Abbott Elementary Writers Room

Summary

Good One: A Podcast About Jokes – Episode: Abbott Elementary Writers Room Release Date: January 14, 2025

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Introduction

In this special episode of Good One: A Podcast About Jokes, host Jesse David Fox delves into the creative minds behind the acclaimed television show Abbott Elementary. Celebrating the collective genius of the show's writing team, this episode features a panel discussion from Vulture Festival 2024, where the Abbott Elementary writers were honored with Vulture’s inaugural Roomie Award. The award recognizes the exceptional collaborative efforts of a writers' room in television.

The Roomie Award and Vulture Festival 2024

Timestamp: 01:15 - 02:19

Jesse David Fox introduces the significance of the Roomie Award, emphasizing its role in celebrating the often-overlooked collaborative nature of television writing. Quinta Brunson, creator and star of Abbott Elementary, alongside her talented team, accepts the award. Roxanna Hadadi, Vulture’s TV critic, moderates the panel, bringing together writers Justin Halpern, Patrick Schumacher, Brian Rubenstein, Jordan Temple, Brittany Nichols, Kate Peterman, Justin Tan, Joya McCorry, Riley Dufurena, Garrett Werner, and Lizzie.

Writers' Introduction and Backgrounds

Timestamp: 03:37 - 10:25

Roxanna Hadadi invites each writer to introduce themselves and share a past job that contributed to their skills in the writers' room. Highlights include:

• Quinta Brunson (04:10): Former Apple Store FRS, emphasizing problem-solving by adopting the mantra, "If you don't know, let's find out."

  "If a customer asked you something, you don't just ignore them or say, I don't know the answer. You say, I don't know. Let's find out." (04:42)

• Justin Halpern (05:56): Experience as a waiter, learning resilience and handling criticism.

  "Waiting tables taught me how to eat shit and take in feedback constructively." (06:19)

• Patrick Schumacher (06:53): Former director's assistant, appreciating the visual aspects of TV writing.

• Brian Rubenstein (06:42): Camp counselor, valuable for a show centered around children.

• Jordan Temple (07:07): Mover in NYC, bringing lessons of resilience and hard work.

• Brittany Nichols (07:20): Camp coach, fostering teamwork.

• Kate Peterman (08:50): Various customer service roles, cultivating appreciation for their current roles.

• Justin Tan (08:51): Assistant jobs in TV, developing gratitude and perspective.

• Joya McCorry (09:18): HR background, transitioning through Warner Brothers Writers Workshop.

• Riley Dufurena (09:45) & Garrett Werner (09:53): Diverse backgrounds contributing to team dynamics.

Writing Process for Abbott Elementary

Timestamp: 11:05 - 17:04

Quinta Brunson discusses the foundational steps of crafting a new season:

• Begins with broad beats and overarching ideas, often consulting co-producers, Justin Halpern and Patrick Schumacher.

  "I do have an idea of what I want the season to look like... enough to have that trust." (11:05)

• Emphasizes collaborative brainstorming within the room, encouraging "blue sky ideas" to explore character developments and story arcs.

• Engages with educators and administrators to ensure authenticity without sourcing ideas directly from them.

Justin Halpern adds that the writers aim to reflect character growth and maintain a flexible document that evolves throughout the season.

Idea Generation and Story Development

Timestamp: 14:20 - 17:37

The panel explores how ideas are generated and nurtured:

• Kate Peterman shares her method of bringing personal anecdotes to inspire storylines, often sparking creativity among the team.

  "I'll come in fully giving out what happened to my family or funny things that have happened to me... and that jogs something in other people." (15:52)

• Ava Cole Pullman highlights entering the writers' room with excitement and focusing her energy to contribute effectively.

• Quinta Brunson reveals long-held ideas like the "dad fight" episode, which materialized in season two, directed by Justin Halpern and written by Ava.

  "Dad fight was super fun... it was a really grounded story that we got to have a lot of fun with." (17:37)

Holiday Episodes

Timestamp: 35:02 - 36:53

The writers discuss their approach to crafting holiday-themed episodes:

• Aligning with the airing schedule to create timely and festive storylines.

• Embracing both traditional and wacky elements to engage audiences, as seen in the Halloween episode "Candy Zombies."

  "I just think it's just nice to be able to know that we're going to air at a time and put people in the festive holiday spirit." (35:27)

• Overcoming challenges such as unexpected changes on set, like actors getting sick, which necessitates quick script adjustments to maintain continuity.

Importance of Writers Being on Set

Timestamp: 24:29 - 29:32

The panel underscores the critical role writers play during filming:

• Ava Cole Pullman and Jordan Temple recount experiences during the pandemic when they couldn't be present on set, highlighting the loss of real-time collaboration and flexibility.

  "There is something about being in person and getting to talk to the actors and being flexible... it's invaluable to me." (25:02)

• Patrick Schumacher emphasizes the benefit of writers witnessing their episodes through post-production, learning firsthand how scripts translate to the screen.

  "It's a beautiful sort of ecosystem that is like a training ground for future showrunners." (26:29)

• Kate Peterman shares anecdotes of live script adjustments during filming, reinforcing the necessity for writers to address unforeseen challenges promptly.

  "You have to keep an eye on the story and that's something... it's really important for writers to be on set." (28:24)

Crossover Episodes: Always Sunny

Timestamp: 58:38 - 63:54

One of the standout topics is the ambitious crossover with It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia:

• Justin Halpern describes the organic development of the crossover, praising the enthusiasm and collaboration between both writing teams.

  "It was a dream because it was a crossover that happened organically... everyone involved was really excited to do it." (58:52)

• Quinta Brunson elaborates on the logistical marvel of intertwining the two shows, acknowledging corporate synergy through Disney's ownership of both FX and ABC.

  "Our episode will air in January, so it'll be an Abbott Elementary episode... It's worlds colliding." (60:10)

• The crossover is lauded as a pioneering effort in modern television, setting a high standard for future collaborations.

Challenges During Season Three

Timestamp: 50:19 - 52:34

The writers reflect on the difficulties faced in season three due to external factors like the writers' strike and reduced episode counts:

• Justin Tan discusses the struggle to maintain narrative momentum with fewer episodes, leading to stretched story arcs between main characters Janine and Gregory.

  "We had to stretch this out to episode 14... it was just us coming up with, like, thing after thing after thing to keep them apart." (50:37)

• Quinta Brunson expresses pride in overcoming these challenges, transforming the season into what she describes as a "diamond" forged under pressure.

  "I feel like we are a fucking diamond... this has been. That season, like, was a testament to what we were capable of." (51:31)

Future of the Show and Dream Crossovers

Timestamp: 63:00 - 64:57

Looking ahead, the writers share aspirations for future crossovers and storytelling endeavors:

• Quinta Brunson envisions a crossover with Survivor, inspired by the desire to see teachers participate in game shows like Family Feud.

  "I want teachers to go on that show... I'm gonna make that one happen." (63:58)

• The panel humorously acknowledges the logistical hurdles of network boundaries but remains optimistic about potential collaborations.

• Justin Halpern praises the success of the Always Sunny crossover, positioning it as a model for future inter-show collaborations.

  "I really think this is the very best version of a crossover that I feel like could be done right." (62:27)

Roomie Award Presentation

Timestamp: 55:43 - 57:56

The panel celebrates receiving the Roomie Award, a tangible symbol of their collective effort and creativity:

• Roxanna Hadadi presents the physical award, and writers express heartfelt gratitude for the recognition of their collaborative work.

  "People do not acknowledge the writers enough ever... I was very happy that our writers were being acknowledged." (56:14)

• The writers humorously interact with the award, sharing their excitement and plans to display it proudly in their workspace.

Conclusion

In this enriching episode, Good One offers an in-depth look into the collaborative spirit and creative processes of the Abbott Elementary writing team. Through candid discussions, anecdotes, and celebratory moments, listeners gain a profound appreciation for the dedication and teamwork that drive successful television writing. The episode not only highlights the importance of each writer's unique background but also underscores the value of collective creativity in shaping beloved TV shows.

