Why Laid's Barbie, MCU & Other Guest Stars Are More Than Cameos Explained By Creators Of Dark Comedy With 95% RT Score

The co-creators of Laid explain why the cameos from familiar faces like Barbie actors and Marvel stars are more than just mere cameos. Developed by Nahnatchka Khan and Sally Bradford McKenna, and based on the Australian series of the same name, Laid debuted on Peacock in December. It stars Stephanie Hsu, known for her Oscar-nominated performance in Everything Everywhere All at Once, as Ruby. Once all of her former sex partners start dying off, often in strange ways, Ruby and her roommate AJ (Zosia Mamet) try to solve the mystery of what's going on.

In an interview with Screen Rant's Grant Hermanns, Khan and McKenna talk about why some of the guest appearances from the likes of Shang-Chi and Barbie star Simu Liu are more than just cameos. In the quotes below, McKenna talks about how the eight-episode series approached Ruby's sex timeline and was able to bring notable actors through that process. Khan then talks about how every character has a purpose in the dark romantic comedy adaptation:

Sally Bradford McKenna: It's a dream show to cast. From the beginning, we're like, "We're gonna have this sex timeline of all these fun guys and girls." And it's not just making cameos, they don't feel like cameos. It feels like fun casting that we get to meet all these great people. Michael Angorano is amazing. We Zoomed with him, and we were immediately like, "This is him. This is Richie." It was one of our favorite characters going into it. And when we met with him, we were like, "He's got to do this." And then the guest cast, the people who kind of come in quickly. I think day one, we had like a wish list, "Who are our favorite people we want to work with?" I know John Early was first, so he went right in. We also knew we wanted a celebrity on the timeline, so we just made him that. Kate Berlant, Chloe Fineman, Simu, we just got so lucky with getting the best people to come in and have fun. Nahnatchka Khan: And all these people are great actors. So, they come in and they come in with a purpose, like Alexandra Shipp. They all affect Ruby in a meaningful way. They're not just a random taxi driver or something that you just pop through a scene and have as a joke, you know? So, it was fun for them, it was fun for us to kind of populate it in a way that fe

What The Large List Of Guest Stars Means For Laid

The Show Uses Them Wisely

Along with Hsu in the lead and The Flight Attendant's Mamet as the true crime-obsessed best friend, Laid boasts an impressive list of guest actors. Some of those, like an eye-catching cameo from a WWE star, are too fun to spoil. Still, the function becomes clear in an early episode, as Ruby tries to warn her former loves of what she thinks is happening. They each respond dismissively, and it becomes clear that Ruby isn't the best person when it comes to relationships.

The main cast of Laid also includes Michael Angarano and Tommy Martinez.

But these guest stars and their experiences with Ruby run along with the fact that Ruby has a secret she's keeping from AJ. There is a question of which famous ex-lover will die next, which echoes other series, some of which are even on Peacock, albeit there's also the question of what exactly happened with each ex, why they're so angry at Ruby, and whether she'll repeat the same mistake by hiding things from her best friend.

Our Take On Laid's Guest List

It's A Different Kind Of Poker Face

Prior to her leading role in Laid, Hsu played one of the scene-stealing characters in Poker Face season 1. The hit detective dramedy, led by Natasha Lyonne, is coming back to Peacock for season 2 with the same premise of bringing in a familiar face and often giving them plenty of exploration and worthwhile scenes for the time that they are on-screen. Hsu's new show, with a near-perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes, does the same with a dark rom-com tweak.