Inthe latest episode ofUnREAL, she calls the cops on Darius (B.J.
Shootings are still happening, and police violence remains a national topic.
When you were writing it back then, what was the message you wanted to get across?
Credit: James Dittiger/Lifetime
Obviously, Rachel lands on the side of heavily,insanelyinappropriate.
I think we were trying to find a way to do that through the lens of our show.
That was the point of our episode, what Rachel did wrong.
Lifetime
How did you figure out the mechanics, the choreography of the scene itself?
What went into the research?
We spent a lot of time dissecting them.
When we did research on police violence, it is about these split-second decisions.
How did your own races play into writing this story?
Ariana, what about you?
Its like, What is the role of white liberal media in this movement?
What is the right next step?
I dont think I have an answer.
It was not something that was thought of as something light and fun and entertaining, you know?
The fact that people are having reactions to it makes a lot of sense, and we get it.
Sarah, you directed the episode.
What were your goals for the look and feel of the hour?
SHAPIRO:Tonally, this episode was a challenge.
It was similar tothe Mary episodelast season.
My goal with that was to slow everybody down and make it feel real.
Thats one of the complications of making television, and we did the best we could… Why do you think that is?
SHAPIRO:I think, for me, I was kind of anticipating it.
I have even seen that withMr.
Robot, you know, people will find faults.
It is a really big season, I sort of anticipated [the negative reaction].
So if the issue is burning through story quickly, do you thinkUnREALneeds more episodes in a season?
This was a really fast and furious season.
We may need a little more room to breathe in season 3.
As for the story, where do things pick up in the next episode?
SHAPIRO:This is the first time weve done a time jump onUnREAL.
A couple of weeks pass, and we meet up with a very differentEverlastingbecause of this incident.
UnREALairs Mondays at 10 p.m.