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Notable Quotes:

• Quinta Brunson addressing problem-solving mantra:

  "If a customer asked you something, you don't just ignore them or say, I don't know the answer. You say, I don't know. Let's find out." (04:42)

• Justin Halpern on resilience from waiting tables:

  "Waiting tables taught me how to eat shit and take in feedback constructively." (06:19)

• Kate Peterman on idea generation:

  "I'll come in fully giving out what happened to my family or funny things that have happened to me... and that jogs something in other people." (15:52)

• Quinta Brunson on the big diamond forged under pressure:

  "I feel like we are a fucking diamond... this has been. That season, like, was a testament to what we were capable of." (51:31)

• Justin Halpern praising the crossover:

  "I really think this is the very best version of a crossover that I feel like could be done right." (62:27)

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This detailed summary captures the essence of the Abbott Elementary Writers Room episode, highlighting key discussions, insights, and the collaborative spirit of the writing team. Whether you're a fan of the show or intrigued by television writing, this episode offers valuable perspectives on crafting humor and storytelling in a successful sitcom.

Transcript

[Quinta Brunson]

ABC Tim Allen and Kat Dennings star in the new family comedy Shifting Gears. Dad, I'm broke and I need a place to stay until I figure out what the rest of my life looks like. So a couple of days when his daughter moves back in. The last time you walked out that door, you looked back at me and gave me a double bird. I was 18. The double bird was how I ended all our conversations.

[Kate Peterman]

The wheels come off.

[Quinta Brunson]

Can we try to talk to each other like rational adults? Have you watched the news lately? That's not a thing anymore. New Wednesdays, 8, 7 Central on ABC.

[Ava Cole Pullman]

And stream on Hulu.

[Quinta Brunson]

This week on the Gray Area. How are digital devices changing us?

[Justin Halpern]

We've become more machine like. And I think the exhibit A for that is how young people, for example, talk about their sex lives in machine like terms, performative terms, in ways that actually have shaped their understanding of what an intimate sexual relationship even should be, what it should look like, what it should feel like.

[Quinta Brunson]

Listen to the Gray Area with me, Sean Illing. New episodes every Monday, available everywhere.

[Jesse David Fox]

Hello and welcome to Good One, a podcast about jokes. I'm your host, Jesse David Fox. This week on the pod, we go back to Vulture Festival 2024, at which we gave the writing staff of Abbott elementary the Ruby Award. What? Or the Roomie Award. It is an award we came up with to award writers rooms for the achievement of writing collectively. The idea came about during the writers strike where it felt like we wanted to sort of celebrate the job of being a television writer and how the unique process in which they work. Quinta Brunson accepts the award along with the entire staff of Abbott Elementary. They all introduced themselves at the top of the panel, but I'll also include the full list of participants in the show. Notes. My Vulture colleague, TV critic Roxanna Hadadi moderated the fascinating conversation about the work of making funny television. And I think you'll really enjoy it. So here is the writing staff of Abbott Elementary.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Hello, everyone. Thank you so much for being here. My name is Roxanna Hadati. I'm a TV critic for Vulture. Welcome to Vulture Fest. Welco to this panel during which we are honoring the Abbott elementary writers room. Who I would love to come out and join me if that's possible. Thank you guys so much. Let's give them a clap.

[Quinta Brunson]

Thank you, girl. Thank you, Justin. She said you look cute.

[Justin Halpern]

Thank.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Keep the clapping going, okay? Thank you guys for being here. And the reason that we are here is because this very deserving group of writers is the inaugural winners of our roomie award, and that is going to a writer's room who is doing exceptional work, which I think that we can all agree is being done here.

[Quinta Brunson]

I think so.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

I think so. And this is a large group, so what I would love to do is sort of pull from my college dorm RA days and ask if we can go down the line and have everyone introduce themselves. And if you would be willing to share this. What is like a job that you had before Abbott that you think has really helped you in your time in the writers room. And I ask that because I think TV writer is a fascinating job. And I'd love to know, like, how you got to this place. Quinta, would you like to start us off?

[Quinta Brunson]

Yes. I just want to start by saying we are missing three writers who are not with us today. They are alive. They're just not here.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Thank you for clarifying.

[Quinta Brunson]

Chad, Becca, and Lizzie and our script coordinator, Megan, at actually another vital, important part of a writer's room. So those four are not with us today because we were told there was not enough room on the stage. And I feel like we could have fit it, but it's okay. So my name is Quinta Brunson. And a job I had before that, I think. What was the question?

[Roxanna Hadadi]

How did it help you when you're writing for Abbott?

[Quinta Brunson]

Oh, how did it write? So when I was. I used to work for Apple, and something I learned there just in the Apple store as an frs, which was like a position below the Genius at the Genius bar. I fixed phones and iPads and ipods, which I don't even know if they make ipods.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

I don't think they do.

[Quinta Brunson]

Crazy. But the mantra there was, if a customer asked you something, you don't just ignore them or say, I don't know the answer. You say, I don't know. Let's find out. So, to me, that's helpful for problem solving for things in the writer's room. I think it's not helpful to just turn down an idea or a pitch. But, like, I want to hear what the reasoning for the idea was, where the problem place was, and what it's the solution for and how we can implement it to make a better script.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Thank you.

[Justin Halpern]

Yeah, My name's Justin Halpern. I waited tables for a lot of years, and it taught me how to eat shit. I already knew how to do it, but now I really know how. And I think in the notes process of developing a show or receiving notes from people who weren't in the room, when the 12, 14 of us were all there. I think you have to learn how to take in things that are viscerally wrong and be like, okay, I hear that, let's think about it. And definitely not do it, but pretend like we are. And I think that that's what waiting tables taught helps me in the writer's room.

[Patrick Schumacher]

All right, Patrick Schumacher, and I'll give a serious one. I used to be a director's assistant and you know, TV's a visual medium and yeah, you're writing for something that's gonna end up on screen. So that helped me out. I also have been this guy's writing partner for like 20 something years. So it taught me how to work with him.

[Justin Halpern]

I'm Brian Rubenstein, I was a camp counselor and this show involves children.

[Jordan Temple]

I'm Jordan Temple and I was a mover in New York City for five summers where I frequently moved sleeper couches up, five story walk ups.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Oh my gosh.

[Jordan Temple]

So yeah, life is hard. That's what dad taught me. And yeah, you just, if you lift your end and shit won't fall down the steps. So that's what I brought to the room.

[Brittany Nichols]

Yes, my name is Brittany Nichols. I worked as a camp coach, counselor sort of thing for our Fremont Parks and Recreation Department with children. And I haven't learned a single lesson in my life.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Love that.

[Ava Cole Pullman]

I'm Ava Cole Pullman. Which is a coincidence. That's not.

[Quinta Brunson]

I'll explain it later.

[Ava Cole Pullman]

Yeah, I've had a lot of jobs that I guess just make me grateful to have this job. But I would say again, camp counselor would be the one. I was the youngest and I had no cousins growing up, so I didn't really meet children until I started working at a summer camp. And they beat me mercilessly and bullied me. There was a, a group of triplets that hated my rotten guts. And they taught me how to be brave, be strong, not let 6 year olds win.

[Kate Peterman]

Hi, I'm Kate Peterman and I've had absolute ass load of jobs. A lot of customer service, terrible, awful jobs that made me want just to give up on everything. I think that taught me to. I used to quit them all the time and it was my favorite thing in the world to do. And honestly I just, I don't think they really taught me how to be good in the room. I think they, they didn't. I think though it taught me to be like really, really appreciative for the job that I have. Which I think does make a difference, at least to me. Thanks.

[Quinta Brunson]

Hello.

[Justin Tan]

My name is Justin Tan.

[Quinta Brunson]

I also don't think I've had.

[Justin Tan]

Held any. I've had many jobs also, but I don't think any of them have really prepared me for. For this one.

[Quinta Brunson]

I've.

[Justin Tan]

I held a string of assistant jobs in TV before, like, in my early 20s. I think that has made me very, very grateful to be in this writers room.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Hello, my name is Joya McCorry. I worked in HR up until two weeks before I started on Abbott, and there are really zero transferable skills from that. So I had to do the Warner Brothers Writers Workshop, and that is what helped me kind of get along in this room.

