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Tom's Guide
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Tom's Guide
This true-to-life comedy is how I fight off the Sunday Scaries — and you can stream it on Max
Some Sunday night HBO shows ramp up the tension — we're thinking post-apocalyptic thrillers like "The Last of Us," power-struggle satires like "Succession" and dragon-filled dramas like "Game of Thrones." But where those HBO series get your adrenaline pumping and your anxiety swelling, there's one dramedy in the network's elite Sunday night club that instead brings a sense of calm and community to your binge-watching habits: "Somebody Somewhere." Led by a hilarious and heartfelt Bridget Everett, the superb HBO comedy-drama recently capped off its third and final season in December 2024, a tender and acclaimed run that saw each season receive a perfect 100% approval rating from critics (per Rotten Tomatoes). Along the way, "Somebody Somewhere" had viewers falling for Everett's Sam Miller and her family — both chosen and otherwise — of Joel (Jeff Hiller), Tricia (Mary Catherine Garrison) and Fred Rococo (Murray Hill). Even a half hour spent with this plucky crew out in Manhattan, Kansas, singing karaoke and joking around over French toast, will have you forgetting all about the morning meeting that's to come tomorrow. Here's why you should add "Somebody Somewhere" to your Sunday Scaries watch list. "Somebody Somewhere" centers on fortysomething Sam Miller (played by an Emmy-worthy Bridget Everett), "a true Kansan on the surface, but, beneath it all, struggling to fit the hometown mold," reads the official series logline, per HBO. As she returns to small-town Manhattan, KS, Sam grapples with loss and acceptance in the wake of the death of her sister, Holly. That is, until she finds solace in singing, which opens her up to "a community of outsiders who don't fit in but don't give us, showing that finding your people, and finding your voice, is possible. Anywhere. Somewhere.' Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. Along with Everett, the Peabody Award-winning comedy stars Jeff Hiller, Mary Catherine Garrison, Tim Bagley, Murray Hill, Jennifer Mudge, Mercedes White, Meighan Gerachis and Ólafur Darri Ólafsson. Altogether, those lovable misfits explore life's beautiful and ugly moments with excess humor, refreshing honesty and plenty of hope. The HBO comedy — which recently nabbed two Emmy nominations for Jeff Hiller's sweet, soulful supporting role as Sam's BFF Joel as well as for Everett, Hannah Bos and Paul Thureen's writing — was widely praised by critics throughout its three-season run for its tenderness, grace and warmth. (It aired on HBO from January 2022 to December 2024.) "'Somebody Somewhere' captures the bittersweet beauty of life in all its minutiae, never forgetting to laugh in the face of adversity," reads the critical consensus for the show's sophomore season, per Rotten Tomatoes. Coleman Spilde of The Daily Beast called the gorgeous drama "one of the decade's finest, thanks to its delightful ensemble cast and a knack for fleshing out life's minutiae, with gravity and irreverence in equal measure." "Somebody Somewhere" isn't like any show, anywhere — it's an engrossing and exceedingly special watch that will both reaffirm your humanity and transport viewers to somewhere a little kinder, a little funnier and a little gentler than your everyday. It's just what you need when you have a busy, stressful Monday morning looming in your near future. Watch "Somebody Somewhere" on Max
Los Angeles Times
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Why the Emmys still matter in a time of turmoil
