When comedian, writer and actor Mark Critch sat down to pen his memoir, Son of a Critch, he had little idea it would become its own comedy series. But with a little nudge from a friend and writing partner, not to mention an enthusiastic response from Canadian broadcaster CBC, his childhood is on its way to being television reality on January 4.
Based on his aforementioned award-winning memoir, Son of a Critch follows young Mark's (played by Benjamin Evan Ainsworth, The Haunting of Bly Manor) coming-of-age in 1980s Newfoundland. Used to spending time with only his family - especially his much older father (played by Critch himself) and grandfather (Malcolm McDowell, Truth Seekers) - Mark finds he's woefully out of touch when it comes time to make friends and school. But the good-natured boy has learned to dive right into things thanks to his Pop's advice, and so he shall at every given opportunity.
Critch, McDowell and Ainsworth spoke to Screen Rant about bringing Mark's story from page to screen, growing closer on set, and feeling at home in Newfoundland.
Mark, I know you worked with Tim McAuliffe on This Hour Has 22 Minutes already. What was the journey of turning your story into a show with him?
Mark Critch: I had written the book first. Then my friend Tim McAuliffe, who'd written for The Office and The Last Man on Earth and a million other things, said, "We really need to make this a TV show." At first, I thought, "That's silly." But no, he persisted.
And so, we got together and wrote outlines and a couple of scripts. Then we went off to Just For Laughs, actually - we talked to a couple of different networks there in Montreal at the Just For Laughs festival, and CBC were very interested. Before we knew it, we had it sold and were off to the races.
And it was fantastic, because so much changes: we focused on different characters than were in the book in some ways, as you're transforming into a television show. And with that, there were some characters that were alluded to - like Fox is a mixture of a couple of people; in the book, Fox was a boy. I changed it into a young girl because there were these girls on my bus going to school, and they were very much the same sort of person with the same sort of stories. So, I thought was more interesting to tell that story as well. TV is a more visual medium, so it was like, "Okay, we can go this way. Now, this will be interesting."
And Pop, Malcolm's character is [a mix too]. My real grandfather died when my father was five years old. But we had lots of older folks who were older relatives in the home, so he's a mixture of those people. It's interesting like that. And then there's my friend, Richie Perez. He's mentioned in the book, but his name is never mentioned because I didn't want to tell tales too much, so I changed all the names in the book of kids. I reached out; he was the only person of color really at our school, as a Filipino-Canadian. And I said, "I want to tell some of your story. I think it's important."
He jumped on board, so I was able to actually use Richie's real name, and he was a consultant on the show. So, yeah, it changes in a lot of different ways. And then it becomes its own kind of tale, and it goes on and on and on.
I would imagine it is uncomfortable to share a room with one's grandfather or grandson, but the two of you make it seem fun and Mark seems to actually respect Pop. Can you talk about how you view each other?
Benjamin Evan Ainsworth: I think Mark hasn't been around kids most of his life, so his only way of escapism is with his grandfather, his dad, his brother, or his mum. He was naturally born into that older generation of pop culture, so that's probably why they get along so well.
And I think because they've been together in the same room for a while, you can see that there's just a natural chemistry. That was so cool to see, and to work with Malcolm is great.
Malcolm McDowell: Obviously, I've been primed here to say things like that, which I quite agree with. They were my favorite scenes, no doubt about it, because the heart of my character is really that. He's sort of - God help him - giving this boy guidance in life and life lessons through his Pop.
But the great thing about Pop is that he just goes for it, and that is a very infectious thing for a kid. It's a really great thing for a kid to be around, because they'll always do that in their lives: just go for it. And that's a lot of fun to do, so we have a lot of fun actually doing that.
Benjamin Evan Ainsworth: Yeah, I feel like Pop helps Mark rationalize the world. As he's going through things, he always has Pop to go, "No, carry on, carry on," whether it is sometimes bumpy or not.
Malcolm McDowell: What do you think of his advice? Pretty good, isn't it? Pretty damn good.
Benjamin Evan Ainsworth: It's amazing.
Mark, what is it like to become your own father?
Mark Critch: It was a bit strange at first, and something that I worried would take people out of it a little bit or be a distraction. But once playing the role, I was delighted to be able to do it and act alongside of this wonderful cast.
But there were moments, as I said, when dressed in my dad's clothing and wearing the same patch on my work blazer for the radio station that he wore from his actual jacket and stuff, where it could be quite odd. Every now and then, I'd be in the scene and be acting, and I'd look down. From here down, I'm basically just seeing my father.
And the house is very similar so, out of the corner of my eye, the dining room is exactly like my house and some of their actual furniture in there too. Over here is Malcolm McDowell in a scene, but over here is my actual childhood and Dad's chair and stuff. I'd be like, "What the heck is happening?" It was wonderful that way. At times, to be honest, I would get a little melancholy, wondering what they thought of it all and wishing they could be here to see all of this.
But there's something wonderful about sharing that story, and then hearing the laughter on set. Hearing these two having such a great time, and thinking what a wonderful thing it is, even if nothing else, just to see friendships formed and this really great working environment we had. I think it's a wonderful honor to their memory, and a great way of bringing their life forward.
Benjamin, you are playing Mark - or at least Mark's memories of himself. Is that nerve-wracking at all? Do look to him for advice, or do you ignore his existence in order to properly portray him.
Benjamin Evan Ainsworth: He's insisted that it isn't like a carbon copy, and he's been really good with it. I've had the artistic license to be able to create more of my own Mark Critch, which is really cool, and I thank him for that. And I feel like it isn't so much nerves, but obviously having a lot of work to do or being on set quite a lot, you naturally have nerves. I don't think it's nerves towards being the perfect Mark Critch, I just feel like it's naturally being on all the time.