[Justin Halpern]

That's absolutely not true.

[Quinta Brunson]

Don't start, guys. Finish the exercise.

[Justin Halpern]

Hello, I'm Riley Dufurena. A job that I had was working construction before I started college, and that taught me that I shouldn't be out there working. I didn't belong. I wasn't good at it. And I'm much better suited inside in air conditioning.

[Justin Tan]

My name is Garrett Werner. We've talked about a lot of good jobs here today, but honestly, the thing that prepared me the most was, like, team sports in my youth, like, being on a volleyball team and like, having strengths and weaknesses that you. Other people pick you up for and you cover other people. That's sort of what a writer's room really is.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Thank you, guys. Thank you for that. I appreciate that. I feel like that gave us all, like, a little glimpse, and the way that I've structured this panel is like, we're gonna do some process questions. We're gonna do some clips. We're gonna do the awards just so that you guys know and you guys know. So I think probably the first process question that makes the most sense is just, like, how do you start? Which is an overly simple question. But, Quinta, I think that you have said that you go into each season having, like, broad beats, right? Like a broad idea of where you want it to go. So I'm curious, like, how you come in with what you have prepared or the ideas that you have, and then how does that play out as a collaboration with the rest of the room?

[Quinta Brunson]

Yes. Okay. So before season starts, I do have an idea of what I want the season to look like. And what I usually do is call Justin. So Justin and Pat are my co producers, and so I'll usually call Justin and sometimes Pat. Pat is silly as hell, though. So I have to run it past Justin first and say, here's what I'm think. Here's where I kind of want to Go. And we just talk about. Talk about the ideas. Like, usually we're on the same page, and Justin just. I'm usually talking to him first because I am in the room. Usually for the first two months, three months, I'm in the room day after day. But then after three months, I start filming the show. So I always want to make sure that Justin has, like, a full handle on my ideas. Because this was actually the first season, I didn't have a layout from one to. From the first episode to the last episode, which feels good, honestly. I feel like it's a sign that our room is in a very good place. We're fortunate enough to have. Most of us have been here since the first season. All of us. Ava started second season, but the rest of us here since the first season. I really trust the room this year, and I felt that in my heart. So I, for the first time, didn't like. Sorry. I always trust the room. Sorry. Hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on. This is the first year I felt comfortable being like, I don't know what 22 is going to look like, but I feel that the room, we can decide that together. And so then after that, we start the room, and we kind of blue. Do blue sky ideas. We talk about what we did last season, what we see for each of the characters, what kind of stories we want to tell. And that's not always a big, big thing. It's like, I'd like to do this with Melissa this year, or this with Jeanine or this with Gregory. And it helps lead us to storylines. We usually have a conversation with, like, someone from the school district, educators, educators, administrators, just to make sure that what we're talking about isn't completely wrong. We are comedy, so we don't have to get it exactly right. And I like to reserve that right for us to work in fiction. This is fiction. But we like to talk to an administrator to kick things off. And then. Did I cover it all? Am I missing anything?

[Justin Halpern]

No, I think that that's. That's largely how it goes. And I think, you know, we. Again, we talk about where we want the. Where we think our characters were when we left them off and where we want to see them by the end of the season. And then there's also just a lot of, like. It's sort of like any. It's the safe space to pitch whatever you want at that time, you know, and it kind of all goes into a big document that we, you know, frequently check back in on at certain times during the Season.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

So then, for everybody else on this stage, are you coming in with A, plot ideas, B, plot ideas, sight gags that you want to see? Like, I'm curious for everyone else, how do you guys approach the beginning of a season and, like, breaking the ideas? Whoever would like to talk or not talk, that's fine.

[Justin Halpern]

Welcome to our job now.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Okay, there you go.

[Quinta Brunson]

Somebody get in there. I'm gonna start calling on people in a second. You want me to do that? All right. No, we. Fine. Kate.

[Kate Peterman]

Can you repeat the question?

[Justin Halpern]

Wow, you just got the absolute essence of Kate right there.

[Kate Peterman]

Oh, oh, oh. Ideas. Yes, yes, yes. How do you come up with ideas?

[Justin Halpern]

No, that was not the question.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

No, no, I'll accept it. It's a passing answer. Yeah. How do you come up with ideas? What do you guys come into the room with at the beginning of a season?

[Kate Peterman]

So since season one, I have come in with one idea every single season, and it is an idea that keeps getting shot down. And I'm not gonn going to say it.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

I feel like you have to say.

[Justin Halpern]

It doesn't make any sense, actually.

[Quinta Brunson]

Britney, do you want to go?

[Kate Peterman]

I'm going to hand it over to Britney.

[Quinta Brunson]

You want to take over?

[Brittany Nichols]

I'll pass it to Ava.

[Ava Cole Pullman]

Well, I. I just come into the room excited to hear what the bosses think we should do, and then. No, no, no.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Excellent.

[Ava Cole Pullman]

No, I'm so serious, because that's when the gears start. You know what I mean? Because break is break. And so I'm relaxing when we're off, I'm like, I'm not. I'm not using my brain. And so first day, I'm like, turn it back on. And then I listen, and then we have. We have a lot of fun.

[Quinta Brunson]

Yeah.

[Brittany Nichols]

What do you come into the room with an attitude that I have to.

[Quinta Brunson]

Go back to that.

[Kate Peterman]

Okay, let me just.

[Quinta Brunson]

Welcome to the room experience. Okay.

[Kate Peterman]

Okay. I'm sorry. And I'm gonna answer honestly. A lot of times, I'll come in fully giving out what happened to my family or funny things that have happened to. To me or my family. And then it usually jogs something in other people, and that's kind of where we build off of that to give you an actual answer.

[Quinta Brunson]

That's good.

[Kate Peterman]

Yeah. And, you know, sometimes the ideas get shot down.

[Quinta Brunson]

Sometimes you what?

[Kate Peterman]

The ideas get shot down. Like, really good ideas. Like a cold, open idea, apparently.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Really good ideas.

[Quinta Brunson]

When I say balloon friends, what does that mean to you?

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Anyone? Anyone?

[Quinta Brunson]

You see the empty faces? No one's really responding today. That was a laugh.

[Patrick Schumacher]

Of recognition.

[Quinta Brunson]

Do you have any more questions?

[Roxanna Hadadi]

I do have. I do. We can move on from that. Yeah. Although the other question I had, maybe this was the answer, which is when I spoke with members of the what we do in the Shadows writers room last year, they talked about ideas that they have on note cards that they stick up on a board and the season ends and the idea doesn't get used, and so they sort of keep it in their back pocket, although they haven't figured out a way to make it work yet. Yeah, I'm wondering if there are some of those you would be willing to share with us.

[Quinta Brunson]

I don't want to. I don't want to run my mouth too much because.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

I know.

[Quinta Brunson]

But, like, for instance, we had a whole episode this year that has been, for me, I guess, at least on a note card since season one, which was the dad fight episode. I wanted to do that episode since season one, and we finally got around to it, and that was the episode that Justin directed and Ava wrote. Justin, would you like to talk about that or just give me that. I'd like to pass this down to.

[Justin Tan]

Ava as a writer's panel.

[Ava Cole Pullman]

Talk about dad fight.

[Justin Halpern]

Talk about dad fight.

[Ava Cole Pullman]

I would love to talk about dad fight. Dad fight.

[Quinta Brunson]

Thank you, sister.

[Ava Cole Pullman]

Thank you, sister. Dad fight was super fun. And, yeah, we haven't talking about it for a while, so I was excited that it landed on my desk to write this season, and it was really fun working with a writer who is also a director on our show, Justin Tan. So that was a new experience for me, and we had a really fun guest cast as well.

[Quinta Brunson]

Yeah.

[Ava Cole Pullman]

And people. It seems like such a crazy story, but so many people relate, especially, like, it happens to teachers a lot. It's a real thing. And, you know, parenting is hard and teaching is hard, and so you can find that common ground, I feel, through the struggles. But, you know, it's competitive, and it's hard to, you know, keep a child's attention. And, you know, I feel like it was a really grounded story that we got to have a lot of fun with.

