Let's get started.
First up, co-executive producer Cherry Chevapravatdumrong.
(audience cheers and applauds)
Executive producer Jason Clark.
(cheers and applause)
Executive producer David A. Goodman.
(cheers and applause)
Executive producer Brannon Braga.
(cheers and applause)
Now let's get the cast out here.
He plays Klyden, Chad L. Coleman.
(cheers and applause)
Hi!
Chad L. Coleman! That's on you.
(cheers and applause)
MAN: That's on you!
And we've got Isaac in the house, Mark Jackson.
-(cheers and applause) - Mark!
He plays John LaMarr, J. Lee!
(cheers and applause)
She plays Alara Kitan, Halston Sage!
(cheers and applause)
And you can't have Klyden without Bortus, Peter Macon!
(cheers and applause)
And he plays Gordon Malloy, Scott Grimes.
(cheers and applause)
Anybody need a doctor? We've got Dr. Finn in the house.
Penny Johnson Jerald.
(cheers and applause)
We know her as Kelly Grayson, Adrianne Palicki.
(cheers and applause)
And last but not least, we've got the creator
and he plays Ed Mercer, Seth MacFarlane!
(cheers and applause)
(laughter)
- Wow. - Hi, everybody!
(audience cheers, whistles)
Well, welcome, everybody. Um...
From what I understand, some people were working late last night.
Who was working late last night?
- Not it. - Oh, my gosh.
How late was late?
It was about 2, 3:00 a.m., something like that.
Okay, well, thank you all for making it here.
For sure!
'Cause season two is undenivay, so congratulations, first of all.
Season two, everybody.
(audience cheers, applauds)
Um...
I moderated the panel for this group last fall
when it was just getting off the ground.
And I want to ask anybody who wants to answer me,
we can start with Seth or the producers.
What did you guys learn in season one
that actually helped you craft what season two would be?
Well, you know,
I try to follow as much fan reaction as I can,
um, online, and, you know, what I learned was that--
I mean, look, this show is a tonal experiment,
and, you know, combining sci-fl and comedy is always challenging.
The question is always, what measure of each is required?
And... um...
You know, the helpful thing for me to know
is that people that embrace the show,
um, as a legitimate science fiction show.
They were in for the storytelling, they were in for the characters,
and they weren't just expecting Spaceballs.
- So... - Hey, wait a minute!
So... (laughs)
So that was very helpful, and it's fun to write that stuff,
and it allows us to dig a little deeper.
Because, you know, Brannon and I
have always kind of viewed this show
and shows like Star Trek, as well,
as an anthology series with recurring characters.
The tone should be dictated by what the story is.
And, you know, if you're telling a story,
you know, like the Rob Lowe episode,
you can kind of keep it kind of light.
If you're telling a story like the episode with Bortus's baby,
you got to-- you can't be peppering in jokes
or you're gonna detract from your story
and it's not gonna matter.
That was the most, uh...
That was what delighted me the most about the reactions,
that people were kind of there for the show
um, in each individual episode.
They were like, "Okay, we get that this story is this story
"and that story is that story, and we're not gonna, kind of,
pressure you to keep this tone,
you know, generic the whole time."
What was the writers' room like when you guys
were trying to figure out how to carry both those tones?
Without letting one take over the other
or when it was appropriate?
Was it tough to kind of get that down
in the early days of the writers' room?
- Well, I mean-- - The story tells you.
The story tells you.
- Yes, the story tells you. - Okay, okay.
(laughter)
And I feel like that was a lot of the talk in the beginning of the show.
I remember asking it last fall,
"It is a comedy? Is it a drama? Is it a dramedy?"
Once the show started airing, did you stop hearing that?
Because once people dove into the world,
they saw what it was.
Maybe it didn't have an easy label,
but anybody, actors, anybody,
did you guys hear that voice kind of stop?
The judgment was massive before, I think, we aired.
And then, people actually saw the show
and the fans that are the most important,
um, you Know, the sci-fl fans
and people who love Star Trek and everything,
have been so supportive and, I think,
realized that it wasn't what they expected.
And, I think, it's at a time where we need things, like, you know,
very smart television and things that we don't expect.
