Nico Tortorella and Peter Hermann on How ‘Younger’ is More Relevant Than Ever [Exclusive Interview]

Things are getting more complicated on the upcoming season of Younger, and not just for Liza.

I sat down with Nico Tortorella and Peter Hermann following the Younger panel at the ATX Television Festival to talk about what we can expect from their characters this season as well as the ways the series is tackling the definition of truth.

Without giving any spoilers, I’ll just say that the final scene of the Younger Season 4 premiere is shocking. Nico Tortorella shared his reaction to reading that script for the first time.

“We’re back — with a bang,” Tortorella laughed. “That last scene is just like, ‘Really? This is what we’re doing this season? Yes!'”

The season premiere gets at the issue of truth in a way that’s relevant to what’s happening in our country right now. (One character even uses the term “alternative facts” in the season premiere.)

“I thought it was remarkable how elegantly — how deftly [Darren Star] wove, frankly the state of our nation, into a half-hour comedy. It was a couple of weeks before we started shooting that episode, we had ‘Is Truth Dead?’ on the cover of Time Magazine, and at first I was like, ‘Wow! Go Darren Star! We made the cover of Time,” Peter Hermann laughed.

“But that’s obviously quite a question to have, when you think about when that question actually appears on the cover of a national magazine, the situation that that speaks to. Then comes this script that is topical, elegant, not heavy-handed, deeply funny, and really deftly aware of the fact that things have changed and that we are a show that deals in truth,” Hermann continued.

One of the many things that makes Younger such a unique series is that the story has evolved in such a natural way.

“I think it’s the expertise of the writers,” Peter Hermann said. “I remember at the end of [season] one, I asked Darren, ‘What’s gonna happen in two?’ and he’s like, ‘I don’t know.’ I was so amazed that the [series-long] arc isn’t totally planned out in his head yet. And they get together, and they think them up.”

“He’s genius in that spontaneity,” Nico Tortorella added.

Hermann also praised Sutton Foster for what she brings to her role and to the show as a whole. “I think the spirit of our show is what it is because of Sutton. Just through the person that she is, [she] sets the tone on set.”

Nico Tortorella said one thing he hopes for is more storyline for Josh as the show moves forward.

“You know, this is a 22-minute show with seven series regulars. We only get so much. I love playing the role so much,” Tortorella said. “I would love to do more. I think that’s the biggest challenge. They can only give you so much, and what’s there is so good.”

For Peter Hermann, one of the challenges in playing the role of Charles is something that’s true of acting in general.

“Charles is a father, a publisher, a son, a divorced man, a hopeful intellectual romantic — all of those things simultaneously. I think that it’s just sort of an acting challenge, is simply to let all those things be present without necessarily playing them. I find that sometimes the hardest thing is simply just to be, and to trust that that’s enough,” he noted.

We can expect continued change and growth for Josh’s character this season, as well as all of the characters on the series.

“I think that there is this real spiritual awakening that’s happening in the world, and I think that part of that is happening on this show,” Tortorella said. “All of our characters are growing up in an important way right now.”

“Adversity reveals character. You find out about people when you throw something in their way, and you find out how they respond,” Hermann added.

Younger returns Wednesday, June 28th at 10/9c to TV Land.

Be sure to check out all of our coverage of the ATX Television Festival right here (there is still more to come).

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