{"id":30455,"date":"2026-05-11T07:35:53","date_gmt":"2026-05-11T07:35:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/?p=30455"},"modified":"2026-05-11T07:35:55","modified_gmt":"2026-05-11T07:35:55","slug":"comedian-reveals-story-behind-his-baby-reindeer-follow-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/?p=30455","title":{"rendered":"Comedian reveals story behind his Baby Reindeer follow-up"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"sc-6c4043fd-0 eKWkVq sc-13344c9c-2 jwvfKN\">\n<div class=\"sc-f9e3ccff-0 kbEYga\"><button aria-label=\"Save article to read later\" role=\"switch\" type=\"button\" class=\"sc-f9e3ccff-1 ikojFo\"><span class=\"sc-f9e3ccff-2 tyHWF\">Save<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<div aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"sc-ba6ddcd9-0 yEdFV sc-d1b14060-3 cpmcTK\" role=\"tooltip\">\n<p class=\"sc-d1b14060-4 JmUoF\">You have reached your maximum number of saved items.<\/p>\n<p>Remove items from your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/goodfood\/saved\" class=\"sc-3f16ee48-12 sc-d1b14060-2 jyLmZI iQLtAb\">saved list<\/a> to add more.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><button aria-label=\"Set font size to normal\" class=\"sc-f7fd8257-1 yiNod\">A<\/button><button aria-label=\"Set font size to larger\" class=\"sc-f7fd8257-1 frqtnv\">A<\/button><button aria-label=\"Set font size to very large\" class=\"sc-f7fd8257-1 frqrHP\">A<\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc-c502198b-0 NkURW\">There is a scene in the <a class=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/culture\/tv-and-radio\/half-man-review-richard-gadd-new-show-baby-reindeer-20260421-p5zptq.html\">new series <em>Half Man<\/em><\/a> in which author Niall Kennedy (Jamie Bell) is talking about his book <em>The Rising Sun<\/em>, and cautions an interviewer persistently examining the issues it raises about his own violent childhood that the book is fiction. In the wider body of work of writer, comedian and actor Richard Gadd \u2013 who created the series \u2013 that moment is almost talismanic.<\/p>\n<p>The 36-year-old Scot\u2019s <a class=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/culture\/comedy\/high-costs-and-mental-breakdowns-why-aussie-comics-still-take-on-edinburgh-20240807-p5k0dv.html\">Edinburgh Fringe shows<\/a> <em>Monkey See Monkey Do<\/em> and <em>Baby Reindeer<\/em> delved into his experience of sexual abuse. Both were folded into his <a class=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/culture\/tv-and-radio\/netflix-s-baby-reindeer-is-standout-must-watch-tv-20240419-p5fl2z.html\">critically acclaimed Netflix series<\/a>, which unleashed those themes, and his exploration of his dark journey and recovery, like a cultural tornado.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"sc-5119f468-1 guPQLf\">\n<div class=\"sc-d34e428-0 ikzfwY\"><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"figure-caption\" class=\"sc-4820f69c-0 SuAZY\"><span>Richard Gadd as the fiercely loyal \u2013 and violent \u2013 Ruben in Half-Man. <\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s the great debate, isn\u2019t it, around art, whether it can exist outside the author, the whole \u2018death of an author\u2019 idea, and I think to a certain extent all work is autobiographical, even the stuff that\u2019s really far removed, genre-wise, from the human existence,\u201d Gadd says. \u201cIf we look at horror films, all the ones that are great successes are ones written from a place of what scares the author the most.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAll work is autobiographical to a certain extent, and I think something can be fictional and autobiographical [at the same time] to a certain degree. With <em>Half Man<\/em>, it is a purely fictional world, no characters are based on anyone whatsoever, but it borrows from themes \u2026 character traits I recognise and struggles that I have experience of.\u201d<\/p>\n<aside data-testid=\"related-story\" class=\"sc-c8170ed7-0 kBAoLZ\">\n<h2 data-testid=\"related-story-heading\" class=\"sc-c8170ed7-1 iHMtRN\">Editor&#8217;s pick<\/h2>\n<div class=\"sc-679b6ed4-0 VKgwt\" data-an-position=\"1\" data-testid=\"story-tile\">\n<figure class=\"sc-8825a2fb-0 kZkxVd\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/culture\/movies\/daniel-macpherson-on-saying-yes-to-things-i-probably-shouldn-t-have-20260415-p5zo8q.html\" class=\"sc-cba76dee-0 hdiTqm\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"sc-d34e428-0 ikzfwY\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Daniel MacPherson at Ace Martial Arts in Banksia, where he trained for Beast.