{"id":254875,"date":"2025-10-27T16:29:09","date_gmt":"2025-10-27T16:29:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/254875\/"},"modified":"2025-10-27T16:29:09","modified_gmt":"2025-10-27T16:29:09","slug":"jackie-tohn-on-esther-sasha-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/254875\/","title":{"rendered":"Jackie Tohn on Esther, Sasha Future"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\t[This story contains MAJOR spoilers from Nobody Wants This<\/a> season two.]<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cYou feel Jewish to me,\u201d Jackie Tohn<\/a>\u2018s Esther tells Kristen Bell<\/a>\u2018s Joanne in the series finale of Nobody Wants This<\/a> season two<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n\tThat scene was the turning point for Joanne, as viewers see her and Noah (Adam Brody<\/a>) get back together in the finale, mirroring the season one ender\u2019s cliffhanger. But this time around, it\u2019s insinuated that Joanne will finally convert to Judaism. In their conversation, Esther tells Joanne she\u2019s been overcomplicating what it means to be Jewish and that even if Joanne and Noah ended their relationship for good, Joanne is Jewish in her eyes.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIt\u2019s so beautifully written. I love that Esther comes around and is the person pointing this out to Joanne. It\u2019s so powerful for me to be able to say these things on television,\u201d Tohn tells The Hollywood Reporter about delivering the ending monologue before explaining her own connection to it. \u201cOf course it\u2019s a religion, but from my gut, it\u2019s so much a feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tIn addition to Esther and Joanne\u2019s growth this season, the biggest change for Esther is her own personal growth and how that will affect her marriage to Sasha (Timothy Simons<\/a>). At Morgan\u2019s (Justine Lupe<\/a>) engagement party, Esther tells Sasha she needs time to find herself. While it seems like the couple is broken up, Tohn doesn\u2019t believe it\u2019s final, \u201cI don\u2019t think they\u2019re on a high-speed train to a divorce.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tHowever, while Tohn wasn\u2019t there to see Morgan and Sasha\u2019s talk after her character and Sasha broke up, she admits, \u201cI felt like, \u2018Oh, this more than anything almost felt like a start of something for Sasha and Morgan.\u201d While Lupe previously told <\/a>THR<\/a> she thinks Morgan and Sasha, \u201cCould, down the line, evolve into something else, but right now, they\u2019re just being really good friends to each other.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tBelow, Tohn breaks down Esther and Sasha\u2019s relationship, Sasha and Morgan\u2019s dynamic and who Sasha is really compatible with, while revealing how her boyfriend Joe Gillette joined the ensemble as Leighton Meester\u2019s character\u2019s husband and what actress she wants to see cast as Esther\u2019s mom in a (hopefully<\/a>) third season.<\/p>\n

\n\t***<\/p>\n

\n\tThroughout season two, viewers saw that Esther and Sasha\u2019s relationship was headed south. But for the first half of the season, their relationship seemed very strong. What was the first sign her feelings started to change?<\/p>\n

\n\tI don\u2019t think her feelings were starting to change. I think she became aware of them. She was on a path: You get married, you have a kid and then you have your in-laws, and then you get a house and you have a job and your husband has a job. She was just doing the thing we do. She\u2019s on a self realization journey, and is asking herself all the questions that maybe she never asked herself in life: \u201cIs this the person I would\u2019ve picked if I was even picking? We got pregnant, and I love him and he\u2019s a great guy, but is he the person I would\u2019ve picked?\u201d She\u2019s going on this emotional journey and realizing things that have been under the surface.<\/p>\n

\n\tI don\u2019t think it\u2019s that something happens and she realizes, \u201cI\u2019m not really into this guy.\u201d It\u2019s been brewing. The thing that made it possible for her to start asking those questions is that everyone else is having such a good time and she\u2019s not. She\u2019s like, \u201cWait a minute, I\u2019m going to be fun! If he\u2019s going to be friends with this Morgan character, I\u2019m going out with Rebecca. We\u2019re going to go do our own thing. I\u2019m cutting bangs! I need a change in my life.\u201d <\/p>\n

\n\tAll of these things she\u2019s doing are making her feel better and are outside the box. The Morgan stuff may have precipitated it, but she\u2019s just on a journey. It\u2019s so relatable how many of us are walking down the street and you\u2019re like, is this even what I want? And maybe the answer is yes, but she\u2019s just asking the questions. I was surprised, but I like that it feels like maybe more of a male trope at our age to be like, \u201cI maybe want something else or something new.\u201d It\u2019s really nice that that\u2019s turned on its head and it\u2019s this woman really taking stock of her life and the trajectory she\u2019s been on and saying, \u201cI do love you, but I don\u2019t know the answer to these questions and I\u2019d like to go find them out.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tYeah, the love is still there. <\/p>\n

\n\tThat\u2019s even super relatable, that the love is still there. They\u2019re not fighting or hating each other. It was confusing for me too, even as an actor. I was like, \u201cWait a minute, in the Valentine\u2019s Day episode, she\u2019s so charmed. She does this dance class. It\u2019s so cute. They\u2019re so happy.\u201d But that\u2019s what happens in relationships. And then you\u2019re like, \u201cOK, well, it\u2019s not like that fixed it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tWere the bangs maybe a sign? And were the bangs your idea?<\/p>\n

