Amy Schumer on Autism, Antisemitism and Pulling From Her Marriage for ‘Life & Beth’ Season 2
With Life & Beth season two, Amy Schumer is no longer worried about spoilers. After all, this story is in the details.
The follow-up season to her semi-autobiographical Hulu dramedy, which launched all 10 episodes on Thursday, centers on the romantic relationship between Beth (Schumer) and John (played by Michael Cera), who — as the trailer revealed — get married early on in the new season. As the season progresses, Beth starts to notice certain behaviors in John and suggests that they check them out, together. Early in their marriage, John is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
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According to Schumer, talking about John’s diagnosis on the day that the new season launches will not ruin the viewing experience. “They really put everything in the trailer, which at first I was like, ‘Um, excuse me?'” recalls the creator, writer and director with a laugh. “And they were like, ‘Well, it will get people to watch the show.’ And we were like, ‘All right.’ So I guess just nothing is a spoiler?”
For viewers who have followed along with Schumer’s life, parallels can be drawn while watching her character and her new husband navigate an ASD diagnosis. Schumer’s real-life husband, Chris Fischer, received his own ASD diagnosis after they wed in 2018. His wife revealed this during her 2019 Netflix special Growing, saying, “I knew from the beginning that my husband’s brain was a little different than mine. … And once he was diagnosed, it dawned on me how funny it was, because all of the characteristics that make it clear that he’s on the spectrum are all of the reasons that I fell madly in love with him.”
After watching the Life & Beth season two love story play out, you can’t help but wonder how much is fiction and where did she decide to draw the line? “What if I had an exact number? Like 30-some percent,” she jokes, when speaking recently to The Hollywood Reporter alongside her scene partner Cera. “No, you know, it’s definitely not a documentary.”
Cera adds, “Beth’s not becoming a comedian. When is that going to happen?”
Schumer says she doesn’t like to use anything from her real life that will make someone angry with her. “I really try to pick and choose,” she explains. “With my own personal life, there are some things, like the birth scene, that’s pretty much [how it happened]. There are some elements that are obviously exaggerated, but some of it is direct from my life and conversations that I’ve had, and other stuff is a collaboration from the writers and the actors. It really is an amalgamation of everybody’s lives.” (The trailer also reveals that Beth and John are expecting.)
Schumer’s husband, Fischer, was a consulting writer on the season, and she says many of the writers in the room also have connections to autism. They consulted a trusted clinical psychologist specializing in autism, who Schumer says went through every word to make sure they got it right.
“We really wanted to be respectful and show that, when we talk about the spectrum, what that word means,” she says. “It’s a wide spectrum, and this is part of it that you don’t often get to see: a super high-functioning person. And that that’s not what defines him.”
Cera calls the role a gift, saying John was delivered so clearly in the writing. “He’s so alive on the page. And I think a lot of it is because Amy is so close to the character, and a lot of it does come from Chris, her real-life husband; though, not all of it. So it’s a very full, well-rounded character,” he tells THR. “It’s like a key that they discovered together, just a lot of things that were confusing to them.”
“Not to speak for you,” he says to Schumer, “but I feel like that came from your guys’ life, unlocking a mystery in a way. I love the way that’s channeled into the story.”
Schumer praises Cera’s performance and hopes that it will impact viewers, and help to drop the stigma around the diagnosis. “It is a brave thing to do and to portray,” she says of Cera, adding, “Autism has been something that has been so stigmatized. Very few people share their diagnosis, and it’s a shame. And we wanted to do our part to say: It’s just a part of someone. And it’s not this picture of that we’ve seen, of what we think that someone with autism looks like. And it holds people back from discovering this about themselves because they fear the stigma, and I really understand that.”
The second season follows Beth and farmer John in a newly rural life for her, having left her childhood home in Long Island, which she returned to in season one after the loss of her mother, and confronted her past. The first season was deeply personal for Schumer, who has spoken about her upbringing, and said her mom got to see every script before the mother and daughter then watched the entire season together. “My mom is insanely flawed and I also love her an insane amount,” Schumer told THR in a cover story ahead of Life & Beth‘s debut.
Cera’s character arrived in season one, already drawing parallels to Fisher, who is also a farmer (and a chef and James Beard-winning cookbook author). At the time, Fischer told THR that he loved the idea that they would have the series as a time capsule of their love story.
