A Funny Interview with Scrubs creator, Bill Lawrence
You gotta love my good friend, Bill Lawrence; he never censors himself. This was in TV Guide:
Scrubs Boss Blasts NBC, Previews "Serious" Changes
One of the many reasons I love Bill Lawrence is that the dude doesn't mince words. At a time when sound-bites have become as carefully crafted as a Martha Stewart petit four, Bill continues to tell it like it is. And on the heels of the official confirmation that Scrubs is headed to ABC for an 18-episode final season, he has a lot to tell. About the show's network-hop. About the beef he has with the suits at NBC. And about the somewhat radical changes in store for J.D. and Co.
Why'd it take so long to announce this thing? Bill Lawrence: As I understand it, it was legally very important not to say anything officially until after the show had finished its run on NBC.
What led to the break-up with NBC? Lawrence: When the strike ended, we told NBC that, even though we had another seven episodes mapped out, we could do it in three, and they just didn't have any interest. Total harsh buzz of not giving a s--t about a show that had been on the network for seven years and made them millions of dollars. And I'd be more bitter, except that it worked out good for us.
They didn't want to do any kind of wrap-up? Lawrence: Not only did they not want to do any kind of wrap-up, but they took an episode that was supposed to air in the middle of the season — the fairytale episode — and marketed it as a series finale. Which was bulls--t. It was never supposed to be a series finale, much less a season finale, and I think it ended up getting judged kind of harshly because of it. If it was just a regular episode that people had tuned into I think they would've thought it was cool and funny.
I was under the impression NBC was willing to give you one episode to finish things off. No? Lawrence: Well, here's the thing. When the strike ended, NBC said, "You can shoot an hour-long finale, but we'll only pay for half of it." They wanted [ABC Studios] to suck up all the expenses, and ABC said that was unacceptable. And it felt especially harsh because Scrubs was pulling in better [ratings] than 30 Rock and My Name is Earl — even though I love those two shows — and they were encouraged to do as many f--king episodes as they can after the strike. And after seven years, I ask for three episodes to wrap up the series and they say, "Tough s--t."
How do you go from three episodes on NBC to 18 on ABC? Lawrence: It was weird, man. I was thinking we'd put these last six episodes on DVD, just so we can wrap the show up and be proud of it, but the head of ABC Studios, Mark Pedowitz, said, "Bill, if you can make the show a little cheaper, I can probably get us a full season on ABC." I didn't answer right away. The first thing I did was call the cast and the writers together and I said, "Look, if we're going to do this, we have to get back to something we creatively can all be excited about." Because, personally, I felt like this past season we were less than inspired comedically. So I said to them, "This means you guys working harder. It means having emotional stakes and losing all the goofy, broad stuff that I think is easy to write… " And everyone said they were on board for one more season.
Will the show still be a comedy? Lawrence: It's still a comedy, but when we first did the show, it was a drama with elements of comedy and lots of stupid sound effects. But some of the strongest episodes in the second and third year had character comedy. You can still do things like kill Brendan Fraser and have the lady that loved musical theater die and then sing a song at the end. This became a very Simpsons-esque show with incredibly broad, unrealistic moments and fantasies that were both in reality and not in reality. When you've been writing this show for seven years, it's so easy to get into these patterns of writing the same jokes over and over: J.D. loves Turk, J.D. wants Dr. Cox's approval, Elliot's whiny and neurotic. But this year the stuff is really f--king good. I think our old stand-by fans are really going to dig these shows.
Is Ken Jenkins (Kelso) still a series regular? Lawrence: He's still a series regular. The core of his participation this year is with Dr. Cox, who becomes Chief of Medicine. Now that Dr. Kelso is no longer a hospital bureaucrat, he is actually a decent human being and is Dr. Cox's confidant because Cox can't really talk to anyone else about how much that job sucks.
I heard you were looking to cast a new Chief. Lawrence: That's just a piece of stunt casting that we're going to do for three episodes.
Talk to me about these budget cuts that ABC requested. Are we going to notice anything missing? Lawrence: No. We have a smaller writing staff and we're filming the show in four-and-a-half days instead of five. And, you'll never notice it because we have so many actors on the show, but every cast member is taking two episodes off.
Even Zach? Lawrence: Even Zach. Remember, I've done one or two episodes every year where J.D. isn't in the show except for one line, and some other character has the voiceover. It wasn't all that noticeable. It just looks like a cool creative choice.
