Fey's 'Kimmy' is at home on Netflix
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — As Kimmy Schmidt's unbreakably optimistic heroine might say, sometimes things just work out.
Shunted over to Netflix by NBC, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt found a surprisingly compatible home — earning seven Emmy nominations in the process, including one for best comedy. All for episodes, by the way, that had already been made for NBC.
With shooting for a second season set to begin next month, this is clearly a show that's not broken. So co-creator Tina Fey told an audience at the Television Critics Association summer press tour Tuesday that she has no desire to fix it — even though Netflix would let her do and show anything she wants, free of broadcast restraints.
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"The tone of the show does feel set," says Fey, who enjoys hearing that parents watch it with their children. "I would hate to ruin that in Season 2. So tonally, I don't think you'll hear profanity or see nudity."
Kimmy's story is one of resilience: She's restarting her life after being held captive in a cult for 15 years. While Fey does not compare her own experience as a producer with Kimmy's as a captive, she does lay claim to some Kimmy-like perseverance.
"We didn't give up this idea. We did have to shepherd it through two groups of people who were reasonably nervous." But then again, as Fey jokingly points out, she's always been a risk taker: She was willing to come out on stage today even though she realized she had put on two different shoes by mistake.
As for plans for Season 2, Fey won't be specific, but she does say "Kimmy's boyfriend will return." And if fans are lucky, who knows, so might one of the show's Emmy-nominated guest stars: Jon Hamm.
Ellie Kemper, who stars as Kimmy, actually had her own history with Hamm: He taught her acting class when she was in high school. As a teacher, Kemper says, Hamm "was not ugly. He was well-regarded." But acting with him did have its difficulties: "I felt like he was still grading me on some level. But he's a wonderful man."