Natasha Lyonne and Rian Johnson Trace the TV Origins of ‘Poker Face’ - The New York Times

To marque caller television, it helps if you’ve watched a batch of aged television. That’s a acquisition evident successful “Poker Face,” the crime-thriller bid created by Rian Johnson and starring Natasha Lyonne, which makes its debut Jan. 26 connected Peacock.

Lyonne, the sharp-witted prima of “Orange Is the New Black” and “Russian Doll,” is formed successful “Poker Face” arsenic Charlie Cale, a pistillate with a preternatural quality to archer erstwhile radical are lying. Embarking connected a cross-country travel — however and wherefore Charlie finds herself connected the tally are established successful the show’s archetypal installment — she grapples with caller mysteries and caller personage impermanent stars (including Benjamin Bratt, Ellen Barkin, Nick Nolte and Chloë Sevigny) successful each of the series’s 10 episodes.

While “Poker Face” constructs an overarching narrative, its self-contained installments are a deliberate throwback to a benignant of TV storytelling that Johnson (the writer and manager of “Knives Out” and “Glass Onion”) grew up with successful the 1970s and ’80s.

Lyonne, who cultivated an appreciation for TV aboriginal successful life, said she had been drawn to “Poker Face” for its blend of one-off and continuing narratives, arsenic good arsenic the accidental to enactment with a creator similar Johnson.

“Do I emotion David Milch? Yes. Do I emotion Rod Serling? Yes,” Lyonne said, adding that she besides enjoyed “the mischief of being up to thing with Rian.”

“I don’t consciousness similar I person immoderate pro oregon con bias connected serialized oregon not-serialized television,” she said. “The champion of these shows each transcend those models successful their ain archetypal ways. But I find it precise soothing to cognize that we’re linking up to precedents that I enjoy.”

In abstracted interviews, Johnson and Lyonne shared a fewer of their favourite episodes of these past shows — immoderate that were nonstop influences connected “Poker Face,” immoderate that were personally meaningful to them and immoderate that they simply can’t get retired of their heads. Here are edited excerpts from those conversations.

‘Columbo,’ Season 3, Episode 2: ‘Any Old Port successful a Storm’

The rumpled detective (Peter Falk) cracks a execution lawsuit concocted by a snooty but yet cooperative vino adept (Donald Pleasence).

I could person pulled immoderate fig of “Columbo” episodes retired of a hat. The 1 with Lindsay Crouse arsenic a enactment therapist is terrific, and Columbo is adorably embarrassed whenever she talks astir sex.

But I came backmost to “Any Old Port successful a Storm.” It’s a diabolically clever entrapment that Columbo pulls off, and it’s precise satisfying. It gets to the bosom of what I deliberation the existent entreaty of “Columbo” is, which is that it’s stealthily a hangout amusement with Peter Falk. The mysteries are ever truly well-constructed, and the cat-and-mouse successful this 1 was precise fun. But it truly is each astir watching Falk beryllium Falk each azygous week. You’re tuning successful to spot Columbo and the impermanent prima interact with each different and bent out.

What drives this occurrence is Donald Pleasence and his towering show arsenic the murderous vino aficionado. There’s a country wherever Pleasence goes ballistic connected a waiter erstwhile he’s served a atrocious port. The operation helium unleashes — “This liquid filth!” — is amazing. But much than that, adjacent portion Columbo is tracking him down and busting him, Pleasence develops a lukewarm narration with him, weirdly, and a respect. It’s benignant of beautiful.

‘Murder, She Wrote,’ Season 1, Episode 20: ‘Murder Takes the Bus’

On a acheronian and stormy night, a stalled autobus thrust strands the crime-solving enigma writer Jessica Fletcher (Angela Lansbury) astatine a diner with her chap passengers — immoderate of whom could beryllium a killer.

I’ve been talking successful interviews for the past fewer months astir the influences connected “Knives Out” and “Glass Onion.” I had Agatha Christie, the large works from the Golden Age of detective fabrication and movies similar “The Last of Sheila.” But truly everything was due to the fact that of Angela Lansbury.

For a batch of america increasing up, “Murder, She Wrote” was connected each day, and the sheer fig of hours consumed is hard to top. This occurrence is benignant of Hitchcock-like, successful the contented of “The Lady Vanishes,” wherever a radical of suspects are each displaced together. This 1 conscionable happens to impermanent prima Linda Blair and Rue McClanahan.

I miss the declaration that the assemblage had with the amusement of, “I’m not going to find this weird — we’re each conscionable going to hold that this is however this works.” The amusement operates successful this world [where a execution occurs and is solved successful each episode], and Jessica Fletcher was ne'er looking into the camera lens and rolling her eyes and saying, “Not again!” It was like, if you don’t speech astir it, we won’t speech astir it. There was thing delightfully charming astir that.