Dear Friends, I am sorry it has taken me so long to write, but I feel kindo silly posting without anything too interesting to say. I've also been stalling to talk about some big Scrubs news, however I've just been informed that I'm not allowed to talk about anything related to Scrubs and it's current fate. What I can tell you is that we are currently shooting 18 episodes for the 8th season. I am not allowed to discuss where one might watch them. (More news to come.)
But I can tell you that the coolest episode we've ever done is going to air on May 8th at 8:30(E/P). I directed it and it's a GIANT homage to "The Princess Bride". Dr. Cox has to make up a fairy tale for his son and he does so using everything that happened in the hospital that day. It's by far the most epic (and expensive) episode we've ever done. (Monsters, potions, evil wizards, giants, hunchbacks, gnomes – like "World of Warcraft", but Scrubs…) I'll be posting an exclusive clip on this site in a few days.
What I really want to talk about is the next music video I'm directing and I need your help. I came up with this idea to make a music video by cutting together clips of people from all over the world singing the song and shooting the video themselves as though it were their own song. I've been talking about doing something collaborative with all of you since I first started writing on here. Well I finally figured out how. I am a giant fan of the artist, Jay Clifford. (Formally of the band "Jump Little Children".) Jay has a new album coming out and you and I are gonna make the video together. I set up a website that explains everything: you can download the song and lyrics there, upload your own video and then I'm gonna edit the best submissions together into one preposterously cool video made by hundreds (or maybe even thousands) of people. I made a video that explains everything and it's posted on the site. So here it is:
Please go check it out; I think it could be really unique and cool and I'd like everyone who reads this to be a part of it. There's lots more to come; I promise not to stay away so long again. And I'll keep you posted on how the submissions are coming in.
Today was the most beautiful day ever in Los Angeles, I hope wherever you are on Earth this finds you smiling.
Peace and love, zb
P.S. Some of you have mentioned several bands that have done similar things. Trust me, I am quite aware of those videos. I think what will make this video uniquely unique is that there is no central theme to it. Every individual submission will be an entire video unto itself and from there I will assemble the final product. (Or it will be horrible- who knows. But let's try. It sounds fun...)
Sorry I have been gone for so long. There has been so much going on and I can procrastinate better than anyone in the world. We could probably hold a procrastination contest and I'd win, but we'd never actually get around to planning it.
We are currently shooting episode 6 of the final season of Scrubs. I directed episode 5, and I'll be directing 3 more this season. Bill Lawrence (the show's creator) is directing 4 himself, so between the 2 of us, we're directing almost half the whole season. I think you will like this last year; there are a bunch of surprises. Look for the return of almost everyone who's had a small part on the show. Including my favorite: Hooch. (Who is actually crazy…)
I think it will be really sad when the show is over, but it will probably be time for us all to move on and start the next chapter of our lives. The show has been the most fun job I can ever imagine having; going to work everyday and acting like a nerdy goofball with all your friends is a pretty ideal gig for me. (Let's just say it comes naturally...) Plus now we have an arcade with classic games like "Paperboy" and "SpyHunter" just in case the job wasn't sweet enough.
I posted a youtube video on my page of an episode from Germany. It's pretty funny to watch. I think the same guy does the voice for me and Turk. Scrubs is VERY popular in Germany. Us and Hasselhoff; who'd have guessed it. It's kind of funny, but as well as the show is doing in syndication in this country, it seems to have really caught on internationally. I'm told we are popular in Israel as well; which makes my parents very happy.
Many of you have been leaving many kind words about "The Last Kiss" since it has been playing non-stop on HBO. I just wanted to say that that means a lot to me, because it was a movie I really believed in and I'm glad it's getting a second life on cable. It's not an easy movie for a lot of people to see, but I think it's really truthful and honest. And I like that in movies. So thank you.
Movies: I loved "310 to Yuma". I'm not a giant western fan, but I thought the acting and directing in this movie was pretty flawless. I strongly recommend it. I also saw the documentary "King of Kong" which is incredibly well done. It has one of the best cinematic villains (narrative or documentary) that I've seen in a long time.
Singers that are super cool and no one knows about them and who's music you should buy now so you can brag to your friends that you found them first:
Jay Clifford William Fitzsimmons Ingrid Michaelson
All 3 are pretty much all I listen to in my car right now. Also Cary Brothers (one person, not 2 brothers) is touring right now. Check out his myspace for dates; he is amazing.
