Posted in: Exclusive, Interview, Interview, Movies, Sony | Tagged: Michael J. Weithorn, The Best You Can

The Best You Can Director on Slice-of-Life Rom-Com, Bacon-Sedgwick

Director Michael J. Weithorn (The King of Queens) spoke to us about the inspiration behind "The Best You Can," Bacon & Sedgwick, and more.

Michael J. Weithorn has largely lived a life on TV, writing and directing several projects for over 44 years since his debut in the ABC sitcom Benson in 1981. He's worked on some of the biggest shows across network TV, including NBC's Cheers, Family Ties, Ned and Stacey, Fox's True Colors, and CBS's The King of Queens. In recent years, he's embraced films with his theatrical debut in the Freestyle Releasing rom-com A Little Help in 2010, and 15 years later, his second slice-of-life rom-com in Sony's The Best You Can, which made the rounds at Tribeca in June. The film follows Cynthia Rand (Kyra Sedgwick), a tightly wound NYC urologist whose life is upended when her husband (Judd Hirsch), a brilliant former Watergate prosecutor, begins showing signs of dementia. Stan (Kevin Bacon), a bright but underachieving security guard struggling to reconnect with his adult daughter (Brittany O'Grady). When a robbery unexpectedly throws Cynthia and Stan together, their unlikely friendship deepens into something more complicated—and more meaningful. Weithorn spoke to Bleeding Cool about his personal inspiration for writing and directing The Best You Can, and his initial reluctance to cast Bacon and Sedgwick, given their current marriage.

The Best You Can Director Michael J. Weithorn on His Life Inspiration Behind Film, Kevin Bacon, and Kyra Sedgwick Casting Concerns

What's the inspiration behind The Best You Can?

There were multiple "inspirations," if you want to use that word. I always loved watching and, in this case, making films that are fine, compelling stories about the most ordinary people, like the idea that behind any door, you pass any house, there's some interesting conflict, whether it's dramatic, comedic, or some combination of the two. In this case, there were certain elements of this that I thought were story-worthy, the things I experienced. I met a couple that was, like Cynthia (Kyra Sedgwick) and Warren (Judd Hirsch) in the movie, where they'd been married 25 years when the woman was young, in her early 30s, the guy was in his fifties, in a dynamo in a powerhouse, and she idolized this strong, successful man.

As they're aging, he's starting to slip into dementia, and she's left with that as her husband now, and asks, "What do I do?" I found that very interesting. There are other elements; the father-daughter conflict appealed to me, and I assembled them. I tried to put them together like a puzzle, make an interesting story where one thing might affect the other. These are the kinds of movies I have always liked. Mike Leigh, the English filmmaker, is always one of my heroes, as well as James L. Brooks with Broadcast News, Sideways, these movies that are neither purely comedic nor dramatic. They are about life in all the range of tones that life takes. I did a film in 2011 called A Little Help with Jenna Fischer that was in the same vein. Once this idea was formed, I wrote it and was motivated to try to do another one.

Did you have any personal experience, either a friend or family member, who had battled dementia?

My father. That was certainly a very personal part of the film for me. My father had dementia for the last ten years of his life, and in a facility, like the one in this film, was not based on specific or literal terms in terms of how the people in a memory care unit look and act, which I witnessed over a period of two years. I will say [laughs] that I've had prostate issues, and so Stan's (Kevin Bacon) experience was also one I'm quite familiar with. I like to draw things from real life, whether it's my own or what I observe. I think people recognize when something is based on the actual random oddness of real life versus some writer constructing something artificial in their office. I think people sense the difference consciously or unconsciously.

How did your casting come together with Kevin, Kyra, and Judd? Were they already immediately on board?

No, it came together piece by piece as tends to be the case. We approached Kevin, who liked the part (of Stan) in the script very much and wanted to do it. He suggested Kyra, who obviously read it too, expressed interest and passed that along to me. I was a little resistant at first, not because Kyra Sedgwick is a fine actress. I was a little concerned about casting the couple and having it appear to be cutesy, "Oh look, they're the married couple doing a rom-com, and the whole thing would be like a scene as an extended Instagram post or something," because I was very protective of the film, story, and characters. Once I met and got to know them, all my fears were assuaged because they're both very dedicated to their craft, and they were not looking to make this be about them. They wanted to play these characters.

Kyra was the one who suggested Cynthia's hair be darker, straighter, and not have her signature beautiful blonde curls, because that wouldn't be right for this character. The fact that she was looking that way immediately, I said, "Oh, okay, I'm dealing with someone who really wants to play a character here." Some actors or actresses sometimes like to make sure the whole time they're winking at the audience, particularly in a light comedy. They're winking at the audience. It's me, and they're there, one foot in the character, one foot still themselves. That was not the case with either of them.

The Best of You, which also stars Olivia Luccardi, Ray Romano, and Victor Williams, is available on digital.

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