going to like this?” And we put that out and everybody was like, “Oh my god.” So, we realized that like, people were able to hold both tones of the show at the same time.

They loved when the characters were funny and silly and having this sort of workplace comedy banter but then also they liked knowing that these people actually care about each other, and particularly Poppy and Ian, and we realized that people were really invested in that relationship, and that they didn't just want to see them fight all the time, they really needed to be told that their relationship was deeper than that. And we realized that was really the “will they, won't they” relationship of the show, not a romantic one, but that's the one that the audience is hoping works out, in the end. They hope that they end up together at the end of the show. And so, knowing that and that the audience would go there with us, we realized that the end of season two, you know, we set up that they're leaving Mythic Quest and Poppy, I think somewhere she thinks that all of her problems are gonna be fixed when they leave Mythic Quest, any issue she had with Ian was just because he was her boss. And once they set out as equal partners, and it's her game that they're working on, everything is going to be fixed. And then I think that over the course of the season, she's realizing like, “Oh, maybe he wasn't the problem, maybe I'm a bit of the issue, and that I just can't be satisfied with my part of the partnership.” I think what we landed on this year, was that she always was annoyed that she couldn't do what he does.

But what she's not realizing is that if she could do what he does, they wouldn't need each other. And the same is true with him. The only difference is that he has the confidence of saying that in season one, episode one, he says to her, “I can't do what you do. If I could, like that would be great. But I wouldn't, but I wouldn't need you then. And that's why I need you.” And the problem is Poppy needs to like, realize that she has that same issue that she can't do it all herself. She's not a big ideas person, she's a mechanic. And there's nothing wrong with being a mechanic. And if she can just get good with that and realize she's the best damn mechanic in the entire world, then maybe it'll fix their relationship. And I think that's what we're investigating in the third season.

Now, at the end of the season, they don't fix everything, because if they did, we wouldn't have a show anymore. But I think the season three is trying to get them to a place where they both recognize that maybe we both have our own crap that we need to like, sort out. And maybe our journey is to try to help each other with our crap that we need to like, sort out, you know?” So, I think season four will be that will be like, “Hey, look, we're not perfect partners, we realized that, like, are we going to stay together? Are we going to split up? You know, because it's kind of come to that, like we have this kid that we're trying to raise, the game. Are we going to make it work, or aren't we?” But I love that the audience seems to be able to go along with that. And there are a few, you know, there's definitely a few parts of season three, where we're not going for laughs, we're definitely trying to dig at something that is deeper than that. So yeah, I'm glad to hear you say that you enjoy that. That’s great.

John Betancourt: Oh, it is absolutely beautiful. So, shifting gears, the franchise is now growing, thanks to the recent spin-off announcement. With that in mind, what does it mean to you to part of a franchise that is so beloved and is now growing into a collaborative universe?

Megan Ganz: Yeah, it's, I mean, it's awesome. Our Marvel Cinematic Universe has just started, right? (Laughter from Megan and John) No, it's great. It's just, you know, Apple has been so awesome. And they're great supportive partners. And the fact that they not only have enough confidence in the show that they bought two seasons of Mythic Quest, so that we know we're going into a season four next year, but also that they were willing to take a chance on a spinoff because they believed in the creative team so much. And they wanted more of it. And they felt like the fans had an appetite for more of it. And we're really excited about what Mere Mortals can do and the ways that we can have the two shows in form and play off each other so that it'll enrich the viewers experience if they're viewing both, but you know, you don't have to. You can watch one or the other separately, but also just gives us an ability.

We've had so many times where we thought “God, there's so many cool stories about people that play the game, that you could tell.” And the ways in which our characters make these seemingly tiny choices for them that I'm sure every gamer can tell you how obnoxious it is when like a studio makes some random decision that screws up their life and like what they're doing and their connection to the game or changes something or tweak something. You know, they don't like it. And so, I think we realized there's a whole lot of stories to tell that we…. just didn't have time. We only have 10 episodes a season and we just didn't have time to get into that. So, I'm really excited to have that ability to tell those stories.

John Betancourt: Last question I have for you today, what’s the one message or theme you hope audiences take away from this season?

