A New Comedy Pokes Fun at English Teachers

Summary

Podcast Summary – All Of It (WNYC)

Episode: A New Comedy Pokes Fun at English Teachers

Air Date: August 29, 2024
Host: Kusha Navadar (filling in for Alison Stewart)
Guests: Brian Jordan Alvarez (creator/star, "English Teacher"), Stephanie Koenig (actor/writer/story editor)

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Overview

This episode centers on the new FX sitcom English Teacher, a sharp, witty look at the realities of being a modern high school teacher. The series is lauded for its outrageous humor and for taking on social and cultural topics such as identity, community, and the contemporary high school experience. Host Kusha Navadar explores with creators Brian Jordan Alvarez and Stephanie Koenig how the show came to be, the creative process behind it, and how it connects with real-life teaching and digital culture.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Making and Tone of "English Teacher"

• Sitcom as Graduation (03:32)

  • Discussion about the surreal feeling of the show moving from idea to reality.
  • Brian likens press and the show’s launch to "graduating to the next level" in his career.
  • “We are graduating in a way to the next level of, you know, amazing things to come.” — Brian (03:55)

• Collaboration with Paul Sims (06:12)

  • Brian credits Paul Sims (producer of "Newsradio," "Atlanta," "What We Do in the Shadows") with helping him break into TV creation.
  • School setting chosen for its mix of personalities and inherent clashes of perspectives.
  • Brian draws from his upbringing in Tennessee and time in Austin for show inspiration.
  • “A school is a good environment where people from every part of life are forced to interact.” — Brian (06:49)

• Long Road to Success (09:06)

  • Stephanie and Brian reflect on development obstacles, including failed pilots and years of persistence.
  • “Naomi Watts calls herself a 20 years in the business overnight success, you know.” — Brian (09:40)

Tackling Complex Topics with Humor

• Handling Sensitive Social Issues (10:51)

  • Stephanie discusses writing an episode about gender roles and safety for female students, inspired by real conversations from the writers' room and viral TikTok self-defense videos.
  • The writers deliberately sought to upend expectations and surprise viewers.
  • “It continually takes these left turns…you think somebody’s gonna be against something and it’s somebody else.” — Stephanie (11:01)
  • Stephanie’s own experience with "powderpuff" football in high school influenced her episode.

• Capturing the High School Vibe (13:04)

  • Brian cites his “terminally online” sensibility and use of TikTok stars to keep the show current.
  • Writers kept the dialogue fresh with help from younger cast members and online references.
  • Fun example: a line about a student dying for three minutes and going to hell, improvised by writer Jake Bender.
  • “They’re teaching us little things about how to talk... we’re learning as we go.” — Brian (15:03)

The Student Perspective

• Student-Centric Writing (16:20)
  • A clip from the show illustrates students’ irreverent, layered, and at times clueless approach to identity and politics (“That’s not Hispanic. Hispanic means Mexican.”).
  • Stephanie based many student quirks on anecdotes from friends currently teaching high school.
  • “They have these Chromebooks that they kind of treat like garbage…” — Stephanie (17:19)

From Digital Comedy to Television

• Characters Across Platforms (18:51)

  • Brian describes the continuity in his approach to character, whether for social media or television.
  • The process relies on observation, both online and in-person, and a knack for channeling multiple voices.
  • “It’s kind of the same thing...I’ve always been keenly observing people and parroting their energy back.” — Brian (19:19)

• “At Eye Level” Intimacy (21:03)

  • Stephanie and Brian credit their digital presence for fostering a sense of intimacy and personal connection that translates into the show.
  • “It feels very personal…not up on some…[pedestal], at eye level.” — Stephanie (21:05)

Building Community, On and Off Screen

• Community as Success (21:34)

  • Brian reflects on building a following “brick by brick,” valuing the sense of togetherness both in audience and on set.
  • “You’re building the house brick by brick…community is everything because that’s what brought the show together.” — Brian (21:55)
  • Stephanie describes heartfelt encounters with fans and how their unique style attracts a specific, engaged audience.

