This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
*In Apple TV+’s new psychological thriller “Your Friends & Neighbors,” the glossy veneer of suburban luxury masks a world of secrets, betrayal, and double lives. At the center of the chaos is Melanie Cooper, played by Amanda Peet, a woman navigating the emotional wreckage of a fractured marriage with Jon Hamm’s disgraced hedge fund manager, Andrew “Coop” Cooper.
For Peet, Melanie isn’t just another jilted ex. She’s layered, conflicted, and fully immersed in the messy in-between of heartbreak and desire.
“When Jonathan Tropper, the writer, first came to me, he said, you know, the most important thing about Mel is that she still carries a torch for Coop,” Peet shares. “So I tried to keep that in mind.”
But Melanie’s story doesn’t follow the expected path.
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“I also really like and appreciate the depiction of a woman who’s a divorcee, who’s in middle age and who isn’t just like sitting on the couch… downing white wine and knitting alone,” she says. “I like the fact that she isn’t in a depression and is having sex with this beautiful boyfriend and acting out some of this like middle-aged suburban ennui. Because I feel like that idea of the sad wife who was cheated on is kind of done.”
Set in the seemingly perfect Westmont Village, “Your Friends & Neighbors” unravels its characters’ carefully curated lives as the truth about their relationships and themselves emerges. Peet says she was drawn to the show’s central question: How well do we really know the people closest to us?
“What if I don’t really know you? You’ve been lying next to me for 15 years. We share a home… but do I really know you?” she reflects. “What if you’re living a double life? What if you’re so amazing at being fake… I love that idea because I think it’s so suspenseful, and it makes you uncomfortable. It’s uncomfortable to watch.”
Without giving too much away, Peet promises the story goes to unexpected places.
“Yes, you will [be surprised],” she teases. “It’s so fun to see Jon Hamm–this high-powered finance bro who has everything, and it’s fun to watch him slowly get taken down and then get himself into quite a pickle.”
“Your Friends & Neighbors” premiered April 11 on Apple TV+ with the first two episodes, followed by weekly installments through May 30. With a cast that includes Olivia Munn, Hoon Lee, Lena Hall, and more, and a premise built on deception and desire, the series invites viewers to question the masks we wear, even with the ones we love.
Watch our interview with Amanda Peet via the clip below.
READ MORE FROM EURWEB.COM: Jon Hamm’s ‘Your Friends & Neighbors’ Delivers Murder, Deception, and Intrigue on Apple TV+ | EUR Video Exclusive
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