Kristen Bell, Adam Brody and 'Nobody Wants This' Creators Break Down 'Relatable Conflict' Central to the Netflix Romcom

“Nobody Wants This” centers on the love story between a rabbi and an atheist who, despite their tense chemistry, struggle to come to terms with their conflicting worldviews and communities.

While Joanne (Kristen Bell), an outspoken sex podcaster, and Noah (Adam Brody), a rabbi fresh out of a long-term relationship, navigate the beginnings of what their friends and families see as a relationship that isn't will last, your mind is full of question marks about what a future together could look like – and that's exactly what attracted Bell to the Netflix romcom series.

“When you read a script and it raises a question that you think is a minefield of storylines, that’s a reason to do it,” Bell told TheWrap. “There's so much to discover, and it's not like there was a particular answer, because it depends on the two people whether it's worth it or not… but just the discovery of it, I thought, would be very interesting and become very interesting.” entertaining.”

For Brody, the predicament between Joanne and Noah is essentially a “real” and “relatable conflict” that he says is “relevant to people on both sides of this issue” and that can even transcend religion. “There are a lot of differences in lifestyle,” Brody told TheWrap. “The same thing could be political, and I think it would work just as well.”

The situation presented in the series can be more than attributed to the show's creator, Erin Foster (“Daddy Issues,” “Barely Famous”), whose experience converting to Judaism before marrying her husband Simon Tikhman (who is not is a rabbi) served as inspiration for “Nobody Wants This”.

While Foster joked that she took creative liberties when creating the show to avoid “getting divorced and upsetting people,” she revealed that many of the show's emotional arcs were “autobiographical” as she wanted that conflicts feel “real and lived” rather than manufactured.

“Being a modern woman today, being ambitious and career-oriented, but then meeting someone who is a little more old-fashioned and a little more conservative and whose parents are still married and have different expectations, I never really went through a divorce exposed – these things are all really real,” Foster said.

While Foster grew up joking that she would convert if she found a Jewish husband, she realized the seriousness of the situation when she attended conversion classes, saying, “When you actually go through the process and realize that you have your religion A person, and if you ever divorced, you would still have to be Jewish and raise your children that way. “It’s a big responsibility – not something to be taken lightly,” she said.

Since these different backgrounds are “enough to separate two people,” especially for a couple who meet in their thirties, Foster raises the stakes as Joanne considers becoming a rabbi's wife and her own responsibility to the community carry.

Bell was immediately cast for the role of Joanne after Netflix purchased Nobody Wants This and was the first to suggest Brody. “From the beginning she said, 'It should be Adam Brody,'” Foster said. “I still wanted the chance to audition people because I had the opportunity to look at every single cute Jewish actor, maybe discover someone, have someone really unexpected in that role, there was no one we felt like : 'Oh, it's him.' '“

When Foster brought in Brody, she recalled that he was the “obvious” choice as he brought the warmth and confidence needed to suit Joanne. “He has to be someone who…believes in what he believes in and also has to have a commanding presence,” Foster said. “I hate watching shows where you have a strong female character and the nice guy in real life would never be able to get along with a girl like her – he would never be able to be on equal terms with her .”

Foster admitted she lucked out with the on-screen chemistry, which fit perfectly with what Bell calls an “electric chemistry” between Joanne and Noah, which Brody said could be charged by their different perspectives. “They were both – especially he – very deeply rooted in a particular world, but even though their experiences may be broader, I think they are still of one type and with one type,” he said. “They are both very new perspectives and types of people towards each other.”

Their relationship immediately becomes a topic of conversation in Joanne and Noah's families. Noah's mother refers to her as a “shiksa” and her entry into his life – and the synagogue – sparks backlash from his sister-in-law Esther (Jackie Tohn). who remains close friends with his ex-girlfriend (Emily Arlook), who desperately wanted to realize her dream of becoming the wife of a chief rabbi.

“(It's) an examination of sort of basic family values ​​and/or what should be and what shouldn't be,” Bell said. “Is the world black and white, or can the world just be completely gray?”

Their relationship also seems unsustainable to Joanne's sister Morgan (Justine Lupe), who co-hosts a podcast that focuses primarily on sex and relationships, although Joanne's stories become a little less spicy when she starts dating Noah. Foster also broke away from her relationship with her sister Sara, who co-hosts a podcast and co-founded the clothing brand Favorite Daughter.

While Foster said her sister and her husband were “best friends” in real life, she wanted to explore how Joanne's evolution into a healthy, mature relationship might make Morgan feel like she was being left behind.

“If there is a person in a family or circle of friends who always chooses the wrong person or always makes mistakes or always sabotages themselves, and then that person chooses someone who is great for them, the people around them support that person sometimes it doesn’t,” Foster said. “It's hard when you turn left and make a different choice; It can be difficult for the people around you.”

With Noah's brother Sasha (Timothy Simons) seemingly the only one on board with their relationship, Brody noted that the backlash to Joanne and Noah's relationship may run deeper than just bigotry. “Deep down, they have their own personal reasons that have more to do with themselves than Noah and Joanne have to do with the way they envisioned their lives.”

“Nobody wants them to be together – Nobody wants that,” Bell said. “The real discovery in the entire ten episodes is: Do they really want it?

Nobody Wants This is now streaming on Netflix.

The post Kristen Bell, Adam Brody and 'Nobody Wants This' Creators Break Down 'Relatable Conflict' Central to the Netflix Romcom appeared first on TheWrap.