Ben Stiller is amazed at how quickly “The Bear” is filmed. The “Severance” director and executive producer noted that “The Bear” has managed to complete four seasons in just three years; meanwhile, it took the same amount of time for “Severance” to finish only its second season. Production on “Severance” Season 2 started back in 2022, which was also the year “The Bear” premiered. (“The Bear” is now moving ahead with Season 5, while “Severance” has just been confirmed for Season 3.)
Stiller mentioned he wishes he could work like “The Bear” co-showrunner Christopher Storer or at least match his pace. “Chris Storer will shoot an episode in an hour and a half or something on ‘The Bear.’ I’m like, ‘Goddamn, why can’t I do that?’” Stiller told Vanity Fair.
On a certain level, it’s just the affirmation of when you follow your instinct — knowing that you have to make sure something feels right, and that you get it to the place you need it to be. The frustration for us was that it was taking so long, honestly. Sometimes I look at the outside factors, which are beyond our control, but then also — I mean I won’t lie, I look at my own process too and go, ‘What is it?’ That’s the conundrum when you’re in it. You start to feel like, ‘Oh, wait a minute. It’s going to take this much longer,’ and then there’s going to be that much more pressure on it for people who will be saying, like, ‘Oh, we waited this long. I hope it’s worth the wait.’ You’re just kind of stuck with that, and you have to move forward blindly.
As for the years between Seasons 1 and 2, Stiller added
Stiller had earlier mentioned on Jason and Travis Kelce’s “New Heights” podcast that “Severance” Season 3 won’t take three years to make.
No, the plan is not to [wait three years]. Hopefully we’ll be announcing what the plan is very soon.
Stiller said ahead of the Season 2 finale
Stiller also said that the three-year gap between Seasons 1 and 2 gave the team time to “regroup” about the show. Season 2 was filmed over 186 days, and editing took even more time.
Thank goodness the audience was there when we came back. The challenge was to get people who hadn’t seen the show to watch the first season, so Apple did a really good job of getting the word out and we did as much press as we could. Also, three years later, Apple TV+ is actually a different…it’s a different situation there now because they have more viewers. When we started out, we were one of the first shows.
Stiller said
And Storer isn’t the only TV creator Stiller looks up to: Mike White, who directed Stiller in “Brad’s Status,” and “Andor” creator Tony Gilroy are also among his favorite fellow TV filmmakers.
I think Mike is a genius. Literally no one else could do what he does; he created a genre with ‘White Lotus.’ How he does it blows my mind, because he does the writing by himself and the directing.
Stiller told VF of White
Source: IndieWire