[Quinta Brunson]

You ate that.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

We do have a clip from that episode later that I am excited to further talk. I know. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. We're breaking the flow of the conversation. But so things are happening to you guys in real life that come into the show, obviously, and then you're meeting with administrators to get ideas from them.

[Quinta Brunson]

We don't get ideas from them. We have ideas. No, I think it's important to have that clarity because I think it's important for writers to know that, period. We do not get ideas from them. We have them, and we check with them to make sure that we are executing it in a way that is somewhat accurate.

[Justin Halpern]

Yeah, we want to know what's going on in the world of teaching at the moment, but we're not like, hey, give us our story ideas.

[Quinta Brunson]

Yeah, I think that's a really important distinction. And I think most shows that are about a real environment, hospital shows, et cetera, they're not, like, going and mining. You kind of make the story and then you check in. Because we're pretty character first, so it's like we want our characters to do things, and then we'll find out later if it's okay.

[Justin Halpern]

But, yeah, like, things are based off of people's lives. Like, Gregory doesn't like food. Brian doesn't like food. And that came from Brian.

[Quinta Brunson]

A fun fact is that Brian doesn't like food at all. But then we put. We had that in the script, and the network said, we think it's a little weird that Gregory just, like, wouldn't like food at all. Like, is he a psychopath?

[Kate Peterman]

He's just so unlikable. Who would ever.

[Justin Halpern]

They said, no woman would like this man.

[Quinta Brunson]

So we had to make it. Gregory doesn't like pizza. Which made them feel better. But it was supposed to be representation.

[Justin Halpern]

It was. Every notes call, they'd be like, he just seems like a freak show if he doesn't like food. And it made me so happy to just. I would just stare at Brian during the notes calls.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Okay, so thank you for that distinction of. Oh, I'm sorry. Please. I'm sorry.

[Jordan Temple]

I was gonna say something now. I'd like to pass it to Ava.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Now.

[Jordan Temple]

I was gonna say, I went to a small. So I'm from New York City, famously, and. But I went to a small private middle school. Bunch of, you know, broke black and brown kids. But we had. In our school, it was all, like, black and brown kids. And then one day, out of nowhere, a white kid came to the school. And so one day last season, I just said, how about a white kid comes to Abbott? And I didn't think it would happen and use it, but now. But Quinta was like, yes, we're doing that.

[Quinta Brunson]

And it was saved for. We talked about it last season for season three, but we were like, nah. And then it made for the perfect cold open for this season. That was a pin it up idea, right? That was the cold open for the.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. The Victorian ghost child.

[Patrick Schumacher]

Yeah.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yeah. This child is haunting the school. Right. Okay, so then thank you for the distinction. On, like, administrators are not giving you ideas. Right? It is a discussion about what the ideas you guys already have. So then I guess the question is, like, when there are storylines that are inspired by things that are actually happening, like the golf course. Right. How do you guys find the line of echoing what is actually happening and then putting the Abbot spin on it? Are there, like, guardrails for this is too accurate or this is too wacky? Is that too analytical of a question for how writing works?

[Quinta Brunson]

No, I'm just thinking about it. Does anyone else want to jump in?

[Kate Peterman]

I feel like as long as we are not making stuff up completely, but I think a lot of times people can get confused between, like, what is fiction and what is nonfiction, and this is a fictional show. So as long as we're, like, you know, gravity still exists. Like, it's. We're still following those rules. And then I think it's whatever serves. Like, that's just been my take on it. Like, whatever serves the characters and the stories and rationalizing, whatever decisions make the most entertaining sense for the episode.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

So, like, the reality is the creation of a golf course affects the neighborhood and the community potentially in difficult ways, but the reality might not be. And they're bribing teachers. Right? So, like, that's. Although maybe. I don't know. Who can say?

[Quinta Brunson]

Who can say? Yeah, that's the. Well, that's the fun of fiction that I think it's nice to keep alive here in the fun of a sitcom, in a comedy. It's not real life. It's not a documentary. It's just fun. And it's supposed to be a good time. So I think that writers should always leave themselves the liberty to just make fiction. And if we want to go wacky, we do. We have had wacky things. We can do that. And I think it's fun, too, because those things push the limits of what we can do. Like, last season, we did the drug episode, what's it called? Smoking, and that episode, Jordan's episode, and that, to me, pushed the limits of, like, what we could get away with. So now we can get away with way more. This season, the. The first season, when we even brought Tariq in, that, like, pushed the limits of what we were capable of, of what you can.

[Justin Halpern]

Not an easy sell.

[Quinta Brunson]

Not an easy sell at all, but it's, like, all about, I love your Abbott elementary shirt. Where'd you get that? I never have any fucking cool shirts. That's really cute.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

We need that intel for later.

[Kate Peterman]

We need it.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yeah.

[Quinta Brunson]

We need run that. But, yeah, no, it's fun. It's fun to push the limit. So I don't like to stay away from wacky completely. Yeah.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yeah. And then this is also a question just about you guys are doing writing in the room, but I think something that came up during the strikes last year is that it is also really important to have a writer on set when episodes are being filmed. Right. So I guess I'm curious if you guys can just talk about that. Like, for people who don't know that it's also important for a writer to be there when the episode they wrote is. Is being produced. Like, why is that important? Are there any anecdotes that you guys can share about how that works in the world of Abbott, Please?

[Ava Cole Pullman]

Oh, Ava, I worked on a. Yes, I worked on a show before Abbott that was a great experience, but it was during Peak Covid, so it filmed in New York, and I wasn't able to ever go on the set, and that was really hard because there is something about being in person and getting to talk to the actors and being flexible and, you know, having alts and punching up jokes on the fly and just being there and seeing how the show is actually made. Because that was my first show, so I was kind of flying blind, and then I didn't have any real anchoring without being able to touch the streets and, like, really see what was going on on set. So I. It feels invaluable to me.

[Jordan Temple]

That was, like, the same for me. I wasn't during Peak Covid. I wrote an episode of Atlanta, and I couldn't go on set, and it was in New York, where I'm from, and I was so sad, and I was like, what the hell? This is. What a travesty. But, like, the benefit of, like, being on set is, like, kind of like Ava was saying, but also, like, being able to enjoy, like, the process and see everything from the writer's room to ideas. You have to, like, having the script yourself and then seeing, like, how you can kind of be more engaged. Like, you can kind of take it down the line. And it's. It's very satisfying.

[Patrick Schumacher]

I think another thing, too, is that. And one of the unique things about having a show where it's broadcast and we're airing episodes as we're writing them and we're cutting them and all this stuff is it's like this beautiful kind of ecosystem that is like a training ground for future showrunners. Which like, all these guys can be. And so giving the writers an opportunity to produce and see their episode all the way through. Post and see how, you know, the sausage is made. And so, yeah, especially like with doing 22, everybody most get, like two cracks at it.

[Quinta Brunson]

Right.

[Patrick Schumacher]

All the way through. So that's a really cool thing about this show.

[Quinta Brunson]

You make a really good point about unlike many other popular shows, I guess I'll say, besides like 91 1. We are filming while we're writing. While we're shooting. Sorry. So like, they're. Wait, that's wrong.

[Patrick Schumacher]

So we are filming and shooting at the same time.

[Quinta Brunson]

We're filming and shooting at the same time. But we're also. But we're editing at the same time. So right now we're filming episodes. Episode 11.

[Patrick Schumacher]

Yeah, we just finished that. 12's Monday.

[Quinta Brunson]

Whatever. We finished 11. We're between 11 and 12. 15 is being outlined, written. 16 is being outlined, just edited 10. So all of those things are happening at the same time. And it's helpful when a writer is there all the way through because they can also keep track of, like, minutiae, like changes. Like the most. The smallest thing where we might change a line that affects something that's coming up in an episode, you know, two weeks later or something that is in an outline for five weeks later. So that's what. That's the benefit I see, especially in my position, is that I love that our room is able to keep track of the little teeny things that really matter when you're airing the same time you're shooting.