Megan Ganz: Yeah, I think the big message for me this season is that you… you don't have to do everything. you know? Like, just as a woman, I think we're presented a lot of these like, “Girl Boss” archetypes that are just good at everything. And like, that's this feminist thing, which is like, “Oh, yeah, she's, she's just the boss bitch that can do everything. And everybody loves her that she works with”, and like, it just doesn't feel realistic to me. And I love that we're presenting Poppy as a character that is not a good boss. She has one very particular talent, which is she is an amazing programmer. And you know what? She doesn't have to be all the other things, in the same way that Ian has big ideas, but he's not good at the nuts and bolts of it.

And I think like… it's a real love letter to like partnerships and relationships and cooperation and how really no creative endeavor is one person. There's the, you know, myth of one person that's like, you know, responsible for a whole genre is, I think, just a myth. I think there's so many people that go into to that, like, even great directors, you know, that you think their style is just this. They have costume designers, they've got, you know, production designers that help them, like, there's so many people that go into this creative effort. And so, I think like, getting these two big egos to a place where they make space to need somebody else in their life is kind of the message of the whole show.

This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.

Pico Alexander is an accomplished actor that has appeared in numerous projects on the silver and small screen. Currently, Pico stars as Adam in the new comedy feature, The Honeymoon, and we here at NTG were fortunate enough to sit down with Pico to discuss his new project.
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John Betancourt: Let’s talk a little bit about what got you into acting.

Pico Alexander: I guess probably my dad, you know, he was… when I was a kid, he was working as a camera operator. So, he has a great love for movies. He showed me a lot of movies growing up. And, you know, took me on set. I have an early memory of being on the set of Analyze This. And seeing like a big shootout. And I thought that was just awesome. And you know, I think it's like… it's that thing… you want to make your dad proud. You want to like, be your dad when you grow up and everything. So. Um, yeah, I think yeah, probably my dad.

John Betancourt: What can you tell us about your new feature, The Honeymoon?

Pico Alexander: So, The Honeymoon is what happens when a guy brings his best man on his honeymoon to Venice with him. And the best man is a mess. You know, he's one of those friends, you know since childhood and when you're an adult, you kind of think to yourself, “Man, there is no world in which I would be friends with this guy, if it wasn't for the fact that we were friends when we were five.” But it's the funny version of that. And Bav, played by Asim (Chaudhry) is like a really cringy kind of over-the-top guy. And so, Adam brings him on the honeymoon. And then hilarity ensues. As Bav proceeds to ruin every part of it but makes for a memorable honeymoon in that way. And definitely, hopefully for a memorable movie.

John Betancourt: What was it that attracted you to this project as an actor?

Pico Alexander: Well, it was funny. It was really, really funny. You know, also I… I needed a job. (Laughter.) I'm just a working stiff out here, trying to make a living. But really, it was just really funny. It really was funny. The sides were the first things that I read for the audition. And I was like, “Man, these are these are written really well.” And then I'd be reading the script cracking up and you know, I’d be sitting on the couch and my girlfriend would be like, “What are you laughing at?” And I’d be like, “Go check this out. Look at this scene. So funny.” Although now I'm saying that and I'm thinking… I probably shouldn't have shown her the script when I was reading it. (Laughter.)

John Betancourt: Ah, I’ll cut that out, then.

Pico Alexander: Yes, don’t print it! (Laughter from Pico and John.)

John Betancourt: Now what can you tell us about your character, Adam?

Pico Alexander: Adam is very much in love with his wife. Played by the lovely Maria Bakalova. He’s just your, you know… Adam’s a little bit uptight. He likes things to go according to plan. Easily embarrassed but, you know, hopefully over the course of the film, someone who's able to rise to the occasion and, and deal with some pretty extreme circumstances. You know, he's a loving guy. He's a pretty clear communicator. Maybe he has a bit of a hard time setting boundaries.

John Betancourt: Now from an actor’s standpoint, what was it about Adam that jumped off the page for you?

Pico Alexander: It had to do with the kind of road trip element and all the bits, and you know, just the situations and, and because Bav is written so well, you know, Adam is just reacting to this crazy guy. Who's like going off the rails and just driving them deeper and deeper into the, into the shit, you know? Yeah. So, for me it was like, “Oh, I just get to react. I just get to like play with this guy.” And then it ended up being awesome, which was just awesome. Oh yeah, did you get that? I didn't even mean to do that. Working with awesome was awesome.

