As writer, showrunner and executive producer of Peacock’s hit limited series Apples Never Fall, Melanie Marnich brought a career’s worth of experience to this project, just as she had in so many others in the past and even this year as well with another limited series, Murder at the End of the World. Her other credits include The Affair, Big Love, The Big C, The OA and much work on stage as a playwright.
But it is this adaptation of the bestselling Liane Moriarty book that provided some of the biggest challenges of her career, not least of which is managing to double Australia shooting locations for the West Palm Beach setting of the story, which revolves around the rivalry, dysfunction and tension within a family ingrained in the world of tennis and the mystery of a missing mother played by Annette Bening. She just simply disappears, and husband Sam Neill is a suspect in the case. Each episode focuses solely on one member of the family, which includes four grown kids and a mysterious visitor. All have something to add to the unfolding of Moriarty’s tale, which rivals her Big Little Lies on the sheer binge-watching meter.
Marnich joins me for today’s episode of my Deadline video series Behind the Lens to spill the beans on everything including a unique “Now” and “Then” onscreen notification so viewers will know exactly where they are in the complex narrative. To watch our conversation and to go “behind the lens” with Melanie Marnich, just click on the link above.
Join me every Monday and Friday this Emmy season for another edition of Behind The Lens.
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