The constantly adapting, yet evergreen, genre of comedy was spotlighted at the Variety FYC TV Fest on May 6. The creative teams behind Fox’s “Best Medicine,” which follows a surgeon who leaves his city life to become a practitioner in a quaint fishing town in Maine, and “Ted,” the chronicles of a sentient teddy bear, took to the stage to discuss developing their respective shows, offering the audience a behind-the-scenes look into production, cast stories and other anecdotes from their time on set.
“Best Medicine” executive producers Liz Tuccillo and Ben Silverman, along with co-EP and star Josh Charles, discussed how they created the American remake of the hit British series “Doc Martin,” the show’s New England roots and what Season 2 has in store in a conversation moderated by Variety’s TV critic Alison Herman.
Silverman, who encountered the British original due to his parents, credits Tuccillo as instrumental to his vision of the show manifesting into reality. The show’s Maine setting was inspired by Tuccillo’s four-month-long trip to the state during the COVID pandemic. “Maine was on my mind,” said Tuccillo, adding that real people she met in the small town of Corea helped inspire the characters of Greg and George on the show.
The original Doc Martin, Martin Clunes, appeared on “Best Medicine” as Charles’ character’s father, and he provided tips on character movements and medical practices. Calling Clunes’ role “a blessing,” Charles added that “people who are maybe feeling protective of the original show” may be more likely to “give it a shot.” Tuccillo joked that there were also cultural barriers between the two countries, and what may be a joke to a Brit may make an American call HR.
The creators also emphasized the importance of balancing the show’s comedic and medical elements, stating that they hired a doctor who is also a television writer to be on their staff as he helped maintain medical accuracy with comedic timing.
Charles also discussed his return to network television after his time on the legal drama “The Good Wife,” joking that he was “prepared to be exhausted daily and have very little sleep” before adding that it was “a joy to come to work.”
When asked to tease a sentence describing Season 2, Charles responded that people can expect the show to go “deeper, deeper… and yeah, deeper.”
The team behind Peacock’s “Ted” also took the stage to discuss the show’s second season and most memorable plot lines in a conversation moderated by Variety’s Senior Artisans Editor Jazz Tangcay.
“There are steps along the way that prevent you from crossing the line,” Seth MacFarlane, the show’s creator, director, and star told Variety. “At the table read, you get as many people as you can together to listen to the script. If there are things that are just too offensive to be funny, you’re met with dead silence in the room. We do try to be relatively responsible within the guidelines that we’re given.”
EP and cast member Alanna Ubach mentioned that the “Dungeons & Dealers” episode was among her favorites to film, along with the “Roe v. Weed” episode which features an abortion plot line. “It’s ballsy, and it’s pushing the envelope,” said Ubach. “Underneath all the absurdity, there’s a message, and it’s smart, and it winks at you, and you either get it or you don’t.”
The panel also revealed some key behind-the-scenes details, such as actors carrying around stuffed bears to get comfortable with “Ted,” developing technology in Season 2 allowing less sensors on MacFarlane’s body when voicing the titular character, and implementing AI to create a deepfake cameo of Bill Clinton.
As for Season 3, that’s “really up to Universal and Peacock,” according to MacFarlane.
