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Tell us a funny story, suggested co-showrunnerMike Royce.
Well, theyre all funny now, replied Grinnell, who plays the affable if sometimes socially cluelessSchneider.
Its great to hear somebody elses perspective, Kellett told Vulture.
Theres always things they say or the way in which they say it that informs something.
It definitely makes its way in and then I think it has more of an impact when its seen.
It resonates a little bit more.
When Grinnell starts talking, stories spill out fast.
By 17, he was also doing cocaine.
This was five years before I sobered up, Grinnell said.
There were many moments in my life that I knew I should hang it up and then I wouldnt.
There was no epiphany, just exhaustion.
The reason I drank was to be courageous and interesting, he told the writers.
By the end, I couldnt even speak.
I was not the life of the party anymore.
I was just a guy who drank by myself.
I didnt want to be around other people.
It became sad and less interesting to me.
Thats not something I would have even thought about had we not spoken to Todd about it.
That idea that nobody would trust an addict to do that stuff.
As a fan of the originalOne Day at a Time, how did you approach playing Schneider?
Your version is different but the producers kept the name, so there is homage being paid there.
Was it scary?It was daunting because I had to really forget what Pat [Harrington] did.
I didnt want to attempt to imitate him in any way because its obviously a totally different show.
Theyre both really lovely people who are very lonely and just love the two families so much.
Hes an inspiration to me for sure.
Its so nice to honor that on a daily basis and remember.
The writers like to bring in experts to help with their research.
That aspect of the character is inspired by a part of my life.
When I initially got the role, they were still trying to figure out what the character was.
Gloria called me and asked if they could use that part of my life in the show.
I think its really an important thing to talk about on TV and Im excited to have that conversation.
Was it hard to reveal all of that to your colleagues?No, it wasnt.
Ive been sober for 17 years.
At this point, those stories are from when I was a different person.
But then they cut that because they thought it was too much.
I dont have emotionally arduous episodes like that, usually.
Theseason finale of season twowas tough for that reason, too.
Thats what happened in this episode for Schneider.
Im not used to Schneider being manipulative and mean and yelling and saying not nice things.
You have to rebuild the character or rebuild a parallel character to the character, which was interesting.
Youve been friends with Gloria for a while and she directed that episode.
Did that help?It was amazing because Im in the best hands I could be in.
The whole cast and crew are very sensitive.
Did your visit to the writers room help your performance?
You knew the whole story ahead of time.
Production hadnt even started yet.For sure.
It helps because then you might think about your performance leading up to those episodes.
you’re able to make adjustments.
Its a nice luxury to have as an actor.
You bring whatever it’s possible for you to from your own life to these things.
To get a really honest performance, it can affect you in a personal way.
In a roundabout way, it brought up other stuff from my life.
His relationship with his dad really pushed him over the edge.
We thought it was bizarre and hard.
The eighth episode, She Drives Me Crazy, is your directorial debut.
What was it like directing yourself?It was a lighter episode for me, but it was interesting.
And then Id jump in and perform.
I was lucky that they gave me an opportunity to do it.
Since our first episode, Id shadowPamela Frymanand she told me at one point that I should do this.
Pam Fryman thinks I could do this, so Im gonna do it!
I had the time of my life, but it was a lot more work.
Youre on your feet a lot more and you dont get as many breaks.
There will be a tug-of-war.
Ive been through that in my life.
Lydia wont handle that well.Thats what I mean!
You just dont know.
He could get his heart broken.
Or if there are more seasons, maybe theres a baby!
Therehaveto be more seasons.Lets hope!