John Betancourt: Oh man, you’re giving me Quotables. Making my job easy. (Laughter from Pico.) Now, correct me if I’m wrong, but I’ve always seen comedy as the hardest form of acting, since it’s tough to make someone laugh. So how did you as an actor, approach the role to make sure the jokes land?

Pico Alexander: Oh, God, man, I don't know. I stress out about it. And hope it's funny. I think in this case, like, I just had to react to something that's outlandish, you know, like, I'm playing the straight man in this one. So, I think it has to do with like, trying to respond truthfully, under these circumstances. Like, whatever the situation is. In this case, Bav is ruining it, and just making it unbearably awkward and uncomfortable. And for me, it was just about sitting in that seat, trying to sit in that discomfort and pretend it's not happening, you know? But whether it lands or not, you know, I don't know, man, we'll see.

John Betancourt: So how then do you overcome some of that stress?

Pico Alexander: Um, it's good just if I… can put all my attention on my acting partner, then I can forget about myself. That’s a good one. And then just to be prepared. So, just to really go over the material. And just be as ready as possible. So that when things you know, like, unpredictable things happen, which they inevitably do, if you're prepared enough, hopefully, you can adapt and improvise, you know? And then yeah, I mean, if we know all the lines and stuff, we know the situation, then it frees us up to do, more accurate improv.

John Betancourt: I was just going to ask if you all had a chance to just let loose and free wheel.

Pico Alexander: Yeah, yeah, we did a little bit, which was friggin’ great, man. You know, I feel like… I always wanted that kind of freedom, you know, and it's not often that you feel comfortable enough to do it, you know? Making a movie is such a big production, so much money involved. So many people. When you get to rollin’, when you get to actually doing a take, you kind of want to do it as it's written, you know? To honor the writer and whatnot. So, you know, I always feel like, and some actors are maybe a little more brave than I am, but I always feel like I really need explicit permission to do any kind of improv. Which I think Dean (Craig) gave, you know?

John Betancourt: How much of that improv made the final cut?

Pico Alexander: I think a little bit, yeah. And like, you know, even tiny, tiny things. Like, you know, if you look at a scene… every time Bav says something, and Adam is like, “Okay, what?” Or “Yeah.” Or even those tiny little words are technically improv, right? Like some of that stuff isn't on the page. But just the little micro exchanges between the two of them are improv. The thing is, the script is written so well, and the comedy is so tight, that there is no need to rewrite anything. But as far as giving it a little bit of color, that's where Dean gave us the freedom to make it a little messier, you know?

John Betancourt: Now obviously, a veteran actor, you’ve done a multitude of different roles in different genres, out of curiosity, what’s different when it comes to working on a comedy as opposed to say a drama?

Pico Alexander: I’ve got some friends who do stand-up comedy, I've been going to recently here in New York. And you know, it's pretty, it's pretty ruthless. You go to a stand-up comedy show. And there's just one… there's just like, one thing that matters. And that's whether it's funny or not. Whether you're getting laughs or not. And that is a… that's a lot of pressure. And in another movie, you don't need to have that immediate feedback. If you're doing a drama there, it's playing on a bunch of different levels. But with comedy, it's like you just want… it's just needs to be funny. I don't know, man. It's one of those things. I don't know how to… I don't know how to describe it. But you know, when you see it, you know?

John Betancourt: What you hope people take away from your movie?

Pico Alexander: What do I hope people take away? You know, maybe they can… like, revisit a relationship that they've had for a long time. And maybe, maybe redefine it in some way, you know? You got an old friend, or you got a parent, or you got a partner or somebody that you've fallen into some kind of rhythm with, that you don't like anymore? You know, that's okay. You can revisit those things and try to renegotiate the relationship, it doesn't mean you have to throw it all away, you know, things can be reworked, and made better than they are.
John Betancourt: Some depth to this, I like that.

Pico Alexander: I don't know, I don't know. I'm stretching. (Laughter from Pico and John.)

John Betancourt: Last question I have for you today, what are you most proud of when it comes to this project?

Pico Alexander: Oh, you know, it was really one of the most enjoyable things I've ever done. And being there in Italy. And I'm, I'm proud of the relationships that I made with some of the folks, some of the cast and some of the crew. You know, when you work on a movie, there's the experience of working on that movie. And then there's what happens a year later when it comes out and how it's received. And the more I work, the more I realized that those things are… they're kind of separate things, you know? And no matter how the movie is received, I'll always remember my time working on The Honeymoon, really, really, fondly and with a big heart.