• Art Imitating Life: Creative Partnerships (23:58)

  • The offscreen friendship and writing partnership between Brian and Stephanie directly informs the genuine supportiveness seen on screen between their characters, Evan and Gwen.
  • “He’s my favorite person. I love making him laugh on, off, off camera. So…couldn’t have been [better].” — Stephanie (24:25)
  • “Getting to spend time with her in any way is one of the great privileges of my lifetime.” — Brian (25:06)

Literary Easter Eggs & Tone

• Book Choices as Character Texture (25:19)
  • Discussions about the selection of books featured in the show—such as Song of Achilles and The Outsiders—as subtle nods to the characters (and the creators’ own favorites).
  • Personal anecdotes shared about being emotionally destroyed by Song of Achilles and trading book recommendations.
  • “Song of Achilles is amazing…weeping in the streets for weeks after.” — Brian (25:49)

Navigating Tough, Topical Humor

• Balancing Sensitivity and Comedy (26:43)
  • Stephanie and Brian stress their care in tackling every episode’s subject matter, aiming for empathy and inclusiveness.
  • “Every topic was treated with care.” — Stephanie (27:18)
  • “We hope to have…empathy, and we hope it’s a welcoming show…the show’s not mad at you.” — Brian (27:24)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Breaking In:
  “You want for Yoda to come down from the sky and say ‘I will hide’... this guy spoke to me in a way that was real.” — Brian Jordan Alvarez, on mentorship (08:08)
• On “The Vibe” of High School:
  “I think for me, at least personally, it’s more about how I’m terminally online…what people are fighting about, you know, what people are agreeing on.” — Brian (13:04)
• On Writing Partnership:
  “Writing together, working together, it feels the same as hanging out.” — Stephanie (24:25)
• On Community:
  “Community is everything because that’s what brought the show together.” — Brian (21:55)
• On Show’s Message:
  “We hope that the show has empathy... it’s a show for everyone. The show’s not mad at you.” — Brian (27:24)

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Timed Highlights

• 00:49 — Introduction to the show and overview of the FX sitcom "English Teacher"
• 02:43 — Brian and Stephanie join, sharing excitement about launching the show
• 03:32 — Discussion of the show as a "graduation" and next career chapter
• 06:12 — Why high school is the perfect sitcom setting; influences from real life
• 09:06 — The patience and persistence behind bringing the show to TV
• 10:51 — Stephanie on writing the “powderpuff” episode and approach to sensitive topics
• 13:04 — Strategies for nailing the high school vibe; influence of “internet culture”
• 16:20 — Excerpt from the pilot illustrating student dynamics and humor
• 17:10 — Stephanie on using stories from real teachers for authenticity
• 18:51 — Transition from digital character work to sitcom acting
• 21:03 — Discussion on the “at eye level” tone and building community
• 23:58 — How writing together feeds on-screen chemistry
• 25:19 — Picking the right books for characters; literature as Easter eggs
• 26:43 — On treating thorny topics with “care and empathy”

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Final Thoughts

This discussion offers a rare, entertaining deep dive behind-the-scenes of "English Teacher": its creative genesis, comedic tone, and cultural relevance. Brian Jordan Alvarez and Stephanie Koenig reveal how years of digital collaboration, lived experience, and a deep commitment to sincerity and humor enabled them to create a sitcom that is both topical and laugh-out-loud funny. Their warmth and authenticity shine through—mirroring the very spirit of their show.

English Teacher premieres September 2, 10pm on FX, also streaming on Hulu.

Transcript

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[Kusha Navadar]

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[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

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[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Listener supported WNYC Studios.

[Kusha Navadar]

This is all of it on wnyc. I'm Kusha Navadar filling in for Alison Stewart. Today, the new sitcom English Teacher from FX made me laugh out loud multiple times. As a former high school math teacher myself, English Teacher felt like a fresh, hilarious take on what it's like to be a high school teacher today in a world full of big politics, personalities, personal relationships. Evan Marquez is a 30something English teacher played by Brian Jordan Alvarez, the series creator, writer and executive producer and director. For a couple of the episodes, Evan is joined by a cast of fellow teachers, including his friend Gwen Sanders, who's played by Stephanie Koenig, who also writes for the show and is the story editor. Evan, basically throughout the whole story is trying to answer the question, can you really be your full self at work? Whether that means navigating his identity as a gay man in a conservative community, being a role model for students, he's still frankly trying to understand or just understanding himself. Let's listen to a little bit of the trailer.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

This is Mr. Marquez. He is here to teach you all about non binary. A non binary person is somebody who does not identify as male or female. Like a hermaphrodite? No. Yes. Not at all. And that word is not in use anymore, is it?

