Pluribus: The Official Podcast – S1E4: "Please, Carol" (Nov 21, 2025)

Episode Overview

In this in-depth roundtable, host and Pluribus editor Chris McCaleb welcomes show creator Vince Gilligan, episode writer Alison Tatlock, star Rhea Seehorn, and newcomer Carlos Manuel Vesca (Manusos) for a lively, behind-the-scenes exploration of "Please, Carol." The team dives into the introduction of the mysterious Paraguay connection, Carol’s disastrous truth serum experiment, on-set stories, casting insights, directing challenges–and plenty of laughs along the way. The episode is an engaging insider’s look for fans who want to dig beneath the surface of the show.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Introducing Manusos & Carlos Manuel Vesca (02:06–11:53)

• First Impressions and Name Game
  The cast jokes about Vesca’s “rockstar” status, the pronunciation of his name, and how fans should address him.

  • "When you race down the street with a scrum of fans... address him as Carlos Manuel or Veska." – Vince Gilligan (03:27)

• The Infamous Dog Food Scene
  Detailed recounting of Manusos’ gross meal, including the on-set food concoction (haggis, broth, made to look dog-food-congealed), and the director’s push for heightened visual disgust.

  • "The original looked too dry. It needed light glistening off its oiliness." – Vince Gilligan (05:39)
  • Vesca describes eating four cans after lunch: "What was hard was eating so much of it." (05:07)
  • Crew reactions: boom operator nearly threw up, but the director ultimately dialed back the performance to leave room for Manusos' later arc.

• Set Details: Reality and Authenticity

  • The team discusses the construction of Manusos’ Paraguayan “storage office”—the inclusion of a traditional Colombian "Frog" game for cultural authenticity.
  • Discussion about Vesca's Colombian identity blending into the character's backstory, and efforts to honor Vesca’s accent while still setting the character in Paraguay.
  • Vesca’s panic at needing to adopt a rare Paraguayan accent is revealed:
    • "If you said Argentinian, Chilean, Mexican, I could have done something, but Paraguayan... I would have to quit." – Vesca (10:01)
  • The exterior shot in Albuquerque was cleverly redressed to mimic lush South American surroundings (10:27–11:53).

2. Directorial Challenges & On-Set Realities (12:03–17:40)

• The Cockroach Problem

  • Director Zetna Fuentes’ only admitted weakness: cockroaches during an all-night shoot in Albuquerque. Special platforms built to help her cope. (12:32–13:20)

• Vesca’s First Day – Adjusting to US Sets

  • Vesca’s apprehensions about working on a US set are contrasted by his appreciation of the professionalism and warmth of the Pluribus crew. Notably, US productions give actors far more time for their work than Colombian productions, which might cover "18–20 scenes a day" (15:51).

3. Special Guest Stars & Memorable Cameos (19:01–23:17)

• Albuquerque’s Real Mayor, Tim Keller
  The mayor's cameo as himself is discussed:

  • "We reached out and said, would you be up for this? And he showed up... doing work in between, taking phone calls, doing mayor stuff." – Vince Gilligan (19:53)
  • "He does look like an actor playing a mayor." – Allison Tatlock (20:23)

• Jeff Hiller Joins as Zosia
  The cast celebrates working with Jeff Hiller; they discuss his Emmy win, and laugh about his character's extremely short bike uniform.

  • Working in heat and unflattering costumes leads Hiller to quip:
    • "But Jeff does" [have vanity], under his breath, about his character's lack of vanity – recounted by Rhea Seehorn (22:05)
  • Costume designer Jennifer Bryan’s vision and Hiller’s humor are praised.

4. Unpacking Carol’s Truth Serum Sequence (23:22–29:41)

• Philosophy and Writing Process

  • Carol tries to force a friend to tell her uncomfortable truths, raising big questions about authenticity in art and validation.
  • "It's just such a brilliantly written scene, Ms. Tatlock." – Rhea Seehorn (24:24)
  • The writing team poured their own artistic insecurities into this quasi one-act play.

• On-Set Preparation

  • Tatlock and Seehorn detail how the scene was shot like a play, with full run-throughs.
  • Insights on memorization from Rhea Seehorn:
    • "We start macro, and we go micro... most of us have just, like, I'm memorizing the beats of a conversation." (27:12)

• Actor’s Craft

  • Rhea and Jeff Hiller privately rehearsed at her rental before shooting, which Hiller described as a rare luxury (29:07).

