Grotesquerie Stars Talk Sister Megan and Detective Lois' Partnership: "It Represents Some Sort Of Hope"

Airing Wednesdays on FX, Grotesquerie follows Detective Lois, who, in addition to facing familial issues at home, believes that a serial killer has set out to antagonize her. She hesitantly teams up with Sister Megan, hoping that her expertise can be an asset to the case. Together, the women become a surprising, yet powerful, duo who set out to end the string of murders that have tainted their small town.




Grotesquerie is written and created by Ryan Murphy, Jon Robin Baitz, and Joe Baken, and stars Emmy Award-winner Niecy Nash-Betts. The rest of the main cast includes Courtney B. Vance, Lesley Manville, Micaela Diamond, Nicholas Alexander Chavez, Raven Goodwin, and Travis Kelce. Chavez and Diamond share that they are drawn to any series helmed by Murphy, with the latter also interested in the unlikely friendship between her character and Nash-Betts’.

Related

What Was In The Pot In Grotesquerie Episode 1

Ryan Murphy’s FX horror drama Grotesquerie lives up to its name during its pilot episode, especially when talking about the pot at the crime scene.

Screen Rant interviewed Chavez and Diamond about stepping into the roles of Sister Megan and Father Charlie and the role that they play throughout Grotesquerie season 1.



Chavez & Diamond Share Their Favorite Ryan Murphy Shows

“I think any director who has the scope of doing Glee and Dahmer is rare.”

Ryan Murphy

What drew you to Grotesquerie and made you want to get involved?

Micaela Diamond: Ryan Murphy called. When Ryan Murphy calls and says you booked a part, you hop right on that plane. And I think also, for me, I only got to read the first script when I had booked it, and the thing that drew me was this unlikely friendship between these two women who, I think, at another moment in their lives, wouldn’t really give each other a shot.

But I think Sister Megan and Lois see something in the other that is compelling to them, whether they’re broken in themselves and see it in the other person or it represents some sort of hope for both of them. That’s really what started it for me. And also, how fun to play a nun in a horror genre? There’s a world of choices there.

Nicholas Alexander Chavez: We were on the back half of shooting Monsters when Ryan called me and told me about Grotesquerie. He said, “Nick, I have this really exciting new project that I’m working on. I want to share some of the scripts with you,” and as soon as I started reading them, I was hooked instantly. I knew that this would provide me an opportunity to bring a different element of my creativity to the project because it’s not playing a real person who existed, so I could use my own imagination to fill out the different aspects of who Father Charlie is, which was a great opportunity.


Ryan Murphy is behind so many great shows. Was there one you saw beforehand that made you think, “I need to be in a project of his”?

Nicholas Alexander Chavez: I watched Dahmer when it came out, and I was blown away. I was blown away by Niecy and by Evan. When I got the opportunity to work with Niecy on this project, it really became full circle for me.

Micaela Diamond: This has nothing to do with this genre, but I was primed audience for Glee. I think any director who has the scope of doing Glee and Dahmer is rare. I don’t know how somebody can have that kind of humor and camp and go to something so incredibly dark and evil. I think that is the mind of Ryan. That’s the mind of a genius.

Diamond Enjoys Sister Megan’s & Detective Lois’ Contrasting Energies

“I’m incredibly front-footed, and she’s incredibly laid back in a way. Together, it’s a really fun mystery-solve-crime moment.”

Sister Megan and Detective Lois looking at each other in Grotesquerie


How would you each describe your characters to someone who hasn’t seen the series?

Nicholas Alexander Chavez: Father Charlie is tasked with trying to reinvigorate the church and keep the community together amidst all these really, really horrific murders. And then he also brings a lot of unconventional ideas that he views as progressive to the more traditional members of the Catholic Church. It’s a really compelling character, and he has a lot of different objectives. And then he’s also grappling with the discrepancy between what he feels inside and what he feels tasked with to do externally. So yeah, really compelling.

Micaela Diamond: The string of murders that’s happening through this town have real religious undertones and references. Sister Megan, who’s a nun and a journalist, kind of struts her way into the precinct of Lois Tryon, who is the lead amazing detective on the case, the only one who will be able to solve it and proves her worth and how she’s going to be quite useful in helping her solve them. As a pair, they make a really interesting duo. I think them together, their energies—I’m incredibly front-footed, and she’s incredibly laid back in a way. Together, it’s a really fun mystery-solve-crime moment.


About Ryan Murphy’s Grotesquerie

In FX’s Grotesquerie, a series of heinous crimes have unsettled a small community. “Detective Lois Tryon” feels these crimes are eerily personal, as if someone—or something—is taunting her. At home, Lois grapples with a strained relationship with her daughter, a husband in long-term hospital care and her own inner demons. With no leads and unsure of where to turn, she accepts the help of “Sister Megan,” a nun and journalist with the Catholic Guardian.

Sister Megan, with her own difficult past, has seen the worst of humanity, yet she still believes in its capacity for good. Lois, on the other hand, fears the world is succumbing to evil. As Lois and Sister Megan string together clues, they find themselves ensnared in a sinister web that only seems to raise more questions than answers.


Check out our other interviews with the Grotesquerie cast:

Source: Screen Rant Plus

Grotesquerie airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on FX and is available to stream the next day on Hulu.