The 77th Emmys nominations have been announced and given the state of just about everything, it's easy not to care. Our current president is dismantling large portions of the federal government and offering new tax breaks to folks like those portrayed behaving badly in 'The White Lotus.' Flash floods, a potential measles epidemic and ongoing bloody wars in Ukraine and the Middle East seem to echo the pre-apocalyptic drumbeats from 'Paradise.' Masked federal ICE agents, who look like they could be part of the Federal Disaster Response Agency from 'The Last of Us,' roam the streets of Los Angeles, arresting people who might not have the right documentation and taking them to detention centers that appear to be right out of 'The Handmaid's Tale.' Television itself is in a state of freefall, with streaming prices rising even as the number of new series sharply declines, and though 'The Studio' makes it seem as if L.A. remains the geographic center of the entertainment business, the city's increasingly empty soundstages and unemployed production workers tell another story. So given that many Americans might very well agree to work for 'Severance's' sinister Lumon Industries if it guaranteed a decent paycheck and healthcare benefits, it seems impossible to gin up excitement about how many nominations HBO/Max, Netflix, Apple TV+ or any other entertainment conglomeration with an obscenely overpaid CEO received this year. Except, you know, Jeff Hiller, whose amazing midlife breakout role as nakedly sincere Joel in 'Somebody Somewhere' finally got the nomination it deserved. Or Jenny Slate, who deftly spun plates of hilarity, humanity and pathos in 'Dying for Sex.' Stripped of his good looks and seductive accent, Colin Farrell still managed to mesmerize in 'The Penguin,' which not only resuscitated an exhausted genre but took it to a new level of storytelling. From its 15-year-old star to its risky single-shot direction and unsettlingly resonant themes, the limited series 'Adolescence' was as close to perfection as a piece of television gets. Jean Smart ('Hacks'), Kathy Bates ('Matlock') and Catherine O'Hara ('The Studio') continue to prove the absurdity of Hollywood's traditional sidelining of women over 40, while 'Abbott Elementary' reminds us just how good a traditional broadcast comedy can be. Artistic awards of any kind are inevitably absurd — how does one relatively small group of people decide what is 'best' — and given the amount and diversity of television, the Emmys are more absurd than most. According to Television Academy chairman Cris Abrego, this was a record-breaking year in terms of voter turnout. Even so, it's difficult to see categories dominated by one or two shows and not wonder how much TV the voting members managed to watch. If it were just a question of judging shows on submitted episodes, there would be no need for pricey FYC campaigns after all. But the Emmys matter because television is art. And art matters. Even if it involves complaining about how ridiculous this year's choices are, the nominations give us an opportunity to talk about art — what touched/impressed/moved/changed us, or not. What comforted us, disturbed us, made us laugh or look at things just a little differently and why. That's important, especially now when so much is in a constant state of upheaval, when everywhere we look people are questioning the future of democracy, civilization, the planet. Television can be used as an escape from 'real life' — and heaven knows we could all use some of that — but it's existence, and our appreciation of it, is very much part of that real life. Art is a hallmark of civilization. It's proof that we have evolved beyond the basic instincts of survival, that we understand the necessity of stories, images and music, and that we encourage their creation and appreciate the existence of even those things we personally do not perceive as great or even good. Even as Peak TV gives way to the age of contraction, television remains one of our most universally experienced artforms. At its most basic level, it's about curiosity — we watch television, whether it's 'Slow Horses,' 'The Pitt' or 'The Traitors' — to see what other people are up to, what they feel, say and do in a wide variety of circumstances and if we would feel, say or do something similar. So yeah, the Emmys are not as important as ICE raids, flash floods, children dying of measles or the vanishing social safety net. When climate change has made the world so hot that the World Cup is under threat, it's easy to consider conversations about why 'Squid Game' or the final season of 'The Handmaid's Tale' received no major nominations, or how academy members could nominate Martin Short and not Steve Martin for 'Only Murders in the Building,' a complete waste of time. Until you consider the alternative. Because the day we stop celebrating and arguing about art is the day we'll know the bastards have won.