[Stephanie Koenig]

I, I don't know. I.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Mean, the kids this year, they're not into being woke anymore.

[Stephanie Koenig]

It circled back around.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

It circled all the way around.

[Stephanie Koenig]

They're saying the R word again.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Aren't we getting behind on the state curriculum here?

[Kusha Navadar]

A lot of questions for a doctor.

[Stephanie Koenig]

Do you even have a master's? What'd you major in?

[Kusha Navadar]

Ranch Time magazine calls English Teacher, quote, easily the year's best sitcom to date. A must watch for anyone who yearns for television that elicits actual audible laughs. We're joined by the series creator, executive producer, writer and actor Brian Jordan Alvarez. Brian, welcome to all of it.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Hi. Oh man, I'm beaming over here, not least of which because you keep calling it a sitcom. And I love this, I love this idea of sort of the great American sitcom. We're really trying to make you Laugh. And I'm just so happy it's working. Thanks for having me.

[Kusha Navadar]

Absolutely. It's such a pleasure to have you here. And we're also joined by fellow actor, story editor and writer on the show, Stephanie Koenig. Stephanie. Hey. Welcome to all of it.

[Stephanie Koenig]

Hi. I'm so excited. Thank you for having me here. I can't wait to talk about the show. And I'm just delighted.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

And we're so grateful, as people that live in la, to be on something in New York because it ups our cool quotient.

[Stephanie Koenig]

We're way cooler being on the show.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Well, as soon as you have any involvement with New York City, you're just skyrocketing the cool department.

[Kusha Navadar]

You're also on npr, so save that for the end in case the questions get nerdy.

[Stephanie Koenig]

I can't believe it. I can't believe it.

[Kusha Navadar]

Cool is being your authentic self. So I'm sure that it'll be a fun, cool segment, you know, first of all, congratulations on this show's graduation from an idea to a bona fide production.

[Stephanie Koenig]

Yes.

[Kusha Navadar]

It's just the start, I suppose. Doing. Doing press around it is kind of like getting the diploma.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Right?

[Kusha Navadar]

Does this feel like a moment for you of real graduation?

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

The metaphors are hitting. Yes, this does feel like. You know, actually, I have often thought, you know, because sometimes you're in your late 20s or 30s or whatever, and you're kind of thinking, should I go to grad school? And I've often said to myself, no, just. Just keep doing this real hard stuff. This is your grad school. So I like the analogy because, yeah, we are. We are graduating in a way to. To the next level of, you know.

[Stephanie Koenig]

Yeah.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Amazing things to come.

[Stephanie Koenig]

Hopefully after so much hard work in school and school, school of life in Hollywood, working so hard to get here, it's. It feels so. I'm like pinching myself every day.

[Kusha Navadar]

How has it been getting to. To talk about it on the other end? Are people asking the kinds of questions that you were hoping for, getting new things out of it that you were excited to discover yourself?

[Stephanie Koenig]

That's a good question.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Yeah. For me, it's. Yeah, it's very gratifying just seeing when people really get it. I mean, you're aiming for this particular sense of humor and this. You're aim. We aiming really for a very specific texture, I would say, with this show. And it was making us all laugh like crazy. I mean, I had some of the biggest laughs of my life on this set. But you don't technically know that it's going to make other people in the world laugh like this. So seeing that pay off is, it's, it's priceless.

[Stephanie Koenig]

Yeah. It was so fun though, because we were doing it and the crew was really into it. Like the crew was so much a part of it and so much like they just felt like. I think their buzz really got us excited because we were like, oh my God, it's working. And coming from the writers room and working. So. And then doing it, it's like, oh, it's working. It's.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Yeah. These great camera guys. Jarrett, Jeff. Yeah. Our dp, Brian Burgoyne, he always really got the show. We can't get our same DP back for. Well, maybe I'm not supposed to talk about a potential season anyway. Yeah, we loved our crew very much. And when we could really make them laugh, it was really gratifying too.

[Kusha Navadar]

Yeah, absolutely. That's one of the joys of having a big group. Right. Like, you can feel the vibes and it just elevates the work, you know. Brian, you've worked on sitcoms. I'm thinking of your recurring character on Will and Grace.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Yes.

