As Barry ends, the Emmy nominee reflects on playing TVs favorite Chechen mob boss.
Warning: This post contains spoilers for the first few episodes ofBarryseason 4.
NoHo Hank was supposed to die in the pilot.
Anthony Carrigan as NoHo Hank in ‘Barry’.HBO
Here, Carrigan opens up about his final days on the set ofBarry and Hank’s emotional final arc.
Now, here you are five years later, talking about the final season.
What’s it like when you think about the journey you’ve been on with this character?
ANTHONY CARRIGAN:Well, I’m happy I survived, first of all.
[Laughs] That was great.
But the journey has just been a really special one.
This character is so unique and so different.
Instead, there’s been this interesting progression.
He’s gained this awareness of when he screws up and how bad it can go.
Especially in this final season, he’s coming to grips with the reality of being a mob boss.
Once it was just kind of an idea.
Now it is a stark reality, and it makes for some interesting circumstances.
There really has been an evolution.
What was it like to tap into some of those heavier moments?
I mean, it’s a joy.
That alone is one of the things that I will forever take with me from the show.
It’s a true gift, and I have just wanted to do it justice.
It’s not every job where you get to balance such comedic highs and such dramatic lows.
You really don’t.
I wanted to ask specifically about working with Bill Hader.
What’s it like to work with him as a director?
He’s so accessible.
He’s so open and responsive, and you know that you’re in really safe hands.
He really is open to all of it.
He’s juggling so many balls, and he still takes the time to really be present with you.
It’s a comfort to know that he’s got such a vision and such a specificity of vision.
I’m kind of astounded by what a genius that guy is.
I mean, it’s bonkers.
He’s like, “Do whatever you want now!
And I’m like, “Okay!”
I’m like a golden retriever, like, “Yeah, okay, cool!
Whatever you want!”
[Laughs] But Bill knows how to tap into that part of myself.
I think that’s why we work well together.
One thing I love about this final season is Hank’s wardrobe.
How much are you thinking about what Hank’s wearing?
Look, it’s a highlight.
I will say that.
[Laughs] The looks are just joyous.
He dresses for the occasion.
He’s basically incognito in his mind.
How did you want to approach that scene?
It’s a brutal, brutal thing that happens, and it’s heartbreaking.
We will kill all of you.”
I have to be a tough guy, and I have to be a mob boss."
That is ultimately why these things all fall apart.
What was your reaction when you first read the scripts with the time jump?
I was so surprised.
I was like, “How did they do that!
[Laughs] But I was so on board.
I think you gain so much information from seeing these characters progress in this way.
You’re finding Hank in this place where he’s convinced himself of something.
He’s convinced himself of an identity that isn’t real, necessarily.
But that’s a major theme of this show, isn’t it?
What was your last day on set like?
It was pretty overwhelming.
I don’t think there’s anything like it on television.
Is there something you learned working onBarrythat you want to carry with you to future jobs?
That’s a good question.
[Laughs] Before the show, I was really intent on never making a mistake.
What I’ve learned is that mistakes sometimes lead to the coolest stuff.
So, allow yourself to go for it and fall on your face.
Take a big leap.
Do you have a favorite Hank-ism?
What’s a favorite?
I like: “You guys are like Fleetwood Mac.
You get back together again.
And then you go out and make a great album, likeThe Best of Fleetwood Mac.”
There’s something very zen about that.
