Photo: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty
It’s no secret that the subject matter portrayed inA Friend of a Familyis hard to digest — but making the limited series wasn’t all bad for the show’s all-star cast.
Jake Lacystars as Berchtold, withMckenna Graceportraying as 14-year-old Broberg and Hendrix Yancey playing the 12-year-old Jan.Colin Hanks,Anna Paquin,Lio Tipton, Austin Stowell, Patrick Fischler, Bree Elrod and Philip Ettinger also star in the series.
According to Grace, 16, her onscreen dad Hanks, 44, actually helped to make the vibes on set feel less tense in between takes.
Peacock
“Mr. Colin Hanks, who is genuinely, I think, if not my favorite, one of my favorite people that I’ve ever worked with or gotten the pleasure to know. But he decorated the cast chair area as a tiki bungalow,” the actress exclusively tells PEOPLE of Hanks, whounderwent a major transformationto portray Bob Broberg. “There was constantly Hawaiian music playing at a low volume. There was a disco ball, there was flags, there was little banners, there was a backdrop to the ocean.”
Grace says Hanks “really went all out with this.”
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“Keep in mind, we were shooting for a very long time,” she continues. “It was a really great way to detox in between scenes. It was so smart on his part.”
“It was amazing,” adds Grace. “One of my favorite memories.”
For Lacy, the opportunity to raise awareness of a very scary but real issue ultimately helped him find balance between takes.
Lacy also explains that it’s fulfilling as a performer “knowing that you’re making this thing and telling this story as truthfully as you can — even if it feels uncomfortable or is dealing with subject matter that can be difficult — it is actually serving a better purpose and not just your own ego or for a paycheck or to create content, but to actually be involved in something that matters.”
“As much as we talk about that in the arts, it’s honestly rare that you get to participate in something where you go, ‘I think that mattered. It actually mattered,'” he adds. “For the most part [it’s], ‘I guess people come home and escape to this.'”
Erika Doss/Peacock
Navigating how to portray abuse on screen is particularly tough, especially when it involves a character that’s a child. ButA Friend of the Familyopts not to showcase the abuseat all, which was something that made Lacy — who shares two sons with wifeLauren Deleo— more comfortable with joining the project.
“Both for the purpose of the narrative, both creatively, and then just as a human, there’s no purpose,” he says. “And I don’t want to create that.”
Grace, for her part, believes the crime thriller “did a good job” telling the real-life victim’s story while also remaining sensitive to the situation.
“We weren’t overly explicit because some things are better left unsaid. I think that we told her story in a tasteful way that I hope that she is proud of,” she explains. “I think that a lot of things nowadays are about shock factor or what can we show, but I’m really proud and happy with the way that our production handled everything. I thought that it was quite a very safe environment on set.”
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The first four episodes ofA Friend of the Familyare streaming now on Peacock, with the remaining episodes premiering on Thursdays through Nov. 10.
source: people.com
