Richie Moriarty Talks Arrow Logistics, That Iconic Pete Line, and the ‘Ghosts’ Holiday Special [Interview]

At the center of Ghosts is our trusty Pinecone Troop leader, whose people-pleasing, sunset-appreciating attitude keeps this sitcom aiming true.

I recently spoke with Richie Moriarty, who plays Pete, about the shortcomings of dying with an arrow in your neck, the holiday special, and the bitter-sweet journey of a sitcom that keeps its story close to the chest.

“It can be frustrating,” Moriarty admitted of the mysteries surrounding his character. “There are questions you have, like what is Pete’s ghost power? There are things where you’re antsy to know more because you want a total picture of this person. But, all you can do is make strong choices about who you think this character is.”

But he ensured it is all part of the journey this story is taking us on, and the writers are very intuned to these characters.

“The more episodes we do, the more the writers learn about our strengths as actors and they try to incorporate things that they know we will be good at. They try to write stories that would make sense for the characters that we have created. They are never going to write anything that clashes terribly with the character.”

As for what Pete’s ghost power could be, Moriarty confirms discussions have taken place, but Joe Port and Joe Wiseman are still deciding.

“I have a couple of ideas, but I hesitate to say them because I have talked a lot with the Joes. And I know that they’re considering a couple of the things we have talked about — ideas that they have told me about and ideas that I’ve told them about. The Joes are sitting on it and waiting for the perfect moment to reveal it.”

Comic-Con and Cast Camaraderie

In June, Ghosts launched a “Summer of Ghosts” promotional tour that included an elaborate Pinecone Trooper pop-up at the San Diego Comic-Con. It was a life moment Moriarty believes will “leave an impact.”

“Arriving at Comic-Con, we felt for the first time how special this show is and how special the fan base is,” he said. “We have this different experience shooting in Montreal and it is a little bit harder to watch in Canada, so it’s not as much in the zeitgeist here.”

“So to go to Comic-Con where it is superfans of everything and to see how genuine fans were in their love of the show with 5000 people turning out to the panel was amazing. I certainly wasn’t expecting a crowd that big and enthusiastic. We talked one-on-one with so many fans in cosplay and the pinecone trooper setup was amazing.”

We also discussed Jay and Pete’s bromance, and Moriarty confirmed the friendship is very much alive off-screen as it is on-screen.

“It’s always fun to see the new ways they get to affect each other’s lives without being able to talk. It’s mirrored really nicely with my relationship with Utkarsh [Ambudkar] on set. He and I have this fascinating background where we went to the same high school together. I was a senior when he was a freshman,” he shared.

“And we had that bond right out of the gate, but we didn’t know each other and are very different people. We have built a strong friendship over these last two seasons.”

“Jay has such a hard job on this show. To ignore us all the time is very difficult when you’ve got a ghost squawking in your ear all the time. He can’t even acknowledge their presence — it is tricky, and Utkarsh does it so well.”

Logistics of the Arrow

Walking around with an arrow eternally stuck in your neck can be an inconvenience. For Moriarty and the cast, the sharp scene partner certainly has its challenges.

“I am much more conscious of the arrow this season. It’s become like an extension of my body now and there are times where I walk sideways through doors so I don’t clip my arrow on a doorway. But it’s taken a lot of getting used to,” he admitted.

“Season 1 was a lot dicier. There were moments where I would whisper a line to a ghost next to me, not realizing, ‘Hey, you’re going to poke them in the eye with your arrow.’ I’m six feet tall, so the arrow is at eye level with some of the other ghosts and it can be dicey for sure.”

The actor went on to describe how the logistics of Pete’s arrow work to create that deadly illusion.

“There’s a c-shaped metal bracket that goes around the back of my neck. And on each end of that C, there are two bolts that the arrow screws into. So if I’m not on camera at all, sometimes we unscrew the arrows quickly and make sure that I’m not endangering the cameraman next to me.”

“I don’t know if I’ve said this publicly, but we shortened the arrow in Season 2,” Moriarty revealed, previously hinting at the change during Paley Fest. “Like a quarter inch off of each side because in Season 1 it was a little wider than my shoulders, which just felt too dangerous. So we shortened it slightly for safety reasons.”

That Iconic Pete Line

The edgier tones of Ghosts Season 2 Episode 3, “Jay’s Friends,” provided plenty of comedic lines for Pete, but none more viral than, “Welcome to another day in hell, bitch.” 

Moriarty was happy to walk fans through the events that led to the one-liner, explaining: “It’s funny. We get these drafts of scripts, then we get on Zoom and read them all together for the first time along with a million executives from CBS. And when I read through it the first time, I got to that line and I was like, ‘This is gold.’

But the actor was “nervous” the line wouldn’t stay. “It does feel right on the edge for CBS. I literally say ‘Welcome to another day in hell, bitch.’ I call Sas a bitch which is just so funny to me.”

“So I wanted to make sure I did it in a way that felt like it would stay. But, man, it was so much fun! Trent O’Donnell directed that episode, and he’s great about giving us the freedom to try it different ways. So I probably said that with a lot more heat than what you’re seeing in the final cut. I said it quieter a couple of times, but he picked the right take. It’s such a dark Pete moment with him saying hell and bitch when he usually is like, ‘Oh, golly!'”

“And it’s shot in a way where it’s lit so dramatically,” he added. “So it was really funny to see people’s responses to it online. We live in the world of gifs and that’s like a perfect gif for any news event.”

The Holiday Special

Tis the season for eight ghosts a-singing! With a holiday special for Ghosts just around the corner, Moriarty offered fans a taste of what they can expect from the festive outing and it involves a follow-up to the Hamilton musical number.

“I will tease that all of the ghosts, I think minus Isaac, got to work with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra Choir Director,” he revealed.

“There is a scene in the episode where we sing as the ghosts, and we worked in the studio to record Christmas songs. We have such fun stories from those few days because none of us are professional singers. Some of us have no business singing, frankly. It was just so funny and yet, fun to be able to work with this serious choir director who is incredibly gifted. I was so impressed with the final product, too, and I’m excited to hear it in the episode.”

As for what other gifts are in store for us, expect lots of romance and classic Christmas movie goodness.

“It is going to be a funny but sweet tip of the cap to the Hallmark Christmas universe. I think we did a great job kind of lampooning the Hallmark tropes that you see in those movies.”

Watch Ghosts online, now streaming on Paramount+. Try it FREE!

Ghosts airs Thursdays at 8:30/7:30c on CBS.

Check out our postmortem episode discussion of Ghosts Season 2 Episode 7, “Dumb Deaths,” with Richie Moriarty here!

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