Current:Home > ContactDonald Glover says fans will be 'shocked' by 'Mr. & Mrs. Smith' TV series -Streamline Finance
Donald Glover says fans will be 'shocked' by 'Mr. & Mrs. Smith' TV series
View
Date:2025-04-15 11:19:58
Donald Glover knows he's no Brad Pitt, and in his new "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" series, he's not trying to be.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the actor and show's co-creator talks about the moody new show that is "going to be different for a lot of people."
The eight-episode series, to premiere early next year on Amazon Prime Video, stars Glover opposite "Pen15" star Maya Erskine. The "Atlanta" actor said he's hoping for strong reactions to the series.
"You can always go back and watch the old one, but this one gives you a different feeling. People are definitely going to be shocked," he said. "I just know how much people love the other one. So if everybody's like, 'Eh,' we didn't do a good job.
"I hope some people are like, 'This is better than the original,' and some people are like, 'This is far worse,'" he continued.
Co-created by Glover and "Atlanta" writer Francesca Sloane, the series follows Glover and Erskine as the titular spy couple, originally played by Pitt and Angelina Jolie in the 2005 film of the same name.
'Mr. & Mrs. Smith' show plot: Couple now strangers in arranged spy marriage
The plot in the reboot is completely different, and takes a deeper approach to the spy thriller.
In the film, the married couple realize they're both spies working for rival agencies and have been hired to kill each other. In the show, two lonely strangers sign up for a mysterious spy agency, unaware their new identities would be as a married couple.
The arranged marriage of sorts is tested while on high-stakes missions throughout the series.
"I had never seen the movie, which I know was sacrilege," Glover told the outlet, adding that he decided to check it out after a producer friend acquired the rights. "I watched it and honestly, I was like, 'I don't understand it.' I mean, I get why it's iconic because of the people starring in it — it's just two gorgeous people in this situation. But the story I didn't quite understand. I called my brother and he was like, 'This is just a great date movie. It's boys vs. girls. What else do you want?'"
Glover said he wanted a deeper approach to the show, about marriage and relationships.
"Why do people even get married anymore? Half of it ends in divorce — what's the purpose?" Glover said. "Let's make a show dealing with relationships, but from this point of view, centering more on really what a marriage is and trust and teamwork and loneliness and all that stuff. I just wanted it to be something that spoke to people right now because in a time of abundance, why do we feel lonely?"
'Mr. & Mrs. Smith' show makes iconic spy couple more relatable
Phoebe Waller-Bridge was originally set to play Mrs. Smith and serve as an executive producer before she exited the role for "creative differences."
With Erskine now in the role, she told the publication that she jumped at the chance to play a more relatable version of Jolie's character.
"I tend to play characters that feel like rejects of society, and my Jane felt like it was the reject version of Angelina Jolie," she said. "Angelina and Brad are untouchable in that you can't recreate that, and Donald and I are just so different so it felt exciting to play a couple that you might recognize as your friends or yourselves."
But Erskine emphasizes that the show is still very much a spy thriller.
"You get your cake and you get to eat it too, because you get the explosions, the chases, the fight scenes and the sex, but you also get to see the nuances of a relationship, with the fart jokes and what it's like to live with somebody and be annoyed by their mouth noises after being together for six months," she said.
Glover has apparently been watching "The Golden Bachelor," too, comparing the "Smith" reboot to the reality show.
"You watch 'The Golden Bachelor,' and it's such a different show than the regular ('Bachelor') — you actually care about these people, and because they're older, it feels like this may not happen again," he said. "Sorry, I watched 'The Golden Bachelor' last night so it's top of mind, but you hear what I'm saying. It's really about their relationship and can they trust each other? That's all spying is."
How to watch 'Mr. and Mrs. Smith' on Amazon Prime Video
All eight episodes of Mr. & Mrs. Smith debut on Feb. 2, 2024, on Amazon Prime Video.
veryGood! (53366)
Related
- Small twin
- 'Olivia' creator and stage designer Ian Falconer dies at 63
- Reneé Rapp wants to burn out by 30 — and it's all going perfectly to plan
- K-pop superstars BLACKPINK become the most streamed female band on Spotify
- Family of explorer who died in the Titan sub implosion seeks $50M-plus in wrongful death lawsuit
- The New Black Film Canon is your starting point for great Black filmmaking
- Oscar nominee Michelle Yeoh shines in 'Everything Everywhere All At Once'
- Shlomo Perel, a Holocaust survivor who inspired the film 'Europa Europa,' dies at 98
- Taylor Swift Cancels Austria Concerts After Confirmation of Planned Terrorist Attack
- Has 'Cheers' aged like fine wine? Or has it gone bitter?
Ranking
- Everything Simone Biles did at the Paris Olympics was amplified. She thrived in the spotlight
- Russian fighter jet damages US Reaper drone with flare over Syria: Officials
- Michelle Yeoh is the first Asian woman to win best actress Oscar
- Black History Month is over, but these movies are forever
- Southern California rocked by series of earthquakes: Is a bigger one brewing?
- Angela Bassett has played her real-life heroes — her role as royalty may win an Oscar
- Ballet dancers from across Ukraine bring 'Giselle' to the Kennedy Center
- 'Fleishman Is in Trouble' is a Trojan horse for women's stories, says Lizzy Caplan
Recommendation
Kylie Jenner Shows Off Sweet Notes From Nieces Dream Kardashian & Chicago West
In the 'Last Dance,' Magic Mike leaves his thong-and-dance routine behind
A mother on trial in 'Saint Omer'
How Black resistance has been depicted in films over the years
A New York Appellate Court Rejects a Broad Application of the State’s Green Amendment
The New Black Film Canon is your starting point for great Black filmmaking
2022 Books We Love: Nonfiction
Encore: The lasting legacy of Bob Ross