One Arrested Development Scene Made Tony Hale Stop Watching The Show With His Daughter
The sitcom "Arrested Development" paints a picture of one of the most eclectic, bizarre, dysfunctional families in television history. The show is shot in mockumentary style, fitting because the show breaks all the rules of the traditional sitcom. "Arrested Development" was ahead of its time in both style and substance, daring sitcoms that came subsequently to match its absurdity.
In the series, the once ultra-wealthy Bluth family is led from prison by egotistical patriarch George Bluth Sr. (Jeffrey Tambor), a shady developer who uses a frozen banana stand to launder money. The corruption, criminal investigations, and family resemblance have prompted parallels to the Trump family. Jason Bateman, who deserves a lifetime Emmy for perfecting the straight man trope, plays the dutiful son forever fighting to keep the family together.
The show quickly developed a cult following, and fans were crushed when Fox canceled the show in 2006 after three seasons. The family's shenanigans continued for two more seasons when Netflix revived "Arrested Development" in 2013 and again in 2018.
The wacky antics in "Arrested Development" might have made the series a fan favorite, but it didn't always make it easy on the cast. The preposterous situations often made things uncomfortable for the actors. Tony Hale, who portrays perhaps the oddest Bluth of them all, doesn't even want to watch the show with his daughter.
The show created plenty of awkward moments
For the actors, portraying a family as bizarre as the Bluths was often a challenge. In an interview with Sirius XM, the cast of "Arrested Development" revealed some of their most awkward moments of the series. There was plenty of fodder to choose from, as the show often included nods to the actors' real lives. Jason Bateman (Michael) pointed to the episode where his character hires a prostitute played by Bateman's real-life sister, Justine Bateman.
Alia Shawkat (Maeby) revealed that her first kiss ever was the onscreen kiss with Michael Cera (George-Michael) in the show's pilot episode. Of course, the scene was already awkward enough with the two being cousins in the show. And Jeffrey Tambor (George Sr.) said it was awkward when he "revealed a lot of belly" after appearing in a bathing suit when his character put a hot tub in the attic.
Will Arnett (Gob) told the New York Times that their kooky characters have led to some strange fan interactions on the street. Arnett said:
"I've had so many bizarre interactions. Of course, you're always happy to meet somebody who's a fan of the show, and our fans tend to be particularly enthusiastic. And then you'll be on the subway, and someone will come up and go, 'C'mon!' Very jarring. Or they'll ask you to do the chicken dance at Penn Station."
But what about sharing these awkward moments from the show with family? Tony Hale, who plays the socially awkward youngest Bluth sibling Buster, admitted that one specific episode made him want to stop watching the show with his daughter.
'OK ... I think we're done.'
Even though "Arrested Development" has six Emmy Awards and another 19 nominations, it also features material so outlandish that it's prompted one of its stars to refrain from watching the show with his child. Tony Hale joined "The Jess Cagle Show" to discuss how awkward it can be to watch the show with others. He said he's watched some of the show's episodes with his daughter, but one stands out as the moment he realized he was done watching the show with her. Hale said:
"There's one episode we watched ... there was this scene where Jessica Walter [Lucille Bluth] is put on house arrest and she can't smoke, right? And she has to smoke. And she gets me, Buster, to inhale the smoke from her mouth like a baby bird and suck the smoke out and then release the smoke on the balcony so it's not detected. And I remember watching that with my daughter and going, 'Okay, I think we're good, I think we're done.'"
It sounds like there won't be any Hale family viewings of "Arrested Development" anytime soon. Last year Hale told Jimmy Kimmel: "My parents think 'Arrested' is dumb. To this day, they think it's a stupid show, I'm not kidding." Hopefully the criticism didn't leave Hale exclaiming, "I'm a monster!"