Just as their bond formed an unexpectant heartbeat of the series, an apology by Margo’s (Elle Fanning) father Jinx (Nick Offerman) to Susie (Thaddea Graham) took its actors and the Margo’s Got Money Troubles creators by surprise in a good way.
Following his devastating relapse into drugs like heroin, which was made apparent in the penultimate episode of the Apple TV comedy, the former professional wrestler made it a point to stop by Margo and Susie’s apartment to specifically apologize to his daughter’s roommate after scaring them with his overdose.
“I think the aftermath of that, and when you come to the door, I think it’s incredibly surprising for Susie because she’s not expecting that,” Graham told Deadline. “She doesn’t really expect to be necessarily seen in that moment, because it’s not about her, and she doesn’t think that’s a priority. So I think she’s incredibly moved when Jinx comes back. I think also she hopes that he is a friend, but she’s never really expecting him to see the same thing. It’s a really beautiful moment.”
Nick Offerman struggled to deliver the lines in the scene because it made him so emotional.
“I love just that, in the paradigm of TV narratives, that we that we pay Susie that respect, in that friendship, and in that scene about friendship,” he said. “I love that scene so much that I couldn’t do it without crying. And our director had to come to me and say, ‘This is not about you. This is Susie’s moment. Just come to the door and say your lines, big boy.’ The lines about friendship were so powerful, and our world needs those so much.”
Creator David E. Kelley felt the emotions too.
“What I loved about that one [was] how surprising it was. Clearly, he’s going to try and make good with his daughter,” Kelley told Deadline. “And he’s going to take care of his daughter and want the healing to exist on both sides, but for him to walk over and reach out to Susie, that just spoke volumes on who Jinx was, his heart, his nucleus. And I loved that scene, so I kind of watched it as a fan.”
Nick Offerman in ‘Margo’s Got Money Troubles’
Apple TV
Executive producer and co-showrunner Eva Anderson wrote the apology scene, citing inspiration in the natural bond between the costars.
“Over the course of actually shooting the show for eight episodes, we realized that Susie and Jinx had a real friendship, they are maybe the true friends of the show in a special way, in a weird way, and I think that actually possibly came from Nick Offerman and Thaddea Graham,” she said. “They would hang out on set all the time. They were both musicians. Thaddea’s a composer, and they would play music together, and they became really, really great pals. So that really reflected in in their characters.”
“Once we realized that this great betrayal had happened to everyone in the house, and that Susie had been the one to actually kick him out when she cared so deeply for him, it felt natural that she deserved an apology that was very particular because of the betrayal that she had to feel,” Anderson added.
RELATED: ‘Margo’s Got Money Troubles’ Renewed For Second Season By Apple TV
