Ever since her debut on a 2010 episode of The Good Wife, Elsbeth Tascioni (Carrie Preston) has sung the praises of her son, Teddy, to anyone willing to listen, as well as everyone else in her vicinity. Now, fourteen years and two spin-offs later, Teddy finally made his in-the-flesh debut at the tail end of the December 5 episode of Elsbeth on CBS, played by Ben Levi Ross.
While a relatively new face for TV enthusiasts, Broadway fans might be more familiar with the young actor. He served as an understudy for the title character in Dear Evan Hansen on Broadway before taking on the role during its first tour across the United States. Other theater credits include Ragtime at the New York City Center, and Gatsby: An American Myth at the American Repertory Theatre. He made his feature film debut in 2021's Tick, Tick... Boom!, and Elsbeth marks his first regular television gig.
Several characters from The Good Wife and The Good Fight are overdue for a trip to New York City to visit the quirky attorney during Elsbeth season 2.
ScreenRant interviewed Ben Levi Ross about his role on Elsbeth. He spoke about acting alongside Carrie Preston, shared how his presence shakes up the show's status quo, and teased what audiences can expect from his further appearances throughout season 2. He also discussed how the schedule of a TV show like Elsbeth compares to a Broadway schedule, and shares a couple of his favorite Broadway shows of 2024.
Elsbeth's Ben Levi Ross On Bringing Teddy To Life After All These Years
"He's really a catalyst for us to see Elsbeth as a mother and get to know a little bit more about why she left Chicago."
ScreenRant: When I started watching this show, I was like, "Why wasn't I watching this already?" No one told me that there was a new Columbo!
Ben Levi Ross: Totally. Yes, truly!
And that's not to be reductive at all. But we need this kind of show. There should always be a Columbo variant on the air.
Ben Levi Ross: I think that everyone involved in the show would take that as high praise.
You're in the mix for season 2. Tell me a little bit about Teddy and his dynamic with his mama.
Ben Levi Ross: Well, we've heard about Teddy a little bit in passing over the years. She's talked about him. I think he's first mentioned, actually in one of the previous shows that this is a spinoff of. But yeah, he comes in at the end of this week's episode.
I think we've just had a lot of fun exploring how he fits into this world and how it can be somewhat overwhelming when his mom brings him into the precinct and everyone knows everything about him already, in classic Elsbeth form. But yeah, it's just honestly kind of a blast. I feel like we're sort of building this relationship as we go, with each other, like feeling how me and Carrie are with each other. Our showrunner, Jonathan Tolins, is sort of watching that and seeing, "How can we build upon this relationship?"
Can you talk about how you shake up the show, for fans of Elsbeth?
Ben Levi Ross: I think like we have yet to really see Elsbeth in a family dynamic on this show. So that's really, I think, the thing that's exciting about when you're doing a more procedural show and then it kind of takes a hard left and becomes a little bit more character driven. So I think that that's really what Teddy provides.
In addition to just being a new character that people get to sort of live with and grow with and see what's going on with him, he's really a catalyst for us to see Elsbeth as a mother and get to know a little bit more about why she left Chicago and why she's staying in New York. I think that that's just like an exciting thing that differs from season one and any other time we've seen her in previous shows.
The show is only in its second season. But Carrie's been playing Elsbeth since 2010. Is she practically on autopilot by now? When you're the new person working alongside a seasoned veteran, what's the vibe like for you?
Ben Levi Ross: Oh, the dynamic with Carrie is so alive and warm and fun. I think the thing that's so impressive is that she's not on autopilot at all. She feels so engaged, honestly, at all times. She really feels like the captain of the ship on set. And she cares so much about the show. I think she's constantly thinking about who they can bring in as the next guest star. She is thinking about what more she wants to see from the family dynamic that we're exploring now.
She's really like "mama" to me on set, at least. She really feels so caring. And also, yeah, when you work as much as she does, because it's like five days a week, 4:00 AM pickups every single morning doing this show, you would expect that at some point you might get a little bit jaded, but that has not been my experience with Carrie at all! She's just so positive and feels like she really just wants to play, with all of the actors and get to the truth of this mother/son dynamic.
You're brought in at the tail end of the episode. And then in the next episode on December 12, you have a plot that's parallel to her story. I don't want you to give away too much, but will we see you investigating alongside Elsbeth?
Ben Levi Ross: Well, honestly, I was just saying that that would be kind of like a dream! That's the reason that we love the show in the first place. You know, these murders every week, and these investigations are so well constructed. And so for me, as just a fan of the show, I would love to! (Laughs) I don't know about investigation, but just, somehow, her like leaning on her son or trying to get ideas or more information about what she's working on. That just sounds so fun to me. So who knows? Right.
Can you say how many episodes you're in this season?