\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/static.ffx.io\/images\/$zoom_0.41158181111542946%2C$multiply_0.5127%2C$ratio_1.777778%2C$width_1059%2C$x_0%2C$y_109\/t_crop_custom\/q_86%2Cf_auto\/dedb00bfd592c382b7b9f872387d64a21f2b1d5b\" class=\"sc-d34e428-1 ioInpc\" \/><\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p><em>Half Man<\/em> is the story of two men who grew up as brothers, despite not being related by blood, Niall Kennedy (Bell) and Ruben Pallister (Gadd). Niall is bookish, sensitive and thoughtful, bullied at school and gentle in nature. Ruben is, at least at first glance, the opposite: strong, violent and lacking in boundaries. He is also fiercely loyal to, and instinctively protective of, his younger brother.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc-c502198b-0 NkURW\">\n<p>In the sense that this is their story, the stunning creation of these two complex characters is as much a credit to Bell and Gadd as it is to Mitchell Robertson and Stuart Campbell, who play them as teenagers in the flashbacks that dominate the first half of the series.<\/p>\n<p>An uncertain tension permeates the series, stretched taut by Gadd\u2019s extraordinary writing and Alexandra Brodski and Eshref Reybrouck\u2019s beautiful direction. But it is not long before we reach a violent breaking point, which unleashes a dark narrative journey that is challenging in almost every way. Across their lives, Niall and Ruben\u2019s relationship is fractured and mutually destructive, shockingly violent and also, sometimes, heartbreaking. It is not an easy watch.<\/p>\n<p>Filming the series was challenging, Gadd admits, not least because as the creator and showrunner, he would have to step out of excessively emotional moments and deal with the production. \u201cWhen we yell \u2018cut\u2019, I have to immediately shift into a different mindset,\u201d Gadd says.<\/p>\n<aside data-testid=\"related-story\" class=\"sc-c8170ed7-0 kBAoLZ\">\n<h2 data-testid=\"related-story-heading\" class=\"sc-c8170ed7-1 iHMtRN\">Related Article<\/h2>\n<div class=\"sc-679b6ed4-0 VKgwt\" data-an-position=\"1\" data-testid=\"story-tile\">\n<figure class=\"sc-8825a2fb-0 kZkxVd\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/culture\/tv-and-radio\/stephen-king-meets-schitt-s-creek-this-wild-dramedy-is-the-most-original-tv-show-this-year-20260430-p5zso9.html\" class=\"sc-cba76dee-0 hdiTqm\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"sc-d34e428-0 ikzfwY\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Matthew Rhys stars in new Apple TV comedy-horror series Widow\u2019s Bay.\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/8d0af97f6ea15a2daf766162db73c475c2a8f6e9.jpeg\" class=\"sc-d34e428-1 ioInpc\" \/><\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p>\u201cThere are some scenes \u2026 when you have to gee yourself up to maybe go ballistic or lose your temper badly and shout and scream [and] at the end, your whole body\u2019s trembling. Then the next day on set is actually even worse because adrenaline crashes are really very difficult. You can never fully sit in it too much, but that\u2019s not to say it doesn\u2019t stay in me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The inescapable horror of Niall and Ruben\u2019s relationship, however, is that regardless of how dark and destructive it becomes, it is still a kind of love story. Even if the two men at the centre of that story have a deep, uncontrollable and damaging brotherly love for each other.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc-c502198b-0 NkURW\">\n<p>\u201cI think a lot of people will say \u2018Look, it\u2019s about male violence. It\u2019s about <a class=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/culture\/tv-and-radio\/forget-the-toxic-grooms-these-are-the-men-you-should-be-paying-attention-to-on-tv-20260310-p5o966.html\">toxic masculinity<\/a>\u2019. They say all these things,\u201d Gadd says. \u201cBut to me, it\u2019s about two men struggling to love themselves and love one another. And it\u2019s the struggle around the communication of love, and the disconnect that we feel between our emotions and our ability to articulate them, that is the heart of <em>Half-Man<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"sc-5119f468-1 guPQLf\">\n<div class=\"sc-d34e428-0 ikzfwY\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Jamie Bell (left) and Richard Gadd play Niall and Ruben, who grew up as brothers but are not related by blood, in Half-Man.\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/f2cf8311380487c619f9b933c96d5215a36913c6.jpeg\" class=\"sc-d34e428-1 ldCIuB\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"figure-caption\" class=\"sc-4820f69c-0 SuAZY\"><span>Jamie Bell (left) and Richard Gadd play Niall and Ruben, who grew up as brothers but are not related by blood, in Half-Man.