Um, so, hopefully, we've given that to you all,
-and this guy's given it to you all. -(applause)
Yeah, nice. You know what? I think that,
you know, when you're dealing with some geniuses--
- Hey, man-- - GRIMES: You lookin' at me?
Yeah, Scottie, of course!
When you're working with somebody like Scott Grimes--
- Yeah? - I need you to exit stage left.
There he is!
- I'll back up. - So that guy right there--
And I'm not blowing smoke, gang, this is all real stuff.
He's ahead of his time, and with the crew,
all these guys, they're ahead of their time.
So what are you gonna do? You don't know until you see it.
So the skepticism was kind of like, "Yeah, well, we get that."
You know, you don't know what you're about to see.
But, uh, when they did, man, you know, they're consuming it
in a lovely manner.
I just have one thing to say to you.
It's not Bortus's baby!
-(laughter) - Fair enough.
(laughter)
Is it Bortus and Klyden, y'all, or what?
(laughter)
- Wow, this guy! - Stuck in here...
Jeez. What am I gonna do?
HALTERMAN: But that's... (laughs)
That's a great example of the issues you guys touched on
throughout the first season.
This episode we just saw, there's a lot of talk of faith
and what that means to different people.
And with the baby, there was a lot of talk about gender,
which I know I was surprised about.
But, you know, talk about why that was important to you, Seth,
and anybody that wants to weigh in on that,
that that be a part of the show.
Character-d riven science fiction
should be able to touch on any subject.
Um, and, I mean it was interesting.
The reaction to that episode initially was,
you know, I was at the first TCA,
and there was a lot of weird hostility about it.
Like, "Who do you think you are, writing about this stuff?"
And that's what science fiction should do.
And, um, the reaction from the fans was the opposite.
They were like, "Yeah. We're game for any kind story
you want to tell us."
And, um, you know, "Keep expanding this world."
So, it's... There really should be--
In this genre, there really should be nothing off-limits.
I mean, it goes all the way back to The Twilight Zone.
There was nothing they wouldn't talk about in their own way.
And so I think the second you start closing off issues,
and certainly issues that are of the moment,
with regard to your storytelling,
then you're just not doing your job.
(cheers, applause)
But also, I-- Not to jump, you know--
But I think that you do it, you guys all do it in a way
that's not a wag of the finger. You know what I mean?
It's like, the social issues are there, and you allow the audience
to grasp onto it in a way that they will, and you have,
but it's not like, "I'm gonna tell you what's happening right now."
It starts the conversation.
Absolutely, that's exactly it. It starts the conversation.
A very well-needed conversation.
And, actually, I think fans are smarter than people think.
- I mean... -(laughter, applause)
- Right? - People who?
- Truly. - What's wrong with this?
What's it like when the scripts are just getting written?
What comes first? Is it like
"Let's talk about this issue in this episode?"
Or is it more-- come organically,
where you know where the characters are going
and it kind of starts to feed into that?
How does that work?
I mean, they come from everywhere.
They come from something you read in the paper.
They come from a conversation that you have
outside the office or in the writers' room.
It's just really about talking and just trying to figure out
where something catches fire.
I mean, they're really-- It's the oldest question in the book.
Like, there's just no way to-- You can't look for an idea.
It just kind of comes when it comes.
So I asked the oldest question in the book?
-(laughing) Yeah! - I did, I did!
All right, we'll try not to do that.
For any of the actors, what were some of the issues that surprised you
that you guys were tackling in the first season?
Was there anything that kind of jumped out at you,
that you were surprised that you guys were able to do?
Yeah, more tongue!
(laughter)
SETH MACFARLANEI What?
No!
I'm shooting a scene with Yaphit...
- More tongue. -...and, um...
(laughter, cheers)
And I-- And, of course, there's no one there but me.
And I hear over the megaphone:
"Penny! More tongue!"
(laughter)
I thought, "Wait a minute. Did he just say my more tongue?
'Cause there's no other tongue here but mine."
I said-- and I'm hard of hearing--
I said, "Seth, did you say 'more tongue?"
"Yeah, we need more tongue."
And so, when lfinally saw the episode...
Whoo!
(laughter)
Lord have mercy, I needed a lot more tongue than I gave!
