The Afterparty returns with a new murder that pulls Detective Danner, Zoë, and Aniq back together. After clearing Aniq’s name in the first crime, they now have to solve this new case and clear Zoë’s family of suspicion when her young sister’s new husband is killed during their wedding. The trio will question guests, including Zoë’s family, the groom’s family, a business partner, and star-crossed lovers, to figure out who the real killer is.
The Afterparty was created by Christopher Miller, who serves as an executive producer along with Phil Lord and Anthony King. Tiffany Haddish, Sam Richardson, and Zoë Chao reprise their roles from the first season of The Afterparty. Season two features an impressive cast, including Elizabeth Perkins, Zach Woods, Paul Walter Hauser, Poppy Liu, Anna Konkle, Jack Whitehall, Vivian Wu, Ken Jeong, and John Cho.
FilmmakerFocus spoke with Anna Konkle about starring in The Afterparty season 2 and their episode of Carpool Karaoke. She discusses the improvisation in both Carpool Karaoke and The Afterparty season 2, as well as Haddish’s comedic timing. Konkle also teases Hitchcock, film noir, and indie film inspired episodes in The Afterparty’s new season.
Anna Konkle On The Afterparty Season 2 & Carpool Karaoke
FilmmakerFocus: I love season two of The Afterparty, and I love your guys’ episode of Carpool Karaoke. They’re both so much fun!
Anna Konkle: Oh, thank you. Thanks so much for watching.
So who out of the cast do you think is the best at karaoke?
Anna Konkle: Sam. Sam Richardson kills it. I just actually watched the episode today and he really brought it home. Kind of saved a lot of us.
You had a hard job as the driver.
Anna Konkle: Thank you! I was surprised that they wanted me to drive. I don’t know why, but I was surprised. So they didn’t show it. They showed like one reference to it, but Zoe kept getting carsick. I was forced to admit that they weren’t the first people. I think because I learned driving six shift. That’s my theory that because of that, I am sort of a stop and go kind of drivers. As though there’s a clutch there when there’s not and so I should have told production before we went that people complain that I make them car sick. So my friends were getting sick in the back.
Oh no! If you were to do another Carpool Karaoke episode, who would be your dream road partner, and would you want to drive again?
Anna Konkle: I, for their sake would not drive again, even though I like driving. I don’t want to make anyone sick. I feel like maybe I saw that she was on this season or a past season, but Alanis Morissette. I might be too nervous to speak, but she’s kind of an idol for me.
I love that! There is a ton of really fun improv between you guys on Carpool Karaoke and such a great chemistry. Were you able to do a lot of improv on The Afterparty set as well?
Anna Konkle: Yeah, Anthony and Chris were super welcoming to that. Once we got the lines they were very open for us to go off and from what I’ve seen, I don’t want to say they use a lot, but they’re inclusive of your ideas. So that doesn’t always happen and it’s a really, really comfortable set to feel like you can bring your own creative spirit into it.
One of my favorite things about Afterparty is how it allows you to explore different genres in every episode, which kind of shifts how you portray your characters. So how did you change your approach each episode while still staying true to who Hannah is at her core?
Anna Konkle: That confused me. I’m not gonna lie. I was nervous about that, but I think it’s a testament to the writers that the voice of the characters came through no matter what the genre was.
Genre was incredibly helpful in the filming process. At the beginning, we were all in Hitchcock, playing characters that were completely different from our everyday selves. It was definitely intimidating, wondering if it would all come together in the end. But thankfully, it did. Watching everyone navigate their way through their genre characters was amazing. I thought all the characters translated so well.
I absolutely love this season! Hannah was definitely my favorite because she was so odd yet true to herself.
Anna Konkle: Thank you for saying that. I really enjoyed playing her and I miss her.
Now, when it comes to Hannah, I think her genre versions are the truest to who she feels she is. She’s someone who lives in her head a lot, and people often don’t understand her. In her episode, the indie movie one, there was a stiltedness to her that felt authentic. She’s like her own unique little alien in a storybook. But she’s also very emotive and passionate when she connects to her feelings. The tension between these two sides of her really played out in that episode. And in the film noir episode, she got to be domineering and explore all the different femme fatale aspects of herself. I loved seeing that side of her and getting to play it.
[Image: The Afterparty season 2]
I also loved the Hitchcock episodes. I was just blown away by everything that was happening. It was truly the best thing I’ve ever seen.
Anna Konkle: [Laughs] I completely agree! The directors, showrunners, creators, and all the actors did an amazing job. I was so impressed with the level of filmmaking and what they were able to accomplish. I’m just grateful to have been a part of it.
One thing that really stood out to me was Tiffany Haddish as the detective. Her scenes were very expositional, but her comedic timing and understanding of comedy elevated them so much. It was incredible to see how she brought those scenes to life while I was doing my exposition.
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Anna Konkle: Let me tell you, she’s absolutely incredible in her comedy. I’ve worked with many actors, but her effortless presence and charisma are truly rare. She effortlessly brings both groundedness and hilarity to her performance, even in the most challenging moments of exposition and guiding us through crucial parts of the story. I’m grateful that she brought a fresh perspective, which helped me stay grounded too. Acting during those times is always tough.
Yeah, I can totally see that. You can really feel the influence of Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, especially after projects like Spider-Verse that explore the origins of each character. Can you share your experience collaborating with them?
Anna Konkle: It’s no secret that they’re absolute geniuses. Anthony King and Chris Miller were on set every day, and Phil’s influence is still evident in everything. They had a deep understanding of every character, plotline, lie, diversion, and emotional point in the story. I don’t think there was a single person who didn’t get confused at some point while reading the script. We were shooting multiple episodes simultaneously, with different genres and characters, so it was challenging to keep track. But they knew every aspect inside out. It was truly amazing. They have this incredible ability to capture the essence of a character’s humanity while driving the plot forward and creating compelling storylines. That really shines through in this season.
I absolutely love that! Continuing with the theme of team-ups like carpool karaoke, if Tiffany Haddish’s character Detective Danner were to team up with a famous detective to solve another case in a potential Season 3 of Afterparty, who would you like to see her collaborate with?
Anna Konkle: Let me think… Was it Murder She Wrote? That classic show?
Yeah!
Anna Konkle: That show was iconic. If Angela Lansbury made a comeback, I would love to see that collaboration.
We’re witnessing a resurgence of the whodunit genre with shows like Glass Onion, Poker Face, Only Murders In The Building, Knives Out, and Afterparty. Why do you think audiences are so drawn to this genre?
Anna Konkle: That’s a good question. It’s probably not a coincidence that, I guess it was maybe Serial on NPR, that sort of obsession with real life crime series. The genre kind of takes something that is perversely satisfying to humans about watching that content and then brings a sort of stylized larger than life element to it. Maybe it’s in sort of a morbid way it’s escapist while still tapping into something really primal. Which sounds really messed up, but that’s my best guess today.
Well, I love it! One of my favorite genres.
Anna Konkle: Well, what do you think?
I just think mysteries are fun, and it’s fun to watch silly characters figure them out.
Anna Konkle: Okay, well, how about that’s what I said?
About The Afterparty Season 2
Aniq and Zoë call Detective Danner for help when they are once again swept into a murder investigation when the groom of the wedding they are attending is killed. The trio must search for clues and question suspects to clear Zoë’s family from suspicion. The suspects include Zoë’s family members, star-crossed lovers, and the groom’s business partner, who each tell their own version of the events leading up to the groom’s murder.
The first two episodes of The Afterparty debut on Apple TV+ July 12.
