Courtesy of Mark Duplass
Mark Duplass
Mark Duplass is something of a rarity in the current film landscape.
Through the New Orleans-born-and-raised filmmaker and actor’s production company, Duplass Brothers Productions, which he founded with his older brother Jay, he’s written and directed the micro-budget indie films The Puffy Chair, Cyrus; and Jeff, Who Lives at Home, as well as the television shows Togetherness and Penelope—which premiered in January at the 2024 Sundance Festival and is now streaming on Netflix. The eight-episode series stars Megan Stott as the titular sixteen-year-old character, who feels so disconnected to the modern world that she leaves her home for the wilderness.
But Duplass is also a renowned actor, who has starred in mainstream fare like Zero Dark Thirty, The League, The Mindy Project, and all three seasons of The Morning Show. A fictional inside look at the hugely popular news program, the Apple TV+ show stars Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon, and has explored sexual harassment, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the changing landscape of television.
“I’m trying to figure out the balance of working on a really, deeply important TV series like Penelope, while having the comfort and, quite frankly, the paycheck of The Morning Show, which can help to fund my other work financially and spiritually,” Duplass said. “I’ve discovered I love doing both. That battle keeps me happy and makes me feel vital as an artist.”
“I try to make art about important things. A lot of the time it feels like I’m speaking into an echo chamber. But The Morning Show has Jennifer Aniston talking about women’s rights to the middle of the country. There’s some cool work being done in it that I didn’t actually expect.” —Mark Duplass, who plays Charlie Black on The Morning Show
Duplass’s performance as Charlie Black, the high-strung and complex executive producer of The Morning Show, have been roundly rewarded, even earning him a Golden Globe and two Emmy Award nominations for Best Supporting Actor. “I was actually reading books with my youngest daughter and wife when she told me to check the nominations,” he said. “I didn’t think there was any reason to. Then, I check my phone, and I have all these texts congratulating me.”
When it comes to awards, Duplass questions the need to turn art into a competition, but appreciates the recognition and acknowledges how important nominations are for getting his other work promoted. “The part of me that is business-minded knows that, for the entire ecosystem of my career, it’s important people see me as someone who is nominated for awards,” he said. “It gets people talking. It gives me the chance to get my face out there, which I can then use to make more shows like Penelope, which I’m super grateful for.”
Born and raised in New Orleans, Duplass credits his love of movies to both the emergence of HBO and growing up so close to a cinema. “Me and my brother, we’d get home from school and watch the likes of Sophie’s Choice and Kramer vs. Kramer at like three o’clock in the afternoon on TV. Then at Lakeside Cinemas we actually won a competition that gave us yearly passes. We’d see Karate Kid and Raising Arizona repeatedly. That’s when I started to understand the art of storytelling.”
As Duplass began to take the first steps in his filmmaking career, he looked to New Orleans’s musical and creative history for inspiration. “We were outside of Hollywood and had no knowledge of the film industry,” he said. “The models for successful artists in New Orleans were these blues and jazz musicians. They were these workhorses, who’d load their own gear, do their own soundcheck, and do everything.”
Courtesy of Mark Duplass
Megan Stott, the star of the Duplass Brothers' film "Penelope"
Likewise, when it came to making their own movies, Mark and Jay started their careers by doing every job on set, from acting, producing, and editing to making the posters and booking flights. “No one is coming to help you. No one knows who you are, and no one cares,” said Duplass. While they have more help nowadays, Duplass still prides himself on helping out where required. “That work ethic was mandatory at first. But it has stuck as a point of pride. At my core, I am most comfortable with my family and friends, holding the boom, tweaking the lighting, and cleaning up after the day is done.”
Even though he’s accustomed to more threadbare productions, Duplass has enjoyed working on the extravagant sets of The Morning Show. “When I don’t have to do all those jobs, like on The Morning Show, it’s frankly glorious. The food is incredible. I’m vastly overpaid for the work I do. And I love it.”
Duplass believes that The Morning Show has struck such a chord with people because its leading stars, Aniston and Witherspoon, bring a “movie star appeal, in their beautiful clothes, and under perfect lighting, with popular music playing behind them,” which is then transposed over by hot button topics. “I try to make art about important things. A lot of the time it feels like I’m speaking into an echo chamber. But The Morning Show has Jen talking about women’s rights to the middle of the country. There’s some cool work being done in it that I didn’t actually expect.”
As the co-creator and co-writer of Penelope, alongside Mel Eslyn, Duplass is hopeful that the success of The Morning Show will attract viewers to the self-funded coming-of-age drama.
“I came up with the idea because I feel like a lot of us are addicted to technology,” he said. “It felt obvious to me. Part of me feels like we’ve taken a turn in the last five to ten years that is not bringing happiness to us. Mental health issues have skyrocketed. I feel like a lot of that is related to our connectedness with technology. I really wanted to contribute to that conversation, especially since I have a sixteen-year-old daughter.”
After Duplass and Eslyn finished writing the show, they took it out to streamers and networks, expecting to find someone to make it. “We thought there might be a bidding war,” he said. “Everyone said the writing was beautiful and they loved the gentle pace. But then they'd say, ‘We can’t make this! We have to make the next Game Of Thrones.’”
Duplass decided to take matters into his own hands. Thanks to his hefty Morning Show paycheck, he decided to finance the show himself. And it paid off; in May 2024, Netflix bought the rights. While he’s relieved to have found a home for Penelope, the whole experience left him concerned about the future of film and television.
“It’s so hard to get things made for so many reasons,” he said. “I feel so fortunate that I have been in this business for twenty years. I have really good relationships. My name means something now. It’s easier for me to get something made. Or, if I've made it myself, find a place for it. It’s a lot of hard work. But it’s what makes me feel alive.”
