Violett Beane talks Cara in Paris on GOD FRIENDED ME
Violett Beane photographed by Mario Barberio
Season 1 of CBS’ hit series GOD FRIENDED ME, ended with a cliffhanger where Jessica Lu’s Joy arrived on the scene to tell Miles that she got a friend request from the God account to find him. Not only that, but Cara and Miles pretty much admitted that there was more there than just a friendship. And then, she hopped on a plane across the pond to help Simon with his book.
We caught up with Violett Beane to discuss the three episode arc set in Paris as Season 2 resumes and what comes next for Cara, Miles, and the whole crew, once she returns to the states.
Paris! What was it like to shoot there?
It was amazing. I’ve visited Paris just as a tourist before and I’ve gone to the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower and everything, every place that we shot at, but I wasn’t able to work there. So at the Louvre, you got there at 6:00 a.m. and we had just rented out the outside area, so no one else was there. It was just completely empty and it was our crew and us. That was pretty amazing because whenever you go to the Louvre, I mean it’s always packed. There’s always so many people. So that was kind of cool to be able to shut it down in Paris. And then just so far in the first episode to see those shots from Paris, I think it just adds some thematic elements to the show.
What can you talk about for what’s going on as we get back into the show this year and what we’re expecting in the next couple of episodes?
So far we sort of set up that Cara’s in Paris and she’s realizing that she’s not just there to write this book for Simon Hayes. She’s starting to realize that there’s probably a bigger reason that she’s there and we’ve met her friend from her past who realizes that she’s working with Simon Hayes who ruined her career. So in Episode 2 and Episode 3 we kind of take off from that thought and we get to dive in deeper into who Annie is and Annie actually helps Cara realize what she’s meant to do and why she’s meant to be there. You get to see a little bit more of that in the next episode and then especially in Episode 3.
I think it’s interesting that it kind of raises the question of how long has this God account been kind of pulling the strings that we maybe weren’t aware.
Exactly. I mean so far the message that Cara received on Facebook was five years ago. So as far as we know at this point, it seems like the God account has been around for at least that long. And if you think about it, I mean it’s contacted Joy which Miles is on this path with Joy to figure out why it’s contacted her but it kind of leaves room open for the chance that maybe it’s been contacting us in different ways prior to either the five years ago or contacting Miles or maybe it’s contacted other people. It sort of opens the door to this world of connections that we might be seeing.
Obviously, being separated from Miles across the ocean, what’s it like to be on the outside looking in for your character as he is doing this journey with Joy and Rakesh and seeing you’re not involved? What’s that like for Cara to not really be there every day to be dealing with that?
Yeah, I mean I think with Cara, she’s sort of realizing a little bit of what maybe her task is supposed to be. I mean she’s in Paris and she’s writing a novel about a man, but it’s not really the heartfelt stories that she enjoys writing and sort of why she got into journalism in the first place. But I think being her, continuing to do these good deeds that bring her so much joy, that is hard on her. And I think she feels a little bit on the outside in this next episode to come.
Violett Beane photographed by Mario Barberio
What is it about the show that you’ve heard or that you feel is a show that people are drawn to and really want to sit down and watch?
I feel like there’s a few things. I think the cast, we all get along really well and I think that chemistry reads on screen and I think when you have good chemistry, that’s when people are connected to your show because they feel like these characters are real people and that they’re following along their journey. So I think that’s a part of it. I also think that our show is incredibly inclusive and diverse and I think people enjoy seeing themselves represented on a screen. And because our show has such diverse characters both from what they look like and their backgrounds, I mean each character basically comes from a different religious background. I think that people enjoy seeing themselves on screen, seeing that you can hang out and be friends and have conversations about your differences as opposed to always arguing about them.
I like too that you mention the diversity and the differences because it doesn’t feel like it’s there for diversity’s sake. These are just people living their lives who are interacting like you would in the world. It doesn’t feel, for lack of a better term, like these are token diversity characters.
Exactly, exactly. I think that audiences are smarter than we give them credit for and they can feel and they can tell when you’re sort of giving them a token character, someone to like have this specific point of view. But I think our characters are always surprising the audience with what they are saying, with their point of view. I think having your lead character be an atheist who’s helping people under the name of the God account, I mean I think when you have a show that is set up like that, you have the opportunity to constantly surprise your audience.
