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None of them have fathers or high-school diplomas, but they all have goals.
(Field was on location in Budapest filmingTNTsThe Angel of Darkness.)
Florida is often the laughingstock of the country.
Weve gotFlorida Man,hanging chads,drugged-out cannibals, and gators.
You address these types of things on the show, but youre never mean.
How do you go about balancing all of that for a comedy?
And that got me through.
We have to be making fun of the right things.
There all these little details, like the dice on the rearview mirror or the furry cell-phone cover.
And the Florida Man funeral.
Killed by an alligator, of course.
Guggenheim:While hiding from the police.
Chinn:That was our little wink.
We dont want to make every episode about,Oh, eye roll, its Florida Man.
But we cant do a show about Florida without acknowledging …
Guggenheim:Thats how your friend could die!
Laci and Patty, did you learn anything new about Florida working on this show?
Like, Did you really wear this many swimsuits all the time everywhere that you went?
And she was like, Yeah, we did!
Guggenheim:Because its hot!
And I was like, Oh, is this not how everyone dresses anywhere?
If you cant see me from a mile away, thats not how you want it.
How did you strike the right tone so that its funny without mocking?
So were really concerned with them being positive.
But I think that weve also reached this phase where we can show people who are flawed.
Its not like Jaylas a bad person.
Shes a fun girl.
She just lacks information.
She dont know all the things yet.
Im laughing with her, and I want to ensure that no one is ever laughingather.
Do you know anyone like her?
Is there anyone youre drawing from for your performance?
Erica is the character that pulls at my heartstrings the most.
Shes hilarious with her nudity and her thievery, but her life story is tough.
Guggenheim:She doesnt know shes sad.
When her friends are like, Youre not like that.
you’ve got the option to be different, you get to see her learning.
And I think thats very relatable for a lot of people.
Chinn:We want to build empathy for these parts of the country where people are really struggling.
People dont struggle because theyre dicks or theyre lazy; people struggle because they come from true hardship.
And the point of that whole episode was, its okay to take help from the government.
It doesnt make you a monster.
You were raised a monster, but you dont have to be a monster.
you could step out of that.
They face hard times, but you dont portray them as miserable.
Guggenheim:Somehow, theyre at a party every day.
Kaitlin loves her life.
Chinn:Genuinely loves her life.
And has good reason to.
Part of the thing that were exploring thematically is:Is capitalism the answer?
Is being in traffic everyday to go work for someone you hate the answer?
Katilin is the voice for that.
Mosley:Kaitlins voice is necessary because life is a lottery.
So does that mean my life is worth less than someone who has those opportunities?
Does that mean that I need to spend it engulfed in sadness?
Kaitlins fun because I love her duality.
Yes, she is empowering.
What about your perception of Florida going in, Patty?
Sarasota is a beautiful and sleepy retirement community.
Did the show open your eyes to other sides of the Sunshine State?
Guggenheim: Yes, but these are people similar to where I grew up in Indianapolis.
I felt such a connection to this were going to party all the time vibe.
Were going to work a billion jobs just so we can buy blunts.
I knew these kinds of characters, but from the Midwest.
Or, Im from Texas and I know these girls.
That, to us, is everything we want.
Because its not just Florida.
Its women without money doing the best they can.
What thing that is said about Florida bothers you the most?
Chinn:[Looking at Mosley] Ive heard you talk about how Floridas just America.
Florida, really, is just a reflection of the entire country and what we are.
The good, the bad, the ugly, everything.
Chinn:Every state has these headlines, its just that Florida gets the most clicks.
Guys on meth run into Walmarts in other places.
I, too, am protective of my home state.
Guggenheim:And hes naked!
If you add extreme heat, maybe everyones just a little more on edge.
But its not that different.
To your point, there are more alligators involved.
Or the guy was on drugs eating people.
That guy exists too.
Chinn:He was also really hot, so that pushed him over the edge.
Guggenheim:Yeah, thats why the headlines include naked.
Like Eating Pancakes in the Intersection, Naked.
Chinn: They should have to include the temperature, and then we all go, Oh, okay.
It was 120 degrees, 90 percent humidity.
What are the ways your show depicts Florida that you appreciate?
Guggenheim:Bikini tops everywhere.
Bikini tops as bras.
Mosley:I love that our living room is outside.
I found that out as a surprise.
I was a buffet every day.
And then it was like, Our living room is outside.
Chinn:Theres a TV out there.
Everything you could need.
Mosley:And a wading pool that Erica gets in to watch television.
Which, now that I think about it, theres a lot of wires down there.
We would sit out there and just smoke, and that was our life.
How autobiographical is this story, Laura?
Not a ton of money.
My stepdad is like the guy on the show.
Its all very accurate and personal.
There are some episodes where Im like, Oh my God.
Im seeing my same experience play out.
And you had a group of friends like these women?
Chinn:The best group of friends.
We all raised each other.
We were figuring stuff out and deeply loved each other like family.
Were they all missing father figures, too?
Chinn:Every single one.
None of us had dads.
Guggenheim:That aunt on the raft in the living room.
Chinn:It was very, very dark.
Guggenheim:But its super-real.
I know thats in Indiana, too.
Ive been to houses where theres no wall over here.
Chinn: Those things are real, like people having foster kids and collecting money.
All those things happen, so we just wanted to talk about them without pointing a finger.
Theyre all people, so we venture to do it as lovingly as possible.
Do you have other Floridians in the writers room with you?
I bring in my friends so that talk with us.
And we went to Florida and talked to a bunch of people.
When we did the episode about race, Laci came in and consulted on that episode.
We know were talking about sensitive stuff and we dont want to offend anyone.
I was like,Theres something here.
Ive never heard of a room where writers needed to hear about Florida.
You hear her story and you go,Oh, of course youre doing that.
Thats your way out.
Youre doing the best thing for yourself.
Its about giving empathy to all these things that are so easily dismissed as bad or wrong.
