Ben Feldman says he is confident that Superstore will still be great after America Ferrera leaves this Thursday thanks to the show’s excellent ensemble cast. Superstore is a workplace sitcom that follows the floor workers of Cloud 9 – a supermarket chain that may be fictional, but very closely resembles real-life corporations in its structure and its treatment of employees. The store works as an excellent backdrop for the daily shenanigans of the goofy gaggle of workers, including Amy Sosa (Ferrera), Jonah Simms (Feldman), Dina Fox (Lauren Ash), Glenn Sturgis (Mark McKinney), Garrett McNeill (Colton Dunn), and Mateo Liwanag (Nico Santos).
Like other NBC comedies, the show has also used its workplace setting as a way to discuss social issues such as immigration, paid maternity leave, union and labor rights, sexual harassment, and cultural appropriation – just to name a few. The recent season 6 premiere, titled “Essential,” particularly encapsulates the shows ambitious goal of covering relevant political discourse; the episode follows both being “essential” yet neglected employees working a pandemic while those at corporate got to work from their beach homes, and the riots that happened amid the racial reckoning after the murder of George Floyd.
The next episode of Superstore will be the show’s 100th episode, but moreover, it will be the farewell to America Ferrera as executive producer and actor for Amy Sosa. While fans are understandably nervous about a show-lead leaving, Ben Feldman – who plays opposite Ferrera as her boyfriend – feels confident that the show will still be just as funny and enjoyable after she is gone. In an interview with FanboyNation, Feldman explains to fans that the show will continue to be successful because it invested in the entire cast, rather than focusing on casting one or two funny leads that carry the show. While Ferrera is certainly talented, Feldman says that the entire cast is a “tremendously funny group.” Read Feldman’s full explanation below:
“What convinced me to do this show is that it’s an ensemble and I don’t think this show falls apart if you take any one of us away. My son just got for birthday this little thing that’s like a pirate, and you keep pulling swords out until one sword makes the pirate explode – and I don’t think the pirate explodes on this show. You can keep pulling out as many swords as you want. America was incredible and you can’t fill that void, you can only step up and make sure that everybody else is getting equal attention and bring as much energy as you can.“
Ferrera leaving the show does create a problem surrounding her character and her relationship with Feldman’s Jonah – a relationship that fans have invested in since the beginning of the show. The two officially got together in the season 3 finale and have been committed to one another ever since. Jonah even helps care for her recently born baby, even though the father is Amy’s ex-husband. In the world of the show, Amy is moving to California and Jonah plans on moving with her. But Feldman stays in the show, meaning Amy and Jonah either break up, go long-distance, or there is another explanation as to why Jonah remains in the scope of the show, and Amy does not. Feldman alludes to one possible scenario by letting slip that fans will see “an affected” Jonah in the upcoming season.
Feldman also says his cast members are also particularly skilled at improvising scenes, which creates an abundance of alts for editors to choose from. So while Ferrera leaving will create a noticeable shift in the show for viewers, fans can take comfort in knowing Superstore will be left in able hands. Tune in for the Superstore‘s 100th episode, “California, Part 2,” on Thursday, 8 PM EST on NBC.
Source: FanboyNation
Originally from https://screenrant.com/superstore-america-ferrera-exit-ben-feldman-show-quality/