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Complicating matters further is that Ruben is not, in every scenario, a terrible man. Indeed, his acts of generosity, and what is revealed about his capacity to forgive and even empathise, makes his tendency to excessive and horrific violence a tough algorithm to resolve.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI never saw him as a source of evil, he did a lot of bad things, things that cannot be excused, but I saw him as someone who was fundamentally human, who didn\u2019t have a childhood, who ran on a river of pain,\u201d Gadd says. \u201cHad things turned out differently, I think things would\u2019ve been different. It\u2019s complicated. I never wanted to write him as an inhuman force of psychosis or an inhuman force of just awful thing after awful thing.<\/p>\n<aside data-testid=\"related-story\" class=\"sc-c8170ed7-0 kBAoLZ\">\n<h2 data-testid=\"related-story-heading\" class=\"sc-c8170ed7-1 iHMtRN\">Editor&#8217;s pick<\/h2>\n<div class=\"sc-679b6ed4-0 VKgwt\" data-an-position=\"1\" data-testid=\"story-tile\">\n<figure class=\"sc-8825a2fb-0 kZkxVd\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/culture\/tv-and-radio\/she-s-a-hero-of-mine-the-advice-kitty-flanagan-gave-anne-edmonds-for-her-new-abc-comedy-20260428-p5zrns.html\" class=\"sc-cba76dee-0 hdiTqm\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"sc-d34e428-0 ikzfwY\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Kitty Flanagan and Anne Edmonds star in new ABC comedy Bad Company.\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/158e94e3a4bc42b35e4cc3eae1654d70085651bf.jpeg\" class=\"sc-d34e428-1 ioInpc\" \/><\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p>\u201cBut I think a lot of people who use attack are very vulnerable, like a lot of men who adopt alpha traits, who are very aggressive,\u201d Gadd adds. \u201cAt the heart of it, I think there is truth, huge vulnerability, [and] attack being the best form of defence. And I think that a lot of Ruben\u2019s struggles are his inability to communicate the pain he\u2019s feeling, or trying not to feel as disempowered as he has felt.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>Half Man<\/em> will, inevitably, draw comparisons to <em>Baby Reindeer<\/em>. They are, of course, different. <em>Half Man<\/em> is fiction, even if it is dipped in the hot wax of a complex emotional palette drawn from Gadd\u2019s life and his struggle to recover from abuse. And <em>Baby Reindeer<\/em> was a kind of <a class=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/culture\/tv-and-radio\/baby-reindeer-has-us-asking-who-s-the-real-martha-is-that-the-wrong-question-20240422-p5fll0.html\">polished-but-gritty television truth<\/a>, born out of a comedy show that tapped Gadd\u2019s darkest and most discomforting experiences.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc-c502198b-0 NkURW\">\n<p>\u201cI was so unhappy 10 years ago, in fact, my decision to do <em>Baby Reindeer<\/em> was almost like a lifeline, like a last roll of the dice in terms of how do I escape these impossible pressures that I find in my life,\u201d Gadd says. \u201cBut I think there\u2019s still work to go, in a lot of ways. I still have my doubts and all these kinds of things and senses of loneliness and isolation and confusion about the future and worry about where I\u2019m going and worry about this.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"sc-5119f468-1 guPQLf\">\n<div class=\"sc-d34e428-0 ikzfwY\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Richard Gadd and Jessica Gunning in Baby Reindeer.\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/c2428ee99d4c2a6bdb3446cee29a3e96e9ea53ba.jpeg\" class=\"sc-d34e428-1 ldCIuB\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"figure-caption\" class=\"sc-4820f69c-0 SuAZY\"><span>Richard Gadd and Jessica Gunning in Baby Reindeer.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s really hard, sometimes. And accepting that life might always be a bit confusing and difficult actually goes some way to bring in a sense of peace. But I look back on where I was 10 years ago, and I think it\u2019s progress.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>Half Man<\/em> also lands in a complicated cultural landscape of discussions about toxic masculinity, its connection to the political discourse, and newer, more dangerous trends such as <a class=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/lifestyle\/health-and-wellness\/body-dysmorphia-used-to-be-a-secret-shame-now-male-influencers-are-using-it-to-get-rich-20260414-p5znv9.html\">\u201clooksmaxxing\u201d<\/a> emerging in younger male peer groups. The curious footnote to it all is that <em>Half Man<\/em> is not a response to this cultural moment; it was written back in 2019 and, when Gadd moved on to <em>Baby Reindeer<\/em>, was left in a drawer.