The Big Picture

Collider’s Emily Bernard speaks with Ayden Mayeri for Peacock’s new series
Mr. Throwback
.

Mr. Throwback
is a Peacock mockumentary series starring Adam Pally and NBA legend Steph Curry. The show follows a memorabilia dealer reuniting with his sixth-grade teammate, Curry, and getting stuck in a big lie.
Ayden Mayeri, who plays Samantha, Danny’s ex-wife, praises Curry’s kindness and the fun working dynamic with Pally.

Even if you don’t know the first thing about basketball (hint: there’s a basket and a ball) you’ve likely heard the name Steph Curry. The Golden State Warriors point guard and four-time NBA champion rarely misses a shot and has cemented himself as one of the best players in history. Now, he’s taking what is the natural next step in his career: starring in a Peacock comedy series.

Mr. Throwback is one of those concepts that needs everything to click into place in order for it to remotely work. Created by the hilarious pairing of Adam Pally and David Caspe, who met on the underappreciated series Happy Endings, the mockumentary series follows Danny Grossman (Pally), a directionless sports memorabilia dealer who really needs to get out of debt. One important bit of information about Danny is that he grew up playing basketball with Steph Curry. In fact, he was dubbed the “Jewish Jordan,” and Curry was his backup.

With the roles completely reversed (to put it lightly) for Danny and Steph 20 years later, Danny decides to rekindle his childhood friendship with Curry (who plays a version of himself) and Kimberly (Ego Nwodim), who essentially runs his life, in the hopes of getting out of his precarious financial situation. As one might expect, Danny’s plan (if one could call it that) goes way out of bounds, and the child basketball prodigy must commit to an enormous lie (which leads to several other lies) in order to maintain his relationship with the NBA champ, who’s filming everything for a documentary.

In the heart of the chaos is Ayden Mayeri’s Samantha, Danny’s ex-wife and mother to their daughter (Layla Scalisi), who is at the center of Danny’s big lie. Mr. Throwback gives Mayeri the time and space to play in the comedy sandbox and really show off her timing and commitment to the bit, something the UCB alum has also been able to do in projects such as The Afterparty, I Love That for You, New Girl, Veep, and Cora Bora. During this 1-on-1 with Collider, Mayeri details her experience working with Adam Pally and how he is such a strong leader, her character’s hilarious storyline with Dr. Josh (Richard Sommer), and why she absolutely loves her co-star, Stephen Curry.

Mr. Throwback (2024) Follows an unfortunate memorabilia salesman who hopes to find forgiveness by reconciling with NBA legend Steph Curry, a teammate from his sixth-grade years.Release Date August 4, 2024 Cast Adam Pally , Stephen Currey , Ayden Mayeri , Ego Nwodim , Sammy Horowitz Main Genre Comedy Seasons 1

COLLIDER: Before we get into Mr. Throwback, I wanted to congratulate you on Cora Bora. I thought that movie was very wonderful.

AYDEN MAYERI: Thank you! I’m so glad you watched it! I’m very proud of that movie.

Related Megan Stalter Tries to Fix Her Life in ‘Cora Bora’ Trailer The indie comedy also stars Jojo T. Gibbs, Ayden Mayeri, Chrissie Fit, and Manny Jacinto.

It was so great, and you had such a tricky role. How was your experience? Did you have a good time filming it?

MAYERI: I had a great time. Hannah Utt is one of my best friends, so I was just very stoked. I mean, she’s a genius. She made an excellent movie, and I was just so happy to be part of it. Truly, I feel like my character was supposed to be kind of the antagonist or something, but it made a lot of sense to me. I didn’t feel like she was a bad guy at all. I was like, she’s being put in a really weird position. [Laughs] And I related to it.

You conveyed so much with your eye movements, I was just like, I feel her tension! She doesn’t know what to do, and I don’t blame her.

Ayden Mayeri Had a Special Connection to ‘Mr. Throwback’

I absolutely loved Mr. Throwback. I thought it was so fun. I loved the premise. I’m not necessarily a sports person, but I still dug it completely, and you and Adam were great. When you got the premise, did you register that Steph Curry is a huge deal?

MAYERI: I’m from Oakland, so I’m a Bay Area baby, so it was a really big deal. He’s our golden boy, so I was like, “No way!” Everyone back home was like, “Steph Curry! You worked with Steph Curry?” [Laughs] So it was very exciting. So, not that I’m a sports person, but I’m a Bay Area person. I did play sports. I played basketball when I was a kid, but I always wore makeup and jewelry to our games, and they had to make a rule that we couldn’t do that anymore because it’s dangerous. But I wouldn’t call myself an athlete, no.

I’m assuming you kind of had to shoot to [Steph Curry]’s schedule because it’s nonstop and crazy, so was the production really condensed?

MAYERI: We shot in a couple of different places. A lot of it was shot in Chicago, which is where it’s set, but then we also shot in San Francisco to get shots with him and be in San Francisco. But this all happened very fast because we just shot it, and it’s coming out today, so it’s like, “Whoa, that’s crazy.”

There are so many little references that feel so timely, I’m like, “How did they get that in so quickly?” But that makes sense.

