One Of Us Is Lying has made its mark on the Peacock streaming service with its 8-episode first season. The teen mystery series, based on Karen M. McManus' novel of the same name, follows a group of students - dubbed the Bayview 4 - who must investigate the death of their classmate Simon Kelleher's (Mark McKenna, Wayne) in order to clear their own names.
Infamous throughout Bayview High for running a gossip blog that exposed everyone's secrets, Simon had no shortage of students out for his blood - every member of the Bayview 4 included. Given that they were the only people in the room with him when he died, their only options are to turn on each other or figure out who could be pulling the strings from outside their line of sight. While the end of the season revealed the true culprit, the story is by no means resolved and fans are eagerly awaiting news of a renewal for season 2.
Barrett Carnahan, who plays Addy's (Annalisa Cochrane) boyfriend and Cooper's (Chibuikem Uche) best friend Jake, is no stranger to the teen drama circuit. In the last year alone, he's appeared in One Of Us Is Lying, as well as the hit series Cobra Kai and Cruel Summer. The up-and-coming actor spoke to Screen Rant about the layers of intentions that he worked into his scenes, how he views Jake's relationships, and what he'd like to see on the show moving forward.
WARNING: This interview contains spoilers for One of Us is Lying!
Screen Rant: What was your experience with the novel before you got the role, or did you first dive in once you were cast?
Barrett Carnahan: I hadn't heard of the novel when I first got the part, or when I read the script. I hadn't heard of it, but as soon as I started to tell people what I was going up for, more and more people started to say either they had read the book, or they knew somebody who had read the book and loved it. Over time, I started to realize this thing is way more popular than I expected.
I was itching to get my hands on it, but I didn't want to jump the gun; I didn't want to jinx it. I was actually driving DoorDash at the time, and I was delivering food when I got the call that I got the part. I finished that last delivery and hauled ass to Barnes & Noble, picked up a copy, went home and started reading it.
You were doing DoorDash when you got this role, but now you're in every teen drama I have watched in the last year. What has that experience been like for you?
Barrett Carnahan: A wild ride. When you take a step back and look at it, you realize how fortunate you are to have been in the public eye so much. And on good stuff - Cobra Kai is a huge hit and Netflix sensation. Cruel Summer was the little engine that could and took the world by storm; it ended up being something that was incredible. I mean, that ending? Being Jeanette's brother, it completely took me by surprise - I think I didn't say a word for about three hours.
And then One Of Us Is Lying, which is just another one of those lightning-in-a-bottle situations. Everyone's just so happy to be involved and passionate. The fan base is already there and crazy supportive.
Did you read the scripts all at once or as you were filming? I imagine the biggest twist was Jake's ending but was there any adaptational change that most surprised you?
Barrett Carnahan: Before I even got the full pilot script, I had already finished the book, so I knew where this was going. But they kind of let us know early on that things were going to change, we just weren't sure how much they were going to change. It wasn't until we got to New Zealand to start shooting the show that we started receiving the rest of the scripts.
We were all in quarantine and getting the scripts day by day, with a couple of days in between, and we would just be so excited to get the next one. I think we got all of them by the time we got out of out of quarantine.
I'm honestly kind of uncomfortable talking about [Jake's ending], because for so long we haven't been able to say anything. "It's okay now?" I've seen people's reactions online; some are good, and some are bad. But I think, with everything that Jake was sticking his fingers into in the world that they created for the series, I don't really see it having gone any other way. I think he was he was gonna get got at some point.
His relationship with Addy in particular was incredibly toxic, but at the same time, he obviously has very strong feelings about her. What is your interpretation of that dynamic? How much of it is pure possession versus is actual love?
Barrett Carnahan: I think everyone has a different perception of what love is. Love is like water; it's the shape of water. Jake's idea of love is somebody that can cater to his every need, and somebody that is always there whenever he needs them. But it doesn't necessarily go the other way. Jake is somebody that is always just trying to be perfect and make that trophy of a life. And that requires having somebody to be his queen; to be that that trophy queen or that trophy wife one day.
He picked Addy, and as soon as she started to show him this side of her that catered to his absolutely every need - no matter what he needed, whenever he needed it - he knew that she was the one. He knew that he could mold her into whatever he needed her to be, which is in the end, what he needs and what he wants out of a relationship. Out of love.
So, yes, I think he does love her. But it's his own skewed perception of love.
In the same vein, Cooper plays on his friendship with Jake when he comes out to him at the party. Would you say there is real respect and friendship there, or is it a game of envy and control for Jake there too?
Barrett Carnahan: I think that no matter how close he is to Cooper, there is always that tinge of jealousy. I always like to think that Jake knew he wasn't that good of a quarterback. I know we really didn't really get to see any football games or anything, but I always loved having that in the back of my mind. Jake is not that good at football, and he knows it. And he knows how good Cooper is.
