Bill Lawrence on his new show ‘Bad Monkey,’ Vince Vaughn, and his ‘nepo baby’ daughter
Veteran TV creator and producer Bill Lawrence has found his next unlikely leading man: Vince Vaughn.
Lawrence, 55, best known for creating and producing shows like “Scrubs,” “Ted Lasso” and “Shrinking,” cast Vaughn in his latest show, the dark comedy-drama “Bad Monkey,” which premieres Wednesday, Aug. 14 on Apple TV+.
Based on a novel of the same name by Carl Hiaasen, the show follows Andrew Yancy (Vaughn), a former police detective in Florida who was demoted to inspecting restaurants until he gets pulled into a mystery when a tourist finds a severed arm.
“In the book, this character is big and imposing and has the ability to be threatening and sarcastic and edgy — and at the same time, affable and likable,” Lawrence told The Post.
“And people root for him, and he gets in his own way. It’s as if it was written about Vince. I knew he was perfect for it. We were wandering around Florida when we first got there, and everybody that sees him recognizes him because he’s giant; he’s like 6-foot-5. They all approach him as if they’ve been best friends for years. And he goes right back at them that way.”
Lawrence said that he assumed Vaughn already knew one of his fans from the way he spoke to the person. But when he asked, it turned out they were strangers.
“That vibe is exactly who [Vaughn’s character, Andrew Yancy] is,” he said.
Vaughn isn’t the only unconventional leading man in a Lawrence show. He joins the ranks of Jason Sudeikis, Brett Goldstein, Jason Segel and Zach Braff.
Lawrence said he does that on purpose because he grew up watching shows like “Falcon Crest” or “Dallas,” where “everybody and every family looked as perfect as if they were chiseled out of a rock.”
Lawrence added, “I always loved the world of the everyman or the everywoman. And, I think if people can look at characters and say, ‘that could be me,’ it makes it easier for me to have the audience step into their shoes and empathize and get invested.”
“Bad Monkey” also marks the acting debut for Lawrence’s daughter, singer Charlotte Lawrence, 24.
Lawrence said that he was aware she may get tagged with the “nepo baby” moniker, which is the term used to describe actors who have parents in showbiz.
“I couldn’t do nepotism in music, but I was able to work with her in acting,” Lawrence joked.
He said he was trying to cast a girl in her 20s with a “rock star vibe” and many of the women auditioning were his daughter’s friends. Charlotte secretly went behind his back and auditioned, “And said, ‘If it sucks, don’t show my dad.’ But it was good,” Lawrence recalled.
“But before I hired her, I said, ‘I know you’ve been on social media a lot. You’re going to definitely get this ‘nepo baby’ thing. And she’s like, ‘I’ve handled it before.’ ”
Lawrence continued that he doesn’t think the label is a big deal as long as the person “approaches it with honesty” and acknowledges, “I got to be around people and mentors and in rooms that I would never have been able to be in if it weren’t for [my parents]. That’s a step up.”
Lawrence said about Charlotte, “And so, she’s handled it so adeptly already in her life. What a gift to get to work with my kid. I’m biased, but I think she’s awesome in the show.”