[Kusha Navadar]

Now you're at the helm of creating your own sitcom. What was it about high school and specifically an English teacher that felt compelling to you?

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Well, to me, you know, Paul Sims came to me in this wonderful way and he was like, let's make something together. And I had kind of tried to get through the actual system before and make things on a real professional level. And I had found it very difficult. I didn't know how to sort of get my voice through that. And he said, I'm going to help you, I'm going to guide you. And he's never let me down once. He's this, you know, Paul Sims is this incredible guy with this unbelievable resume. You know, right now he does what we do in the shadows. And he did Atlanta with Donald Glover. He. He goes all the way back to Newsradio, which I grew up on and loved. And that, you know, is one of the great American sitcoms. And so Paul came to me and said this and I, I just think something from some of our initial conversations, I started thinking, well, a school is a good environment where people from every part of life are sort of forced to interact with together and, and work together for a common goal of educating these kids. And there's just so much texture there, there's so much to play with. And so it, it sort of felt like a no brainer. And then I grew up personally, you know, in Tennessee. In a very small town in Tennessee. But then I went to a. I went to high school in a very liberal town in the much more conservative Tennessee. And so Austin, to me, felt like sort of a grown up. And I've spent a lot of time in Austin. Austin felt like sort of the grown up version or a different version of that, where it's this liberal outpost in a more conservative place, and there's just there' to play with there, and so many different, you know, personalities and lives to explore.

[Kusha Navadar]

Was there ever plot? Yeah, you know, Brian, your discussion about, like, you've tried to break in before and you found it tough. I think I'm paraphrasing there, but that's what I heard.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Yeah.

[Kusha Navadar]

Paul Sims, this veteran TV personality, comes up to you, says, hey, I think that we can do this. Was there any, like, trepidation? We're like, all right, well, let's wait and see.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

No, I literally said to Paul, I said, oh, you know, thank you, but I'm more just acting now. You know, I just booked Megan, which is an amazing movie. I'm shooting the sequel right now in New Zealand. I love Megan. I love Gerard Johnston, the director, and Allison and everybody. But, you know, I had booked Megan. I just come off of Will and Grace, and I said to Paul, you know, I'm more just acting now that I can do without, you know, without having to figure out too much new stuff. And he said, no, no. He said, you're coming out of retirement. We're going to do this. And that's really what you want in life. You want for Yoda to come down from the sky and say, I will hide. You know, And I remember calling Steph and saying, you know, this. This guy spoke to me in a way that was real. And I think we're going to be able to do this. And it, you know, it took years, but these things take years. And even helping me have the stamina for that, everything. I mean, Paul, he's just. He's an amazing guide and an amazing guy.

[Stephanie Koenig]

He's like the Godfather of the show, I would say.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Yeah, yeah, exactly. And then we have Jonathan Krysel, who's.

[Stephanie Koenig]

This, and the other guy.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Incredible director. Yeah. Who came on when. When it was getting closer to actually shooting the pilot and just which he's been working.

[Stephanie Koenig]

I mean, talk about a long journey like Krysel. So, you know, we've, like, really tried. We had different development deals. Like, Brian and I had another show with Peacock, and then it was with Comedy Central first, and then it was with Peacock and Krysel was eping that show as well. And just we really wanted to work with Kreisel and. And then again, like, you know, you make shows and then it doesn't work out or the pilot doesn't get picked up and it's. And that takes years in and of itself. You know, it's like.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Right.

[Stephanie Koenig]

Three years just doing that. So. Yeah, that's why I just feel so good that everybody's finally, like, coming together.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Yeah, it's so great. Yeah, it's like Naomi Watts. Naomi Watts calls herself a 20 years in the business. Overnight success, you know.

[Stephanie Koenig]

Exactly.