<\/p>\n<aside data-testid=\"related-story\" class=\"sc-c8170ed7-0 kBAoLZ\">\n<h2 data-testid=\"related-story-heading\" class=\"sc-c8170ed7-1 iHMtRN\">Related Article<\/h2>\n<div class=\"sc-679b6ed4-0 VKgwt\" data-an-position=\"1\" data-testid=\"story-tile\">\n<figure class=\"sc-8825a2fb-0 kZkxVd\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/culture\/tv-and-radio\/it-was-a-book-written-in-anger-now-a-tv-series-has-captured-its-rage-and-heart-20260505-p5zttb.html\" class=\"sc-cba76dee-0 hdiTqm\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"sc-d34e428-0 ikzfwY\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Nicole Wallace as young Clara in The House of the Spirits.\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/7c143183af92306ad53a9fdb37abf73b2813f850.jpeg\" class=\"sc-d34e428-1 ioInpc\" \/><\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p>\u201cThe show coming out now is almost serendipity,\u201d Gadd says. \u201cI wrote it, then paused it for four years to do <em>Baby Reindeer<\/em>, and then came back to it. And it just so happens that I\u2019ve come back to it while this social media epidemic seems to be going on around the \u2018manosphere\u2019 and toxic masculinity.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Outside of an Instagram account, Gadd does not have a substantial online presence, nor does he engage much on social media. \u201cEven as I\u2019m saying it, I don\u2019t even really know what it is,\u201d he says. \u201cBut I feel like the mistake that some people perhaps make is trying to join the two together. I never really set out [in <em>Half-Man<\/em>] to address socio-political themes. Because if I set out like a writer to be like \u2018I want to answer this question\u2019, then I feel like I\u2019m not writing from the heart.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc-c502198b-0 NkURW\">\n<p>\u201cWhat I hope <em>Half Man<\/em> does, in a similar way to what I hope <em>Baby Reindeer<\/em> does, is that it offers a window into lives of two broken men who have a real problem with expression and vulnerability. And then it\u2019s for people, I suppose, to take what they need or what they think from that.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cArt in this day and age has this ability to slightly point the finger and spell it out a bit too clearly; you can almost feel the author saying, this show is about this, and you must feel this way about a certain thing. It just leads to art being too clear, and I think life\u2019s not clear; art should mirror life and its lack of clarity.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAll I can say is I\u2019ve gone on a journey to explore a complicated subject like male violence, male repression, male rage, only to end up at the end and realise, wow, it\u2019s even more complicated than I thought it was.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Half Man<\/em> is now streaming on Stan (which is owned by Nine, the publisher of this masthead).<\/strong><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h3><b>Want more TV? We\u2019ve got you.<\/b><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/culture\/tv-and-radio\/richard-gadd-wrote-baby-reindeer-from-a-place-of-pain-his-new-series-takes-a-different-path-20260507-p5zuip.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Save You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your saved list to add more. AAA There is a scene in the new series Half Man in which author Niall Kennedy (Jamie Bell) is talking about his book The Rising Sun, and cautions an interviewer persistently examining the issues it raises &#8230; <a title=\"Comedian reveals story behind his Baby Reindeer follow-up\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/?p=30455\" aria-label=\"Read more about Comedian reveals story behind his Baby Reindeer follow-up\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30456,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30455","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Comedian-reveals-story-behind-his-Baby-Reindeer-follow-up.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30455","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=30455"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30455\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30457,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30455\/revisions\/30457"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/30456"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=30455"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=30455"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=30455"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}