What can you tease maybe for what we’ll see from Miles’ side of things or story this season as we dive in here? What else will we see in the US, you know, while you’re out for the first couple of episodes dealing with Simon and Annie and all of that?
Yeah, I mean at the end of the last episode he just got this message from the God account, Follow the lady, find your path. So for him, this is a huge mystery. This is sort of a mission, if you will, to figure out what he’s supposed to do in this world and maybe he was chosen by the God account. So he and Rakesh and Joy are helping friend suggestions back in New York and also trying to figure out what this message could possibly mean. I think when we picked up in Episode 2, Miles was sort of thinking, okay, maybe Joy is the lady, maybe I’m supposed to follow her and she’s going to lead me to the next thing. So he’s sort of just trying to figure out what this message could mean and ultimately what his path must be.
And we’ve obviously seen Cara and Miles kind of basically admit to each other, yeah, there’s more there. What do we get to see in Season Two? Is there more there?
There is absolutely a lot more to explore. In the first three episodes, there’s some development between the two of them and sort of realizing are they better together or are they better separate and there’s some pretty magical moments that happen in the beginning of the season and then some more is supposed to come which we’re filming now and we can’t talk too much about, but it’s exciting. It’s exciting and I think the audience will really feel for it.
Is there something that really surprised you maybe from Season One or starting Season Two, maybe differences between Season One or Season Two but is there something that surprised you, as Violett, about, hey, we’re doing this or we’re getting away with this as a show?
I feel like we’re sort of breaking a little bit from the mold that we set in Season One, which is always a little risky. I think in these next episodes to come, we have new characters. We have a transgender pastor that’s making an appearance in a few episodes and I’ve already like some family have reached out and then like, “What’s the deal with that?” I think it’s pretty amazing that we are able to showcase real people in real situations. I mean that storyline is based off of a real person here in New York and a lot of people who live in small cities or something like that, they’re like, “That’s not a thing. You can’t just make up stuff that doesn’t exist.” But the reality is that times are changing and religions are becoming more inclusive. I think it’s important for us and for our show to showcase that.
Social media obviously plays a big role in this show. I mean now we’re in a time where social media is so right in our hands and you can get that immediate reaction from fans. How has that bled into the show, or how does the social media aspect of life in general, what’s that like for you to interact with fans that way?
Yeah, I think it’s awesome in that regard. Like for the pilot, we all live tweeted and Instagram storied and all of that. And we were able to sort of connect with people right as things are happening and get their reaction. I think that’s part of why we all do it, right? You know, those people who say they watch this with their family or their kid is in the hospital and this is the only thing that they can watch that really makes their kid feel uplifted and happy and like everything’s going to be okay and that’s pretty interesting to be a part of something that can do that for someone.
Violett Beane photographed by Mario Barberio
I mean that has to be a good feeling.
Yeah. You feel connected, you know? Yeah, if you have a family, you know, you’re not going to always agree on everything. So seeing characters on a screen who talk about their differences and communicate rather than shut off from each other or families that are a part of TV shows, I think that makes it really enjoyable for people.
Just the last thing here talking, going into Season Two from Season One, did you have conversations with the writers or did you feel that you kind of have ownership of this character now where you can say, I think Cara would do this and I think Cara would do that? What was the conversation from what Season One was to Season Two? Was it very back and forth? Do you feel like buy-in on the character? What was that like, you know, kind of ownership of the character now?
What’s pretty amazing about our show and our producers is that they’ve always been really open about these characters. After every table read, Brian and Steven, the co-creators of the show, will call us or text us and ask us if we’re comfortable with everything and how we feel about it. They want to make sure that we know what the intentions are and if something doesn’t feel right, they want to know that. That open communication is something that I’ve never had on anything else that I’ve worked on. So that’s sort of been a through line since the beginning, and I feel very grateful to be able to be heard and understood that way.
It’s kind of amazing because I think it goes back too to the chemistry the actors have. If you have that chemistry with your writers too, they write better for you because they understand you.
Yeah, a hundred percent.