Ryan Murphy and ladies of ‘The Watcher’ on show’s success: Women over 50 are ‘better, juicier and more wonderful’
“You’ll know I’ve been captured by aliens if one of the leads of my show is a 20-year old girl,” joked Ryan Murphy at a Netflix press event on Saturday. The Emmy winner was at the streamer’s studio lot to host two separate panels for his hugely successful true crime thrillers — “The Watcher” and “Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story.” While moderating a virtual panel with “The Watcher” stars Naomi Watts, Jennifer Coolidge, Margo Martindale and Noma Dumezweni, he reflected on why he’s so passionate about writing projects for women of a certain age.
“I’ve had so many moments with women,” he revealed. “I remember I had a moment with Kathy Bates before we did ‘American Horror Story’ together and she came into my office. She has so much to give and is one of the greatest of all time, and she talked about how she could not get a job and nobody was writing for her. That’s when something clicked and of course that show became hugely popular with her in it. I do think it works and I’m thrilled to continue to write roles like that.” Bates won an Emmy in 2014 for her role as Madame Delphine LaLaurie in Murphy’s “American Horror Story: Coven.”
“The Watcher” stars Watts and Bobby Cannavale as a married couple that begins receiving threatening, anonymous letters in the mail shortly after buying their dream home. It began streaming on Netflix on October 13 and quickly became one of the year’s biggest hits.
“Naomi was the first person I called,” Murphy revealed. “I didn’t have a script. I had a story, it’s based on a true story. I said, ‘Are you interested in doing this?’ and she said ‘Yes.’ In two weeks its had 300 million hours streamed, which is quite an incredible number.”
In fact, Watts remarked it has been the biggest hit of her career since “The Ring” in 2002. “I was so happy to be back in this genre,” she said. “I’ve had good success with it and, as an actor, there’s a lot of emotions that come under the umbrella of fear.”
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“I just thought that being with this company was one of the thrills of my life,” gushed Martindale. “Being in a room with Jennifer and Naomi, I remember a whole day of working and we all said, ‘This is the most fun we’ve ever had!’ Women of a certain age only get better, juicier and more wonderful. We have capabilities beyond what people realize. I appreciate that [Murphy] embraced that and other people have embraced that. I’m 71 and still kickin’ and going strong.”
The group also discussed why true crime and the horror genre seem to be such a hot commodity these days. “It’s so clear there is an appetite for it right now,” said Watts. “There’s a lot of darkness in the world, and a lot of chaos. Maybe it’s a way to try and understand what’s going on and unpack things. Is there a sense of needing control by figuring things out? I don’t know. It’s a big question, but it’s definitely happening. Everyone seems to be obsessed with these darker mysteries and psychological thrillers right now.”
“The Watcher” also proves that women of any age are capable of leading a successful TV series. “When I started in the business over 20 years ago you would not have a show that was this popular with actresses over 40,” Murphy said. Not until he started to gain popularity did the producer harness the power to make a change. “There’s a new tide coming. Maybe it’s because of streamers, where there’s room for actresses to be over 35 and have many more opportunities. I feel like that’s happened over the past five years.”
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