Yahoo
21-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Jeff Hiller Has 'Tini Time' with Bridget Everett After' Somebody Somewhere': 'I'm Not Quite the Drinker Joel Is' (Exclusive)
Jeff Hiller is opening up about his friendship with Bridget Everett following the end of Somebody Somewhere In an interview with PEOPLE, the actor and comedian discusses how the co-stars have their own version of "'tini time" Hiller's memoir Actress of a Certain Age is out nowJeff Hiller and Bridget Everett enjoy spending time together as much as their Somebody Somewhere characters. In a recent interview with PEOPLE, the actor and comedian, 49, opens up about how he and the Patti Cake$ actress, 53, have their own version of "'tini time," which sees their on-screen, alter-ego besties Joel and Sam, respectively, enjoy martinis together. Though Hiller says it's "rare" that it's just he and Everett, the pair do often spend time with a group of friends. "It's usually lots of people, and we have these two mutual friends who are a couple, so it's sometimes the four or five [of us] with my husband," he says. is now available in the Apple App Store! Download it now for the most binge-worthy celeb content, exclusive video clips, astrology updates and more! During those get-togethers, Hiller says he's been limiting his "'tinis." "I have to not have 'tinis anymore because Mama gets hungover," he jokes. "Sometimes before I leave the party, I'm like, 'Oh God, I'm hungover.' I'm not quite the drinker that Joel is." Elsewhere in the interview, Hiller also opens up about whether he and Everett have discussed a Somebody Somewhere reunion following the finale in December 2024. "I mean, we've dreamed about it," he says. "There was nobody that was like, 'Oh, okay, onto the next.' It was so special for all of us, and we really do love each other." He adds, "I think everybody would be on board in a heartbeat if something happened. I mean, it's all about money, networks, scripts and writing." On June 10, Hiller released his collection of autobiographical essays, Actress of a Certain Age. Throughout the book, he recounts his journey from being bullied as a gay kid in Texas to becoming a social worker and then landing his breakout role in Somebody Somewhere at the age of 44. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Actress of a Certain Age is out now, and Somebody Somewhere can be streamed on Max. Read the original article on People
Daily Mail
14-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
HBO star reveals why he has 'no hair and no eyebrows': 'I know I look weird'
Actor and comedian Jeff Hiller has revealed why exactly he has 'no hair and no eyebrows,' admitting: 'I know I look weird.' The 48-year-old reached new levels of prominence as the best friend on the HBO series Somebody Somewhere starring Bridget Everett. Demonstrating his range, he also played the villainous role of a serial killer targeting gay men on American Horror Story: NYC in 2022. Now he has published a new memoir called Actress Of A Certain Age, with a whole chapter devoted to the question of his hair. He disclosed that he suffers from frontal fibrosing alopecia, which occurs mainly in postmenopausal women and can result in eyebrow loss as well as a receding hairline at the front and sides of the patient's scalp. Jeff shared why he found that chapter to be the 'hardest' to write, and why he was surprised by the way people responded, via People. In the same chapter, he wrote about having patches of discolored skin brought on by the condition morphea, aka localized scleroderma. Although he was bent on including a chapter about 'morphea and having no hair or no eyebrows,' he found himself taken aback by the reactions. 'What's funny is I thought everyone would be like: "Oh my God, you're so brave for writing this," and no one has even mentioned it,' he dished. Jeff also pointed out that even his editor thought he might not 'need' to include the chapter in the book, which was published this Tuesday. 'When I first came out, it was really important for me to tell people I was gay, not because I thought they didn't know, but because I thought they weren't sure if I knew,' explained the San Antonio native. 'And I think I want to get out where I'm like: "I know I look weird, I've seen that you Googled it, I've talked to these hair and makeup people, I just want you to know I know it, too. So, if you're talking behind my back, I know it."' Although he found that chapter the 'hardest' to cobble together, he also noted: 'People get uncomfortable when you say: "I know I'm not attractive," but, also, that's not really where I hold myself esteem.' Jeff observed: 'I'm not a young, hot movie star that needs to be f***able to get my next role. So it's not that big of a deal. I know my hair looks weird.' The memoir also continues reflections about growing up in Texas, where young Jeff found himself getting picked on over his homosexuality. He found that portion 'surprisingly difficult' to get through, sharing: 'I forgave myself a little bit by writing about that, and I have a lot of compassion for my younger self.' Jeff continued: 'When I look at my little fat kid self with my perm from my mom that she gave me in the kitchen, I feel a lot of compassion for myself.' However not all the personal details of his life made it into the book, and he 'left out a couple of things that I thought were maybe a little too much,' he teased.