[Kusha Navadar]

Absolutely. Overnight successes are just long journeys that take a lot of grid. Grad school or not like you're saying, Brian, your own grad listeners. We're talking about English Teacher, which is a new comedy series from FX. It premieres on September 2nd at 10pm on FX. You can also stream it on Hulu. We're talking with Brian Jordan Alvarez, who's the series creator, executive producer, writer, director, star. We're talking as well with Stephanie Koenig, who's a lead actor, the story editor, and the writer. Stephanie, while I was watching this, especially the second episode, I saw that you wrote it and I was very interested in talking to you about the topics that you chose. You all chose, but you specifically as a writer, because English Teacher doesn't back down from talking about sensitive stuff in the second episode of the series that you wrote. It's. It's about the school's powderpuff football game. And it brings up issues like gender roles, drag, the reality that. That women face in a world that doesn't make them feel safe. As you, Stephanie, look back on the series as. As a whole, how did you decide what topics you wanted to tackle? Which is a great football pun, actually, but go ahead.

[Stephanie Koenig]

God, you and your puns. God, no. Well, I remember we were talking about this in the writers room, and this is what I love about the show the most. This is what it does best, is it takes something like a really hard topic and it'll take you somewhere you don't expect it to go. It continually takes these left turns. You know, you think somebody's gonna be against something and it's somebody else, and then, you know, you think somebody is like the most wonderful thing and then they're just not. Not to give any spoilers away, but, like. But so, you know, we. It was. It was a topic. We. We knew that this was going to be one of the episodes. And I really strongly felt that I Wanted to write this. I knew that I could take this, especially because there's a lot of dancing involved in this episode. It's very. It's a Dirty dancing type episode. I was like, let me nail this. And I was so excited to. To. And especially like, you know, with Gwen and the self defense like that. Just we were watching these really funny tiktoks at the time where this. It was like this woman was teaching self defense if somebody was coming at you from behind, like in a car, like choking you or something. And so they were. No, but it was self. The videos were funny because it was a very hard instruction on how to get out. And it was like, take your two fingers, wrap around the seatbelt, loop with your thumb.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

It was just nothing anybody would ever be able to do in that.

[Stephanie Koenig]

Too long. It was too complicated. So that. That's what made us just kind of laugh about that. But then it really got into us. Yeah, just me thinking about how much I really would want to teach these girls some self defense.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

And you did powder puff in your high school stuff.

[Stephanie Koenig]

I did powder puff.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

I didn't. I did not grow up with that.

[Stephanie Koenig]

It's a very Midwest, more Southern thing I'm finding. But yeah, I just. I felt honored to write that episode. I really felt like it was in good hands with. With me. And I was excited to write dialogue to make Brian laugh specifically.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Yeah, I remember. I remember when we were assigning episodes and you snatched that up. Just, you're like, powder puff. I'm doing powder puff. How did you.

[Kusha Navadar]

Well, speaking of nailing it, you literally took the words out of my mouth because how did you nail the vibe of high school today? Like, did you go into high schools? What was that process like?

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

I think for me, at least personally, it's more about how I'm terminally online, you know, so I feel generally just up to date with how things are, what people are fighting about, you know, what people are agreeing on, what people are disagreeing on. So, you know, and we make use of that. Sorry, I'm pouring myself some water. We make use of that because we have some of these famous tiktokers that I just organically discovered, or not, you know, not even discovered. I mean, they have their own followings, but people that just really make me laugh online. We have this hilarious guy, Ben Bondurant, who plays Jeff in the show, and he just has all these total zingers. He, I think. Did you see the school safety episode? I did, yeah. He just had. You know, he even has this hilarious Scene with Gwen where he's. Well, we don't. Yeah, we don't want to spoil that, but yeah, he's. He's so funny. And then Aliyah, who goes by Aaliyah's Interlude, she's basically, since shooting the pilot, she became an outright pop star and still came back to do the series. And we were just so grateful. And she's so funny in the season. And Savannah Gann, so many of the kids, you know, Dave and Scarlett Hernandez and yeah, I mean, these kids, like in the show, you know, I mean, they're not, you know, most of them are, you know, maybe 20 or something, but. But they're, they're teaching us little things about how to talk to, you know, the show is extremely well written by a lot of great writers that I'm so grateful to have. And we are very free with, with, you know, coming up with stuff in the moment, too. And I remember we had this great writer, Jake Ben. We have this great writer, Jake Bender. He's part of an amazing writing duo, him and Zach Dunn. And we had this, this line where this girl says, where Savannah's character, Becca in book club, she says, her friend says, you aren't even doing cheerleading anymore. And she says, yeah, because I died for three minutes last year. And then in the script, her friend responds, stop talking about that. But Jake comes up to the girl and he goes, can you actually say, yeah, because I died for three minutes last year. I literally went to hell. So I don't know. It's just, you know, we're learning as we go.