It happens a couple times with Coop, when he says, "Do you have any idea how lucky you are? Do you know what I would do for that kind of talent? You have no idea, and you're throwing it all away?" I think he latches onto him because he's almost living through Cooper. When he does go to the showcase, and he's cheering him on, it's almost it's like the way that Cooper's father is reacting to this. This is his one chance to latch on to somebody that could go pro.
But I know they're friends. Unfortunately, we didn't get to see too much of their camaraderie and their dynamic. I think he does truly consider him a friend, but at the end of the day, he is just a pawn in this massive chess game that Jake has laid out.
Presumably, Jake is out of the picture now, but the way the season ends leaves room flashbacks in season 2 or maybe ghostly reappearances. Is there anything else that you would like to explore about Jake's backstory?
Barret Carnahan: Yes! I mean, there's nothing. We know nothing. There were some people that said that, "All that and Jake's still alive?" There are some people that watched that finale and still think that I'm alive.
I'm rooting for your hand to come out of the grave.
Barret Carnahan: Yeah, like a shallow, The Revenant grave. Leo, just coming out of the out of the ground.
From my perspective, a lot of people were calling Jake a sociopath. And while he may have some sociopathic methods, I don't consider him a full-on sociopath. What was always going on in my story was that Jake just got caught up in this snowball situation. One thing led to the next and then, in order to save his own ass, he had to get rid of Simon because he couldn't trust him. At the end of the day, he is an extreme narcissist - if it comes down to somebody potentially ruining his life or getting out scot-free, he's gonna get out scot-free. Simon is just someone that's too dangerous to be left alive. I think that one extreme situation led to the next, and I think that there is part of Jake - in fact, a lot of Jake - that feels incredibly guilty.
I don't think he would ever admit that to anybody. But I would love it, if there was season 2, if there was something that revealed the backstory of Jake and what was going on behind the scenes of season 1. I think it would be pretty cool to explore Jake really struggling with what he's done. And clearly, there's somebody else that is behind the scenes as well. We got that final "Simon Says" thing, "Or else I'll tell everybody what you did." Maybe Jake had a co-conspirator was helping him with this, and maybe they were pushed or maybe they were even pushing him to do things he wasn't necessarily comfortable with. I would love to get the chance to show Jake's incredible guilt that he feels.
Something that I was always doing, even in scenes where everything had to be okay, was that I would just have this image of Jake wondering [about Simon]. It's incredibly dark, but when playing a character like this - he's this mastermind - it was always a goal of mine to not play him completely innocent. If I was there just pretending like everything was okay and performing as if I was completely innocent, I would feel like I was kind of a fraud. I wanted there to be something going on in my head at all times. Always scheming, always thinking about what he's done and what he plans on doing, and always choosing how to look or how to feel in a moment; how to deliver a certain line.
When you watch it the first time, it may not mean much. But upon second viewing, you go back and look at it, and you go, "Listen to the way that he said that. See how he's looking at her right now when he says this." Hopefully people will watch again and put those puzzle pieces together.
I love how invested you are in the character. It makes me wonder what kinds of conversations or training you had behind the scenes to get to that point.
Barrett Carnahan: It was really just being present, always listening and always having something on my mind. Sometimes in shows, people can just get caught up, especially in a thriller like this. Sometimes you can give too many things away or show too much fear on your face. Sometimes you can show yourself thinking, at the time when you probably shouldn't be revealing to anybody that you're thinking about something.
That goes back to what I was talking about before. In a show like this, I had to be very careful with when I did it, because I am the guilty one. Because I feel like I would be fooling the audience if I just came off as completely innocent.
There's some moments, like when I hug Addy. And in that moment, when you hug somebody, they can't see you. When you hug them, your eyes are going to fade just a little bit and slip back into that subconscious mind of, "What the hell have I done? I can't believe what she's done to me."
Because he's torturing her all the time. He gives her so many opportunities to tell him that she did this, and I always like to think that if she did admit to him what she did, Jake would have backed out of everything. I talked to Erica Saleh about that, and we loved the idea that this is his way of testing her. He's giving her an easy way out now, and it won't be as painful if she just complies from the beginning. "If you don't comply, it's gonna be a lot worse for you."
Since Cruel Summer season 2 is coming out, I have to ask: how do you think Derrick would feel about finding that Jeanette lied?
Barret Carnahan: He would feel incredibly betrayed. I felt betrayed. In fact, I did episodes 1 through 7, so the last three episodes I was gone. I didn't come back, but I had gotten every script every couple of weeks. I was so excited to get episode eight, but the day that it should have come, it just didn't come. I should have expected this, but I was hoping they would throw me a bone here.
I texted Chiara [Aurelia, who plays Jeanette,] "Do you know how this ends?" And she's like, "Do you really want to know, or do you want to experience it as an audience member?" I said okay, so I found out the ending as soon as everybody else did.
I was floored. I felt betrayed. Because at one point in the show, Derek is the only person that believes her. He's the only person who has her back, and if he found this out, he would feel like such a fool. I don't know if the relationship between him and Jeanette would ever be the same.
All 8 episodes of One Of Us Is Lying's first season are available to stream on Peacock.