New York Times
06-02-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
New York Theater to See Now: Isabelle Huppert, ‘Urinetown' and More
Let some brilliant theater artists — like Jeff Hiller in 'Urinetown,' Susannah Flood in 'Liberation' and Tonya Pinkins in 'My First Ex-Husband' — tell you a story this month. Here are 10 shows to tempt you, Off Broadway and beyond. If you are allergic to bathroom humor, Greg Kotis and Mark Hollmann's Tony Award-winning musical satire probably is not for you. Winkingly Brechtian, with echoes of Ibsen's 'An Enemy of the People,' it's set in a dystopia where private toilets are illegal and public facilities charge for use — a situation ripe for rebellion. Directed by Teddy Bergman ('KPOP') for New York City Center Encores!, this brief revival stars Jordan Fisher, Rainn Wilson, Keala Settle and Jeff Hiller. (Through Feb. 16, New York City Center) A marionette made of ice plays a wandering, melting, disappearing Oedipus accompanied by his daughter Antigone in this puppet piece by the French company Théâtre de l'Entrouvert, which uses bits of text from Henry Bauchau's novel 'Oedipus on the Road.' Conceived and directed by Élise Vigneron, whose interest in ephemerality has led her to work repeatedly with ice puppets, it is presented with the Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival as part of Basil Twist's Dream Music Puppetry program. Recommended for ages 11 and up. (Through March 2, Here) The New York Times once described Charlie Chaplin's longtime assistant, Toraichi Kono, as 'the keeper of his privacy.' An immigrant from Japan who made fleeting appearances in Chaplin films, this 'combination valet, bodyguard and chauffeur' is the title character of Philip W. Chung's historically based play, which follows Kono's fortunes as he is suspected of espionage and imprisoned in an internment camp during World War II. Jeff Liu directs the world premiere for Pan Asian Repertory Theater. (Through March 9, A.R.T./New York Theaters) This new two-hander by the Obie Award winner Samuel D. Hunter ('A Case for the Existence of God') stars Brian J. Smith and Paul Sparks as estranged brothers with different fathers, discrete wounds and far-flung lives — one in their Idaho hometown, the other in a city thousands of miles away. But they have a shared filial task: caring for their sick mother. Jack Serio ('Uncle Vanya') directs for Signature Theater. (Through March 16, Signature Theater) The Obie-winning playwright Rajiv Joseph ('Guards at the Taj') spent three years serving in the Peace Corps in Senegal. That country is the setting for his new thriller, about a Peace Corps volunteer who finds himself under the protection of a State Department operative as the year 2000 approaches. May Adrales directs this world premiere for Manhattan Theater Club. (Through March 23, New York City Center) The New Group can be relied on to sprinkle its shows with stars, and so it goes with this revival of Sam Shepard's 1977 Obie winner, a poetic tragicomedy about a family living the flip side of the American dream. Directed by Scott Elliott, it's led by Calista Flockhart as Ella Tate and Christian Slater as her drunken, combustible husband, Weston. Cooper Hoffman, whose father starred in Shepard's 'True West' on Broadway, plays their teenage son. (Through March 30, Pershing Square Signature Center) Bess Wohl, who so deftly traced an older woman's feminist awakening in her Broadway comedy, 'Grand Horizons,' here tells a mother-daughter story, stretching from Ohio in 1970, during the era of women's consciousness-raising groups, to a half-century later. In a world-premiere production for Roundabout Theater Company, Whitney White directs a cast that includes Betsy Aidem, Susannah Flood and Kristolyn Lloyd. The show contains nudity, and audience members are required to place their phones in locked pouches during the performance. (Through March 30, Laura Pels Theater) Rotating casts filled with boldface names are the lure for this collection of comic relationship stories written by Joy Behar, who performs them alongside Susie Essman, Tovah Feldshuh and Adrienne C. Moore through Feb. 23. Judy Gold, Susan Lucci, Tonya Pinkins and Cathy Moriarty take over from Feb. 26 to March 23, followed by Veanne Cox, Jackie Hoffman and Andrea Navedo, March 26 through April 20. Gina Gershon joins them from April 2 to April 20. (Manhattan Movement & Arts Center) The Irish dramatist Enda Walsh, a St. Ann's Warehouse favorite last seen there with his shattering 'Medicine' in 2021, returns with this fractured memory play, woven through with original music by Anna Mullarkey. Directed by Walsh for the Abbey Theater in Dublin, it stars Kate Gilmore in an acclaimed performance. Walsh, a Tony winner for the musical 'Once,' is drawn to explorations of abuse and its damages. This is one of those. (Feb. 15 through March 2, St. Ann's Warehouse) The letters of Mary Stuart — the 16th-century Scottish queen whose own cousin Elizabeth I of England ordered her beheaded — form the basis of this 90-minute monologue about a life full of royal plots and scheming, spoken on the eve of her execution. Starring Isabelle Huppert and directed by the avant-gardist Robert Wilson, this highly stylized production is the third time Huppert has starred in a show of Wilson's. Written by Darryl Pinckney, with a classical score by Ludovico Einaudi, it is performed in French with English supertitles. (Feb. 27 through March 2, NYU Skirball)