[Stephanie Koenig]

Yeah.

[Kusha Navadar]

Listen, we gotta take a quick break, but when we come back, we're going to talk more about the English Teacher. We're here with Brian Jordan Alvarez and Stephanie Koenig. We're going to talk a little bit more about the students and go into a little bit about how you go from digital to television and back. Stay with us. This is all of it on wnyc. I'm Kusha Navadar talking about the show the English Teacher. It's a new comedy series from FX. Premieres on September 2nd at 10pm on FX. You can also stream it on Hulu. We're here with Brian Jordan Alvarez, who's the series creator, executive producer, writer, director, lead actor, and Stephanie Koenig, who is the story editor, writer, and also a lead actor on the show. We talked before the break about portraying high school, portraying students. I want to dig into the students a little bit because they are really a highlight. Let's listen to another clip from the Pilot. And then, Stephanie, I have a question for you coming out of it. So in this clip, Evan is trying to lead his school's book club, but his students just want to talk about how Evan can get out of being investigated from kissing his boyfriend in front of a student. Let's listen.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Well, whatever I did or didn't do, I'm not gonna talk about it with you guys.

[Kusha Navadar]

Just claim that they're attacking you because you're Hispanic and they have, like, a racist agenda.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Yeah, but that has nothing to do with it.

[Stephanie Koenig]

Hispanic would never work anyway because they can do, like, one of those DNA tests and disprove it.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Oh, my God. Becca, he is Hispanic.

[Stephanie Koenig]

In what way?

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

His mom from Colombia.

[Stephanie Koenig]

That's not Hispanic. Hispanic means Mexican.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

No. No. I'm calling the cops.

[Stephanie Koenig]

You're bullying me.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

You're bullying me. Cause I told you not to talk to me. Look, Mr. Marquez, you're gay. You're Hispanic. This is a slam dunk here. I'm telling you, gay doesn't count anymore. And he talks like a straight white guy.

[Stephanie Koenig]

I think your voice is a little.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Gay, Actually, really gay. Oh, thanks. If they're gonna get you, they're gonna get you. There's nothing you can do about it. They got me, and I had everything going for me. Jeff.

[Stephanie Koenig]

They got you for selling Molly at the junior prom.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

I was doing. It is a bit.

[Kusha Navadar]

Stephanie, how did you think about representing the current generation of high schoolers, like, in my writing?

[Stephanie Koenig]

Yeah, well, I. I. It felt quite easy, which is weird. I mean, I had, like, talked to a couple friends of mine. I know Brian had done this, too, who were. Who are right now, English teachers, specifically with 9th grade and 12th grade. And if. I mean, their stories were so. I remember I was talking to Hannah, one of my friends, who's an English teacher, and she was telling me that the students have these Chromebooks that they kind of treat like garbage, and they're like, you know, she said she looked down the hall and she saw her student, like, open up the Chromebook into the trash, and the keyboard pieces were falling out, and he shook it and then just walked away. I was like, oh, my God. That's just, like, a perfect. Yeah. And I also think it was really fun shooting the pilot with all of those students and just getting to hang out with them and. Yeah, I mean, I don't feel too far away from that. I'm basically, like, 20.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Right?

[Kusha Navadar]

Just right from what? You know, kind of speaking of what, you know, you both have such a strong digital presence, and it's so interesting and wonderful seeing folks go between formats. And I thought about that, that a lot when I was looking at character in this series. And Brian, for you, your character work on Instagram and TikTok has earned you so many followers. For listeners who aren't aware, Brian has a cast of recurring characters who appear in videos. Brian has different filters for each character. And you just kind of think, this.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Is going to be so hard to follow for people. You're like, wait, the guy who's making this TV show that we're talking about also does a bunch of characters on Instagram?

[Kusha Navadar]

Well, you know, I'm wondering how building a character for an Instagram reel compares to building a character for a sitcom. Like when you were developing TJ Mack on Instagram and Mr. Marquez in the sitcom English Teacher, did you have to think about character development differently for how it would appear on the platform?