5. The Art of Playing “The Others” (29:41–31:01)

• Modulating Performances
  • Guest stars struggle to find just the right “smile” and demeanor for afflicted characters—how “real” vs. robotic to be.
  • "Funny you should ask. It's a very finely tuned modulation... you can't look high as a kite. You can't look like a robot." – Seehorn (29:47)

6. Carol Gets High: Crafting the Breakdown (31:14–37:16)

• Filming Carol’s Drug-Fueled Breakdown

  • Rhea improvised and linked disparate script cues into a seamless, embarrassingly real episode of self-recorded mayhem.
  • "It was actually painful for me [to cut scenes], including the scripted me singing Melissa Etheridge." – Alison Tatlock (31:35)
  • The scene was originally shot as if Carol’s phone cam were the only source, requiring long, continuous takes:
    • "If there was video of Zetna and me, I would have... slack jawed. I was mesmerized watching you move from one piece of the event to the next." – Tatlock (35:15)
  • Tone was carefully managed to balance comedy and real heartbreak, especially during Carol’s moments of grief for her wife.

• Watching It Back

  • Rhea’s depiction of Carol watching her own breakdown is described as deeply authentic, generating both empathy and cringe.

7. The Climactic "Convergence" Sequence (37:23–41:17)

• Rehearsal and Choreography
  • The convergence scene (others crowding around Carol chanting “Please, Carol”) required days of planning, a pre-rehearsed sound stage, and heat-mitigation strategies.
  • "The support of our movement expert, Nito... and teams figuring out how to get tears on people's faces." – Tatlock (38:26)
  • Carol’s sweat is memorialized humorously:
    • "I sweat like a boy who's been forced to go to camp to learn sports or something. I'm soaking. That's how I sweat." – Seehorn (40:04)

8. Real-Life Resuscitation Parallel (41:31–43:23)

• Easter Egg Cameos & Real Life Drama
  • Writer’s husband, David Wyatter, and real-life medic Rosa Estrada (who saved Bob Odenkirk's life on "Better Call Saul") both appear in the episode.
  • The emergence of AED machines on set and in the writers’ room is directly attributed to Rosa’s real-life intervention, though the episode’s story wasn’t consciously inspired by the event.
  • The cast reflects on filming resuscitation scenes after actually living through a real on-set cardiac event.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Fan Attention:
  “And it’s only gonna get worse.” – Rhea Seehorn (03:49)

• Recipe for Disgust:
  “Our brilliant props director, Mark Hansen, cooked up an even grosser version.” – Rhea Seehorn (05:33)

• Cultural Details:
  “I could not believe you had that [frog] game built… and you painted it with the flag of Columbia’s flag.” – Vesca (08:44)

• On Authenticity:
  “We wanted to...honor the fact that you are Colombian.” – Tatlock (09:25)

• On Cockroach Plague:
  “She really is not a fan...of the cockroach.” – Tatlock (12:36)

• On Memorization:
  “If you think about it, like, I’m memorizing a random list, eight pages of random words, then it would be impossible....I’m memorizing the beats of a conversation.” – Rhea Seehorn (27:12)

• On Acting as “The Others”:
  “It’s a finely tuned modulation...you can’t look high as a kite, you can’t look like a robot.” – Rhea Seehorn (29:47)

• Self-Empathy Gone Wrong:
  “For a second she's like, I'm glad someone else thinks the way I do. And it's like, it's you.” – Tatlock about Carol (37:08)

• On Sweating Through Scenes:
  “I sweat like a boy who's been forced to... go to camp to learn sports or something. I'm soaking. That's how I sweat.” – Seehorn (40:04)

Essential Timestamps

• 02:06 – Carlos Manuel Vesca joins, Minsusos introduction, name pronunciation fun
• 04:14 – The “dog food” scene: on-set gross-out stories
• 07:58 – Practical and set details of Manusos’s office
• 10:01 – Vesca on accent panic and authenticity
• 12:32 – Cockroach infestations and director’s perseverance
• 19:33 – Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller’s cameo
• 21:51 – Costuming Jeff Hiller (“they don’t have any vanity. But Jeff does.”)
• 23:22 – Unpacking the “truth serum” scene: writing, acting, philosophy
• 27:12 – Rhea on memorization tricks
• 29:47 – Crafting the affliction: “how big a smile”
• 31:14 – Shooting Carol’s breakdown: improvisation, tone, technique
• 37:23 – Staging “the Convergence”–heat, choreography, and movement coaching
• 41:31 – Cameos: real-life medic Rosa Estrada and connections to Odenkirk’s on-set emergency

Conclusion

This episode of the Pluribus podcast is a treasure trove of on-set anecdotes, technical insight, and philosophical musings on authenticity, art, and performance. Not only do listeners get unprecedented access to the creative process, they hear how much genuine camaraderie and care is involved in crafting the world of Pluribus. From gross-out props to emotional breakdowns, and from on-set crises to Emmy-winning guest stars, "Please Carol" is a testament to the collaborative spirit driving this acclaimed series.