Mark Critch: I remember one time I was watching, and you were walking or standing with your hands behind your back at different points. I was watching and my wife said, "Wow, look, he's doing what you do." I said, "What?" "Yeah, you walk with your hands behind your back sometimes." I was like, "No, I don't," but she said, "Yes, you do." And I looked, and my hands were behind my back.
And then one time, you had this funny little run. I was like, "That's a funny little run," and you were kind of like, "Well, yeah, it's sort of the way you run." Every now and then, there were a couple of little things he was doing that were similar to me, which makes it fascinating as a 'you' to go, "I run like that? Oh my God, no, I should get that checked." It was amazing.
Malcolm, you mentioned Pop's zest for life, but there's also a respect for death that he gives Mark. Can you talk about going to the wake in episode 2 and the lessons Mark learns?
Malcolm McDowell: He loves a good week, because it's free sandwiches and free tea and coffee. Which of course Pop loves. Who wouldn't love a good wake? The problem is that the same sandwiches for a wedding or a funeral are all made by The Legion, apparently.
I love that aspect. I mean, only Mark Critch could come up with this stuff. What a family! Let's face it, they're all really a load of sickos, if you really want to know. I mean, they could spend years in therapy for this. But actually, this is perfect therapy for Mark, just to put it all out there.
I think he's wonderful as his dad. But I think he started off with his dad in his mind and, as we went on, he got comfortable in the part he was playing and [became] something more than just his father. It was really nice to see that, because you don't really want an imitation. He didn't do that, and he probably didn't even think about it that much, because it just evolved. It was great to see.
And of course, I couldn't do any research on my character, because it was actually his grandmother and the neighbor or something. If there was a neighbor, they must have had to trek a long way because the house was isolated.
It's very cool how you're able to put pieces of Mark's life together, even if it's not a one-to-one ratio.
Malcolm McDowell: You're not making a biopic on anyone, and Mark is the first person to say, "Who cares? Fly with it, go with whatever." And I think that's important, because you don't want to get stuck with any boundaries at all. The best thing you can ever do for a character is to bring in your own imagination, and that's really important, I think all the actors, all of us, did that.
Colton [Gobbo] was fantastic. He plays the other brother, and he's a lovely actor - a really lovely actor. We're very lucky to have him, I think. In fact, [to have] everybody.
Mark Critch: It's neat to see, talking about actors bringing their own stuff and feeling comfortable to do things. There's one scene where Benjamin and Pop are in bed, side by side. Pop has gone off his meds, and he's not feeling that great. He's meant to babble and have this little thing where he's not quite making sense, and then Malcolm just went in this other way.
He did the speech as written, and then continued with this beautiful speech about a bombing run during the Second World War and all this stuff. He had just gone off and everybody just let him go, but it was stunning. It was an incredible piece of acting. They waited for him to finish, they said cut, and the whole crew erupted in applause. I was thinking, "That's one of the coolest things I've ever seen in my life. There's Malcolm McDowell in full flight."
And there's a couple of times where Malcolm might go, "I'd like to try this." At one point, they're having a quite emotional scene and a little bit of tears came from Malcolm and, once again, the crew erupts in applause because when you have actors like Benjamin and Malcolm, you don't want to rein them in or handcuff them. Whatever their instinct is, let that happen. My God, you'd be a fool not to. We're so lucky that they're willing to go that extra mile and feel comfortable enough and safe enough to take chances every now and then, because it's just the most remarkable bits of performance I've ever had a seat for.
Benjamin, you obviously spend a lot of time with the elders of your family, but you do get to finally make friends when you go to school. Fox and Richie, as you've already discussed, were very fun additions to the show. What was it like for you to get to know these actors and form that trio on screen?
Benjamin Evan Ainsworth: Yeah, it was so cool. They're both amazing people, and I've stayed in touch with them. That's great. I can't wait to see them again, if I do see them again - I really hope I do.
It's really interesting, because all of them have characteristics: Mark [Rivera] is bubbly, and he's amazing. He's really friendly, and so if Sofia [Powers]. On set, it's the same as on screen. It's really cool.
Hopefully there will be a second season of the show. If there is, Malcolm, what would you like to learn about Pop in season 2? Or what would you like to explore about his character?
Malcolm McDowell: I see this character going in any which way that's in Mark's imagination. This character really could do anything; he could fall in love.
I think what we're going to look at a little bit is our relationship between father and son. I think that tends to be a bit like this [signifies distance]. Or it's not even like this, it's a bit like this [an even wider distance]. From Pop's point of view, you have unconditional love for your children and your grandchildren. They're just a little out of kilter in the first season, and so that would be a great thing to explore.
And I'd like to see a little more of St. John's; I'd like to see a little more of Newfoundland, because it's such a cool place. It is like sort of being in Ireland or Scotland in the 50s. Or it's like being in Liverpool, because Liverpool is this small city that's sort of isolated. There's a great sense of community, and you make your own entertainment. That's exactly what they do in St. John's, in Newfoundland. And the humor is fantastic, because it's got to be. You've got to be sardonic, a little bit, because of your lot. I find it very similar, actually, to Liverpool in a weird way. It was only when I came away and had a bit of distance from it that I really felt that's why I feel so at home.
Son Of A Critch premieres on Tuesday, January 4 at 8:30 p.m. (9:00 NT) on CBC TV and CBC Gem.