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

No. It's a great question, because I assume you're intuiting the answer, which is, it's kind of the same work. You know, it's kind of the same thing where I've, you know, since I was a little kid, I was doing impressions of people, and I was just. I was keenly observing people and kind of parroting their energy back or doing it to my parents. You know, we would go home, you know, we would have, like. I remember some people from New Zealand stayed with us when I was little, and we. They were part of something called the friendship force, I think. And my parents would. My parents would go stay with people in other countries, and then they would. People from other countries would come and stay with us, and some people from New Zealand stayed with us. And when they left, I started just doing a Kiwi accent. And I remember my parents cracking up. And so, yeah, I just think that little sense of observation has always been with me. And so when I'm doing it on Instagram, mostly I'm just inspired by a filter, and then I just start doing some character. But it comes from, you know, observations of people. And then when I'm writing, it's a bit of the same process where I'm just seeing a character in my head and I feel equipped to write in these voices that aren't exactly mine to create a world, you know, a universe. And it's such an honor to be able to do so.

[Kusha Navadar]

Stephanie, go ahead.

[Stephanie Koenig]

Yeah, there's something really unique about that, like where. Okay, so he's creating these characters on TikTok, and you feel very close to these characters because it's on your phone. You feel like you're seeing it every day. You feel like you're. You can interact or message Brian. Or share Brian. And it feels so personal. And what I think is translating with this show is it's, it's having that same vibe. Because you have that, Brian, you have that, like, I don't know, it feels very personal. Like it's. I don't know, not up on some.

[Kusha Navadar]

At eye level.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Right, right, right. It's.

[Stephanie Koenig]

What's that called?

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Approachable. No, there's another word.

[Kusha Navadar]

Well, in radio we call it being eye level with the audience. Like you feel like you can, you can talk to.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Oh, I'm gonna use that.

[Kusha Navadar]

Well, give me credit. But you're welcome also. Not my turn. Somebody here. Yeah, I'll give you credit, Stephanie. I'm so happy you brought that up. Because that sense of community was also something that was big, big in my mind. I mean, my, my sister and brother in law are huge fans of yours so much that they ordered a cameo message from you as your rich southern ant character.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Oh my gosh.

[Kusha Navadar]

For my sister's birthday. And I have seen that cameo and it was really heartfelt. And so for me, I was thinking, you have built this community. You both have built a community. And I'm wondering how has building a community influenced the way that you think about success, either of a given project or of a career? Brian, let's start with you.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Yeah, I mean, I think that's sort of the whole thing, right? This idea of being, you know, in our case, maybe like a 10 years in the business overnight. Success is also this thing where you're building the house brick by brick, and it's just people starting to get what you do and you just keep putting your art out there. You know, I'm just continually gently putting my work and my art out there. And more and more people start to gather around and say, hey, I like this, and then they send it to somebody else. Some people make jokes where they go, you know, I watch every TJ Mack video, which is a character I do for people that don't know. I watch every TJ Mack video and I can't get anyone else in my house to care about it. Who do I talk to about this? You know, so sometimes, you know, for some people it works, for some people it doesn't. But yeah, community is everything because that's what brought the show together. And even making the show, you know, you end up with this amazing community of writers and like Stephanie was saying, the crew. So it's just, you know, as you get older, you start to learn that life is all about togetherness and just. And spending time with people, having fun at best, and enjoying life. So it's. Yeah, it's a point well made. Community.

[Kusha Navadar]

Stephanie, how about you? How does that resonate?

[Stephanie Koenig]

Yeah, I mean, there's. I completely agree with that sentiment because there's something about, like, you know, when we started getting, like, noticed in the streets from, like, either, like, spy movies, like a movie that we made online.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Yeah. Stephanie made this incredible movie called Spy Movie that I. Everyone should watch on YouTube.

[Stephanie Koenig]

It's still free on YouTube, but yeah. Or. Or Caleb Gallo or whatever it felt. So I don't know, it was just very, like, personal, like, oh, I like you, or I get you, or like, this is my kind of humor. And so. And the community is like, sharing it with your friends, being like, I know this is maybe not your humor, but this is what I think is funny, is so cool to be a part of that or to be, like, considered that.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Right. And some people will say, I'll show them, you know, I'll show a first date one of your videos, and it's a test.

