"Younger" doesn’t waste any time in its sixth season.
The New York City-set TV Land series returned to our television screens last week with the Millennial publishing company (formerly Empirical) fronted by new leader Kelsey (Hilary Duff). Naturally, the switches at the heart of the company change things up for Liza (Sutton Foster) and Diana, too.
Actress Miriam Shor, who plays Diana, discusses what’s to come, and what it means to her to be a part of the female-fronted series.
There are a lot of secrets being spilled, including Liza’s, this season, aren’t there?
Listen, we go big. It’s never a shy entry into a new season for "Younger." It’s actually the most revealing, most emotionally charged season. I feel like more happens this season than has happened in any other season.
How do we see Diana react to the changes at work?
She’s like, listen, whoever is the boss is who I’m going to work with and for and I’m going to make it work because I’ve been in this industry forever and I know how to do it. When Kelsey comes in, she’s like, here we go. I don’t think she’s trying to undermine her in any way. I think she’s a very supportive person.
It seemed a bit like there was some resentment there though, no?
In this day and age, I think experience is undervalued, in real life, IRL. I think she has high expectations and is a little skeptical that they can be achieved without the experience.
But, one thing we discover throughout the season is that she really does become a champion for the women she works with — which is a great thing our show promotes. I feel like so often, we see women represented as catty and jealous when in reality, the women I work with have been incredibly supportive to me throughout my career.
What does it mean to you, personally, to be a part of a series that’s showing women in successful roles in New York City?
Ours is a very optimistic and aspirational show, which is a bit of a rarity right now. I love dark stories. I’m all about a dark story. But, there’s something to be said about the optimism of our show. It’s not that people don’t’ go through trials and tribulations but the optimism in our series is so refreshing when you watch it. It makes you want to come back and keep watching.
How does the show look to combat stigmas about women in the workplace?
This show shows women who are ambitious in the workplace and doesn’t show that in a negative light. Every woman — actually, every person — on our show believes in themselves and is ambitious. It shows the difficulties of that but, to me, it does it in a positive light. To see incredible women believing in themselves and each other and working hard to get what they want, I wish we saw more of that.
There was a Dolly Parton "9 To 5" cabaret number for you in the first episode back at Marie’s Crisis. What was it like filming that?
Oh my god. It was a dream come true. First of all, getting to sing with Hilary and Sutton was amazing and second, that’s maybe one of the best songs ever written by Dolly Parton. Then, also, slightly fulfilling my dream of getting to play the Lily Tomlin role from "9 To 5." Lily Tomlin is like the highest of high to me. It was a joy.
It was a long day. You have to get it right. We were lip-syncing to the track and then recorded it. We had to get a small space full of people. We make each other laugh a lot on set, so it helps a long day go faster. I think you can see how much fun we’re having.
You direct episode 4 this season. What can you reveal about that experience?
It was just an incredible stroke of luck that I got to be a part of a show that’s been so supportive of me getting to direct. I did one last season, another one this season. The challenges that happened were challenges I was ready to meet. I was lucky enough where the cast and this crew is my family. I tried something new to me with a group of people who were so loving and supportive. I couldn’t have asked for anything more.
