It didnt happen. Check out all of THRs series finale coverage of Veep here. ", Taking the stage and securing her second shot at historyhistory that she felt was hers to claimSelina addressed the crowd. When did you decide to play that devastating card, and how did you decide that she would stoop that low?I refer to it in the [writers] room a little bit as the Fredo moment [from The Godfather Part II], for many reasons, but also just the lovingness and the loyalty of poor Fredo and, of course, of poor Gary Originally that was not happening. And to answer Jamies question, Why would Gary wearing corduroy not happen? He was ready to do whatever she asked. Offers may be subject to change without notice. But its still Catherine. And when you sow that your entire life, you reap sadness and isolation. What is left of Gary 24 years later?Look, at some point, there is a sickness in the character. and when I look back on my 52 years with almost 30 of them spent in public service there is no one who has sacrificed more than me. And were going to see him again. In the end, shes sitting at the Oval desk and shes totally alone, miserable and isolated. (An earlier version of the script had him saying that she looked stunning.) Warning: This story contains plot details from Sundays series finale of Veep. But I doubt were going to get it. Hell hath no fury like a perpetually under-appreciated, eternally . The coming to terms with what youve done and what you did is somewhat horrific. Shes willing to get rid of Jaffar [Usman Ally], arguably the love of her life. Sort of a Biden to his Obama. The New York Times Magazine recently posited that at the center of the acerbic satire that is "Veep" sits "the singularly awkward, brutal, tender, nonromantic romance between Selina and Gary.". And did he have any say on his old-age look?At some point or another, we found out that he had to approve everything. When none of that came to pass, lets do the General thing early in the year and plan her funeral, and then lets jump ahead to the future and see it became the idea. Ethan Hart gave a vague response: Im not sure, but I would love to see a Veep character cry like Carrie on Homeland. Sonia Murray, however, was very specific (Homeland spoiler alert! Maybe, just maybe obviously with all the people from the measles, maybe people will start to go, Well, wait a second, if they were right about vaccines, maybe they were right about the climate.. Veep Season 7, episode 7 photo: Colleen Hayes/HBO. I think he has forgiven her. Julia and Tony said those scenes were difficult to shoot, just knowing the history between the characters and that they as actors were saying goodbye to this onscreen relationship as well, even though Gary didnt realize it. And yeah, anybody who thought she should be president wasnt maybe paying attention the way they should have been. And so Gary wouldnt really listen to what shes actually saying. And so, Julia e-mailed him, and then we got back this very quick auto-response, that was like, Im traveling. And so in becoming president, Montez would have held on to her, and that there would have been a moment or two when we went back to the Montez White House, or even maybe trying to call Montez and Sue would have answered the phone, some version of that. They bring up that something happened to the point where Gary will never speak of it and it stops Selina's rage mid-sentence. But the arbitrary rule all but . I dont remember whose idea that was, but It was a really nice distraction from the weight of what was going on. ): I think Jonah would be great on Homeland. He certainly didnt deserve to go to jail, but what responsibility, if any, does he own for participating in this horrifically lopsided relationship?Boy, thats an interesting question. That would have been the running joke, that everybody else got scanned but shes the only actual competent one. Thats Washington D.C. for you District of C***s!, MANDEL RESPONDS: Theyre not wrong, he says. "There was just an enormous amount of restraint. [Laughs] Thats a recipe for disaster. I always catered it to Gary just treating what she was saying as an everyday request and never considering what she was really asking. it's been getting some buzz around the web. He had all the designer clothes and was always clean-shaven, because God forbid he look like crap compared to her. Pam Grier reflects on her most iconic roles, from. Number two, I think there was a sense of, this is the final season. I think hed love to go to restaurants and be able to eat, but Im not quite sure hed have a lot to say. His take? They sent us something when we won the Emmy. And that never came to pass. 2023 TVLine Media, LLC. "I'm actually really glad it happened because Gary needed to be woken up," he tells EW. We talk a lot about that. Julia Louis-Dreyfus., MANDEL RESPONDS: Hearing that last answer, Mandel can only laugh: Have our standards for what a president is dropped so far in the last two years that this is what were saying is good about Selina Meyer? But looking at the big picture I find that [two-thirds number] fascinating, because I think shes a horrible person! But it feels pretty definitive. She was aware of what she was doing. So for him to lay the lipstick on the casket? Its so fun to work with somebody whos on the same page. And please confirm that it was as vice president, not president.He was definitely impeached as vice president. What else could she do that would be even worse than breaking up with Jaffar? 