Oh, my gosh. Yeah, very crazy.
Needless to say, my time was up.
(laughter)
Anybody else have a first season favorite moment you want to talk about?
Well, you know, for me,
that's part of the reason why I took this show,
you know, outside of the fact that I needed a job, and...
(laughter)
...he was willing to pay me.
Outside of that?
Uh, taking on issues like that
and being able to spin it and just present it
like from six different sides,
and not be, you know, incredibly judgmental,
but leave it open for the audience to have an experience
so they can walk away with whatever they see, how they see it.
You know, it's pretty adept stuff,
and I appreciate being a part of things that are thought-provoking and funny.
I like the fact that we throw a lot of stuff at the wall,
and, you know, you'll have an episode that's really funny,
and you'll have another one that makes you think.
Because, to be honest, we all talk about people's babies
and stuff all the time, you know, at our house.
Y'all talk about somebody's ugly baby all the time, right?
- What you trying to say? - No, no. Topa is very cute.
- My point is... - Okay.
...we're just turning a camera on a lot of themes and stuff
that you guys and we all talk about anyway.
So we just try to be a mirror to stuff that we deal with anyway--
whether it's race, religion, creed, sex,
all that stuff, we deal with it anyway.
COLEMAN: Creed, the movie?
Yea, Creed, too, yeah. All of it.
- We did get that boxing in, didn't we? - Yeah.
What I liked about the baby episode was,
the ending didn't give you what you wanted as a viewer, you know?
No, no, no. Hold on.
What do you mean? Why would you say that?
Because it--
How can you say-- That's your perspective, bro.
But what's great is that you kind of evaluate that
and go, "Why did I want a different ending?"
Okay, now we're getting somewhere.
"Why have I been conditioned by, like, TV
to make me want that kind of ending?"
And I love the fact that we kind of just rip the rug out
from underneath the viewer's feet.
And I think this show does do that quite often,
and I think that's fantastic.
What I get a lot from my friends and family,
uh, what seems to have stuck a lot is,
"I can't get the image of you sitting on that egg out of my mind."
(laughter)
I saw it live!
- I see it every time I close my eyes. - Now lgot that in my head.
MACON: But...
I haven't seen that before. Well, maybe Enemy Mine.
Okay, I take that back. But on a TV show.
But, you know, throwing all of these elements
into the pot, um...
you know, uh, you know,
-domestic partnership... - GRIMES: Yeah.
...um, and fatherhood, and, you know, perilous events,
-and dark matter. - Yeah.
So all that stuff is happening while
my child is on the ship.
So, I mean, it's a great... It's a great, um--
Sound in this theater, the sound of...
-(laughter) - Anyway, I'm done!
Seth! Can I ask you one quick question, Seth?
MACFARLANE: Sure.
'Cause I thought it was very interesting, the idea...
-(laughter continuing) - MACFARLANE: What?
The idea that Bortus sat on the egg
when I'm the more domesticated alien,
was that a choice?
Luck of the draw. You know, it's not something that...
What do you mean? Can you--
I think you've thought more about that than I have.
(laughter)
COLEMAN: Fair enough. That's one answer.
Now, is there another, more thoughtful answer?
(laughter)
PALICKI: Did you want to be naked on that egg?
You know, we haven't really delved into the--
the, you know... biology of, you know,
can either member of a Moclan couple lay the egg.
They should've both laid an egg!
- We could've had twins. - Little late now, isn't it.
COLEMAN: This is going...
not quite where I was trying to deal with, but okay.
(laughter)
For the actors that do have to go and do the make-up chair
for prosthetics and that sort of thing,
how did it go from the start of the season to the end of the season?
Was it easier? Did it get more taxing?
No. It was-- It went--
Anything you do, repetition, repetition, repetition,
you're gonna get faster and better at it.
So, Howie was...
We started at 1:30, we ended at 1:10.
So, that's pretty much how it worked.
I will say that--
How can you start at 1:30 and end at 1:10?
I'm sorry, I'm no mathematician,
but how do you start at 1:30 and end at 1:10?
It took an hour and 30 minutes
-to put it on. - JOHNSON JERALD: Oh!
By the time we got through the end of the season,
it took an hour and 10 minutes to get it on!