[Stephanie Koenig]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Kusha Navadar]

I see such a strong corollary, a beautiful corollary with the relationship of Evan and Gwen in the show, because they support each other throughout the show. And it's really genuine. You know, in real life, Stephanie, you and Brian are writing partners in addition to being actors on camera. And so I'm wondering, you know, maybe I'll toss this to you, Stephanie. How do you think writing together then influences the way that you show up for each other as a scene buddy on camera?

[Stephanie Koenig]

I mean, we're best friends, so I'm always. He's my favorite person. I love making him laugh on. Off. Off camera. On camera. So it doesn't, like, change in. In. In front of the camera. And I. I also thought it was really important for. For Gwen to have that same care about Evan that I do for Brian. And. Yeah, I mean, we write. It just feels easy. Very easy. Like writing together, working together. It feels the same as hanging out. Yeah. So it just couldn't have been like, I'm not, like, nervous if I'm like, God, I gotta do a scene with Brian today.

[Kusha Navadar]

Brian. Yeah. It's like butter.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Oh, yeah. No, I mean, it's easy to write. I mean, Stephanie, she's basically the best person I've ever met. Getting to spend time with her in any way is one of the great privileges of my lifetime.

[Kusha Navadar]

Straight up, I'm looking at the clock we have time for a couple more questions. Here's more of an Easter egg. Nerdy question for you, Brian. The show's title is English Teacher, and I loved the books that we see characters holding throughout each episode. I don't want to ruin anything, Stephanie. I see you pumping your fist, so I feel like I'm on a good track here. I don't want to ruin anything, so I'll just mention I like seeing one character holding Song of Achilles and another holding the Outsiders, and all felt like little Easter eggs. I'm wondering, Bryan, what were those discussions like about which books we'd actually see on screen?

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

They weren't as heavy as you'd think. Sometimes it was like, hey, we need a book here. What should we use? Song of Achilles, specifically. Recently, Stephanie and I had a moment where I read Song of Achilles. It destroyed me. You know, it's one of the best books I've ever read. I was weeping in the streets for weeks after same. I didn't know what to do with myself. So, you know, Song of Achilles is amazing. And so I recommended it to Stephanie, and she read it and loved it. But then she read Circe, which she loved even more. And I would like to say that the story ends with me reading Circe and loving it, but I have not got.

[Stephanie Koenig]

I have not read Circe yet, to my dismay.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

But in the same scene, I'm reading Song of Achilles and she's reading Circe, which is sort of a nod to just some books who read in real life. And then the other ones are. Yeah, they're little. They're little nods to whatever's happening in the moment.

[Kusha Navadar]

And I feel like we should shout out Madeline Miller, who is the author of those books.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Absolutely. Madeline Miller forever.

[Kusha Navadar]

And I was wondering, Stephanie, for you, as we're wrapping up here, what was the toughest topic of the season to get right, do you think, where you really wanted to thread the needle between treating it with good familiarity of the topic, but also making it funny, Was there any thorny topic that you really had to think through?

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Through. Well, making sure her hair looked right.

[Stephanie Koenig]

It was the hair. Sure. The blowouts were on point. No, I mean, they're all. I think they all in their own right. All the topics. You want to make sure that you're being smart and sensitive and seeing all angles or for the right reasons. I think everything was treated with care. Every topic was treated with care.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

Yeah. We hope to have. We hope. We hope to. We hope that the show has empathy, you know, and we. We say it's a show for everyone. We, we, we hope it's a welcoming show. You know, the show's not mad at you. It's a, it's a show for everyone.

[Kusha Navadar]

The show is English Teacher. It's a new comedy series, a new sitcom from FX. It premieres on September 2nd at 10pm you can also stream it on Hulu. We've been here with Brian. Jordan Alvarez and Stephanie Koenig. Thank you both so much for your work. Really appreciate it.

[Stephanie Koenig]

Thank you so much for having us.

[Brian Jordan Alvarez]

What a pleasure. Thank you. Thank you.

[Kusha Navadar]

All right, that's our show for today. Coming up tomorrow with the news that the groundbreaking Brit pop rock group Oasis is reuniting. We'll talk about musical reunions and take your calls. It's also going to be my last show, so be sure to stay tuned for a special last segment where we're going to party. That was all of it for today. Thanks for hanging out with us as always. I'm Kusha Navadar and I will see you here tomorrow. Have a good one.

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