2023 Oscars predictions: See who will win at the 95th Academy Awards. But maybe theres a lesson to be learned which is, at the end of the day, horrible is horrible. And my guess is it was a similar sort of financial campaign thing. I think it was hard not to infuse that scene of saying goodbye to him in the wings with too much emotion that was coming from me, personally. (At least Sufe Bradshaws Sue was still guarding the Oval Office, doing MVP work to block VP Jonah, played by Timothy Simons, from any executive privilege.) That it wasnt just like a movie, that we could license the clips, that it was going to land on his desk. Whoop 4.0: Which One Is The Best Health Tracker? I dont have the secret answer of what Labor Day was, I just liked the idea of a lot of clues that kept changing what you thought about it. "And there's nothing anyone can do to stop me from standing and walking for my country!" Disturbing. Sex toy covered in shit. "It means to lose something. Politically-Correct Reaction: "Veep" focused on the unwanted secrets of its staff in "East Wing." Selina and Gary's Labor Day-set secret may have taken center stage, but plot threads . He was the one who believed the most in the purity and potential of government. The very first Labor Day in the country was celebrated in 1882, and it became an official federal holiday in 1894. Amy (Anna Chlumsky) ended up with Ericsson (Diedrich Bader)! The boat thing was something we had thought a lot about, honestly, when I first got to the show, just the idea that its a boat, not the date, I thought that would be a really fun thing. Thats what was so beautiful about the way Dave [Mandel] wrote and directed the episode. Shell be the ventriloquist and Ill be the dummy. Because I believe he wanted to know. 2023 The Hollywood Reporter, LLC. Thats the byproduct. Even though I think Selina is a little bit anti-Semitic, shes not nearly as anti-Semitic as the entire Trump administration, so its hard to compete.. And theres nothing you could do that would ever satisfy her, he says. They are looking to Veep for a little bit of comedy, because he makes them so nervous, he says. With Gary, the codependency and dysfunction and obsession with her is going so fast that he couldnt stop himself. That was a nuclear bomb. I think people forget that she did rise up through the political system, and that requires a certain amount of street-fighting skills and an inherent political sense, and she has that. How did you keep those emotions in check? "It's kind of important actually. I dont know quite what hes doing there, but its kind of wonderful., ANALYZING THE ANSWERS: Mandel admits some of his questions werent necessarily designed to be answered. She just thought that Amy wouldve liked the cut of his jib. But it really is impossible, he says. This was a really [important] scene, and we wanted to make sure it gelled, so we worked on it in for a while to find the flow of it. The Federal Labor Day Holiday Is Created. The problem is, Im happy to get rid of the incidental swearing. She just sent him to jail and knowing Selina, she's not going to get him out. After both Selina and Gary suffer heart attacks this season, she shows a little humanity when she takes care of him in the basement of her brownstone. Between Sarah Sutherlands Emmy worthy ugly crying and JLDs Emmy-winning performance, I cry from laughter every time I watch this episode. Other episodes tying for second with numerous shout-outs include Season 2s D.C. and The Vic Allen Dinner (as Eman said, It has everything: Kent being evil, Youre a meme, maam, Selina singing, the line Jolly Green Ji** Face.); Season 4s Election Night; and Season 5s Congressional Ball and Kissing Your Sister (aka Catherines documentary). So I like that thats the way he heard it. Even as Pullman Company and railroad workers were striking, Congress passed legislation in June 1894 making the first Monday in September a federal legal . Lets just take no prisoners. "Gary and Selina cohabit a dysfunctional not-quite-romance: brutal, abusive, pathetic and unbalanced, but, at the same time, almost in spite . Subscribe for full access to The Hollywood Reporter. I think he might view Selina with a little more empathy and compassion. Gary is constantly getting beat up, so anytime theres an opportunity for a blowup where he can actually express himself, Im in. So, when she first mentioned Gary, theres just this subtle thing on her face thats just so wonderful. The train was moving way to fast Im getting deep now but the train was going so fast of every action and behavior that shes ever done that it was inevitable. I was like, 'Oh! I wish in retrospect, we had managed to put maybe one, or two other clues along the way But there is no answer. Its sort of the way I treat my in-laws, which is, I never say their name, because my instinct is to call them Mr. And Im certainly not gonna call them by their first name, so I just avoid calling them.. [spoiler] What happened on Labor Day? We actually had another scene that we wrote and shot of Jonah in the EEOB that ultimately fell out, of seeing him as vice president in that office. I cant swear to