Danny Pudi and Imani Hakim Talk ‘Mythic Quest’ Season 4 and What to Expect From Their Characters This Season [Interview]

If there was any team within Mythic Quest Season 4 that had a more challenging time than Ian and Poppy, it would be Playpen’s quartet: Dana, Rachel, Brad, and Jo.

In previous seasons, these four have faced many challenges together, from dealing with Ian’s creative madness to some inner turmoils involving Playpen. Yet Rachel and Dana, with Jo’s assistance and Brad’s “help,” fought through it all and still came out on top.

However, the series is already throwing new obstacles in their way with Mythic Quest Season 4 Episodes 1 and 2. 

I recently spoke with Danny Pudi and Imani Hakim about what’s next for Dana, Rachel, and Brad in Mythic Quest Season 4, directing, and more. (You can watch the full interview below.)

Mythic Quest Season 4 Episode 7, “The Room Where It Happens,” will mark the first episode that Hakim has directed for the series. Hakim said her biggest challenge was having to act and direct all at once.

“[I] don’t really love that, but I felt very, very supported from both Danny, Ashly [Burch], David [Hornsby], Megan [Ganz], and Rob [McElhenney],” Hakim said. “Everyone was just like, if I had any questions, just ready to answer. Also, the good thing about our show is that we’ve been doing it for a while.”

“Being in front of the camera for as long as I’ve been in front of the camera plays really well into what’s required of us behind the camera,” Hakim added. “It was just cool to be able to stretch that muscle and challenge myself in a way that I haven’t been able to before.”

Watch the full interview with Danny Pudi and Imani Hakim:

“I think Imani is pretty amazing and was so natural at it, and I think that’s a testament to her,” Pudi said. “We’re not afraid to ask questions because directing is new to me, too.”

“I think for me, my own advice is to ask questions if I don’t know something and be honest about that,” Pudi continued. “Our crew is so willing to give help when it’s needed, and everyone is so talented at what they do.”

In fact, Pudi is also returning to the director’s chair with Mythic Quest Season 4 Episode 9 “Telephone.” Though that marks the second episode Pudi will direct, it also lifts a similar concept from Mythic Quest: Quarantine.

However, directing that episode also proved to be a challenge for Pudi. “I was talking to David [Hornsby] about this episode a lot — and Megan [Ganz]. And they were both so helpful because I knew that it was something that felt like real time,” Pudi said.

“I watched an episode of Dave actually, [there] is a fantastic episode from Season 3,” he continued. “I watched a few things that were kind of in-real-time movement, especially very movement-oriented episodes where the camera’s always moving, or characters are always moving.”

However, one element of “Telephone” that Pudi loved to work with was seeing David all over the place.

“It felt like there was this extra layer, which is not typical of our show, which is pretty static at times. But I wanted to keep David moving,” Pudi explained.

“He’s so funny in the episode, but David frazzled is maybe the funniest version of David,” he said. “So, if we can keep him moving and keep him frazzled, that, to me, was kind of the fun of this episode.”

Still, Pudi had to learn how to utilize so many technical elements with the camera department. “People were teaching me how to do that with FaceTime and it’s tricky,” Pudi said. “It was a lot of learning on the fly, but it made that really fun for me as a director.”

While Pudi’s episode is much more technically focused, Hakim’s episode is much more narratively focused. In fact, it will be a turning point for several characters, but Dana and Rachel are stuck in the center of their respective moments.

“I mean, because there’s so much fun stuff and there’s a lot of dramatic elements in this episode, as well as comedic,” Hakim said. “I think the Poppy and Ian stuff, just the way that they’re working through their relationship stuck with me.”

In addition, Hakim also pointed out directing the moments between David and Rachel were very hilarious. In fact, these two paralleling storylines find themselves colliding in many fun yet realistic ways.

“On the comedic side, it was really fun to direct Ashly and David because their chemistry is just so fun,” she said. “Specifically, Rachel being a little bit of a conspiracy theorist!”

—

*Interview edited and condensed for clarity.

Mythic Quest Season 4 premieres on Wednesday, January 29, on Apple TV+.

Follow us on X and on Instagram!

Want more from Tell-Tale TV? Subscribe to our newsletter here!