After announcing at SDCC that Jay (Utkarsh Ambudkar) would finally be able to see the ghosts at some point in Season 4, the moment has finally come in the hour-long holiday special "A Very Arondekar Christmas." Ghostsjust shook up the dynamics at Woodstone in a major way as, after months of theorizing how Jay would meet the ghosts, we finally saw him excised from his body and turned into a ghost himself. Following the episode, McIver stopped by Collider Ladies Nightfor a lengthy interview with host Perri Nemiroffabout all things Ghosts and more.
During their conversation, McIver spoke about how, because Jay can't typically see the ghosts, "Utkarsh has been having to operate in a two-hander for the last four years," while she's "in an ensemble." She had nothing but praise for his ability to play the straight man to the show's kooky ensemble, and went on to explain why this episode was so monumental, not just in the experience of filming it, but for the show's narrative as well.
"He does a very good job, and it's really hard. Acting is reacting, and you're playing off the people around you, so it was actually very momentous for him to be able to interact with more than one actor in the scene. I think he had a really good experience with that. Also, from a story point, Sam's husband has been just believing her, supporting her, trying to build relationships with people he can't see but who have become, in a weird way, his family."
Jay's experience with the ghosts differs in one major way from Sam's — a way in which McIver hopes Jay holds as a badge of honor in future episodes. Because he became a ghost himself, Jay is able to make physical contact with the ghosts, something that even Sam can't do. In "A Very Arondekar Christmas," Jay gets to hug Thor (Devan Chandler Long) and gets a very intense mission from Hetty (Rebecca Wisocky) as she lovingly takes him by the face and insists that when he does die he bring her some ghost cocaine. McIver continued, lauding the writing choice to have Jay not only see the ghosts but get to physically interact with them, saying, "To actually have this tangible, in-person — and it is tangible, he can touch them. I've said this, that Jay is able to physically interact with the ghosts, which is something that Sam has never been able to do, and I love that. I love that. I hope he lords that over her in an argument down the line, that he does know them better in some ways."
McIver Calls the 'Ghosts' Season 4 Christmas Special "The Biggest Gift"
Image via CBS
Looking forward to the rest of Season 4, McIver spoke about how the dynamic between Sam and Jay, and by extension the ghosts, has shifted after this experience. She also had high praise for Ambudkar who had to portray three versions of his character in the episode. McIver told Collider:
"It's a very momentous and pivotal episode for the series because it really means going forward. There's just that degree more understanding between them and a shared experience in lots of ways. I think it's very special to see Utkarsh navigating those three versions of Jay, and all the ghosts. And Richie Keen, our director who directed it, just was doing God's work trying to get through the technicalities of filming that, too. It was really complicated. He was fantastic."
Spreading the praise around, McIver made sure to also shout out showrunners Joe Port and Joe Wiseman for, as Nemiroff put it, allowing Jay to dive in without fundamentally changing the show. "The Joes, gave us the biggest gift with those episodes," said McIver. "It was very tough, complicated stuff to navigate, to keep it full of heart, as well, and funny. They did such a brilliant job."
Ghosts Season 4 returns on CBS on January 30, and you can stream previous episodes — including "A Very Arondekar Christmas" — right now on Paramount+. In the meantime, you can also watch McIver's full episode of Collider Ladies Night below!
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When a cash-strapped couple inherits a crumbling country estate, they soon discover it is inhabited by an eclectic group of spirits, leading to comedic encounters as they navigate cohabitation with their supernatural roommates.
Release Date
October 7, 2021
CastRose McIver
, Utkarsh Ambudkar
, Brandon Scott Jones
, Danielle Pinnock
, Richie Moriarty
, Asher Grodman
, Rebecca Wisocky
, Devan Chandler Long
, Roman Zaragoza
, Sheila Carrasco
, John Hartman
, Betsy Sodaro
Seasons
4
Character(s)
Samantha Arondekar
, Jay Arondekar
, Isaac Higgintoot
, Alberta Haynes
, Pete Martino
, Trevor Lefkowitz
, Hetty Woodstone
, Thorfinn
, Sasappis
, Flower
, Nigel Chessum
, Nancy
Image via CBS
Image via CBS
English (US) ·