We never hear the actual joke that got Mark fired, but was there one written?
Yes, it’s one of the only jokes I’ve ever remembered. Kate Benton told it at the Groundlings in the ’80s. I don’t think it’s right for print, especially Vogue. Originally all Valerie said was, “He told a joke when jokes were illegal, big deal!” We weren’t going to elaborate on the affair stuff but we didn’t think it was fair to leave it so vague. He needed to own up to it, because we wanted to show that men have gone through a shift that can ultimately make them better people and partners.
Was there a world where you and Michael considered a more cynical tone for the finale, where Valerie fully embraces AI?
Never, because Valerie isn’t cynical. We were thinking about how she and the rest of the industry might respond. That’s how we arrived at Valerie having a meeting with the “Big Three” television writers. It felt reasonable that they would tell her, “Listen, you have to say something, because this is an extinction event for us.” Now you see so many actors, athletes, and other public figures investing in them, but how do you know which one is legitimate? I wonder if anyone spoke to Ben Affleck when he started his AI company.
Twenty years into playing this character, what feels different this time compared to in the previous seasons?
The way younger people have embraced the show.
What do you think it is about Valerie that resonates with them?
I don’t know, I’ve never asked. Now that would be cringe. Imagine telling me you love The Comeback and I say, “Why thank you, can you explain what it is that you love about it?”
Can you talk me through those final moments in the finale between you and Jane, specifically that line, “I think you have to agree to be humiliated, and I never signed up.” It kinda reframed the entire show for me.
Michael said that line something like once a week, just so we could really lock in that this is how we wanted to end the show. At one point, when Jane says she doesn’t know how Valerie kept going with all the humiliation, Valerie’s response was, “I’m sorry…you felt humiliated for me? Well, I never did!” Michael and I agreed that her tone was too pissy and it made more sense for Valerie to respond like it was a brand-new concept for her. It also felt like a nice full-circle moment with season one, when she says, “I knew people were being mean, but it didn’t serve me.” That’s always been Valerie’s go-to curative: it’s not me, it’s them!
Kudrow filming her final scene as Valerie Cherish.
Photo: Courtesy of HBO / Erin Simkin
