ATHLEISURE MAG #77 MAY ISSUE | TIPPING POINT

When we first heard about Apple TV+'s dark comedy, Physical, we knew that we would enjoy it. Growing up in the 80s, we remember watching countless workout videos with Jane Fonda, Denise Austin and more. What's not to love about the leotards, neon outfits and so much more.

In Physical, we meet Sheila Rubin played by Rose Byrne (Bridesmaids, X-Men: Apocalypse, Mrs. America) who is a San Diego housewife that is juggling her household while battling personal demons and an inner voice that is extremely viscious. She finds empowerment and success with aerobics as well as a friendship with Greta played by Dierdre Friel (The Sopranos, Little America, New Amsterdam).

With a second season starting Jun 3rd, we catch up with all the drama from the last season as we continue to see Sheila build her empire! We can't wait to see where we go and to see Murray Bartlett (Guiding Light, Nashville, The White Lotus) who plays Vinnie Green being added to the cast. We catch up with Rose and Diedre to talk about the new season, what drew them to this show and how they prepare.

ATHLEISURE MAG: What drew you to Physical. What drew you to the show and what made you want to be part of it?

DIERDRE FRIEL: As a plus size actress, I actually said that I don’t like to do roles that have to do with my size. Most of the time in storytelling, it has some sort of negative connotation where you’re the butt of the joke or something like that. So actually, when the show came up for me, I was a little bit anxious about that – whether or not being heavy was going to be made fun of and pointed out. But in fact, after getting the script and getting more information, I was like, this is really an empowering asset and really wonderful thing. This season, she’s super sexy and all of this stuff, so I really loved it. It actually drew me to really wanting it and that was really wonderful for me.

ROSE BYRNE: Yeah, I read the script in 2019 and then I met with Annie Weisman (Desperate Housewives, The Path, The Bold Type), the creator and I was just so drawn to it and I had never read anything like it. It’s a very candid story about her and her struggles with her eating disorder and growing up in San Diego. It just felt very intimate, raw and dark. I knew it would be funny and polarizing to some extent and I felt very drawn to the whole world of it.

AM: I mean, I agree, I love thinking back to that time of the 80s where people were working out in aerobics and there was this birth of the fitness industry that brought us to where we are today. There are so many dynamic topics and points that are talked about and I like the relationship between you guys as your characters. How did you prepare to be in these roles and to go through these awesome tensions that exist within your arcs between the two of you?

DF: To prepare to get into character, it’s different for each project. For the show, depending on the scene. If it’s kind of a light scene like a walk and talk, something like that, honestly, I really like our relationship so we can roll up and have some sort of chit chat and I feel that sometimes with those scenes, we roll into them really easily because of the natural ability of it.

If it’s something heavier or darker, sometimes I listen to some music and something like that to just get into the right kind of headspace with it – to do some thinking about it.

RB: Yes. Annie Weisman who created this is a really good touchstone in terms of Sheila. I particularly love the scenes with the aerobics. They’re very hard, but it’s great in a way, you’re less self-conscious. You don’t have the time to make too many decisions. I mean, what’s more boring then watching an actor make decisions about a performance. You know what I mean? It’s like there’s a lot more things that are more boring - but as a viewer, I think that it is when you feel that you can see people calculating what’s next. So when you’re doing a physical scene, it’s always a bit liberating in a way and less scary.

AM: With the 2nd season kicking off on June 3rd and as a bit of a refresher, where do we end with your characters from last season and where do we pick then up again?

RB: Well Sheila really ends her marriage at a crisis point with the beginnings of this affair with John Breem played by Paul Sparks (Boardwalk Empire, House of Cards, Sweetbitter) who is a very powerful and successful businessman in San Diego. We pick up and she’s also released this fitness video which has sort of caught on fire and has a local following. We meet her at this moment where she is trying to build this brand and to build this business. She’s harboring this pretty dangerous affair with this guy and she’s in “recovery” – but then there’s recovery and then there’s recovery. It’s dealt with later and I love that. I mean, it’s a true representation or a version of one person’s way of trying to recover from a terrible addiction and illness.

DF: Greta in season 1 really becomes inspired a lot by Sheila. A lot of Greta’s story is really built around her friendship with Sheila and additionally, her relationship with her husband as they went through a big change so they are exploring their marriage and their relationship. They’re adventurous together and so a lot of that plays in as well in looking at the relationships in Greta’s life.

IG @appletvplus @fullyrosebyrne @dierdre_friel

PHOTO CREDITS | PG 56 - 61 APPLE TV+/ Physical