The Afterparty is back on Apple TV+, with the genre-hopping murder mystery bringing an — almost — entirely new cast to the show’s blend of high-stakes intrigue and goofy character comedy. Admist all the questions and style-shifts of the new season, there’s also a surprisingly heartfelt and dramatic plotline slowly unraveled between Feng (Ken Jeong) and Ulysses (John Cho), half-brothers who are introduced with an unspoken tension. When a murder at the wedding of Feng’s daughter, Grace (Poppy Liu), puts a spotlight on everyone there, the two find themselves confronted with their pasts.
It’s one of the show’s best subplots, with their drama slowly unfolding even as the comedy gets sillier and th stakes get higher. During an interview with CBR ahead of The Afterparty‘s Jul. 12 second season premiere on Apple TV+, John Cho and Ken Jeong discussed finding the balance of drama and comedy within the series, the importance of going with the flow of a scene, and conducting table reads from the back of limousines.
CBR: The Afterparty is pretty hilarious throughout, but I also love that the two of you get a really meaty dramatic storyline to play with together. What surprised you about how that relationship surprised you across the season?
John Cho: I don’t know if this is surprising, but I really think we got some really intimate moments as half brothers. That was the real pleasure to play with on the day, to see how real we could make it, you know? Within the bounds of the comedy, we knew that if that felt like a real thing, then the comedy would play a lot better too, and the stakes would be higher. So it was a real pleasure to play in the sandbox with Ken.
Ken Jeong: I echo that — it was so much fun. And I’ve been dying to work with John, you know, my entire career. To lean into that really juicy dynamic we had was [so fun] to explore. That was honestly a highlight of the whole series for me, getting to work with John.
John, Ulysses is such a grounded dramatic character — but then also has dance sequences and bizarre turns. What’s it like finding that balance in the performance?
John: Well, it’s all on the page. It was all there, and you just try and commit yourself to the material as much as you can. And this is just brilliant material. Really, I just thought it was so detailed, and yet truthful and funny. So that’s why you know, you say yes to the good stuff.
Ken: And John — honestly, just watching him up close, I had the best seat in the house. He’s a master at his craft, and he just — every approach [and] every nuance. Everyone thinks all actors are just, this is how you do this, you study, you do this, you go boom, boom, boom, boom, boom. It’s also when you’re in the flow. Just to see John’s approach of preparation. He embodied the role even at the table read, before he stepped on set, but also what made me just really just admire him. Just being like a surfer in a wave. When I watched John perform, I’m always like, oh, he’s just surfing that wave. That because that’s what this is. At the end of the day, [it’s] just a surfing lesson.
John: [Laughing] I was just smiling because I was remembering that table read, and it was a Zoom table read. And [Ken] had the most boss table read of all time. Do you recall where you were? You were in the backseat of a limo.
[Laughing] Now that’s a power move!
Ken: [Laughing] I didn’t compare, so at least I could establish dominance the backseat of a limousine.
The Afterparty returns to Apple TV+ on Jul. 12.