[Kate Peterman]

There's also things could. This happens to me a lot where I'll have something that I'm confident will, like, play well on its feet is what it's called. And like, when you're actually filming and then it doesn't. Or something gets weird or just humans aren't able to do what is written on the page. So you have to kind of switch it in the moment sometimes. Like, there was something that happened in 308, which was my episode last season, where we had to, like, move a talking head around to justify, like, the story, basically. So you have to keep an eye on the story and that's something. And then learn what can't work. So there was like a joke that we had in that cold open with the basketball, like, where, yeah, everyone's playing basketball. And that just. It was so funny to me on the page, but it just was humanly impossible to actually do. So you have to come up with stuff in the moment. So it's really important for writers, I think, to be on set to both help the story and also it's so helpful to us to know now it's a lesson to be like, oh, okay, I won't do that idea again.

[Jesse David Fox]

You know, we'll be right back with the writing staff of Abbott Elementary.

[Justin Tan]

Oh, such a clutch off season pickup, Dave.

[Quinta Brunson]

I was worried we'd bring back the same team. I meant Those blackout motorized sh.

[Justin Tan]

Blinds.com made it crazy affordable to replace our old blinds.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Hard to install?

[Quinta Brunson]

No, it's easy. I installed these and then got some from my mom. She talked to a design consultant for free and scheduled a professional measure and install hall of Fame sun. They're the number one online retailer of custom window coverings in the world. Blinds.com is the goat shop blinds.com right.

[Kate Peterman]

Now and get up to 45% off select styles, rules and restrictions may apply.

[Ava Cole Pullman]

Two influencers, both alike in dignity and some other stuff on the Internet where.

[Quinta Brunson]

We lay our scene.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Let's talk about all of my favorite basics from Amazon that you need in your winter wardrobe. Some people think this is weird, but.

[Quinta Brunson]

I get all my clothes on Amazon. This is what I would buy if.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

I didn't already own them.

[Quinta Brunson]

I just got in a bunch of.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Super cute packages from Amazon, so let's open them up. Their aesthetic is beige, it's serene, it's a little basic on purpose. And now one is suing the other for stealing her vibes.

[Quinta Brunson]

There's a lot of things going on.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

In the actual suit, but what it.

[Quinta Brunson]

Boils down to really is one of.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

The women, Sydney Gifford, says that the.

[Quinta Brunson]

Other woman, Alyssa Shiel, just won't stop copying her. Coming up on Today. Today.

[Justin Tan]

Explain.

[Jesse David Fox]

Now back to Vulture Festival and the writing staff of Abbott Elementary.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

So it's like this continuing cycle of knowledge that is happening as you're writing, as you're filming. I think given all that, maybe the best thing to do next is just to go into some clips. Let's watch some episode clips. I think that makes sense. I have pulled a few that I find funny. So hopefully we all will. I'm sure we will. That's why we won the award. So the first one that we are going to play is from season two's Candy Zombies, which is by Kate. And these clips are a couple minutes long. So we're going to watch the clip and then just whatever anyone on stage remembers from the process of writing it, working on it, or I have questions too, so we'll figure it out. But let's Play the first clip from Candy Zombies. Can we roll that?

[Quinta Brunson]

Am I going to steal this candy? We shall see. Okay, so what did we learn? Don't go to Salem or Boston. You know what? Just skip the whole state. Hey, hey, hey, hey, guys. What has gotten into you today?

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Come on.

[Quinta Brunson]

They're really on one today. Ava, could you please come out here? Which no candy until the end of the day. Enjoy the haunted house. Hello? Where's the candy that's supposed to be here? Oh, hey, the candy's right. Oh, dang.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Where'd the candy go?

[Quinta Brunson]

Guys, what is going on? Where did you get this? What is in your mouth? What is going on? What? What the. What? Oh, what does it look like? Boy, they got into the candy bar. Hey, watch it.

[Ava Cole Pullman]

Need to get my deposit back on this.

[Quinta Brunson]

What the hell is happening? It was her. She's too absorbed in that damn phone. She let the candy get stolen. Alleged phone, alleged candy. I saw those bags. That's two Halloweens worth of candy. How did they even pass it out so fast? What kid shares candy on Halloween? We're dealing with a real sicko here. The important thing to focus on is.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

That no one person is to blame. Except, of course, the theme.

[Quinta Brunson]

Because in a way, I've been robbed. When you think about it, we need to find who took the candy. We will get to that. But firstly, there's no way we can teach these children when they are like this. They need to burn that energy off. They can't go outside. It's raining. Hey, little gremlins. Free recess in the gym. I'm one of those people where chaos really affects my mood. So I'm just gonna call it a.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

I think one of the things that we enjoy so much about the fact that you guys have 22 episode seasons is that we do get these sort of like, holiday collective episodes where they are something we can recognize. So I'm curious. Are those holiday special edition episodes? Is there a special way that you guys approach those in the room? Do you pick certain holidays per season to focus on? How does that break down?

[Quinta Brunson]

I wish we could do that. No, we get an airing schedule at the beginning of the year. So I would love to do a Thanksgiving episode, but we have not gotten Thanksgiving on the schedule yet. So when we find out that we have an episode that's close to Halloween or close to Valentine's Day or close to Christmas, that's when we know what kind of holiday episode we can do. And I think it's just fun. I was a fan of It's One of the beauty, the beautiful things about network TV is that airing around a date, as opposed to a binge, when you're not airing, you know, at a. You're airing all at once. So I just think it's just nice to be able to know that we're going to air at a time and put people in the festive holiday spirit. That episode, that is actually one of our wackier episodes by one of our wackier.

[Justin Halpern]

Yeah, one of the hardest. One of the hardest to break. That was a real challenge.

[Quinta Brunson]

All those kids. I just got ptsd. I was trying to figure out, what's that called? When you see something, you start sweating so many children.

[Kate Peterman]

That episode was another example of when things change. Like that one was in the edit. So when all of the kids were, like, running out of their classrooms. Originally, in the script, we had the act break on the little girl dressed as a dinosaur. You could see her. God love her. I feel bad that she didn't get it, but she was supposed to come up and grab the camera and just go, ah.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

In the camera.

[Kate Peterman]

And that's how it was supposed to break. But the way that it just didn't work out that way. It couldn't happen that way. So we just lost that. And it was one continuous scene, all types of things.

[Quinta Brunson]

Our kid, who was originally dressed as Mr. Johnson, got sick and had to come out. Malcolm.

[Kate Peterman]

He was so cute.

[Quinta Brunson]

He was so cute, and it was so sad, and he was trying so hard. He was like, I have a headache and I'm sniffling and I can't see straight, but I can do this. And we were like.

[Kate Peterman]

He goes, I'm dealing with a lot of mucus.

[Quinta Brunson]

We said I had to tell him to rest, like Tony Stark. I was like, your job is done. And he was. So we had to bring in another kid, which, you know, the kids have different comedic skills, so you don't have to technically write different for them, but you have to. The writer being on set is important for, like, okay, can that happen in another. Who did. Britney did the last Halloween episode where a kid got sick. Oh, my God. And because they get sick all the time, y'all, it's not just Covid. Like, they just be sick. And one girl got sick, so we had to pull in another little girl. Right. Am I making this up? No, we didn't get in there, Brittany. I'm done. I can't. I don't remember.

[Brittany Nichols]

Pretty. You said it.

[Quinta Brunson]

Somebody got sick.

[Brittany Nichols]

We pulled one of the background kids, and we had to do, like, Some logicing of, like, what grade she was in and if she could even be the person who would be present at that time. So it's just. Sometimes it's just, like, logic issues of making sure that the continuity, not just of the episode, but of the entire season is kept intact right after responding to something.

[Quinta Brunson]

The first kid we had was in Barbara's class, but the only kid that could come through the role was older. So we had to change the lines to be like, oh, this is now a second grader. So the lines have to. So it's stuff like that where. Just going back to your original question about why it's beneficial to have writers on set.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

And something that I also love about the show overall is that as much sometimes as the kids, like, you know, steal two years worth of Halloween candy, there isn't, like, punishment in the show. Right. So I'm wondering if there are guidelines for how to write conflict involving the kids. Like, are there things that you guys stay away from.

