Note: This story contains spoilers from “Somebody Somewhere” Season 3, Episode 6.
“Somebody Somewhere” finds the laughs in life’s most vulnerable and authentic moments, which makes this week’s fender bender accident a prime example of the show’s excellence.
The HBO comedy series is one episode away from its series finale, with plenty of characters showing significant growth before we say farewell. For Joel (Jeff Hiller), Episode 6 gave him the wake-up call he needed to stand up for himself in his relationship — after a hilariously tragic car accident.
“As Much as I Like Not Feeling” began with Joel getting into an accident with an older lady. As he intently listened to a podcast about “doing hard things,” Joel realized he missed his turn. He hit the brakes and set to reverse, but failed to look before he started going and hit the woman’s car behind him. When he got out of the car, he stared in guilt-ridden horror as the driver — who sported a disabled driver sticker in her car — struggled to get out of the car and meet him in the middle to exchange information.
“She was supposed to get out of the car and walk over to me, then we were supposed to sort of mime a conversation. But it physically took her a long time to get out of the car,” Hiller told TheWrap with a laugh, reliving the funniest moment from the Episode 6 opening scene. “As an actor I was like, ‘Oh no, we’re not doing what we needed to do,’ but the director loved it.”
“It made Joel feel even worse, and that was great for the scene,” he added. “It worked really well.”
The incident set Joel off to speak to Sam about how he’s been feeling in his relationship with Brad (Tim Bagley). He fears that he is giving too much away in compromises while building a life with his partner, after moving in together at the start of Season 3.
The conversation between Joel and Sam (Bridget Everett) happened during a much-needed sleepover for the two best friends. Hiller celebrated the fact that the heart-to-heart between the duo saw Joel and Sam being there for each other, providing useful advice for the respective drama in their lives. This was a welcome difference from the usual setup of Joel exclusively acting like a loving caretaker for Sam.
Below, Hiller spoke about playing through Joel’s growth in Season 3, the “bummer” of seeing the show end this year and more.
TheWrap: How does it feel to see these episodes come out, and the reaction from viewers so far?
Hiller: It feels great. Because of the strike, we shot back in March, so it’s, it’s been a long time coming out since Season 2. It feels so nice that people are watching it and are loving it.
And it’s a bummer. It’s sad that it’s ending, too.
The show has always been a joy to watch, but you can really see the characters growing in Season 3. How was it to see that growth from Joel, from Sam, and those relationships and exploring that?
I really loved it. I’m with you. I read the pilot, and I was like, “Oh, each episode will end with us at choir practice, and we’ll all sing a song.” But the writers are just constantly demanding authenticity. There isn’t a formula in life. There is everything. People are enigmas and everything’s always changing. And so I love seeing Sam’s growth in particular. I think she really has changed so much since the pilot, and I think Joel this season, the way he’s changing, it’s important and it’s good. There’s a little sadness to it, too, because really, the way he’s changing is that his blind hope is like, “Okay, well, I’ve got to adjust. I’ve got to compromise.” And that’s a little sad, I think. But also absolutely true.
That’s how life is… the problem of the human condition.
Joel has always been more of the heart of the show. The person who is more in tune with his emotions. And the friendship with Sam changes a lot this season. But both managed to navigate those changes without lashing out at each other.
That’s exactly what we need right now. She’s there for him much more than she has been in previous seasons. He’s really always sort of been there for her. And what I loved was how she stepped up for him. There’s that beautiful scene at the end of 306 where they’re sitting on the couch, having a slumber party. It’s sort of returning to just the two of them talking, but it’s so different, because instead of just Joel being like, “You’ve got to try, you’ve got to change.” It’s him confessing what’s happening in his life, and then she confesses what’s happening in her life and it’s equal.
I think that’s so beautiful that they found that, because in Season 2, they were so close, but it was almost at the expense of letting anyone else in the world in, which I think can feel nice. But it’s not necessarily healthy, right?
Another highlight this season comes when Joel gets an apology from his high school bully in Episode 4, which wrecks him — single handedly giving gay people closure everywhere. How was it to play out that storyline and tap into those emotions?
It was cathartic. I don’t just play a feminine gay man on TV. I’m also one in life who grew up in Texas in the 80s, which was not a nice place to be then. And it’s funny, because the writers had me come into the writers room to sort of say, “What would be the thing that you would want to hear?” And as I was talking to them, pitching dialogue, I started crying so hard. Because we do want to hear that and we need to hear that. But I have never heard of that actually happening in real life.
It feels nice that someone would actually learn from it and not revel in it. I really loved that and it was like a true catharsis for me as a person.
The accident helps Joel see that he wants to reconnect with his old church and have his own life outside of his relationship. What was it like to go through Joel’s journey this season and watch him make these decisions?
It was great. I wish I could learn from it, because I think with Joel, what Joel thinks when he first moves in — and this is so Jeff, too, if I may talk about both of us in third person — he thinks compromise means giving up everything. And that’s actually not what this means, right? It’s give and take, and what I love was seeing him realize that he needs something for himself too.
Playing it made me really happy for him. I know that’s stupid when people talk about their characters like that, but I love him. I think he’s so wonderful, and I don’t want him to give up himself for a relationship, and I don’t think Brad does, either.
What are you going to take away from your time playing Joel?
Oh, huge gratitude. Like I said, I do love him. I’ve been acting for a very long time. I’ve played so many small roles, and I always try and play them at the top of my intelligence… but it wasn’t until I got to play Joel that I actually was able to give all of my talents. And frankly, I don’t think that will happen again.
I think this is it for me. But if I have to go back to playing waiters or teaching improv, or God forbid, waiting tables again, I will always have these incredible 21 episodes that I am so proud of. Without clarification or qualification, I’m just proud of the work I did, of the work the writers did, of the work that the cinematographer and directors, everybody, the crew, top to bottom, just made this wonderful, beautiful show. And that’s what I’m taking away from it.
What would be your dream project to come after this?
I want to play someone who wears clothes that are pretty, because I’m always playing, like, tech nerds or dorky people, and so I’m always wearing a lot of pleated khakis, short sleeve shirts with ties. I’d like to play like a rich person in one of those “White Lotus,” “Knives Out” or “Hunger Games” prequels.
This conversation has been edited for clarity and length.
The “Somebody Somewhere” series finale airs Sunday, Dec. 8, on HBO. All episodes are available to stream on Max.
