NBC’s Grosse Pointe Garden Society revolves around a murder — but even the cast didn’t know the identity of the dead body their characters were burying.
During an exclusive interview with Us Weekly, Ben Rappaport previewed what viewers can expect from the series, which premieres on Sunday, February 23, saying, “It all starts with our showrunners, Jenna Bans and Bill Krebs. It is remarkable how they have woven this thing together. The rollercoaster ride they’ve taken us on is absolutely incredible. Every couple of weeks we get the new scripts and we read them and are like, ‘Oh my God, what happens next?’ And we’re just dying for the next one.”
Rappaport, 38, noted that the stars of the show were theorizing exactly like fans would be.
“But all four of us have our own very intricate story lines that branch off of this. It just keeps you guessing all along the way,” he explained. “I think that’s the thing that’s going to hook people is the addictive quality in every episode where you think you’re getting closer — but then maybe you’re not. There’s a lot of twists and turns.”
What to Know About NBC’s Murder Mystery ‘Grosse Pointe Garden Society’
The actor continued: “But also the tone of the show [is so different]. There’s a murder mystery at the center, but it is truly a lot of fun and there’s a ton of humor in it. So I think, tonally, it’s a very engaging and addictive watch.”
According to the synopsis, Grosse Pointe Garden Society follows four members of a suburban garden club “who find their lives intertwined by scandal, mischief and a shared secret — a murder no one wants to talk about.” As the dark truths “begin to rot their lives under the surface, they struggle to remain as perfect as the flowers blooming in their garden above.”
In addition to Rappaport, Grosse Pointe Garden Society stars Melissa Fumero, Aja Naomi King, AnnaSophia Robb, Matthew Davis, Alexander Hodge, Nancy Travis and Felix Wolfe. Despite bringing the main characters to life, no one knew where the show was going when they filmed season 1.
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“As a cast, we just found out very recently that information [about who is killed], which of course we are sworn to secrecy about. But for a long time we did not know,” Rappaport revealed. “That’s part of what was so fun about the twists and turns. Just like the audience, they really kept us guessing. As an actor, that’s part of the reason I really enjoy doing TV. You play a character through a variety of different circumstances and journeys. I really enjoyed not knowing to be honest with you.”
Rappaport couldn’t share much about what is to come but can’t wait for others to join in on the adventure, adding, “Throughout the episodes, we go through different parallel timelines. We jump back and forth between timelines. So you’re like, ‘Wow, how did we end up here?’ Then throughout the season, those timelines begin to converge. The biggest difference between [my character] Brett in the future [and in the present] is he is very stressed out. Especially all four of us, you’ll see our most stressed-out versions of ourselves in the flash forwards and in the future scenes.”
Grosse Pointe Garden Society premieres on NBC Sunday, February 23, at 10 p.m. ET and new episodes are available to stream on Peacock the next day.