‘Magnum, P.I.,’ Season 4, Episode 1: ‘Home From the Sea’

The bid breaks from its customary action-adventure format to archer a communicative wherever Thomas Magnum (Tom Selleck) reflects connected his puerility portion helium is stranded successful unsafe waters.

I person very, precise vivid memories of this episode, which I saw erstwhile I was young. Magnum is mislaid successful the mediate of the water and has to tread h2o until he’s rescued. And the full occurrence is his flashbacks to memories of his father. It’s truly beautifully done.

They intercut it with his dada giving him his ticker and going disconnected to war. And then, conscionable arsenic Magnum is astir to collapse, they uncover that the begetter died successful the war. The country is simply a flashback to the father’s ceremonial with small lad Magnum saluting him with the ticker connected his wrist.

I was truthful young erstwhile I saw it. I didn’t recognize it was a flashback structure, and I thought they were cutting to Magnum’s funeral. So successful my head, this was a towering communicative of antheral versus quality with this titanically impactful ending, of this tragic decease of this hero. So I wholly misread the episode. And yet, it was this huge, immense happening successful my psyche arsenic a kid. I thought that indispensable person been the finale. It mightiness not person been until I went backmost and rewatched it for this interview, that I realized, oh, [expletive].

Natasha Lyonne’s Picks

‘NYPD Blue,’ Season 1, Episode 1: Pilot

The debut occurrence of this influential transgression drama, which pushed the boundaries for nudity and obscene connection connected web television, introduced viewers to the constabulary detective John Kelly (David Caruso) and his foul-mouthed partner, Andy Sipowicz (Dennis Franz).

I’m not truly a tv person. I’m truly Mr. Moviefone, if you’re wondering wherever helium went. But I had immoderate acheronian years that person been good covered. And successful those years, I discovered the internet, and what a large mode to get mislaid erstwhile you’ve got thing to bash but ticker everything successful that time.

I conscionable fell successful emotion hard with Sipowicz. To me, Dennis Franz successful “NYPD Blue” is up determination with [James] Gandolfini’s Tony Soprano. I was idiosyncratic who had specified an aboriginal emotion of Joe Pesci, Elliott Gould, Ben Gazzara, Harry Dean Stanton, Peter Falk and John Cassavetes. Those are each my friends. And truthful erstwhile I discovered Sipowicz, I was like, Oh my God, he’s successful that set successful my mind.

Those are the sheep I number astatine nighttime to autumn asleep. They each clasp hands unneurotic and locomotion astir successful the shadiness and silhouette, similar astatine the extremity of “The Seventh Seal.” All my boyfriends are there. They each bent retired together.

‘Columbo,’ Season 2, Episode 1: ‘Étude successful Black’

Along with impermanent stars similar Blythe Danner and Myrna Loy, this occurrence features a murderous conductor played by Cassavetes, Falk’s person and collaborator from films similar “Husbands” and “A Woman Under the Influence.”

Ah, that 1 has 2 boyfriends: John and Peter. So it’s bully to spot them reunited. It warms my heart.

I spent truthful overmuch clip with those Cassavetes films and his publication “Cassavetes connected Cassavetes.” And I emotion what that occurrence is saying astir the anticipation of moving unneurotic with radical you attraction about. For example, Dascha Polanco was successful “Orange Is the New Black” and “Russian Doll,” and present she’s successful “Poker Face.” To person Janicza Bravo, who I’ve worked with a fewer times, and maine and Rootbeer [Lyonne’s dog] hanging retired successful upstate New York, breaking down a script, is everything I emotion astir making things.

‘The Twilight Zone,’ Season 1, Episode 4: ‘The Sixteen-Millimeter Shrine’

This installment from the archetypal tally of Serling’s science-fiction anthology bid stars Ida Lupino arsenic a erstwhile movie star who is obsessed with watching and rewatching her aged movies.

The occurrence is truthful meta and weird and tragic. The full happening is bizarre arsenic hell, and she’s large successful it.

My different favourite “Twilight Zone’ occurrence is [“Time Enough astatine Last”], but that’s besides my decease phantasy and nightmare — ending up successful a country afloat of books and past my glasses break. It conscionable seems similar Ida Lupino was a small spot sexier here. She not lone starred successful an occurrence but she besides directed 1 [“The Masks,” from Season 5].

Lupino has a benignant of Kathryn Bigelow prime to her that I greatly respect — pistillate filmmakers wherever it doesn’t consciousness similar she was hemmed successful by this necessity of telling a “girl’s story.” I ever respect that, due to the fact that I cognize firsthand however hard it is that determination is this anticipation for ladies to archer woman stories. You would think, arsenic a people, we’d beryllium way, mode past this by now.

Of people I’m gladsome to spot immoderate progress. But it’s besides weird that we’re successful a clip wherever it seems to beryllium moving successful some directions simultaneously.