you she was sitting there going, This is my father figure, with him, but certainly for the audience, you start to realize, Oh, this burned-out, alcoholic, political operative is the closest thing shes ever known to a genuine, at least sort of older man that thought kindly of her. [Laughs. So, I guess because of his simplicity, dare I say, I dont blame him quite as much as I blame her. ", The flash-forward to the funeral gave glimpses of how everyone in Selina's orbit turned out: Jonah (Timothy Simons) was impeached! And they have had this just crazy ping-pong back-and-forth relationship, and he has constantly screwed her over. They were putting those two things together and thinking that education is bad, and Im sorry, I think thats wrong. On a personal note, Mandel says the Rizzoli & Isles writers were wonderful neighbors. There were a couple of comedies: Atlanta was in there, I think Better Call Saul had a very funny clip, because theyre a comedy-drama kind of a thing. So its like there was an undercurrent of knowing that it was the end and us doing a scene that was the end between us that compounded the emotion. Offers may be subject to change without notice. As the bagman to the politician, Hales Gary Walsh is in her ear, primping her body and miming her every move always one heartbeat away from the woman he has long served. In the mornings before they come to get her, she will be up and dressed and waiting to get out of those family quarters and to get back to the Oval and business. AmyBrookheimer(Anna Chlumsky) tells viewers that Selina never visited him. Get your hands off of him. "There's not an authentic foundation there. Broken to its bones. How many takes did you get to nail Gary and Selinas final scenes, first their goodbye and then their final glance once the FBI comes? But I think that care and that base level love is what brought him to the funeral. Gary Anton Walsh (born August 1978) is an American political aide who served as the special assistant and personal aide, commonly referred to as body man, to President Selina Meyer for two decades. Andrew Meyer is the ex-husband of former President Selina Meyer and the father of Catherine Meyer. Theres no rule that says she has to, but at the end of the day, thats who she is. What resonates with you or haunts you from those few days of filming?I wouldnt say it was hard but those were such emotional days. Everyone roots for her., As for the naysayers, their position was summed up by Jamie Burgess: No. Is there any world where you do a spinoff or movie or continue this character in some way? We sort of got a little freaked out by what that meant, and Julia was in the middle of trying to get through to his agent, or any of those kinds of things, when all of a sudden, the response came back, and he was delighted and gave a big thumbs up. An incompetent boss [like Mike] is the greatest thing in the world then you can do what you like. The actors don't even know. (Photo: HBO) It's been a well-received season of change for HBO's Veep, but as we found out when we posed showrunner David Mandel . First off, the fact that Gary has beenseparated from Selina now that shes President has been emotional suicide for him. How are you doing with your feelings of Veep being over? Despite becoming President, she is paying a price. Its very specific, and it aint Amy, and it was never going to be Amy. Anytime someone leaves the room, as far as Im concerned, those ghosts of Christmas past will be there. And that sat with me over the time of when Julia had cancer. In the United States, Peter J. McGuire, a union leader who had founded the United Brotherhood of Carpenters in 1881, is generally given credit for the idea of Labor Day. So Im really deeply going to miss it, really bad. American adaptation of The Thick of It and a Spiritual Successor to the American . MANDEL RESPONDS: It doesnt surprise me that people like Mother. I love Mother. I guess it surprises me that it was such a clear winner, just because its that typical sort of thing its hard to pick among your children, as they say. Theres an anger there, like, Im here but f you. Even with the lipstick I think theres even still a little bit of that, and then he cant help himself. He placed the lipstick on the coffin and touched the coffin somberly before walking away. So again, it wouldve been Jonahs fault that she didnt get what she wanted. The same-sex marriage [ban], besides being horrible, unto itself is horrible because its Catherine. This isn't the first time the story of Selena's epic rise to fameand untimely demise in 1995have been put to film. Given that Mike never winds up giving that heartfelt eulogy for Selina, could you finish the job right now?I would personally eulogize her as the most wonderfully complicated character I ever got to write. Except the desired outcome would be the opposite: wed be holding our breath to see if Jonah would escape danger but wed be super upset and disappointed each time he survived, MANDEL RESPONDS: Thatd be very funny, he says of having a Carrie-type crier. Im game. And the realization that this mom and dad is obviously what made this sort of creature, but also that her dad explains a little bit of why shes with Andrew [David Pasquesi]. We settle all family business. 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