TV enthusiasts already know that Quinta Brunson’s “Abbott Elementary,” ABC’s mockumentary-style half-hour comedy, is best in class. But there’s more than meets the eye in the Emmy-winning sitcom as it delves deep into its setting within the Philadelphia public school system. In Season 2, “Abbott” has touched on topics ranging from the issue of charter schools to a city-specific mural art program (explored in Wednesday’s episode), and showrunners Justin Halpern and Patrick Schumacher preview what the series heads to next. There is much more to come in form. Its junior installment.
Executive producer Schumacher told TheWrap, “We’re going into Season 3 with some ideas of one aspect — which I won’t be spoiling the school system — that we want to explore a little bit more.” He added with a laugh, “I think we’re approaching it like ‘The Wire’ — different aspects of this ecosystem.”
With five more episodes coming in Season 2, the show’s co-developers teased one more remaining guest star and promised eager fans that the Janine-Gregory romantic arc will progress following the pair’s kiss at the PECSA convention. Read on for an edited conversation between TheWrap and EPs, including discussion of this week’s episode and how the joke featuring Ava’s secret bathroom may shape up.
TheWrap: You got it full-season order A little earlier Did things change for the writers room in terms of the arc of the season and how things developed narratively?
JH: We were fortunate to know that we were in a good position from the beginning, so I think I would be shocked if we didn’t get that backorder of episodes. We were able to build the season from the beginning. The way we do it is we build in a lot of pre-production so that as much of Quinta can be there before production starts, because once production starts, she’s shooting. Is. We have some intervals in different places where we can sit down and talk with him about, “Hey, what have you been thinking about these past nine days?” And we’ll talk about what we think and really have him in the room to be able to discuss the arcs of all the characters. So I guess it didn’t really change anything, which is good.
you have got season 3 renewalAnd as Season 2 airs its latter half, what can you say about Janine and Gregory’s will-they-won’t-they arc and the teachers’ evolving dynamic overall?
PS: We have six episodes left to air in Season 2 [now five, after “Mural Arts”]So clearly there’s going to be some fallout from what happened at the PECSA convention, so I think people will get some answers like they-they-don’t-they over the next handful of episodes. As of Season 3, we certainly had an opportunity, because we were also a little further into the end of the year, to start talking about big picture ideas before we wrapped up the writers’ room. obviously [we] I can’t go into any details there, but I can say that when we started Season 2, we were like, “Okay, one of the new things we’re going to do is have the Legendary Chartersmen. dealing with this idea of charter schools.” We’re going into Season 3 with a few ideas of one aspect — that I won’t screw up the school system that we want to explore a little bit more. I think we’ll call it “The Wire “are taking like – different aspects of this ecosystem.
JH: The will-they-won’t-they part of it is we look at it and Quinta looks at it like, “What are each person’s character arcs first?” These are all people in their 20s trying to figure out where they are at different places in their lives, both emotionally and financially. We focus on each individual character first and then we’re constantly looking at, “Okay, okay, what would actually happen if they were in this situation this season?” So we don’t look at it as, “When are we going to get these two together or not?” We look at it as, “Hey, let’s really focus on the characters and develop the characters,” so that when we make a decision, you as an audience believe it and feel like it’s real. Is. These 20 year olds are, like, that’s messy.
With the charter school element, can you talk about the research that involved Quinta drawing from her background as a participant in the Philadelphia public school system and her mother’s role as a kindergarten teacher?
PS: From the very beginning we felt it was really important to do research. We did a lot more research on this show than a half-hour comedy, but it was important to everyone to make sure we were being as authentic as possible. The show was picked up in Season 1, and we say, “Okay, let’s talk to as many people as we can from the public school system from all over the country.” We talked to teachers, principals. We talked to someone who was the chief operating officer of a school that directly led to the penultimate episode of Season 1 when Ava had to present to the school board for more money, which we learned was It was one thing; That immediately is a story we wanted to tell.