\n\tNo, the bangs were not my idea. They knew that Esther was going through it so it was the evolution of Esther this season. Our writers were like, \u201cDude, she has to cut bangs. I mean, what does every woman who\u2019s going through it do? Cut bangs.\u201d So, that was their idea. They asked me to actually cut my hair. They were like, if we can get a clip-in bang to work, we will. But if not, look out. And then thank goodness. I love bangs, but I had them for 10 years. Our hair friends, Lauren and Patrick, were able to make them look incredible. I honestly don\u2019t know why anyone would cut bangs. The fake ones look so good.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn the finale, Esther tells Sasha she needs some time apart to find herself, and he says that he will wait for her. Can you confirm if they are broken up and most likely getting a divorce, or do you think Esther just needs some time and they will get back together down the road?\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\tI can\u2019t confirm anything because I know exactly what everybody who watched the show knows. I knew more than everybody else before Oct. 23. But now we\u2019re all on the same page. I think this show does ambiguity so well. There\u2019s so much truth in this ambiguity of the will-they-won\u2019t-they, where in episode one with Joanne and Noah, one of them thinks they tabled it and the other thinks they\u2019re good to go. We don\u2019t know so often in relationships. I also thought that we don\u2019t know what\u2019s going on with Sasha and Esther. <\/p>\n

\n\tSo in my gut, I don\u2019t think they\u2019re on a high speed train to a divorce.\u00a0But I do think she\u2019s trying to figure it out. And she\u2019s asking questions she hasn\u2019t asked in the past. I\u2019ll also say, I didn\u2019t know about this scene because I wasn\u2019t there when it was shot, and it was just very friendly and nice in the script, but the way that Morgan and Sasha are sitting on the floor and that connection when he\u2019s telling Morgan he\u2019s going to wait for Esther, I felt like, \u201cOh, this more than anything almost felt like a start of something for Sasha and Morgan.\u201d But it\u2019s the same thing \u2014 we don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tJackie Tohn as Esther with Kristen Bell as Joanne in season two.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tErin Simkin\/Netflix<\/p>\n

\n\tAlso in the finale, you gave a powerful monologue to Joanne about what it means to be Jewish. Did you have any input on what you were going to say and what was it like delivering that scene?<\/p>\n

\n\tI did not have input, but I added little things. The scene was so beautiful. When Joanne is talking about how she loves poo poo poo, I think as far as input, we\u2019re generally adding little connective tissue to make it feel even more real coming out of us. She said how she loves the way Jews say \u201cpoo poo poo,\u201d and they\u2019re so superstitious. In one of the takes, I said, \u201cOh, I know poo poo poo is so good.\u201d That was something that came out in conversation that I didn\u2019t do all the time. So I was excited they used one of those takes. But as far as input, no, it\u2019s so beautifully written. I love that Esther comes around and is the person pointing this out to Joanne. It\u2019s so powerful for me to be able to say these things on television. It\u2019s so meta for me and it really meant a lot to me.<\/p>\n

\n\tTo follow up on that, have you had a conversation in your real life similar to how it played out in that scene?<\/p>\n

\n\tA little bit, but only if it\u2019s welcome. What\u2019s very funny about Jews, and we talk about this in Nobody Wants This<\/a> \u2014 we\u2019re not a proselytizing people. We don\u2019t make it easy for you to come and join the team. It\u2019s not like we\u2019re out there trying to make people Jewish. But when you\u2019re having this conversation with a person who\u2019s like, \u201cI\u2019m on the fence and I don\u2019t know what am I supposed to feel and am I waiting?\u201d You\u2019re waiting for this lightning strike through your sternum of like, \u201cOh, that\u2019s it!\u201d And oftentimes things don\u2019t happen that way in life. So, I\u2019ve definitely never sat with a friend and done what Esther did with Joanne. But even my boyfriend, who\u2019s a quarter Jewish, I find him to be pretty Jewish feeling. Of course it\u2019s a religion, but from my gut, it\u2019s so much a feeling. When I meet someone and I feel like they\u2019re probably Jewish, I don\u2019t know if I\u2019ve ever been wrong. There\u2019s a feeling there. There\u2019s a cultural thing in Jewish people; our mannerisms and the way our parents and grandparents word sentences. So we\u2019ve been in those families. It\u2019s just a feeling. I do believe it, and I tell it to my boyfriend all the time. He\u2019ll do something, and I\u2019ll be like, \u201cThat\u2019s Jewish.\u201d Some people just feel Jewish.<\/p>\n

\n\tEsther\u2019s relationship with Joanne and Morgan has grown so much this season compared to season one. Did you ever anticipate they\u2019d get to this point, where it seems like Esther considers Joanne as family?<\/p>\n