[Quinta Brunson]

Someone else can answer.

[Brittany Nichols]

I just.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

That's fine. I. You know, anyone who wants to answer can.

[Jordan Temple]

The thing I really loved in smoking that we did is the. The kid who, you know, smoked.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yeah.

[Jordan Temple]

Just like, he was basically, you know, Gregory was like, well, did we talk to the kid, why he did it? And he was a good kid. And, you know, that reflected. That was my episode. It reflected the aspect of my life because I was actually expelled for smoking in a school, in boarding school. But it felt like I got, like, a little bit of, you know, power over that memory because that school is now closed.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Oh, nice.

[Jordan Temple]

So that's something I think we do really well. You know, it's like, there's always a solution. And I think, you know, what the staff does so well, what we all do so well, and also what the stories are trying to tell is, like, not exactly make things peanut. Like, they're always like lessons, but we're not trying to, like, hit you over the head with it kind of thing. Yeah, just like, a lot of empathy there.

[Brittany Nichols]

I think that's one of the ways that doesn't get talked about, where reality and fiction actually comes up. Because I think in a lot of these situations in the real world, you know, we see black and brown kids penalized and treated poorly and not given a second chance. And part of us being able to, like, create a new world is to put some of. I think, how we wish we had gotten to come up and the values that we as a room hold and the way that we want to imagine the world can be. And we get to work that into how the students are treated when they, you know, make a mistake.

[Quinta Brunson]

And that goes into which we can remember from the very beginning of Abbott, the ethos of the hiring process. When we were hiring, we weren't just hiring writers. We were hiring people, good people. And it was important to all three of us to, like, you know, it wasn't a part of the, you know, the interview to be like, hey, you bad person or a good person?

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Be honest.

[Quinta Brunson]

You can hear people talk, and you can hear where people's morals lied about children, about education, about things like punishment. And I don't care how funny someone is. You could be the funniest motherfucker on the planet. But if we were looking for a certain heart when it came to making this show certain. A certain ethos so that we don't even have to have those conversations, we kind of always start the room on the same page and know that we don't have to worry about these kids being harmed or our characters being harmed or causing harm to the audience. And while we still won't shy away from larger topics, we just know that, you know, the ethos of the whole room is in the right place. And that started from day one.

[Jordan Temple]

You ate that.

[Quinta Brunson]

Thank you. Thanks, Jordan.

[Kate Peterman]

It's also a very, like, safe room, I feel like, where we definitely get made fun of and we make fun of each other. But see, from her resident hr. No, but it's also, like, if you are picking up on something that, like, is definitely unintentional, and you're like, oh, I don't know if this is what we want to say with this character, this storyline. It's. We are able to say that, and that's that we have showrunners and stuff that are like, no, tell us. Tell us. Because, you know, some things you just miss.

[Quinta Brunson]

And notice really quickly. I'll point something out to y'all.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Oh, my God.

[Quinta Brunson]

Notice really quickly how, like, the white men in our room, you see how they being quiet? Cause they letting everybody talk. Riley and Gary, they say two words because of the room. To let the most marginalized voices. Am I wrong? It is in the easy.

[Jordan Temple]

Don't say nothing.

[Quinta Brunson]

It's true, though. It's true. I'm just saying, be the change.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

You want to speak.

[Jordan Temple]

It's about time.

[Quinta Brunson]

It's about time. And the people. It's a natural order. The bald people get to speak before the people with hair. The black people get to speak first. It's an order. I can't explain it to Y'all, I.

[Jordan Temple]

Don'T know where I stand in this.

[Quinta Brunson]

But you get to speak first. No, make black women first, then you, then Justin, then Kate, then the people with bald, and then the people with hair.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Is there anything you guys want to say about that or.

[Justin Halpern]

That's fair.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

I think we. I think we want to do. I think we want to do one other clip. I know there are, like, four. Just play the clips.

[Ava Cole Pullman]

They're in the show.

[Quinta Brunson]

I know, but the clips are fine. I had a good time watching that. I forgot all about that episode. That was so long ago. Oh, Jesus.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

We're gonna do a clip.

[Quinta Brunson]

I'm sorry, Roxanne.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Totally fine.

[Quinta Brunson]

You're doing it.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

It's fine. From the season three finale party.

[Quinta Brunson]

Oh, God.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yeah, we're gonna do that clip. That episode was written by Chad Morton and Rebecca.

[Quinta Brunson]

Chad. Chad is my son. He's not. He was our pa. This is a cool story. He was our PA and then he became writer assistant, and now he is a writer. Huh? He's a writer's assistant, but he's written an episode of television.

[Justin Halpern]

He's going another this year.

[Quinta Brunson]

Yeah, we like to move up in this room.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yeah. I mean, that's like. That's the benefit of the room, right? You are training the next generation of people.

[Quinta Brunson]

Who is Chad here?

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Chad. Was Chad here?

[Quinta Brunson]

He's not here.

[Justin Halpern]

Anyone named Chad is. Okay. It doesn't matter.

[Quinta Brunson]

Tristan, stand up. You kind of look like. I'm kidding. No, Tristan. No, no. Lizzie's here, though. Lizzie, stand up. Boo. Lizzy, stand up, girl. Stop playing with me.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Everybody clap for Lizzie. Thank you, Lizzy.

[Justin Halpern]

Lizzie, you're off on script. You shouldn't be.

[Quinta Brunson]

You really shouldn't be here. You really should be writing your script right now. But that's okay.

[Brittany Nichols]

But just like a very quick global point that I'll say is that because we do 22 episodes, we have the opportunity to do things like give the assistant scripts and have them do scripts the next season. That's something that we're losing with these shorter order. So when you're asking for people to do more episodes, that means more opportunity for people that are trying to get a start in this business.

[Quinta Brunson]

Thank Brittany.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Thank you, Britney. I mean, let's just. Let's play.

[Quinta Brunson]

Let's clip there.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yeah, play the clip. Just play it.

[Quinta Brunson]

Bye. Good luck on your marriage. Martin. Tiny Buckle, Time to abandon ship. Congrats, kid. Your party made C. Barbara go full pirate. Didn't know you had it in you. Okay, yo, ho ho. Leave the room. Oh, how'd I get there. Oh, no. Oh, my God. Oh. Hey, guys. You know you can stay. It's no last call at Club Jeanine. Oh, no, no, no. I gotta keep moving, or else I'll black out. Oh. Oh, no. What about Simon? We broke up. Oh, you guys were so good together. Forgive him. Yeah, you deserve that. Oh, Gregory, do you have.

[Justin Halpern]

Yeah.

[Quinta Brunson]

If Gregory would have stayed, I would have told him how I felt, which is that I like him and I want to be with him. It feels good to say out loud I want to be with him, but he left. Okay, how about I get the cheeseburger, and then if you get.

[Kate Peterman]

Oh, well.

[Justin Halpern]

Where are you going?

[Quinta Brunson]

She clearly wanted you to stay. I don't know what you're so worried about, if it's HR or the rules or that text message, but maybe you should be a little more worried about. That has nothing to do with that. Okay? I don't even care about the rules at this point. But Manny is inside. Isn't that him literally leaving? Okay, that's weird. But I'm pretty sure that they're dating. I'm pretty sure they're not. He asked. But the thing about dates, Gregory, is that the other person has to say yes. Janice, shut that down. Told Mr. Manny that she likes somebody else. You know what? No. I am done waiting. I bet I can still catch him. Okay, I fixed your light. Oh, y'all nasty.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

I want to read something that quinty you said. This episode was partially motivated by me all year saying I was gonna throw a party at my house and never getting to it and my writers giving me shit about it because I kept saying I was going to, but we kept getting busy.

[Brittany Nichols]

Let's not leave Justin Halpern out of this. Who said he's gonna throw us a cheese party since season one, and he also has not done it.