- Oh, you were... - Everybody was confused.
- That's not too bad. - Twenty-three hours...
Maybe I am from Moclus, you know.
You know, Garrett lmmel,
who's a wonderful perfectionist,
who does the make-up application for Bortus,
every time we do it, he works just as hard on it
as if we haven't done it before.
- So, I mean, I know... -(applause)
I'm giving it up, too.
I will say this, I will say this.
Seth and I had to do an episode
where we were in this Krill make-up.
Uh...
and lfucking hated it.
(laughter)
It's very claustrophobic. Peter's being nice.
The only thing that got me through it
was knowing that Peter and Halston do this every single day.
And I was fine with it, and I was fine with it,
and then Peter told me-- I was there for it--
- You know the story I'm about to tell? - Please.
So, what they do is they... if you, if you--
To cool you down, they cut this little slit in the back of the cowl,
just to get a little bit of air in there.
And it was a really hot day,
and Peter had gone back to his trailer...
JOHNSON JERALD: No!
...to just lay down, and it was really hot.
- It was summertime. - No!
PALICKI: Tell them the story, though, of all of our trailers at the time.
Yeah. No, it was an infestation.
GRIMES: So there was an infestation of ants.
(audience groans)
(laughter)
I'm gonna let that happen, because it was exactly what you think.
And Peter, for the rest of the day, had 40 or 50 ants.
(audience groans)
MACON: Okay, okay.
- It was five or six. - Oh, come on!
-(laughter) - But, but, but, but...
But, but, they were--
But I didn't know because they sealed me up.
They're like, "Okay, we need you!"
So I get up and go, and I get on to the set.
And they seal me up, and I'm just there.
And I'm like, "That's, that's that's a tickle. What's that?"
(laughter)
"Okay, fine," 'cause I itch a lot in it, right.
"Okay, there's another tickle. Wait, that's kind of like
the tickle that was over here, "so it's not the same kind of tickle."
And then there's another tickle and then another tickle.
And I'm like, "Fucking ants in my head!"
-(laughter) - And I'm sealed up, and I can't...
If I rip the thing off, I'm ripping my skin off with it.
So, I had to beat myself in the face,
-um... -(laughter)
...to kill the ants.
And that's why it wasn't 50 or 60, it was five or six.
And they took a long time to kill, but...
it might as well have been 50 or 60.
But thank you for... bringing that up again.
GRIMES: I feel for you, man. I feel for you.
(laughter)
Anyway, moving on.
So, Halston, how is it for you?
Because your whole face isn't covered, partially, but how is it for you?
I think, as an actor, you always hope for these characters
that can bring some form of transformation.
And the fact that I get to play an alien at work
makes FaceTime really fun.
(laughter)
And it's been really great,
and especially with someone like Alara
who is a security officer.
I don't want to ruin the surprise,
but I'm not actually a security officer.
So it really helps kind of get into that mode
of, um... being in charge
and protecting everyone.
GRIMES: Mike Henry, who plays Dann,
who you guys will see a lot more in this next year,
has full prosthetic, and it's a funny story.
A big-ass head.
He couldn't turn on his iPhone X.
(laughter)
I just see him in the corner going, "God damn it!"
What's crazier is, mine will turn on.
-(laughter) - No way. Yeah.
HALTERMAN: In this episode we just watched,
Ed and Kelly get to a certain place in their relationship.
So, moving forward, what can we expect from that relationship?
Is the romance done or is it still maybe gonna be percolating somewhere?
CAST: I Brown chicken, brown cow I
(laughter)
You gotta watch. You gotta watch.
HALTERMAN: Okay. All right.
- I'm not gonna tell you! - Okay, I see.
(laughter)
That was me trying and getting shut down.
(laughter)
So, we're going to get to audience questions.
So, let's get the lights up, and we'll start getting some questions.
"Okay! "Oh!
Oh, my gosh! Look at that!
We're gonna start right here, with...
I know you probably hear this all the time,
but would you sign my banana?
-(audience whooping) - Well?
- Sign the banana. - Sure, sure, sure.
WOMAN: Whoa:!
Let's have as many people-- I'll throw it this way.
