“In our heads, it is a journey that leads forward,” Justin Halpern says.
Warning: This article contains spoilers for theAbbott Elementaryseason 3 finale, “Party.”
Summer’s here and the time is right… for kissing your co-worker.
Quinta Brunson, Tyler James Williams, and William Stanford Davis on ‘Abbott Elementary’.Disney/Gilles Mingasson
But as the party, as parties so often do, descended into chaos Barbara’s drunk!
Ava’s making out with Janine’s cousin!
Mr. Johnson (William Stanford Davis) abandoned his post at the dominoes table!
Quinta Brunson, Courtney Taylor, and Benjamin Norris on ‘Abbott Elementary’.Disney/Gilles Mingasson
Gregory and Janine felt their window of opportunity closing.
But Mr. Johnson stepped in to offer some sage advice about living life to the fullest.
He fixed her light (swoon!)
Sheryl Lee Ralph, Lisa Ann Walter, and Quinta Brunson on ‘Abbott Elementary’.Disney/Gilles Mingasson
JUSTIN HALPERN:For real.
You did think that?
Especially because Tyler James Williams in interviews was like, “They should just be friends.”
Quinta Brunson, Tyler James Williams, Courtney Taylor, Karan Soni, and Chris Perfetti on ‘Abbott Elementary’.Disney/Gilles Mingasson
That was our goal.
HALPERN:We talked about it a lot.
We always talk about it in terms of the character growth of each character.
We don’t like to think about it like, “And then season 3 they get together.”
Is this right?"
PATRICK SCHUMACKER:My mom is oftentimes my litmus test of whether or not something is working.
She watches so much television.
What made Gregory turn around?
Was it that final reassurance that Manny wasn’t a factor?
He was realizing this is the way that he felt.
The Manny thing was actually a moment of growth for the character.
If that’s what she wants, I can respect that."
HALPERN:We know how sexy it is.
We talked a lot about how sexy it is in the writers' room.
And I believe Quinta said, “Oh, you ate that.”
We have seen them kiss before and then tiptoe away from it.
Might this one stick more firmly?
HALPERN:When we grow characters, we like to continue that growth.
It may get messy, but we’re always trying to chart a path forward.
But in our heads it is a journey that leads forward.
Do you think she feels she’s in that place now?
HALPERN:I do.
Even down to what she wore this year.
We’re trying to show that this character is maturing.
Drunk Barbara is now my favorite Barbara.
How did that come to be?
SCHUMACKER:We also loved seeing drunk Barbara.
And it certainly felt like a rager at Janine’s [was the place for it].
Janine knows her co-workers so well that she is able to mastermind the ultimate party.
She’s planted all of this stuff to make it happen at her whim.
Barbara maybe went a little bit overboard, and Sheryl eats that stuff up.
One of the funniest versions of Barbara is seeing her not so put together.
It is a funny counterpoint to what Sheryl brings on a daily basis.
Seeing her in that moment knocked down a little bit from that pedestal.
Seeing her look human is real fun for the comedy.
The metaphor in the episode is this is a controlled chaos, but that’s an oxymoron.
How did you land on that choice?
Mr. Johnson is a guy who has lived many, many lives.
It’s not just that he’s an older person and he’s got advice.
And he has a fondness for Janine and Gregory just as human beings.
Jacob finally talked to Zach after several months.
Will they be friends?
Is he committed to the single life for the time being?
But Jacob, he’s still in his twenties.
SCHUMACKER:I definitely think the takeaway with this finale is that Jacob and Zach are on speaking terms.
The healing between the two of them.
Of course, this is just speaking extemporaneously.
I love the idea that that Zach has put on a one-man show that’s basically denigrating Jacob.
Maybe that show becomes the bane of Jacob’s existence.
That’s not canon in the show, though.
If Gregory and Janine do move forward here, how might that impact Jacob?
Was Ava’s night with Janine’s cousin a one-night-only thing?
HALPERN:You never know with Ava.
Ava leaves herself open to where life takes her.
In kind of a more calculated way than Mr. Johnson, but she’s also a wild card.
For all intents and purposes right now, that was probably a one-night thing.
But you never know.
SCHUMACKER:That’s the second question Justin’s going to ask the writers' room.
Will we continue seeing more of Mr. Morton next year?
SCHUMACKER:Says the guy whose parents are still married after 70 years.
But Jerry Minor is so funny.
What about the trio of Janine’s friends at the district?
HALPERN:Despite her leaving abruptly, she obviously left on good terms with them.
They’re hanging out at their party.
They are a part of her life.
She enjoys their presence.
We love having all of them on the show.
And the district is organically in the lives of the teachers at Abbott and in Philadelphia.
So yeah, the door remains wide open for them to return.
You all have this really unique challenge with your love scenes, in that the show is a mockumentary.
SCHUMACKER:All credit to [director] Randall Einhorn and our camera crew for blocking it all out.
So that flourish came about a little bit later.
So it became this choreographed thing that didn’t look choreographed.
It was a big conversation figuring out how that was going to look.
Because it’s such a big moment in the mythology of the show.
One of our biggest, I would say.