Ben Levi Ross: Because we haven't finished filming, I don't have a number, but I can say that you'll probably be seeing more of Teddy in season 2, yes.
Elsbeth's Ben Levi Ross On Switching Gears From Theater To Television
"I love the theater so much. And now I also love TV."
Tell me about the TV schedule. Is this your first, TV job? I know the theater schedule is probably the most brutal of all the acting fields. Tell me how the TV schedule compares to that.
Ben Levi Ross: Yeah, this actually is my first episodic job that's consistent like this. I've done film and a lot of theater and it's a totally different kind of chaos because mostly it's like you're... I'm sort of nocturnal when I'm doing theater. Like, my days are all based in the night and with this, it's like the total opposite. It's like, I'm going to bed at 8:00 PM to get up at 4:00 AM and do the show. But I don't have it as bad as Carrie or any of the regulars who are doing this every day. But it's kind of a different beast.
More than anything, I think it's because when you're working on something, this is just the difference between TV and theater, you're working on something in theater, you have your product that you do over and over again, every night. So you're keeping all of those words alive in your mind and body all the time. And this is like, I'm gonna hyper focus on one scene for about an hour and a half when we film it, and then it can exit my brain to make space for the next moment. And I really enjoy working like this because you really get to go, like, moment to moment, and we usually shoot in order. So it's sort of fun to hyper focus on whatever we're working on on that day, even if I'm exhausted. (Laughs)
It also must be nice to mess up a line and not get fired.
Ben Levi Ross: Sure. Totally. We just do another take!
I've never seen a Broadway show where someone has paused and said, "Line?" but that happens, right?
Ben Levi Ross: I feel like, if a line is dropped, there's usually a really uncomfortably long silence, and then we just sort of... Someone picks up somewhere at that point. I've definitely been on stage when that's happened and it's not the most comfortable.
I guess I've been lucky enough, I suppose, that at least if it's happened, I haven't noticed it.
Ben Levi Ross: Yeah, yeah. I mean, you know, it's the best of the best when you're going to the Broadway shows. So you would hope that that's not the case!
Are you a TV guy now? Or are you, you know, are you still going to be going back to the stage at some point?
Ben Levi Ross: Who knows? You know what I am? I'm a working guy! I love it all. And whatever is being offered to me at the time, whatever door is open, I will take whatever feels exciting and inspiring. I love the theater so much. And now I also love TV.
It's so nice to see so many shows shooting in New York. You know, there's a little bit of sadness where you're like, hey, remember when Hollywood used to be a thing?
Ben Levi Ross: Truly. And I grew up in LA! So I was like very much in and around that. And when I was a kid, I thought like, oh, this is going to be my future as an actor. I'm going to go to the lots, you know, the Paramount lot or the Fox lot. But no, I'm actually following in my dad's footsteps, who grew up in Brooklyn. And I'm just living in Brooklyn and working in Brooklyn.
Since you're a Broadway star, can you tell me a little bit what you've seen? What have been your favorites this year?
Ben Levi Ross: Ooh, what have I seen this year? Well, my very good friend Sarah Pidgeon was starring in Stereophonic, so I actually saw that four times off-Broadway and on-Broadway because I was obsessed with that show and obsessed with her and that cast. I think it was just exquisite storytelling. And I also just saw this play that's actually about to close on Broadway called The Hills of California that transferred from the West End that I thought was amazing.
I'm so sad that it's not lasting for longer, but it's playing until December 22nd. And that is the best acting I have seen on a Broadway stage in years. And everyone is getting annoyed with how much I've been talking about it, but it was amazing! So if you want to squeeze in another show before it's closed, The Hills of California was just brilliant. Truly brilliant.
More About Elsbeth Season 2 On CBS
Based on the character featured in The Good Wife and The Good Fight
Emmy Award winner Carrie Preston is back as Elsbeth Tascioni, the astute but unconventional consent decree attorney working with the NYPD to catch New York’s most well-heeled murderers utilizing her unique point of view. Season two of the critically acclaimed series brings new cases and challenges when mistakes of the past come back to haunt Elsbeth, her boss Captain Wagner (Wendell Pierce), and detective in training Officer Kaya Blanke (Carra Patterson).
Check out our other Elsbeth season 2 interviews here:
Elsbeth is a crime drama series that began airing in 2024 on CBS and Paramount+. The series follows attorney Elsbeth Tascioni, who leaves her career behind to join the NYPD and become an investigator, using her unique skills to catch criminal masterminds. Elsbeth is also a spinoff of the original television series The Good Wife.
Release Date February 29, 2024
Cast Carrie Preston , Fredric Lehne , Danny Mastrogiorgio , Jane Krakowski , Wendell Pierce , Gloria Reuben , Retta , Linda Lavin
Custom image by Simone Ashmoore
English (US) ·