And so as I got into it, I was like we're not going to be able to this here.Īnd so it became a two-season - instead of one season. WHITE: Well, the truth was that the original pitch to HBO was that it would get to that whistleblower place in the first season, but as I started writing it, I realized there was, like, kind of nooks and crannies of her life that I wanted to explore, and, I don't know, I got more interested in the digressions than the overall, like, meta-plot. How did you decide to take it in that direction? The new season, she's working to change the world through bringing down her corporation. But it's hard to be her better self when she's back in the world again. The first was focused on Laura Dern's character coming back home and back to work after a stay in rehab, where she learned how to meditate, and she really tried to be her better self. GROSS: So this season was different from the first. They're shutting us down.Īnd what they're shutting down is the department that the Laura Dern character and the Mike White character work in. So, maybe I'm a mole, but I'm a happy mole, and I don't want to lose what little I have, OK?ĭERN: (As Amy) You've already lost it. So I'm going to go to the Bahamas for two weeks a year. And my aunt died, and I just found out I got her time share. I just joined the company gym, and I got a discount because of my employee badge, and I'm going to work out more. WHITE: (As Tyler) Well, I may not be at the top, but I'm happy.ĭERN: (As Amy) No, you're not. I'm not getting any deeper into this.ĭERN: (As Amy) Don't you feel an obligation? People are living under the illusion that the American dream is working for them, and it's rigged by the guys at the tippy-top. I gave you that password in a moment of weakness. They will trace it back to me.ĭERN: (As Amy) Tyler, I have to go back in. WHITE: (As Tyler) Oh my God, please just don't go back in there with my password. MIKE WHITE: (As Tyler) What do you mean when it all comes out? How's it going to come out?ĭERN: (As Amy) There's this guy, Jeff Blender. When (bleep) comes out, we're talking about at least 100 class action lawsuits. They make jokes about it in these emails. They're hurting people, and they know it, and it's a game to them. LAURA DERN: (As Amy Jellicoe) OK, so I started in Damon's accounts, right? And then I just, like, went into every email I could open, all the top execs, and we knew they were plunderers, just screwing their workers, covering up their dirty dumping. (SOUNDBITE OF TELEVISION PROGRAM, "ENLIGHTENED") Here's a scene from early in Season Two, where she's telling him that she's used his password to hack into corporate email accounts looking for incriminating evidence to bring down the corporation. She decides to become a whistleblower at the corporation where she works and tries to convince her shy, inhibited office mate, Tyler, played by Mike White, to use his IT expertise to help. Season One began with Amy Jellicoe, played by Laura Dern, returning home after a stay in rehab where she learned to meditate and get in touch with what she describes as her higher self.Īs Season Two began, Amy, after being less than successful at changing herself, resolves to make an impact on the world instead. "Enlightened" walks the line between comedy and drama. When Terry spoke with Mike White back in March of this year, he was about to find out the fate of his series, but when they spoke, he still held out hope for a renewal. He also wrote all the episodes, directed a few and was one of the show's stars. Actor and writer Mike White, today's guest, co-created the series with Laura Dern. Season Two of HBO's "Enlightened" is released on DVD next week, and sadly, that's the final season because HBO elected not to renew the comedy for a third year. I'm David Bianculli, editor of the website TV Worth Watching, sitting in for Terry Gross. Listen to new podcast interview with Mike White.
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