Because of the test pilot’s response, we had a lot of teachers watch the show, and they all felt really seen and it felt authentic to them. Early in the season, we’ll try to zoom in or meet with people who are in it, in the trenches, and that always leads to really great ideas. I hope we can continue that tradition. And as the popularity of the show grows, those volunteers start coming out of the woodwork, they want to be a part of the show, they want to engage with the writers.
Speaking of the popularity of the show, there are great guest stars – this season with Vince Staples and Leslie Odom Jr. Do people call up Quinta now and ask to be on the show, and how do you fulfill those requests?
JH: Yes. She probably gets requests that she doesn’t even tell us about. One of the many great things about Quinta is that she first thinks about what is best suited for the show. Too many times, we have turned down big celebrity pushes to appear on the show as it can take you out of the fun to see this huge superstar in your show. It’s like all of a sudden Jennifer Aniston was playing a character — she didn’t ask to be on the show — and you’re like, “What the f—? It’s an inner-city school in Philadelphia. We have another guest star this season.” star coming in which is fantastic, which I’m very excited about, but it was someone who was like Quinta, “This guy would be great to play this.” So we picked him, not because we like Were like, “Oh, let this celebrity be on the show.”
With these characters, Season 2 has really explored their personalities, especially when the teachers leave the school, from PECSA to field trips and hookah lounges. Are there any other kinds of settings you’d like to see them in, or is it more that the story comes first and the setting is built around it?
PS: It’s a little bit of both. Our finale of Season 2, I think some breadcrumbs – if you’ve been watching the show, you probably know where we’re going with this.
JH: At the end of the season, we love field trips.
PS: Quinta – Obviously a Philadelphian, born and raised. So when we do field trip episodes, there are places that she really wants to go to. There are places that are really meaningful for him to grow up that we’ll try to get to. We have a mural art program, which is a huge thing in Philly. Not just a regional landmark, but also a cultural touchstone. So sometimes they lead to stories and then sometimes the story leads to some interesting place that we haven’t seen before.
JH: Quinta loves Philly; She really loves the city, she is deeply attached to it. We like that. She adds uniqueness to whatever is on the show, be it what’s in the vending machines.
With the episode “Mural Arts”, there is a spotlight on Jacob and the challenges trying to engage students as a teacher, especially being hyper-aware of his privilege and being Type-A. What was behind the creation of this story?
JH: That came up because we were talking about how it’s really hard as a teacher and just a parent to respect the fact that kids live in the moment, but also know that you’ve got to guide them for the future. You have to prepare for them because you have so much more to experience than they do and you know where some of these roads lead. It just felt like Barbara had already learned how to cope, Melissa had already learned and Janine lives in the moment with her kids and her kids are a little younger, so it didn’t feel as prevalent. But it felt right for Jacob because this is a guy who is constantly thinking about where-am-I-am-in-time and where-am-I-at-this-time. Like, where do I fit in and where is this going? And so it felt like it was a really fun struggle for him. The character of Jacob is really fun to write because he always wants to do the right thing and he sometimes doesn’t see the forest through the trees.
At the end of this episode, there is an offhand mention of Ava’s secret bathroom. Is there a plan for where the ongoing joke is going? Will Mr. Johnson stumble upon this and tell everyone?
PS: I don’t think we have an endgame. I’m sure we will. I think Mr. Johnson probably knows about it. And again, we haven’t discussed this in the room, but in my head canon, Mr. Johnson knows all of the school’s secrets. He is a good boy. He knows not to get high on Ava. He knows where the butter is on his bread, so he’s not going to cross Ava.
JH: Mr. Johnson knows it all. I remember when we first started the show, Quinta told us this story about how I think he said the janitor at one of his schools was a Golden Gloves boxing champion and no one knew. was talking about [how] No one knows anything about the watchman. the janitor is mysteriously here [and] Knows everything because they are clearing everything.
PS: He has probably been in school for the longest time. His tenure is longer than Barbara’s.
JH: The writing staff has really run with that.
The latest episode of “Abbott Elementary” Season 2, “Mural Arts,” will be available for streaming on Hulu starting Thursday.