That's all for now, Thanks for all your kind words, Be kind, rewind, Be nice, Let it mellow (only if yellow), Don't cut lines, Don't do lines, Peace and love, zb
p.s. I stopped reading all of these comments because some people have lost their minds. I do not agree with everything Michael Moore says, but I do think the U.S. health care system needs some serious revamping. I firmly believe that every citizen should have access to the best medical care this amazing country can offer; regardless of their wealth or social status. Love him or hate him, Michael Moore has opened the floor for debate. Let the debate begin. But if you're going to be angry and scathing and infantile; please go elsewhere.
Yes, I am the voice of Wendy's. I'm actually dressed as Wendy as I type this.
I am not leaving Scrubs! (People are still asking me this all the time.) We begin shooting the final 18 episodes this August. The finality of this season has nothing to do with me. The folks at NBC have decided this is our last one.
"Knocked Up" = hilarious. The scene with the bouncer (the dude from the Office) is one of the funniest pieces of dialogue I've ever heard.
"The Sarah Silverman Show" = hilarious. I've been watching them all on itunes. She is one of a kind. (And so cute!)
If you are in NYC, go see the new production of "Romeo and Juliet" in Central Park. The performances are really good and the set is AMAZING! Unfortunately, the production I saw got rained out just as Juliet drank the potion, but I think I can guess how it ends: she wakes up just as Romeo arrives at the tomb and they live happily ever after. Man I love romantic comedies! (The actor who plays Juliet's father is particularly stunning. He has a relatively small role, and the audience applauded him at the end of his big scene.)
Roscoe is chewing on a "bully stick" which is a treat you buy in a pet shop. Someone recently told me that it is actually a Bull's penis. If that is true, then man my dog loves bull penis!
I'm not sure when or why the tabloid angle on me was decided that I am a cad. I would have much rather it had been that I am secretly a dentist or that I love soup. I am in fact, merely doing what every other single 32 year old man in NYC is doing this summer. I am dating. If you must read that stuff, please don't digest it as fact. It is probably one of the only real shitty things one has to get used to when living in the public eye, but I suppose one of the benefits of this blog is that you can hear it directly from me. I haven't had a vacation in 6 years and so I decided to take June and July off. I am having the best summer of my life! I am so happy here! I'm hanging out with my New York friends, my Jersey boys, my family and loving every single second of it. And yes; I am dating. When we shoot Scrubs I spend every waking hour of my life in an abandoned and haunted hospital. All I can date there are ghosts and they tend to be horrible snugglers. So anyway, blah, blah, blah. Don't believe the hype.
I love it here. I love NYC. I love the people, the arts, I love meeting strangers on the street and talking about the most random things in the world, I love parades where people dress up as mermaids and I really love peach/pomegranate iced tea. I see quite clearly that the east coast is a slightly better fit for me.
That is all for now. I am going to buy a bike.
Peace and love. And as always, thank you for all the many kind things you write to me. You are the best fans a fellow could ever ask for.
Awesome things: 1) Yes. Scrubs got picked up for Season 7. It was a close call there for a second. One day when I write my tell all autobiography I'll tell you which people in the TV business are awesome and who are particularly assy. Anyway, the awesome people won this round and the assy people lost and Scrubs will be on NBC for it's final season. I am very happy about this. It has been such a major part of my life and the thought of not finishing it all properly our own way; on our own terms was lame. So I am very happy about that.
2) I AM HOSTING THE SEASON FINALE OF SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE ON SATURDAY! This has been a dream of mine every since I was a little kid. I used to stay up late and watch it under my covers on a tiny, portable black and white TV. I've seen almost every episode there is. I love this season's cast; needless to say, I am SO happy and excited.
3) New York City is perfect. I really like it here. I think I may have to move here when Scrubs is through. It just fits me a smidgen better than LA. I've been to art galleries and plays and tiny hidden restaurants. I went to look at an apartment to rent and when the door opened I was greeted by a monkey and a pig. (only in nyc) I'm currently staying in the room SNL puts you up in, with the most breathtaking view of Central Park. But after I will move back downtown where I feel like I belong. Maybe it's the Jersey boy in me, but I fit here. Definitely staying the summer.
4) For those of you that went to see the EX, thank you. It didn't do as well as any of us hoped, and I'm not quite sure why. Obviously the reviews weren't great and it was only on 1000 screens (that's half the number of the other new movies.) Many of you have written me saying you couldn't find it near you. And there were lots of Huge movies out. But I have to be honest, I didn't think we'd get beaten by Delta Farce! That stings. The Ex is by no means a perfect movie, but I think it's a pretty funny one if you like silly, goofy, physical comedy. I do. But whatever, if you can find it, please check it out. I promise you will laugh.
Assy Things:
1) Nothing. I can't complain. It's a beautiful day in Manhattan and room service just delivered me an overpriced cheesesteak!
