There were two things I knew about Pluribus (stylised as PLUR1BUS) before watching the previews. One: It was created/written/directed/produced by Vince Gilligan of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul success. Two: It stars Rhea Seahorn, Emmy-nominated actress of the latter franchise. Also, that the show takes place in a completely separate universe, so make that three things.
These facts were enough for me to gladly enter blind. That's right, sans trailer. I wanted to be surprised. Blown away. After relishing the first few episodes, I'm happy to say that no self-tampering of expectations is needed for this one.
A signature Gilligan cocktail of beautiful cinematography, unique angles, wonderful pacing, and of course, stellar script and acting. Pluribus holds the suspense of a thriller, carries the intrigue of a mystery, and evokes the boundless imagination of science fiction. If you won't take my word for it, take Apple TV's. The series has already been picked up for a second season.
The plot presents a thought-provoking dilemma. It is indeed about happiness, but with a wry twist. See, happiness is what most people hope to get out of life. But what if it comes in an unfamiliar form? Something that resembles an apocalypse, perhaps.
Without spoiling too much, Carol Sturka (Rhea Seehorn) is confronted with this very question practically overnight. And unfortunately for her, this new reality is very much a utopia to seemingly everyone but her. All Carol wants is just for everything to return to the way it used to be—even if it wasn't necessarily better.
The idea began as Gilligan's daydream about a character who got everything they wanted; except that contentment is pretty much the antithesis of good drama. Or the relatability of real life, for that matter.
Deriving from the motto of the United States E pluribus unum (Latin: Out of many, one), the title is a foreshadowing in itself. Before we read too much into the many implications the series may or may not explore though, probably safer to skip the speculation and hear straight from the horse's mouth.
ESQ: Was this written with Rhea (Seahorn) in mind?
Vince Gilligan: Very much so. When I created what has now become known as Pluribus, it didn't have a title yet. But I enjoyed working with her so much on Better Call Saul that I told her as it was wrapping up, "Please don't take any jobs, or if you're about to take a job, please tell me. If they say we need a decision by Monday, tell me on Friday afternoon and let me make a counter offer about the show I want you to do." I knew she'd be in very big demand after Better Call Saul, because she's wonderful. So I went out of my way to create this show for her because I wanted her to keep working with her.
ESQ: Since you've worked with her extensively before, was there anything she did during the course of this filming that surprised you?
VG: I had big worries every time I create a new show, and I had bigger worries with Pluribus because it's the first time in 20 years I've done a new project that didn't have anything to do with Breaking Bad. So I was nervous about how people would perceive it, how people would enjoy it or not, but I didn't have any concerns about Rhea. I knew she was worth betting on as a star. Even then, she surprised me.
Sometimes when I couldn't be on set, I'd be watching a director's cut of an episode that I didn't direct. I would be watching a scene I hadn't been present for, see Rhea's work as a viewer and say, "My God, this scene is even better than I thought it would be." I also had that feeling, thankfully, with work that was done by Karolina [Wydra], Carlos-Manuel [Vesga], and all these other actors that made me pleasantly surprised in the best possible way over and over again as the series progressed.
ESQ: Not too overgeneralise, but it is a show about an apocalypse. Were there any clichés you were consciously trying to avoid, or did you just want to lean right into it?
VG: That's a great question. We were trying to embrace the clichés! We were trying to take those tropes, if you will, of post-apocalyptic, science-fiction and horror movies in general. Have you watch it thinking, "Okay, I've seen this scene before." Then turn it on its head and make the audience realise that this is not the scene they thought they were gonna watch.
That was fun. We kind of jumped on that with both feet in that we wanted the first episode to feel like Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Like all these other great films, TV shows and books. I am Legend by Richard Matheson was a big one. These were touchstones for me when writing the first episode, and they remained that for my writers as we worked together.
ESQ: The theme seems very layered, like how [spoilers redacted]. Was there a particular message that you wanted to convey with Pluribus?
VG: I've been trying hard not to think in terms of message. There's nothing wrong with having a message you want to convey as a writer, but I feel like my first job is to be entertaining. To come up with interesting characters and tell interesting stories. Make up interesting plots that keep the audience watching and wanting to tune in every week. That is a hard enough job and I hope that there is a good, coherent message to the series.
I kind of want viewers to tell me what they think the show's about. I've had a lot of great questions asked of me when talking to people, and I've learned things about this show that I didn't know before. To me, that's a pleasure. Sometimes I feel like if you set out as a writer to say, "Here's a message I want to convey"... There's an old saying, "If you want to send a message, call Western Union." I think there's something to that. I think it's good to let other people figure out the message.
ESQ: The comedic intent was evident. Was that at the back of mind of how funny you wanted the show to be?
VG: I love humour. I love making people laugh. And I've got a great secret weapon with Rhea. In fact, all of these actors I've mentioned have wonderful comic timing. I love being able to put humour into the darkest of stories. And this show is very elastic in that respect. The first episode is pretty serious, but even it has moments of humour. Then as you see as episodes progress, the show becomes more openly funny.
I wouldn't say the show's a comedy, but it's a drama with a lot of humour in it. That is very much intentional because I think life is just like the two theatrical masks, going back to ancient Greek times. I think that's what life is about. You got to have both; you can't just have one. You can't have darkness without light, you can't have drama without comedy. So that's something we enjoyed doing.
ESQ: I personally really enjoyed the show, but because we are our own toughest critics; I want to know how satisfied you are with this particular project on the scale of one to 10, 10 being the most satisfied.
VG: Oh, that's a tough one. I want to say 10 and it sounds like I'm being too easy on myself, but I tell you what. Rhea Seehorn easily puts me already to eight because getting to work with her is a real dream for me. She is so good, and she does such a wonderful job as her character. It makes me very happy to get to work with her, and even happier that the world has the opportunity to see her as the star of her own show. She's been doing wonderful work for a lot of years, even before Peter Gould and I met her and put her in Better Call Saul. I think it's long overdue for her to be the star of her own story.
What gets me the rest of the way to 10 is that I'm very proud of the work the other actors are doing. My crew, directors, producers, and the city of Albuquerque where we shoot; everybody's been wonderful. The enthusiasm we've felt for this project, both in front of and behind the lens makes me so happy. I'm judging it partly on the happiness and that's a funny thing to talk about, but it's a show about happiness. The people who work to make the show with me feel like family, and so that makes me very satisfied.
Pluribus is now streaming on Apple TV