[Jordan Temple]

So did Pat.

[Justin Halpern]

This is true.

[Brittany Nichols]

The only person who's throwing us a party is Brian.

[Justin Halpern]

Part of being a showrunner is promising you're gonna have a party at your house and then never having it.

[Quinta Brunson]

Exactly.

[Patrick Schumacher]

I don't have a pool.

[Quinta Brunson]

You don't have a pool? What? You don't have a pool? Who sitting here doesn't have a pool?

[Jordan Temple]

Hey, man, I'm here living paycheck to paycheck.

[Quinta Brunson]

Shut up.

[Brittany Nichols]

Shut up.

[Quinta Brunson]

Dream. No, no, no. I didn't know you didn't have a pool.

[Patrick Schumacher]

I'll build one.

[Brittany Nichols]

Let's have a party.

[Quinta Brunson]

I didn't know that. No, but I was supposed to have a party, and I wanted to have everybody over. And people could fall in love. Everyone have a good time.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

When you said that everyone was single, and at this point, most of us are now in relationships. That's how long it's been.

[Justin Halpern]

I have a kid now.

[Jordan Temple]

I have five kids.

[Quinta Brunson]

Some people are still single. So I am going to throw the party, but let me get my bearings together. A lot has happened in my life, you know, so.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yeah. So party to come.

[Quinta Brunson]

Yes.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Okay. The party eventually happen. Yeah. We all. Everybody cheered for the kiss, right?

[Quinta Brunson]

Yes.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

And you've said that you knew that the end of that season was the right time. Was the fact that it was a shorter season, more difficult on the room to, like, craft the beats of the relationship in season three?

[Quinta Brunson]

I wonder what you guys think. Garrett, we. We haven't heard from you.

[Ava Cole Pullman]

I.

[Justin Tan]

At the end of season three, actually, it was like we were running out of obstacles to put between Janine and Gregory. It was like we were talking like, they should be together now at, like, episode 10, and we have to stretch this out to episode 14. So it was just us coming up with, like, thing after thing after thing to keep them apart. And that was tough, especially when we had come off the strike and then had been working for a long time.

[Quinta Brunson]

Yeah. The whole third season in general. First of all, I'm so proud of it. So proud of the work we did. No one will ever know how hard it is to come off of a strike, get put in the room air in two months. I think after we started writing, while we're still writing and still churn out what I consider to be good television, but at the very least, somewhat good television. I feel for every. What it was good.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Justin Tan]

You don't have to catch it.

[Quinta Brunson]

I'm just. I didn't want to honk our horn too much, but I'm just saying, like.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

You'Re accepting an award. Yeah, sure.

[Quinta Brunson]

Honk, honk. But no, I. We. I'm really proud of that work because this is a show that is built for 22 episodes. Even though our first season was 13. This is network television. We built it for 22. So to have to go back to 13 after really getting in a groove the second season, we had a lot of work to do. We had time to make up for. We had a lot of story to tell very quickly. And I do feel like that was the season that, you know, they say pressure makes diamonds now I feel like we are a fucking diamond. And this has been. That season, like, was a testament to, like, what we were capable of. And I'm really just so proud of it. But like he said, even Jeanine and Gregory. I wasn't willing to make Jeanine and Gregory go in the season four. I just want. I personally wanted to, you know, get them together. Let's keep telling some more stories in the school with the whole ensemble. And so, yeah, it. It probably would have looked different if we had 22.

[Justin Halpern]

Yeah. I think always the delicate balance in the show is, like, we've always. Everyone across the board have never wanted to make this the Jeanine and Gregory show like we've want. I know that's been really important to her since the start. Like, she said that when we were doing the pilot of, like, I want this to be an ensemble, and this is a relationship that is definitely forefront in a lot of it, but this is never the show. And so it was challenging in that season three to figure out how to nail that. Give sort of us and the audience what we wanted, but also not make it feel like that was the whole third season, you know?

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Well, the other thing about season three is that we get a lot of new school district characters, and I'm wondering what the room's approach is to new characters. How do you know when it's time? Do you come in with, like, a fully formed new character idea, or is it more of a collaborative process with people suggesting personality characteristics, suggesting how they'd play off the rest of the ensemble? How does that work?

[Patrick Schumacher]

Well, I would just say that I think we start our seasons off by, like, especially the first three seasons, we kind of talked about, like, having an overarching, like, facet that we wanted to, like, kind of explore that season. So we had charter schools in season two, and then it was the district at season three, and we wanted Jeanine to, you know, essentially feel like maybe she had abandoned her post at Abbott and getting the job of the district, and then ultimately be, you know, won back by the power of teaching, essentially, and the allure of that. And that was her true vocation. So I think it was just like with the district. I think it was just a natural fit that these characters were going to be a large piece of the pie that season.

[Justin Halpern]

Wait, I see Tan laughing. And I know why Tan is laughing is because at table reads, the writers have to play the character, the guest cast, because the guest cast is not there. And so sometimes it'll be our writers doing impressions of certain people. And Tan always does. Manny from the district.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Oh, my gosh. Can we. No, no, no. I know where this is going.

[Quinta Brunson]

It's really good.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

I think we Should.

[Quinta Brunson]

He's not going to do it.

[Brittany Nichols]

Riley, do an impression of Justin. Doing an impression of Manny.

[Justin Halpern]

Danny DeVito, do an impression of Justin.

[Quinta Brunson]

Josh.

[Justin Halpern]

Hey, guys. Here at the district, everything's fine. Check out this chain.

[Quinta Brunson]

That's pretty good.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

It's a little better. Mine's a little better. That was good.

[Justin Halpern]

Well, then do it. Tan.

[Quinta Brunson]

The big Tego. That's good. That's good.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

That was good. Thank you. That was very good. I mean, maybe that's the best time to bring out the medal and the awards, because we got. We got the impression. So can we bring out the plaque that we're hoping that you guys will put?

[Brittany Nichols]

I assumed it was symbolic.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

No, it's physical. Oh, it's hardware.

[Kate Peterman]

Nettles.

[Quinta Brunson]

Nettles, yeah.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

It's a real thing.

[Quinta Brunson]

Thank you so much.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yeah. Thank you, guys for the work.

[Justin Halpern]

You're like. You guys get to hold it. It goes to the actors.

[Justin Tan]

But Quinta, what does it say?

[Quinta Brunson]

It says vulture. Roomie award, Abbott Elementary. And then it has all of our names. We're gonna hang it in our room. Thank you so much for this. This is a real honor. No, for real.

[Justin Halpern]

Yeah.

[Quinta Brunson]

No corny shit. This actually is really a real honor. People do not acknowledge the writers enough ever, at any point, at any time. So I was very proud when we got the email that we were getting a roomie because, like, I never even knew what a roomie was, but I was very happy that our writers were being acknowledged, you know? Oh, yeah.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Very deserved. Yeah. You get medals as well.

[Quinta Brunson]

Are you gonna put them around our neck?

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Do you want to do that?

[Quinta Brunson]

Yeah.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Okay, everyone. There you go.

[Quinta Brunson]

It's like a Nobel Peace Prize.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yeah. Exact same level of respect.

[Quinta Brunson]

I feel like fucking Sha'carri Richardson right now. I do. It says writing.

[Justin Halpern]

Then I can look at me like, oh, that's what I'm supposed to do.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

There you go.

[Justin Halpern]

But I do. I do think it's, like, this is genuinely cool. And I think because it is, so often we don't. You know, this isn't something that's normally celebrated.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yeah.

[Quinta Brunson]

I loved it. I loved it. Oh, yeah.

[Jordan Temple]

After this, they're never gonna let us outside again.

[Quinta Brunson]

And they shouldn't, and nor should they.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Or there should always be an award whenever you guys.

[Quinta Brunson]

Okay.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yes, that would be good.

[Quinta Brunson]

Yours is.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

There you go.

[Quinta Brunson]

With a new haircut aspect.

[Kate Peterman]

Thank you so much.

[Quinta Brunson]

Thank you.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

To white men. Here we go. Finally. Your moment to shine.

[Quinta Brunson]

Finally.