I hope you are all well. Thank you so much for your kind words and support.
peace and love, zb
p.s. The Cottonelle Puppy and Chicken Little just got a new cousin. So keep your ears open for me...
Is it bad that I like to bop my head to Avril Lavigne's song "Gilfriend"? I think it might be really embarrassing, so I'm just telling you guys. I like her; she's cool.
What's up?
So yes, I don't know why they made me so tan on the poster for "The Ex". When I first saw it I thought it might be the South American poster, since we all looked a smidgen Latin. Or… as Latin as I'm ever gonna look. I kind of look like that kid who played Ben Stiller's supposed Hispanic son in "Meet the Fockers". Anyway, I'm just siked that the movie's coming out because it's pretty darn funny and if you're a fan of the Scrubs humor, you will laugh your arse off. Click HERE to check out the official website.
Thank you all so much for the nice things you said about my Leno appearance. It's funny; I was really nervous for some reason. Partly because I haven't done any talk shows in a long time, and also because I'm still not used to doing them. I've been doing stuff like that for 6 years now and I still get nervous. I didn't think it went that great and then the next day I had more positive feedback from it than any other talk show I've ever done. From friends, family and you all. So… cool. I'm glad you liked my geeky ebay collection- that was just the tip of the iceberg; you should see my action figures… I'm kind of like a 12 year old trapped in a 32 year old's body, but I'm okay with it.
What else? My dream-first choice- hero of mine - actor wants to do the next film I'm set to direct, "Open Hearts", but I don't think I'm gonna be able to direct it this summer as I had hoped since I'm due to be back at Scrubs on August 1st. That is- if we come back. NBC has yet to renew us… They have until 5/15, so cross your fingers. Now that I signed up for another year, I got all excited about doing it and then here we are on 4/26 and still no pick-up from the network. These last 4 episodes are REALLY good. So make sure to watch. Hopefully they're not the end of the whole series, because the season ends with quite a cliffhanger and I think everyone would be pretty pissed if they never got to see the resolution.
That American Idol thing was unbelievable last night, huh? It was so profoundly upsetting. But it was so well done. I went right to my computer and made a phat donation. I don't have Ellen money, yet, but I definitely gave. I hope those of you who could, donated something as well. It left me speechless.
I'm off to do NYC for awhile to do press for The Ex and to hang out with my friends. The premiere is 5/3 in NYC. I'm also participating in this thing AOL is doing for the musical "Spring Awakening". I don't know too much about it, but I love them and their show, so I'll do whatever they want me to do.
What else??? I had workman at my house all week fixing my fence. I kept thinking of a line from a Robert Frost poem entitled, "Mending Wall". It's a great poem I've always remembered from high school. (See; those tax dollars for public school went to good use.) Anyway there's a line in it where his neighbor keeps saying, "Good fences make good neighbors." So all week as I watched these guys fix the fence that borders my yard from my neighbor's, I've thought, "I wonder if he's read that Robert Frost poem 'Mending Wall'? And if so, I wonder if he now thinks I'm a good neighbor since I fixed the fence and neither one of us is really sure who's fence it technically is." Then I thought, "I think he's a foreigner- not sure what country- couldn't place the accent- something European. Swiss maybe- or Danish." Then I thought about how I wished I had a danish. Then I thought, "Who knows if they even read Robert Frost poems in his homeland? They probably read their own version of easily accessible lighter-fare prose that focuses on the power of nature." Then I thought, "I wonder what that Danish poet's name is? And I wonder if he's got any poems about fences?" I will have to explore this and if I come up with one I shall slip it under the new fence. I'll be screwed if I got the country wrong. Something Nordic; he looks like a skier. And he's handy; he chopped down his own tree. Do you happen to know which European people are stereotypically handy with a chainsaw and enjoy winter activities? I will research further and get back to you.
A blog is what you want? A blog you shall have. First of all, what is the deal with all these myspace spammers lately. You'd think after Tom sold the company for 100 zillion dollars he'd spend a few bucks of it on trying to figure out how to stop that. Everytime I check my page there's something like, "I love this fucking ringtone so much I wanna have sex with it all night long. I wanna impregnate this fucking ring tone. I wanna knock up this ring tone and marry it in Vegas, then have the wedding annulled the next day. That's how fucking excited I am about this ringtone.