- Wait. I'll make it easier. - Oh, wow. She's got you covered, bro!
- Wait a minute. - I came prepared!
MACON: She just threw a banana up here!
WOMAN: And anybody else who wants to sign!
But what I wanted to do is not really a question,
but I wanted to thank you all.
You brought many of the examples of why I love this show
and why I've been telling people to watch this show.
- It's okay! It's okay! - That's a good throw.
It's all good, it's all good.
GRIMES: You keeping her pen? Why you keeping her pen?
I'm a poor state employee. Give me back my pen.
- Thank you! - HALTERMAN: All right. Thank you.
(laughter, applause)
Let's go to the next question.
But I wanted to thank you, again, for how wonderful the show is.
'Cause I've tried watching that other show, and like I've told people,
this is really what I think the Great Bird of the Galaxy
would love to see happening again. We need positivity.
- Mm. Yeah. -(audience cheers)
Like, one of my favorite lines...
I know it'll get political,
but this ties into what's happening next week
with our teen leaders that are happening throughout our country.
But when the doctor has the worst day of her life.
She's survived a crash. She's had to kill somebody.
Got indigenous life forms all around her.
Her son is possibly dying in front of her.
She still hands her weapon to her son and says,
"Keep it on stun. They may not value life, but we do."
- Whoa! - Nice! Nice!
WOMAN: That was a bad-ass thing to hear.
It brought me to tears.
I mean, this show has made me happy and sad,
and I just love that we have this show.
And I was here, in California, in January,
and I saw that this was happening, I said, I must come for this.
I woke up at one o'clock in Texas time to be here.
- Beautiful! Thank you! - Thank you so much!
I have no questions, just just praise, praise, praise.
And I can't wait for season two. Although, if you want to take me
to the set today while I'm still here till tomorrow, I'm totally ready to go.
I can be background. I'm ready for background.
HALTERMAN: Thank you for being here. Thanks so much.
My guess is you're gonna get on to the set one way or another.
(laughter)
- COLEMAN: What'd he say? - He said...
Anybody over on this side?
Anybody have a question, raise your hand.
GRIMES: We don't have time for any more questions!
Okay, we have-- Oh, there we go.
Hi. First off, on behalf of the Catholic Church, I am just pissed.
But, uh... No, just kidding with you there.
No, I had a question for anyone in the cast
or the production crew that want to handle this.
I was just curious, what do you really think of your role,
and have you acknowledged the power you have
by making shows like that with the commentary that's in it
to not only kind of make fun of culture
and comment on it but actually shape it going forward?
- Wow. - That's a beautiful question.
The first one was good, too, if you want to just respond to the first part.
You know, I'm not quite sure where your first comment came from.
GRIMES: I think it was a joke about the episode.
Oh, about the episode? Okay.
Because I was gonna comment on that anyway
'cause I'm a Christian,
and I love doing The Orville.
I have some people who want to judge,
"Oh, my gosh, you're doing a show like that?"
And I was like, "Of course, lam."
Because what you want to do is present the issues
and be generous and loving enough
to allow people to make their own decision.
- We have this one life. - GRIMES: That's right.
(applause)
And, um, we gotta live it.
And, um, I've been doing this business for some time,
and people often ask that question and it's like,
if you're not a part of being the light in the room...
you're just allowing anything to be tossed up.
So, my thing is always to be a light in the room,
whether it's just loving on people
or doing excellent with the script and the talent
that God has blessed someone with,
and you have to be able to honor that.
So, playing Claire, I find, is extraordinary,
because, uh, Seth and the rest of the writers
have allowed me to be three-dimensional
and not this one dimension that we get stuck on here--
you know, judgmental and whatever.
I get to do everything.
And, my gosh, I am so excited!
Because if you don't see me on television,
it's gonna be somebody else, so I'll be missing my calling,
which is sinful anyway. Sorry to go there.
-(laughter, applause) - So, I'm just gonna be there.
And I'm with an extraordinary group of people.
And so, I'm just tremendously blessed to be a part of this.
I love where my character is going.
"And, Oh, my gosh! {laughter}
Season two! We are not supposed to say anything,
but we're friends here, let me tell you.
You are gonna be so surprised!