“Chris is involved every step of the way,” Schumer says now of season two, adding that they’ve watched the finished result many times together. “It continues to be extremely emotional, I think, for all of us.”
The pair — who are parents to son Gene — now have another capsule of their evolving story with season two. “As far as timelines go, this was around the birth of my child, and now he’s almost 5. So, it’s definitely not in real time,” she explains. “I feel like it takes that many years to process and reflect, and figure out what you want to say and communicate what you’ve learned.”
The impetus to write the series from the start, says Schumer, came after she went back and reread her teenage journals. Looking back on what her younger self wrote helped her to process her past experiences now in adulthood, while writing a semi-autographical series. “As someone whose expression is my way of reconciling my life and processing it, it’s just an incredible opportunity to get to continue to do that, as a way to process my life as it continues,” she says.
Also ingrained in the series is her Jewish identity, and her character is shown experiencing antisemitism in flashbacks. “Even when it’s just a throwaway line or the kids just yelling something to her, I think it’s a really good way to show how these things stick with you and can eat at you,” she says.
In her revival season of Inside Amy Schumer, which was later canceled and removed from Paramount+, the comedian took on antisemitism in a sketch called “Workplace Harassment,” written by Tova Diker. When speaking at the time to THR about the sketch, in November 2022, Schumer talked about how she planned to use her comedy to give space to Jewish people, and reflected on the rise in antisemitism and fears over the Holocaust happening again. Flash-forward to Oct. 7, when Hamas brought about the terrorist attack on Israeli civilians that launched the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, Schumer explains why she felt compelled to speak out.
“I’m very proud of my Jewish identity and my heritage and had several survivors of specifically Auschwitz in my family, so there was no question that I was going to stand up for my people,” she says now. “I just think it’s a human issue. It’s a feminist issue. And I want peace and happiness and health for everybody, and as a Jewish person, I want to show up for my community.”
Schumer attached her name to movements to support the freeing of the hostages held by Hamas and to TikTok to combat antisemitism on social media. She also used her Instagram account to be an advocate for the Jewish community and speak out amid the war, with some of her posts prompting criticism or clarification, the latter including from Martin Luther King Jr.’s daughter Bernice King. Schumer engaged on social media in her comments, explaining, “I want safety and freedom from Hamas for Palestinians and Israelis. I want safety for Jewish people and Muslims as well. Everyone. Just like you. I want peace.”
When asked now if it’s challenging to promote a project when she also wants to promote her beliefs, Schumer says she sees them as one and the same. “I can’t help but be honest and authentic with my feelings, so, it is a challenge in theory, but I know that I’ll always just do my best and be myself and that comforts me,” she says.
Case in point: her swift response to criticism over her appearance while on the press tour for Life & Beth. In a message to fans who expressed concern over her face, saying it appeared puffy, the comedian took to social media to say, “I’ve enjoyed feedback and deliberation about my appearance as all women do for almost 20 years. And you’re right, it is puffier than normal right now.” She reminded people that she has endometriosis, “an auto immune disease that every woman should read about,” and took the opportunity to advocate for self love: “Like every other women/person some days I feel confident and good as hell and others I want to put a bag over my head. But I feel strong and beautiful and so proud of this tv show.”
And Schumer wants to keep sharing herself with the world. Both she and Cera are very on board for another season of Life & Beth — and Schumer says she doesn’t need much time to process the next part of the story.
“I want to do a season three and — Michael, I hope this doesn’t make you mad, but I want John to be played by Brad Pitt. Would you support that? I don’t want to make you feel weird,” says Schumer, lobbing the idea over to Cera, who quickly replies, “I mean, have you talked to him?”
Schumer doesn’t break: “There’s been some interest. His reps are circling back.”
Joking aside, Cera recalls how, when they finished the first season, “I was so desperate to keep making more. And I still am. I feel like there’s so much more story to tell. It’s just such a lovely world to get to go back into, as a viewer and as a performer.”
Schumer then references a major plot point of season two: “We’re down to pop her out. The delay in this show did not come from us needing time. We’re ready to create … whenevs.”
And she’s also ready to revive Inside Amy Schumer — again.
“Tell somebody. Holler at me if anybody wants it on their platform. Life just keeps on going and I’ve got ideas,” she says.
Life & Beth is now streaming season two on Hulu.
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