Jessy Hodges, who has a family connection to the “Evil Dead” franchise, is starring in a scary-good project of a different kind.
Hodges is acting opposite Tatiana Maslany and Jake Johnson in “Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed,” the Apple TV comedy thriller that Stephen King has endorsed heartily on social media.
“’Widow’s Bay’ is good,” tweeted King of new Apple TV show starring Matthew Rhys. “’Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed’ is even better. It’s like Hitchcock came back to do it one more time.”
The 10-episode series (with new episodes arriving on Wednesdays) runs through July 15 and is becoming a cult hit. The story revolves around Paula (Maslany), a newly divorced fact checker who is struggling financially while paying for video sessions with a camboy. As her ex (Johnson) and his new wife (Hodges) argue that Paula’s young daughter should move across the country and live with them, Paula becomes trapped in what Apple TV calls “a dangerous rabbit hole of blackmail, murder and youth soccer.”
It’s a plum part for Hodges, who hails from the Detroit suburb of Huntington Woods and is the daughter of “The Evil Dead” cast member Ellen Sandweiss. The 1981 horror film was made on a shoestring budget and launched the careers of director Sam Raimi and actor Bruce Campbell.
Hodges, a New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts graduate, has appeared in numerous sitcoms including “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” and “The Goldbergs” and was a series regular on NBC’s “Indebted” and VH1’s “Hindsight.” More recently, she had a recurring role on HBO’s darkly funny “Barry” with Bill Hader.
In 2013, during Michigan’s film tax incentive era, Hodges costarred in an ensemble dramedy along with her husband, “Saturday Night Live” alum Beck Bennett. “Beside Still Waters,” set and filmed in northern Michigan, was the directing debut of actor Chris Lowell (“The Help”).
The Free Press had an email chat with Hodges recently about her latest show, her early years acting in metro Detroit and her life as the daughter of an “Evil Dead” actress. The interview has been edited for space and clarity.
QUESTION: We’ve written a lot about the “Evil Dead” franchise. With your mom, Ellen Sandweiss, being an original cast member, did you get to know Sam Raimi, Bruce Campbell or any of the other originals involved while you were growing up?
ANSWER: Yes, I’ve gotten to know all of them a bit through my mom over the years. In particular, Bruce Campbell, who she went to high school with and has remained very close to.
Q: How old were you when you first saw your mom in “The Evil Dead”? (And did she allow you to see it or did you sneak a viewing as a kid?)
A: I first saw it with her consent when I was around 16, with one very specific scene fast-forwarded. Did I sneak a viewing before that? Yes, I probably did.
Q: Were you into acting growing up in Huntington Woods? And if yes, what sort of things did you participate in?
A: Oh, big time! I did whatever I could get my hands on. I was in a couple of shows at Stagecrafters in Royal Oak. I also went to Star Camp at the Marquis Theatre in Northville (shout out Debbie Tedrick, who led that camp — one of my first inspiring mentors in the theater community!).
Once I was in high school, I started auditioning for the plays and musicals at Berkley High and was very involved in that scene. I was also lucky enough to go to Interlochen Arts Camp from age 8 through 16, which was a seminal experience. The talent and infrastructure that they had there was eye-opening and gave me a first peek into what it looked like to do this professionally.
Q: After college, did you stay in New York to pursue acting? What were your early years in the business like?
A: Yes, after graduating, I stayed in New York and hit the ground running trying to drum up a career for myself. I auditioned for anything and everything while waiting tables and doing whatever other side job I could find at the time that would somehow pay me and also let me leave at the drop of a hat for an audition.
I was a Bat at The Flea Theater (a now defunct program in New York City that gave non-equity actors the opportunity to perform new works from exciting playwrights while volunteering at the theater). That’s how I met Adam Rapp and was given the chance to audition for his play “The Metal Children” at the Vineyard Theatre — which became my first off-Broadway credit.
I also auditioned for and booked a web series around that time called “Anyone But Me.” This was during the 2008 writers strike, when TV writers were first becoming interested in making stuff online. “Anyone But Me” was the first real on-camera work I did and was how I was able to get an agent. That job — and all of the people involved — holds a really special place in my heart.
Q: You’ve had a lot of success on series television. Is there one show that was most significant either in terms of exposure or what you learned?
A: Truthfully, I’ve learned so much through each new experience. Each job teaches me something. Sometimes it’s creative; sometimes it’s about how to navigate this very niche industry. Having the chance to be on “Barry,” I think allowed me to work at a new level and show sides of myself creatively that I hadn’t been able to before. So much of my experience as a young actor was trying to do things “right.” And in the work I’ve gotten to do lately, I’m trying to make more space for my own instincts.
Q: Can you talk about filming “Beside Still Waters” in northern Michigan and working with your husband, Beck Bennett, in it?
A: Filming “Beside Still Waters” was SO. MUCH. FUN. We were a bunch of twentysomethings at a gorgeous house right on the lake in Petoskey. The co-writer and director is our friend, Chris Lowell, so it felt less like work and more like … summer camp. I’m still friends with everyone in that movie (including the one I’m married to). It was just a sublime experience.
Q: What can you tell us about “Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed” and your role as the partner of Jake Johnson’s character?
A: “Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed” is a darkly comedic thriller centering around a woman named Paula (played immaculately by Tatiana Maslany) who gets scammed online while going through a heart-wrenching custody battle with her ex-husband Karl (the inimitable Jake Johnson).
I play Karl’s new wife, Mallory, who … well, let’s just say she’s not making Paula’s life any easier. Mallory is a sharp lawyer who’s looking to move through this situation as quickly and efficiently as she can. Paula’s chaos is destabilizing for her, and let’s be real, she wants to win. The show is really great. It’s unnerving, it’s fun, it’s propulsive. I really can’t say enough good things about the entire creative team. It was a joy to shoot and it’s been a joy to watch people discover the show and love it.
Contact Detroit Free Press pop culture critic Julie Hinds at jhinds@freepress.com.
‘Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed’
Six episodes now streaming on Apple TV. New episodes arrives on Wednesdays through July 15.
Rated TV-MA
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Hit dark comedy on Apple TV features actor from Huntington Woods
Reporting by Julie Hinds, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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By Julie Hinds, Detroit Free Press | USA TODAY Network