- Oh! Yes! -(applause, laughter)
GRIMES: Well said, Penny.
- HALTERMAN: Anyone else? Yeah. - MACON: I want to--
I don't know why but I feel compelled to share this with you.
When I was about... six
or seven, that KISS movie,
the KISS made-for-TV movie
came out where they were in the amusement park, right?
And lwatched this, and it changed my life, right?
So I wanted to be Gene Simmons for Halloween, right?
-(laughter) - Now, and so,
not only did I, you know, fall in love with that,
but I wore that mask in June.
And, you know, my mom and I
would take the city bus in Chicago, and, you know,
I feel for her now, being a parent,
but I wanted to wear that mask, and I needed to wear that mask!
So, this little black kid in Chicago, wearing a KISS mask
-on a city bus, right? - Beautiful brother, yeah!
And, so, I'm just saying
like, when I think of the television or the screen
or what we're doing shaping--
just what it did for me creatively
and what it allowed, you know, me to express--
that that was okay, like I wasn't shut down,
and I wasn't told that you can't wear this mask at all
or you can't wear it in June or you can't wear it whatever,
but it just helped to blossom my consciousness,
and I hope that, um, with this kind of work,
with this kind of the sky's the limit future, you know, work
that... I can do the same thing for some little kid who wants--
You know what I mean?
So, I don't know why
I wanted to share that, but that's who it makes me.
- Bravo. -(cheers, applause)
- Real quick, uh... - Yeah.
Don't wear John's face.
(laughter)
Because blackface is still not...
Oh. jeez!
- Now, see, just so y'all know... - MACON: Yeah.
...you can wear the orange jacket.
Don't wear my face.
(laughter)
COLEMAN: And, lastly...
Lastly, you know, what came first,
the chicken or the egg?
Either way goes.
If we're throwing things out there
that speaks to something inside of that child,
that gives them to boldness to say,
I can actuate my individuality without fear,
that's awesome!
- Yeah. -(applause)
- Very good. - Thank you.
I'll take a question, toward the back?
MAN: I was just wondering if the producers could give us some insights
into the exciting visual effects that go into the show.
COLEMAN: Nice! Nice!
Good job, brother.
Our, um, effects team is headed up
by Luke McDonald and Brandon-- it's pronounced Fay-ette, right?
Fay-ette, yes.
I've never said it out loud, I talk to him all the time.
It's astonishing what they do on a weekly basis.
What they achieve--
You know, obviously, this goes for--
(applause)
I'm gonna fold this into all departments.
Joseph Porro, who heads up costumes.
- BRAGA: Yep. Yes. -(cheering)
Howard Berger, Tami Lane, who do our make-up designs.
And, um, Stephen Lineweaver,
who does all of our sets and all of our production design.
I mean, it's an extraordinary group of people.
This show should not be achievable,
certainly not on a network, with the schedule that you have.
And somehow they do it,
and I'm always kind of amazed
when I walk onto a set, and...
I still don't really know how they're getting the stuff done.
The creativity is there, and the artistry is there,
and the visual brilliance is there.
It's just the speed with which it happens.
It's just mind-blowing.
They're doing a little movie every week.
When you're doing an episodic, non-serialized sci-fi show,
you're asking these people to create a new world every week,
and they do it, and it's convincing.
They're magicians, as far as I'm concerned.
- It occurred to me... -(applause)
It occurred to me the other day
that actors get things wrong all the time.
We're allowed to,
it's part of the process, and it's not encouraged,
let's say, but it's something that just happens.
But for the make-up team and the wardrobe team,
they can't get it wrong. It has to be perfect every time.
And, you know, what an achievement
to be doing what they do on a daily basis and do that.
- It's incredible, really. -(applause)
And just working on it, day to day, and, uh,
and being inspired by the scripts,
by the... by the cast,
I mean, every one of them is there
and giving it all, I think, in part because
it's inspirational to work with people who are so dedicated,
and the creativity at the highest level
comes from the material we're chasing and also the performances that we have.
So, I give it up to these guys up here,
and the gals up here. This is, uh...
It's the inspiration that drives that week to week.
SCOTT GRIMES: You're welcome, Jason.
(laughter)
Free meal! Free meal on me, man!