I must get 1000 comments a day telling me that "size matters". Before I realized it was spam I kept looking at the picture of the person who wrote that being like, "wow. Not what I imagined coming from that person's mouth, but ok. Size is very important to him. But alas, I should not give them any more attention as that is what they seek. If you're one of the people who's clicking on there to get iphones or penis enlargement pills you're REALLY screwing it up for everybody else. I figure if the guy sells 2 bottles of penis pills a day, he can easily afford to lay back at his crib and marvel at how grand his own penis is. "No placebo's for me. I was born like this. I've also been blessed with the very first iphone and I'm currently banging one of the hotter ringtones in Santa Fe.
By the by: please don't send me anything HTML; especially in the comments section. Don't get me wrong, I love an animated unicorn waving "Thanks For the Add" as much as the next guy, but I disabled those things because they make your page all wonky. And no one likes a wonky page.
Okay- enough myspace business. Shalom. How are you? I am good. We just wrapped the 6th season of Scrubs!!!! Fear not, when we ended there were about 9 episodes finished waiting for their chance to air. Yes I have signed up for another year. Although tales of my new "arrangement" have not been very accurate. Needless to say, I am in and it will happen as long as NBC renews us for another season; which they have yet to do. ABC which actually owns the show (through Touchstone) has said that if NBC doesn't pick it up, they will for what would be the final season. So, I feel pretty optimistic that it will happen. All the actors and writers want it to happen. So many of you ask me if we have as much fun making the show as it looks. The answer is yes. We always say, "Okay, I don't know if anyone else is gonna laugh at this, but we think it's hysterical." We find the show's humor very funny; which is important, because there are plenty of people who have to act in things that they don't really find funny. We are sooooo lucky in that regard. It's amazing when I think about it, that Bill Lawrence and his team of writers have written about 135 episodes of Scrubs. That's incredible.
"The Ex" is coming out May 11th as you can see by the shamless plugging I am doing on my page. Please do consider putting a banner on your profile; it really warms the heart to start your day staring at a countdown clock clicking away the milliseconds of your life as you sit browsing myspace for other liberal dog-lovers who love The Clash, long walks on the beach, prefer placemats over tablecloths, consider "The Dark Crystal" to be a seminal film in their lives and live within 25 miles of downtown Omaha.
If you go to www.apple.com/trailers they have an exclusive sneak-peak clip of the movie that I feel quite confident will make you chuckle. My easy sell for the movie is this: if you laugh at "Arrested Development" and "Scrubs" and prefer your comedy a little on the dark side and always loved it when shows would crossover each other like when Mrs. Garrett left Arnold to run a girls school or when the Globetrotters ended up on both Gilligan's Island and Scooby Doo, then this is the movie for you.
Put it this way, if you received this, we either share taste in a lot of the same things or you're trying to sell me a ringtone. By the way, I should have mentioned; I hate ringtones. I think they are uber obnoxious. I am of the school that if you're out of your house or your car, your phone should be on vibrate. Oh, and for the love of Yaweh, DON'T LEAVE YOUR WIRELESS EARPIECE IN YOUR EAR!!!! Look, I am by no means a purveyor of "cool". I am very dorky. But one thing I know for certain, is that if you're wearing your wireless earpiece around and you are not on the phone, but merely waiting for a call- you should pull it out. When you do, you will probably be able to hear your brain telling you you look like Levar Burton. (Not in Roots, on Next Generation.) You were probably the same person who had a pacifier around your neck during that fad and something tells me there's a "Dachshund Lover on Board" sign in your garage next to the albums that contain your extensive "Garbage Pail Kid" collection. Anyhoo… I digress. Please go see "The Ex".
I am working hard to put together "Open Hearts" (the second film I'm going to direct) for this summer. But as I have signed on for year 7 of Scrubs, I am once again in a mad dash to pull it off in time to be back to work by the summer. Other than that, I'm not doing much. I turn 32 on April 6th. I thought I would feel older; but I don't. It's funny; I don't feel much different than I did when I was 18. I can't believe I'm 32. When I was 18, 32 sounded old. That's like… people's parent's are 32. Yeah, so… Please don't break down and send me an HTML comment on my birthday. I know it will be hard with so many options out there… Instead:
If you really feel obligated to get me something since we're friends and all:
For that one day, just be really nice to everyone you come in contact with. Like oddly nice. Like "what's wrong with Chrissy"-nice. If all 226,377 of you did that on April 6th… that would be a pretty cool present. With a number that high, I'm likely to reap the benefits.
Answers to questions: No Yes Cinnamon raisin. That sounds like it would hurt me. No thanks. Wrinkly, like a stone mason's elbow. I have several. It depends; if it's itching and burning, I would see a doctor.
Remember Romper room when they would say goodbye to a few random names? They never said Zach. Stupid room.
