No?l Wells Made a Rom Com Without a Love Interest
“I see so many women thinking other women are their enemies,” says No?l Wells, of SNL and Master of None fame, “especially when they don’t have a job or a guy or whatever. It’s like, ‘I don’t have what I want and she does, so she must be my enemy.' I find it confusing and not fair,” she sighs, “and sad.”
So the 30-year-old did something about it: She wrote, directed, and starred in a film called Mr. Roosevelt. It follows a flailing YouTube star named Emily as she screams at her ex, bungles a cat funeral, meets a real friend, and turns a house party into a credibly badass rock concert. Along the way, Emily wrestles with the nature of friendship - with old flames, new hookups, and other girls - and how it helps define, and create, our modern ideas of success.
We chatted up Wells after Mr. Roosevelt’s New York premiere and asked her all about her friendship-focused version of a rom-com.
Mr. Roosevelt is a neat film, because it’s focused on friendship, not on “true love.”
Yeah, it meant a lot to me to make a film where “getting the guy” isn’t the point, and it doesn’t make the main character complete. The friendships between the women are the most important ones in the film, and letting them call each other on their mistakes - letting them smack each other around a little - that was so important to me.
Why?
Because in films, best friends are always in these “guardian angel” roles, but they never say, “Dude, grow up and deal with it.” And they should! You know, growing up, I felt like it was very dangerous to mess up in any way, both in front of men and in front of other girls. It was like, you couldn’t make mistakes. So having a female friend who's like, “Get over yourself, you’re driving me crazy!” - that’s been one of my most important parts of becoming an adult.
Growing up, I felt like it was very dangerous to mess up in any way
Have you ever seen The Holiday, when Eli Wallach tells Kate Winslet, “You’re behaving like the best friend, but you’re the leading lady?”
What are the implications of being a leading lady? You’re strong, confident, and hot? I genuinely have no idea what we’re aspiring to be anymore. I would much rather be a “best friend.” I want to be a kind, supportive person, and I want that to be valued and seen as a main storyline. I don’t want to get ahead at the expense of somebody else. I don’t even want to be the center of attention - I mean, yes, I made this movie and I can do all these things, but I don’t want to always keep being in the middle of it. I want to collaborate with people and be a part of a creative community. I don’t know.
It sounds like you definitely know.
You sound like my therapist! I say “I don’t know” all the time, and she’s like, “You do know, No?l.” But yeah, I’m just exhausted by this idea that we have to get ahead of other people, and that’s the ideal. I like to be good. I like being good at things. I wish that was valued, instead of me being “better” than another woman who also writes things and makes movies.
As the director of Mr. Roosevelt, you got to create your own community, right? How did you set the tone for that kind of collaboration?
It was very complicated. To be honest, I just assumed everyone was already on the same page about collaboration. It took me about two weeks into the shoot to realize that’s not what was happening.
Why not?
I tried this balancing act where I was trying to be so friendly and so family-oriented that I didn’t put my foot down. That led to some mistakes on set. So next time, I’ll know before production even starts that it’s okay to be tough as the boss, and it’s also okay to have a creative family. It’s like when you’re a parent, and you have to use tough love sometimes... . Making a movie is as much about the art of it as the business. And to run a successful business, you have to be tough.
But you must have done some things right, because this movie is great!
I’m starting to think the creative process is magical. It comes to you from the future and brings you what you need.
Like what?
For example, we had this situation where a film spool rolled out. One roll was scratched up, completely, and it was my favorite scene in the whole movie. I thought it was going to be my “magical moment” and my big breakthrough performance, you know? But we couldn’t use that take, because the film got ruined. And thank goodness - because the one I personally didn’t like? It was so much better for the film. And things like that forced me to let go of my expectations, and that made the movie better.
This is your first feature film. If you don’t mind my asking, how did you fund it?
How much do you think it cost?
Like three million dollars?
Ha! It wasn’t three million dollars. Not even close. In fact, if you think of one episode of Master of None, my entire 90-minute movie probably cost a third of one episode. We financed it with [Beachside Films], a production company that finances first-time filmmakers.
You seem really together. Do you have a mentor?
Not really. The only person I talk to all the time about my creative stuff is my ex-boyfriend, Flint Wainess, who’s also sometimes my writing partner. We worked together on a Comedy Central show, and we have a really good working relationship. When he’s working on a project, he’ll send me his script and I’ll give him notes. He does the same for me. It’s this really good exchange of ideas, and we understand each other and what we’re trying to do.
Wow. How long ago did you break up?
A year and a half ago.
I wish I could talk to my exes about creative projects, but my ego gets in the way a lot.
He’s my best friend! We also really care about keeping the peace with people around us. We grew differently, that’s all. It wasn’t easy at first, but we decided we really wanted to stay friends and be positive. Especially now, with the world falling apart, you don’t want your ego to get in the way of a really important relationship.
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In Mr. Roosevelt, Emily becomes friends - kind of - with her ex-boyfriend’s new fiancée. Was it tricky to write that relationship without vilifying “the other girl?”
Writing those parts was so fun, but I had to make it clear that Emily wasn’t jealous of her. I hate it when people say, “Oh, women are just jealous.” I’m not jealous, but I do beat myself up about what I haven’t accomplished in my own life yet - and when you meet a woman who has accomplished what you expect to achieve, and she’s also dating your ex, of course it’s hard! But that woman isn’t the enemy. I mean, she’s a little obnoxious, but she’s well meaning, and she doesn’t deserve ire or negativity. We throw it at each other constantly, and it’s hurtful. It hurts the other girl, but it also hurts us.
There’s a scene in this movie where all the girls are topless. And all I could think was, “No?l has such fair skin! Is she wearing sunblock?”
Oh yeah. Also, we shot it super early in the morning because it’s a public watering hole. We couldn’t shut down the location to use it for our set. So I was like, “Let’s get this done at 7 A.M., be out of there by 8 A.M., and get this over with.”
So random people are coming for a swim, and seeing you guys topless?
And filming a movie. Yeah. But by the end of the scene, I was basically just out there directing topless. I didn’t care anymore. And the actors were great about it.
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