What does come first, you guys?
Is it an idea in the script for what a creature should be?
Or is it sometimes the guys come and say,
"Hey, we've got this three-eyed creature we'd like to work in"?
How does it work?
It's either or. I mean, I...
You know, sometimes Howard Berger will send me a make-up design.
"Here's a crazy idea I have for an alien."
I mean, the character of Dann, who is played by Mike Henry...
(cheers, applause)
...was a design that Howard did
that we just thought was so awesome
that we just built a character around it.
So, it kind of goes either way. It's about half and half.
Sometimes it's in the script,
sometimes it's something they pitch us,
and that's what kind of works well about it.
It's all voices are being heard from the ground up.
Okay. Another question?
- Maybe over on this side? -(laughter)
This woman right here is fine. Yes, please.
She just jumped six feet in the air.
What was the hardest script you had to write
throughout the entire season one by far?
- Okay. {gasping from stage)
- Hmm, that's interesting. - Yeah, I know.
(whispering) I don't know why I did that.
Well, that last one, the one we just saw
was tough to figure out.
Whether it was a tough script to write, I don't know.
And I think it was the best script of the season.
I think your best work of the season.
(applause)
That was a toughie.
MACON: The gender, the gender one.
Yeah, it's... nothing--
I mean, that's the thing that I've found is
you know, I've been in comedy for years,
and I've never had an easier, smoother time
writing than I have on this show.
It makes me think that I probably was in the wrong business.
Day one, it's these--
I mean, look, fuckin' Gene Roddenberry once said,
"The basis of your series is the galaxy.
There should be a lot of ideas out there."
(laughter)
And there are. You really don't run out.
It's what I love about--
There's an episode in season two that
actually does not contain a sci-fi plot.
It's just all character pieces.
And that's, to me, the essence of what
a good sci-fi show should be able to do.
Your characters should be so strong
that if you want to do a story that is
just pure drama or pure comedy,
then you should be able to do that.
And, um, it's been surprisingly--
I'm sure, look, if we go a number of seasons,
- I'm sure by season six... - When? When? When?
...um, it's gonna get harder, but at the moment,
it's not, and the nice thing about that is
it kind of tells you that, okay, we've done our job with these characters.
We don't have--
There are no two characters who can say the same line of dialogue.
You can black out the name,
and look at the dialogue and you kind of know who's the one saying it.
And that's, that's been very gratifying.
You know, because it's oftentimes hard to do that.
But it hasn't been hard, that's the funny thing.
Thank you. Next question. Let's get one on this side, over here.
Hi, my name's Tannerby.
It's really great to see you guys here. Thank you for coming.
I've come from the UK to see you.
- COLEMAN: Yeah, awesome! - Whoo!
I have a couple of questions for Mr. MacFarlane,
from Twitter, if that's okay, for people who couldn't be here.
MACFARLANE: Sure, love it.
Firstly, you had some great guest cameos,
like Charlize Theron and Liam Neeson in the first season.
Can you tease any for the second season?
MACFARLANE: Nope!
(laughter)
Yeah... not yet. Not yet.
Secondly, what is your obsession with Kermit the Frog,
and does it extend to all Muppets?
(laughter, applause)
COLEMAN: He took a drink on that one.
Yeah, lfuckin' love the Muppets.
Yeah, you know, I mean...
I grew up on The Muppet Movie.
I think The Great Muppet Caper is one of the best...
one of the best movie musicals ever made.
I'm a big Henson fan.
I was just always kind of astonished with what they pulled off.
I mean, Kermit's basically a sock puppet with eyes,
and there's so much personality in him
that I feel like Henson never got his due as an actor.
'Cause really, all he's working with is his hand.
And there's so much soul in that character. I...
What does he sound like?
Oh, come on, David!
(laughter)
-(cheering) - He said her line! Come on!
(KERMIT'S voice): Hi-ho! Kermit the Frog here.
-(cheering) - There you go.
- That's what it was. - I love it.
Anyway...
WOMAN: Thank you.
I know you guys have another event you have to run off to,
but we got to wrap this up. Thanks, everybody, for being here.
Keep watching The Orville, season two.
- Thanks so much. -(cheers, applause)