Maya Rudolph wants you to take her Loot character seriously—if only for a second.
Although the Apple TV+ series is a workplace comedy, it's rooted in a story that most people could relate to. The show follows Molly Novak (Maya), a woman who inherits billions after her tech CEO husband, played by Adam Scott, cheats on her with a woman half her age. And frankly, there's nothing funny about that.
For Maya, the series is a lighthearted look at what happens in the wake of such betrayal. "I think Molly is such a great examination of someone who has been a loyal partner, but because of being a loyal partner, didn't necessarily get to realize their own dreams and has really built a life based around someone else's dreams," she explained to E! News. "And when that's taken away from you, having to ask yourself the hard questions that you never really wanted to ask in the first place."
Such questions include: Where should Molly find happiness if not in her husband's success? And what should she do with the billions that she's now entitled to?
Maya said that Loot is all about finding answers to those big questions, which can feel so daunting. But divorce and other life events don't have to be all bad. As Maya said, "I think it's really exciting, that you are able to create something new in a place that you weren't necessarily looking for. But there are so many versions of of happiness."
And the silver lining for Molly is that she's starting to make new friends through her charitable organization. We emphasize starting because the head of her foundation, Sofia Salinas (Michaela Jaé Rodriguez), is a tough one to crack.
But Molly realizes it's worth putting the effort into getting to know Sofia, who has overcome many obstacles to get where she is today. Because of her past, she isn't the big softy that Molly is, with Michaela telling E! News that Sofia thinks, "The only way for me to thrive is to be the stern person because that's the only way I'm gonna get through."
Which makes sense, but she's slowly learning to balance her emotions with some help from her new boss. "Molly is the person that shows her the other side of life," Michaela said, "the fun, happy, free side of life."
New episodes of Loot stream Fridays on Apple TV+.