\n\tThat\u2019s a tough one. I never thought about that. Like, does she consider her family or does she consider her a friend? Because even Esther considering Joanne anything is wild other than like, \u201cUh that annoying girl who made my very best friend not be in the picture anymore.\u201d I wonder if she considers her family. I know she genuinely likes her. Throughout the season, against all her attempts to not, Esther just really ends up liking her.<\/p>\n

\n\tBut I wouldn\u2019t say she\u2019s friends with Morgan. You can tell that when they got home from the dinner party, she was like, \u201cCool, she had no pants on.\u201d She\u2019s still not like, \u201cI love that girl!\u201d But she realizes that the tighter she holds Sasha, the worst she\u2019s making the situation and she\u2019s the one suffering. She\u2019s like, \u201cNo one else is having a bad time. I\u2019m the one over here with all my cells in a fist all bummed out. I don\u2019t need to be this bummed out.\u201d I think she tolerates Morgan, and I think she definitely really likes Joanne by the end of season two. <\/p>\n

\n\tThis season we also see Sasha\u2019s friendship with Morgan evolve. What do you make of the discourse of some viewers wanting Sasha and Morgan together and who do you think he\u2019s more compatible with?<\/p>\n

\n\tGreat question. The discourse is so fun. I love when I\u2019m in an interview and someone\u2019s like, \u201cI have to tell you, I\u2019m here for the hookup.\u201d I\u2019m like, \u201cGo off, great!\u201d I love that. I don\u2019t know if I have an opinion on it. I leave it in the hands of our creatives. I am not storming into the writers room like, \u201cHe better not end up with her!\u201d I don\u2019t have any skin in the game. I just love the show and I want the stories to unfold how they unfold.<\/p>\n

\n\tI do think he\u2019s far more compatible with Esther. Sasha and Morgan \u2014 I think she\u2019s too much of a live wire for him. There\u2019s pieces of Morgan and Esther that really makes sense for Sasha. And that\u2019s the case in the real world, your partner\u2019s not all the things to you. There\u2019s things about Morgan that make more sense for Sasha, and there\u2019s things about Esther that make more sense for Sasha.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tTimothy Simons as Sasha with Tohn as Esther and Justine Lupe as Morgan earlier in season two.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tErin Simkin\/Netflix<\/p>\n

\n\tAdam\u2019s real-life wife and actress Leighton Meester is a guest star<\/a>, but also, your partner, Joe, is too, and plays married to Leighton\u2019s character. How did Joe join the ensemble?<\/p>\n

\n\tJoe is friends with Nora Silver, one of our producers, and Jenny Connor\u2019s producing partner. They\u2019ve known each other. Joe is a great actor, writer, director, and Nora has called him in to read for a bunch of their shows. So this time, Dr. Andy (Arian) couldn\u2019t be there for episode five and Nora was like, \u201cWill you come in and do the table read will do Dr. Andy; there are a couple other parts.\u201d One of them is this guy Gabe, who was Leighton\u2019s husband character. Joe, even read for Elon, the dad\u2019s part. I don\u2019t know that Elon ended up in that episode, [Editor\u2019s note: He did not.] But anyway, in table read, Joe read five parts and he killed it, obviously. <\/p>\n

\n\tAs we were leaving, I was so proud and I was just like, \u201cOh, man he killed the table read,\u201d but people are going to audition for these parts or already have these parts. One of the producers was like, \u201cJoe, you\u2019re so funny. Would you come and play Gabe for us?\u201d Just right there \u2014 that\u2019s an actor\u2019s dream at a table read. That never happens. They just go and you do them the favor. Most of the time, someone else gets the job. And it was a much smaller part too, but the showrunners and our writers are so open. It just became a bigger part and he ended up in two episodes. It\u2019s wonderful.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn a potential season three, what do you want to see for Esther? <\/p>\n

\n\tI\u2019d love to see Esther\u2019s family. I\u2019d love to meet her parents. There\u2019s a lot of fun to be had there with who Esther\u2019s mother is. There\u2019s Bette Midler, Barbra Streisand, Fran Drescher, Susie Essman. I mean, there\u2019s no shortage of incredible Jewish women to come in, and then that person makes Esther seem like a delicate flower. It would be so funny.<\/p>\n

\n\t***<\/p>\n

\n\tNobody Wants This\u00a0season two is now streaming all episodes\u00a0on Netflix<\/a>. Read\u00a0THR\u2019s cover story on season two<\/a> and season two postmortem with Justine Lupe.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"[This story contains MAJOR spoilers from Nobody Wants This season two.] \u201cYou feel Jewish to me,\u201d Jackie Tohn\u2018s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":254876,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[54],"tags":[107250,88,107251,43855,116841,74998,217,76714,134825,92],"class_list":{"0":"post-254875","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tv","8":"tag-adam-brody","9":"tag-entertainment","10":"tag-erin-foster","11":"tag-jackie-tohn","12":"tag-justine-lupe","13":"tag-kristen-bell","14":"tag-netflix","15":"tag-nobody-wants-this","16":"tag-timothy-simons","17":"tag-tv"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/254875","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=254875"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/254875\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/254876"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=254875"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=254875"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=254875"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}