This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity. 'The Honeymoon' is in theaters and is on-demand today, December 16th, 2022. 

Natalia Cordova-Buckley is a talented and accomplished actor that has appeared in some of the world’s biggest franchises, such as Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Currently, she plays the mysterious Isela in The Mosquito Coast on Apple TV+ and recently we had the chance to sit down with Natalia and discuss her enigmatic character.
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John Betancourt: What was it, that attracted you as an actor to the character of Isela?

Natalia Cordova-Buckley: Well, first and foremost having a job. (Laughter) You get the audition and you're like, “I hope I get this job.” And then if you do, you dive into the character. If not, it's way heartbreaking. But, of course, I was incredibly attracted to this character because it is rare to get, as a Latina, an intellectual role of this type. Isela is, is an academic intellectual woman, we, we rarely see Latinas in that light. We're usually you know, the sexy vixen, starlet, Lolita. And, and I understand why because Latinos are so beautiful and wonderful. But there's all kinds of people of all races and colors and whatnot. So, to start just seeing roles for… it's not so much for me for representation. It's just to be a reflection of reality. I keep saying actors, we're not reflections of morality. I'm not just here to represent Latinas or Latinos, I'm here to be a reflection of reality. And reality is that there's female doctors that are Latinas and lawyers and academics and intellectuals and teachers in Harvard. And for me to play such a… just grounded, strong, adult woman in herself is his wonderful because you don't you rarely see Latinas getting those roles.

John Betancourt: That's very, very true, and a huge deal. Now one thing that I definitely love about your portrayal of Isela, is that she is constantly watching everyone and everything. How do you as an actor, get into the mindset of playing somebody that is clearly ahead of everyone by 10 steps?

Natalia Cordova-Buckley: It's so amazing. I love that you and others have asked me that question because it was definitely… I'm glad you notice it because it was the hardest challenge to play with that character. In for example, in Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Yo-Yo was someone very grounded in her values, was very upfront, she wasn't a diplomat, she called it as it was and didn't care of things, the consequences, what the consequences were. And Isela has to be a complete and utter diplomat, even in all her strength, in all her groundedness in her ideology, she still has to have all these strings all the time. And for me to play each scene, grounded in who she was, but always… acting. So, Isela herself, is acting, is pretending in a lot of moments, was so perplexing at times, but I have to give it to Mark and Will, our writers and showrunners and our directors; Alonso, Metin and Stefan Schwartz and beyond, they, they really guided me in that ambiguity, because at moments I really had to like sit down and be like, “Okay, her objective is this, but she can't show her objective. So, she's got to go this way.” It was so confusing at times, having to act friendly with someone who she wasn't really friendly with. So that sort of game she constantly has to play. And it's usually with all men, so she's this woman, managing men all the time. Hello, I hope a lot of women relate to that, it was wonderful. (Laughter) It's just really wonderful to have to play someone who has to do that math all the time as you're doing it to as the actor, you know, finding out the ways on how to deal with everyone separately.

John Betancourt: Something I’ve noticed is a big theme in this series, is that everyone is constantly searching for something greater in this tale. What is Isela ultimately searching for?

Natalia Cordova-Buckley: I think she's searching for congruence with herself. I think for me, Isela was someone that from a young age had been you know, fist in the air kind of human being, but always in the intellectual matter. You know, an ideologist, you know, if you want to think of her in the past… sort of like how the communist group started back in Germany. But she was a thinker. She was a teacher; she was an academic and intellectual. And I think at one point, she decided to put her money where her mouth is and live out the system that she was always… the utopia that she was always trying to create in her mind, in her ideology. And not just speak of it as a philosophy of life, but to actually be like, you know, all these communists and socialists in the past have spoken of this utopia, let's stop talking about it, and let's actually create it and that's why she keeps saying to, to Allie, you know, “You were necessary, you would have been here.” Because I think from a young age, they spoke about this in groups as activists and stuff.

John Betancourt: Now as a follow up to that, since we’ve talked a bit about how she plays all the angles and how she is searching for more. Who or what would you say she is loyal to in this story?

