News

During a recent Gold Derby video interview, senior editor Rob Licuria spoke in-depth with Murray Bartlett (“Welcome to Chippendales”) about his Hulu limited series, which is eligible at the 2023 Emmys. Watch the full video above and read the complete interview transcript below.

In “Welcome to Chippendales,” Bartlett follows up his Emmy-winning “The White Lotus” role with his acclaimed portrayal of the late choreographer/director Nick De Noia. The eight-episode show was created by Robert Siegel (“Pam & Tommy”) and inspired by the book “Deadly Dance: The Chippendales Murders” by K. Scot Macdonald and Patrick MontesDeOca.

“It’s very seductive to play a character like Nick De Noia,” the actor explained in our webchat. “He’s a choreographer and he was very larger than life.” Bartlett revealed that “the joy of it” was “being able to take a character that might seem larger than life and make them relatable … that’s what...

“I am in somebody’s face, quite literally, for anywhere from 15 minutes to 4 hours depending on what the makeup is,” explains makeup department head David Williams about the bond between makeup artist and actor, particularly on a show like “Welcome to Chippendales.” For our recent webchat he adds, “You do develop a rapport with that person and an understanding. You get to know their likes and dislikes on a personal level and on a professional level,” he says. “We spend so much time together, they do become an extension of our families.” Watch our exclusive video interview above.

See Exclusive Video Interview: Quentin Plair (‘Welcome to Chippendales’)

“Welcome to Chippendales” was created by Robert Siegel (“Pam & Tommy”), inspired by the book “Deadly Dance: The Chippendales Murders” by K. Scot Macdonald and Patrick MontesDeOca. It stars Oscar and Emmy nominee Kumail Nanjiani as Steve Banerjee, who founded the famed Chippendales stripper troupe.

“To have two shows that I’m actually a part of,” sighs Quentin Plair in our recent webchat, adding that “it’s really been kind of this really eye-opening and a beautiful and validating process that is still going on right now.” Plair is having a real moment this season, co-starring in not one, but two acclaimed roles in two very different but equally high-profile series — playing an exotic dancer in the glitzy and tawdry semi-autobiographical “Welcome to Chippendales” and an emotionally numb father and husband in the intimate comedy/drama “Tiny Beautiful Things,” both streaming on Hulu. Watch our exclusive video interview above.

SEERichard Bloom interview: ‘Welcome to Chippendales’ production designer

In “Tiny Beautiful Things,” Emmy nominee Kathryn Hahn stars as Clare, a writer who reluctantly becomes a popular advice columnist during a period of turmoil in her life. The limited series was adapted by Liz Tigelaar, based on...

“Maybe people see me as a guy heading for an untimely ending,” jokes Emmy winner Murray Bartlett about three of his most recent roles in which his characters have either been accidentally stabbed to death (Armond in Season 1 of “The White Louts”), murdered in cold blood (Nick in “Welcome to Chippendales”) or tragically died in the arms of his life partner (Frank in “The Last of Us”). For our recent webchat he adds, “There is a silver lining, I guess, for me,” he smiles. “I don’t know what it is, but I’m not complaining, because it’s allowed me to do some really great stuff, and not have to stay alive as one character to stop me from playing the next!” Watch our exclusive video interview above.

See How Murray Bartlett can make Emmy history with ‘Welcome to Chippendales’

In “Welcome to Chippendales,” Bartlett follows up his Emmy-winning...

Welcome to your academic plagiarism nightmare. Dr. Natalia Mehlman Petrzela, an associate professor of history at the New School in New York, alleges that her Spotify podcast “Welcome to Your Fantasy” was used for Hulu’s “Welcome to Chippendales” limited series without acknowledgment — or payment.

Petrzela revealed that a year before “Welcome to Your Fantasy” was released, a producer shared early episodes with various Hollywood writers and producers to pitch a screen adaptation. Kumail Nanjiani and his wife and writing partner Emily V. Gordon were among those pitched and turned down working with the podcast.

“Kumail and I listened to the podcast and it’s such a fun story, but unfortunately I don’t think it’s the right project for us to write,” Gordon wrote in an email to a producer as shared by Dr. Petrzela, as reported by The New York Times. “As much as we love watching crime stories,...