You don’t expect it, and you won’t be able to help it, but you’re going to fall in love with Barry. The socially awkward ex-Marine turned hitman is having a midlife crisis of sorts in HBO’s endearingly dark comedy Barry (Sundays beginning March 25).
You see, Barry’s really good at killing people. He’s actually legendary in the unusual criminal underworld he works in, but he’s a lonely guy. Things start to look up for Barry when he accidentally stumbles into an acting class where he finds acceptance from a close-knit, albeit eccentric, L.A. theater group. And from there the fun begins.
SNL fave Bill Hader is the brainchild behind Barry — he cowrites, directs and stars in the titular role. Henry Winkler stars as Barry’s over-the-top “masterclass” acting coach Gene Cousineau and is an absolute treat.
“I spent four years in college — my major was drama and my minor was psychology. I spent three years in graduate school, got a master’s degree in drama. I have seen all of these teachers, and I put them all together and out comes Gene,” Winkler says of his oh-so-memorable character.
“If you can pay in cash — IN FULL — on the day of the class, you are so welcome,” Winkler laughs reciting one of the lines his character tells his students. While Gene spouts “acting is truth” and then drops bizarre nuggets about himself — he was barred from Patrick Swayze’s funeral — it appears there’s little truth to him.
The Better Late Than Never star and former Fonz is downright giddy about playing Gene and working with Hader, and he should be — the two are brilliantly paired. Winkler actually auditioned for the role and said he perfected his lines with his son Max Winkler, who is a director.
“I auditioned to get the part,” Winkler says. “I walked in and the casting director, Sherry Thomas, was my acting partner. I took her out of the chair and brought her up to finish the scene. I’m making Bill laugh. I’m freaking out that Bill Hader, who I watch on television … who’s Stefon. This man, for years. I’m making him laugh. I leave the audition, and there’s a woman walking up and down the hallway doing her lines, and another woman sitting on the stairway, going down, contained. It’s Sarah [Goldberg]. And I just said, ‘I wish you all the luck.’ And here we are in the show together.”
Adding to the Hader and Winkler perfect pairing are Goldberg as an acting student Barry befriends and D’Arcy Carden (Janet from The Good Place) as Gene’s assistant. Other series standouts include Stephen Root, Paula Newsome and a brutally hilarious Anthony Carrigan.
Barry airs on HBO on Sundays at 10:30/9:30c beginning March 25