Natalia Cordova-Buckley: I think like I said, the congruency of having been someone that just speaks about it now has to live it out loud. I think there's a lot of these kinds of real life characters that have been sort of… Fidel Castro, Che Guevara, Nelson Mandela without coming from a place of judgment if whether we agree with their beliefs or not, but just these people that have such fire in them, of ideology, of idea of living of the way we should be, that they cannot do anything but live it you know, Nelson Mandela, owned his 27 years in prison and came out a stronger person. Che Guevara owned the fact that he was like, “I'm a guerrillero and I will go fight in countries that are not even mine.” I mean, he fought for Congo, Castro you know, these, these people that just turned into their ideologies, for better or for worse, that's Isela, she cannot any longer just live in her mind.

She had to, to live out everything she had spoken, if she was going to protect original communities or a Native American community, she was going to live with them, she wasn't just going to speak or write about them. If she's going to save the water of the planet, she needed to live above this aquifer in this jungle, you know, like, she will not be someone that just… that doesn't walk the talk. I think that's, that's her biggest search. And I think there's a lot of vanity, in some way, in those people. Well, not vanity, more this this sort of narcissism of “I shall live even if I'm dying in the middle of the jungle, I won't get a doctor,” you know?  And there's a lot of that in Mosquito Coast, the novel, there's a lot of that in Allie, and there is a bit of Allie from the novel in Isela, you know, she represents a bit of that person that was willing to live it all just to be congruent even if it meant losing family, losing everything, you know, its ideology at its best. It's being idealistic at its max.

John Betancourt: What are you most looking forward to fans experiencing in the back half of the season?

Natalia Cordova-Buckley: I mean, I hope they first and foremost that it's a show they enjoy and that we tell a story, and they feel like they're fully formed characters and people that you could think of as existing in real life. It's hard for me to have a morality tale with my work, because, as I said, again, I don't like to be a reflection of morality. I just like to reflect what seems to be real from what the writers write and be a reflection of our world. So, I hope people, with these great shows like Mosquito Coast on Apple TV Plus, I hope we just start approximating the craft with so much more respect. You know, filmmaking and storytelling is not just what it seems to have become. It's, it's not fame, fortune and glory. To me, it's something much more honorable and profound. And when you get to do shows like this one, where someone like Neil Cross and Will and Mark and the storytellers behind it really want to make an impact in the industry of entertainment.

I just hope we keep honoring the craft as we should, because there is a craft behind it because the show wouldn't be what it is without the incredible Mexican crew that we have. In the backdrop. They were the best makeup artists, and the best hairstylists, and the best camera operators. And the most wonderful DPs, in 99% of it was Mexican and Latino. So, there's a whole craft behind filmmaking that I think is sometimes being lost, because of the entertainment industry becoming so much more about quantity of content than quality of content. So, if you take anything away from this show, know that it was seven months in insane heat with insane, insects and crocodiles and snakes and I was there 50% of the time, but there was a Mexican crew 99% of the time, in that heat and in that rain and working their butts off to give you just the best entertainment you could ever have. So, I hope people start taking that more than just the momentarily satisfaction of the entertainment, that we dig deeper and understand what it takes to do great storytelling, great filmmaking. For me that's really important. So, we don't lose the magic of this craft.

This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.

​Casper Van Dien (Alita: Battle Angel) and Louis Mandylor (Rambo: Last Blood) star in BATTLE FOR SAIPAN, an edge-of-your-seat WWII epic now available on digital platforms and in select theaters. On July 7th, 1944, a US Army hospital on the remote island of Saipan is overrun by Japanese forces during a relentless attack. Outgunned and surrounded by the enemy, a lone medic (Van Dien) puts it all on the line to lead a band of wounded warriors to safety.

Daemon Hillin, acclaimed producer of such films as THE LONG NIGHT and HELLBLAZERS, tells us 5 things you won’t know about the making of the film.
 
Something people might not realize about the real battle…
That WW2 medics were not armed, when Brandon Slagle, our writer, came to me with this fact I found it very interesting.
 
I was shocked to learn that…
The man who was the inspiration for this film, Ben Solomon, was stationed in Saipan as a surgeon who, during the final Banzai charge, defended the hospital post and killed close to 100 enemy soldiers
 
We shot the film in…
In areas around Bangkok, Thailand.
 
Most of the cast and crew were…
A very diverse group of individuals, from the US, Italy, Thailand, and other countries who base themselves out of Thailand. The diligent hard working Thai crew are who make all of this possible.
 
The hardest part of making a movie like this is…
We shot this movie in ten days, I wished we had 20 days.