[Justin Halpern]

Finally. It's our time.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Finally.

[Quinta Brunson]

Thank you.

[Justin Halpern]

Mine says third place.

[Quinta Brunson]

Do they all say the same thing?

[Roxanna Hadadi]

They do.

[Quinta Brunson]

Okay.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

You can personalize them as you want. I think that's a personal challenge for you guys.

[Quinta Brunson]

Thank you.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

In our last few minutes, I want to maybe ask some questions about, like, the future of the show. That's, you know, I made it sound more serious than it was, but there's been a lot of talk about the always sunny crossover that's happening.

[Quinta Brunson]

Yes.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

What can you tell us about the always sunny crossover and having those guys in the room with you guys? What was that experience like? So anyone who would like Gary.

[Justin Tan]

That was my episode. I got extremely lucky. I won another lottery. It was amazing. I mean, they're like, we're all huge fans of what they do, and just to have them, like, there in person, like, Rob owns a soccer team in Europe, and you're like, you've got time to come talk to us. Charlie was sick, and he still zoomed in, willing to contribute to a show that isn't his. Yeah. It was a dream because it was a crossover that happened organically where Rob and Quinta really wanted it to happen, and everybody involved was really excited, as opposed to an executive someplace being like, you know, it'll be fun. We take these shows. So everybody was gung ho and really excited to do it. And so, really, we got to push everything. Yeah. Pretty far. It's pretty good.

[Justin Halpern]

Yeah. And we. And we did it.

[Quinta Brunson]

Did it.

[Justin Halpern]

Like, they're our episodes, not like, they show up in our cold open, and then they're gone. Like, we. Our two episodes are of a piece. And I actually think I was saying this to somebody earlier. Like, I think this is gonna be something really cool. People look back on, be like, wow, they actually pulled this off like this. I don't think a crossover has been done in the way that we ended up doing it. Although I will say that almost every day, the writers can say, I came in and said, I don't think this is gonna happen.

[Quinta Brunson]

So here's the thing, y'all. Let me tell you what happened.

[Kate Peterman]

You did, though.

[Quinta Brunson]

I said, I want to do this. And Justin goes, there is no way. And Kate very rightfully pointed out to me one day that. What did you say? Because I don't remember.

[Kate Peterman]

I said that if you want Quinta to not do something, you say, you shouldn't do that. Here are all the logical reasons why. Otherwise, if you just say, you can't do that, she's like, I'll call the person in charge, and I'll make them. I'll change their mind. So that has. That happened with the super sized episode beginning of season three. That one almost broke us. And then I didn't understand what the hell was going on at any point. I had a, yeah, it was crazy. But then do it.

[Quinta Brunson]

And so. And also because I met Rob and I was like, this can work. If I met him and I didn't like him, we wouldn't have tried to do it. But I felt like we got it. He's also a creator and star of his show. They've been going for so long, they're a well oiled machine. I felt like we had, you know, kindred spirits. But what he's talking about, which I think people don't realize, is our episode will air in January, so it'll be an Abbott elementary episode. But the first episode of Always Sunny will air. I don't know when their episode's gonna air, but probably in June. Their episode will be their version of what happened in this storyline. So that's what's really cool about this that we didn't even plan for, but it turned into. I don't. I love. I love crossovers. I love it. I think they're great. Went fucking in Endgame. When Tony and Autumn, I was like, holy shit. So I love that. And so I think. I love it. And so I think it's really fun for TV watchers. We just went to the mix the other day at the. When the episode is finished being edited, you mix, you know, colors done and you're doing the sound. And I was just looking at it like, holy shit. These are. This is worlds colliding. And it's very fun. I hope that Urkel on Full House. Urkel on Full House changed my life. Changed my life.

[Justin Halpern]

I really think, like, this is. It ended up being, I think, the very best version of a crossover that I feel like could be done right. And like, I'm so proud of it. I feel like it's.

[Quinta Brunson]

I think it's really tight. I do. I think we've done some really cool things this year.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

I also think, again, just, we're talking about, like, the power of network television. Like Homicide, Law and Order, Angel, Buffy, like Crawford. Crossovers used to be a thing when you had seasons that were long enough to accommodate.

[Quinta Brunson]

But here's the thing, Roxanna. They're not even on network.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

I know.

[Quinta Brunson]

They're on cable.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Exactly.

[Quinta Brunson]

So I guess I have to say thank you to corporate synergy. Oh, for FX being under the same.

[Justin Tan]

We owe everything to it.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yeah.

[Quinta Brunson]

Thank you. That's the only reason we get to do this is because FX Is also owned by Disney. If it weren't for that, you would. It wouldn't happen.

[Brittany Nichols]

Give it up for consolidation. Am I right?

[Justin Halpern]

These pesky unions would get out of the way.

[Quinta Brunson]

No, no, he's pro. He was a wg.

[Justin Halpern]

I was on the board of the wga. I'm very pro. Union.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

For the record.

[Quinta Brunson]

Yeah.

[Jordan Temple]

He's wearing a button.

[Justin Halpern]

I'm wearing the New York union button.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Wearing a New York Mag union button. If there was nothing like no network considerations, like nothing that would get in your way. Do you guys have any dream crossover episodes? I ask this because you gave an interview, Quinta, where you said that you love how much ghost.

[Quinta Brunson]

I love ghost.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Uses the term sucked off.

[Quinta Brunson]

I love ghosts. They make fun of me because I come in talking about it.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yeah.

[Quinta Brunson]

But I love ghosts. I will crossover with Survivor, which Kate put me onto. I don't know what that means.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Uh huh.

[Kate Peterman]

It means the world to me right now.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

It means.

[Quinta Brunson]

So we're going to love Survivor. I want teachers to go on a game show. So there's this game show I like on game show network called.

[Kate Peterman]

What's it called?

[Quinta Brunson]

Family feuds. Where my real ones at?

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yeah.

[Quinta Brunson]

And so you know how it's always teachers on there. Right. I really want our teachers to go on that show. Justin says it can't happen.

[Justin Halpern]

I'm gonna make owned by another network. Cannot happen.

[Quinta Brunson]

I'm gonna make that one happen.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Does anyone else have any ones that they would love? 91 1.

[Quinta Brunson]

No.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Second that the teachers need to get rested. Do they go to la? I have it all in my head. We'll talk about it.

[Jordan Temple]

It feels like the way that they have the bachelor and the bachelorette go before us, that they want Mr. Johnson to be on a golden D. Oh, wow.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Yes. Wow.

[Quinta Brunson]

Absolutely.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

No, I think everybody wants it. So everybody.

[Quinta Brunson]

I love that he'll be so good on the golden Bachelor.

[Justin Halpern]

I don't know if his wife would like that though.

[Quinta Brunson]

Oh yeah, that's true. That's true. We got five seconds. Roxanne, do you want to show another clip?

[Roxanna Hadadi]

No, no, we're good. I want to thank you guys so much for being here.

[Quinta Brunson]

Thank you. Thank you for your work.

[Justin Halpern]

Thank you guys.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Enjoy the award.

[Quinta Brunson]

Thank you.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Thank you.

[Quinta Brunson]

Thank you for the roomy.

[Roxanna Hadadi]

Thank you guys. Thank you.

[Quinta Brunson]

Thank you guys for watching the show. Appreciate you. Thank you. Thank you.

[Ava Cole Pullman]

Thank you.

[Quinta Brunson]

Yes.

[Justin Halpern]

Thank you guys. Thank you.

[Jesse David Fox]

That's it for another episode of good one. Good one was produced by myself and Jelani Carter. Gun Machin did our theme song Write a review and rate the show on Apple Podcasts five stars, please. I'm Jesse David Fox and you can follow me at Jesse David Fox. Buy my book, comedy book, wherever books are sold. Thanks for listening to a good one from New York Magazine. You can subscribe to the [e-mail] pod we'll be back next week with a new episode. Episode. Have a good one.

[Jordan Temple]

Welcome to Good One show about talking them jokes, son.

[Quinta Brunson]

Hey, hey, hey, hey. Good one. It's a good one.