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Ryan Murphy to Helm HBO’s “Looking”
by Steven Frank | April 1, 2014
During a
panel discussion following a press screening last night for HBO Films’
The Normal Heart, HBO President
Len Amato (pictured left) announced that
Ryan Murphy, the film’s director, would be taking over as showrunner for the HBO original series
Looking in its second season.
“HBO had a great experience with Ryan on
Heart,” Amato said. “We’re really thrilled about continuing that partnership and seeing what his unique vision will bring to
Looking.”
Looking, which follows three gay men in present-day San Francisco, received mostly positive critical reviews but failed to pick up the kind of watercooler buzz surrounding HBO’s more popular series. Industry insiders view the decision to bring Murphy on board as a clear-cut strategy to bring in a wider audience.
During the panel discussion, Murphy elaborated on the exact changes he plans to make in
Looking’s second season. “The biggest change — and the one I’m most excited about — is moving the show to Los Angeles,” he said, adding, “No offense to San Francisco, but L.A. is just so much more exciting and glamorous. And it will enable us to have all these amazing celebrity cameos!”
Murphy elaborated that he’d already lined up
Gwyneth Paltrow,
Zachary Quinto, and
NeNe Leakes for recurring roles.
To facilitate the move to Los Angeles, Murphy explained that Season Two will find
Patrick (Jonathan Groff) inheriting a karaoke bar in the Valley, and deciding to move to Los Angeles to run it with help from his friends
Agustin (Frankie J. Alvarez) and
Dom (Murray Bartlett).
Murphy (l) with Looking star Jonathan Groff
“I’d worked with Jonathan on
Glee,” Murphy said, “and he’s got this incredible instrument … But honestly, they were just wasting his talents on the first season of
Looking.” Murphy elaborated that the karaoke setting would afford Groff’s character continuous opportunities to sing, kicking off with a soulful acoustic version of “Let It Go” in the Season Two premiere.
Additionally, Murphy plans on tinkering with the look and design of the show, starting with mandatory close shaves and waxing for the main characters. “I just never got the whole facial hair thing,” he said. “Blech, who wants to see that?”
Less this…
He’s also enlisting
Glee costumer designer
Elizabeth Martucci to “brighten” things up. “I want to see those guys in Technicolor blazers and shorts and bowties and porkpie hats,” Murphy said.
More this…
Speaking of
Glee, Murphy said that he’s looking forward to potential
Glee crossover episodes. One idea is to have
Blaine (Darren Criss) and
Kurt (Chris Colfer) coming to L.A. to find a surrogate mother for their baby, perhaps to be played by
American Horror Story alumna
Emma Roberts. “I’m thinking the guys could stumble into Groff’s bar and all sing an
a cappella version of ‘Baby It’s You.’ Or maybe ‘Wanted Dead or Alive,’ we’ll figure that out later,” he said.
Asked about other potential storylines for
Looking, Murphy said some ideas include Agustin accidentally undergoing gay conversion therapy and starting to date women, and Dom entering a monastery being menaced by a demented monsignor secretly turning the monks into freakish alien hybrids.
When asked if Murphy is worried about alienating the show’s existing fans, Murphy reassured, “These are just some minor cosmetic changes … I promise it’s going to be the same show everyone knows and loves. Just completely different.”
In other news, Murphy announced he’s planning a reboot of
The New Normal, this time with a straight couple.
Also, happy April Fool’s Day.