MAYERI: We shot it yesterday, pretty much. [Laughs]

Adam Pally Was the Ultimate Leader on the Set of ‘Mr. Throwback’

You and Adam Pally worked so well together. There’s one scene in particular that I loved when you’re kind of fumbling through the explanation to your daughter about what’s going on when she sees it on the TV, as you’re eating the food that she doesn’t know why is in the house. That killed me. No pun intended. [Laughs] What’s it like working with Adam as a scene partner? Did you draw on your improv background, too, for this show? It’s so sharply written, but it also feels so scrappy.

MAYERI: That’s the right word, I think. We absolutely have the best writers in town. When I read those scripts I was laughing out loud, which is hard to do when you read a script, you know? Because it’s conceptual. A lot of the jokes that are in there are totally written, but it’s a mockumentary so they wanted it to feel really free. The day I went into chemistry read with Adam Pally, it was like we knew each other—felt familiar. We just went into another realm and had so much fun. He is the best scene partner because, no matter what, we know we got each other’s backs. But it was just wild. And so what you see is mostly as written, but we made some improv moments in there. But it just all felt, I don’t know. He’s the most fun person to act with, truly.

Whenever I see him in an interview, I’m just like, oh, he seems fun. He looks like a great time.

MAYERI: He is a sweet, sweet boy, and not everyone knows that. But he’s the sweetest boy.

One of my favorite lines was “Saltburn your grave.” That was pretty great.

MAYERI: [Laughs] I couldn’t believe Peacock left that in, honestly.

Image via Peacock

I also liked the joke where Tracy Letts was like, “Do I get Peacock?”

MAYERI: [Laughs]

What does Adam bring to the part as a producer?

MAYERI: They all had a hand in writing it, him and the Libmans [Daniel and Matthew] and David Caspe, and then we had David Wain directing. It was just this storm of comedy geniuses coming up with the best thing to say in the moment and crafting new ideas. Adam’s very good at being a great leader, and making everyone feel seen and included. He’s very aware of everyone’s experience. But then he’s incredibly present in the scene and performing, so I’m not sure how he does that or if he’s okay. [Laughs] He’s able to be in a lot of places at once and make it look easy.

I would just be out of breath the whole time.

MAYERI: I was! I was like, “I don’t know how you’re also going back at night and watching edits and producing. I’m exhausted.”

One thing that I thought was really cool about your character was that, you’re the ex-wife, but you’re not just “the ex-wife.” You go wild, too. You’re not just annoyed at Danny. The whole side story with the doctor—what was it like working with Richard for that? Did you improv a lot? How did that storyline evolve?

MAYERI: Rich Sommer, comedy genius, super great actor. He can make the most insane joke feel like a real person saying it, which is magic. Our scenes together were so fun. It really was too much fun, honestly. But that just evolved in the funniest way because the more we get to know Dr. Josh, the more we’re like, “What’s going on with Dr. Josh?” [Laughs] He just makes me laugh. Similarly, he can improvise, he can go wild, but he’s also such a great actor. And such a kind person. There’s a lot of very kind people who are also very talented, so it’s an embarrassment of riches.

What was it like with Steph Curry? I know Adam has more scenes with him, but did you really get to see him a lot?

MAYERI: I mean, I know I keep saying this stuff, but the nicest person! He’s the kindest. It’s a bunch of sweet angel babies all working together! [Laughs] When I met him it was like he had a halo and a glow; he actually is a light in a room. He is thoughtful and present with you, he makes every person he speaks to feel seen, and he was also an excellent actor, and got the jokes, and pulled off the jokes. I just was in awe, because I think when you’re that good at something, you’re that good of an athlete, you can kind of do anything. Or, Steph Curry can.

Image via Peacock

You heard it here first. And yeah, I feel like he poked fun at himself, and knew how to do it without it feeling awkward, like this person is trying to be relatable. He was just so self-aware. I want Season 2! The way it ends, it certainly feels like you’re teeing up a new season. Have there been talks of that?

MAYERI: There have been talks. We want a season 2, so I just hope the people demand it. There’s a lot more ideas. Some of the storylines get pretty bonkers, and I just want to see them happen.

When you get a script for any project, do you have a process you immediately go into?

MAYERI: I like to just find the way that it relates to me because there is a part of me in every character, you know? It’s not that far off. Obviously, her circumstances are different—I don’t have a kid, I don’t live in Chicago—but I try to find what feels like the part of me that I can understand about the character. And, honestly, I try to get lost the first time I read it and see if it was a fun read. “Do I like this? Is this fun?” This was maybe the most fun thing I’ve ever read.

That’s wonderful. This question — it can be a little thing or a big thing — have you ever had a lie, and then you realize you got too far deep into it that it’s too embarrassing to back out, kind of like Danny and Samantha?

MAYERI: Oh my God, that’s such a good question! I wish I had thought about this more because I’m sure. It’s relatable, right? Especially when you’re a kid and you’re lying about something. I’m sure I did that. I can’t think of it right now.

Like, “I did not eat that cookie, are you kidding?”

MAYERI: Yeah, there’s crumbs all over your face, and you’re like, “No, I fell on a pile of crumbs! That’s what that was.” [Laughs]

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

MAYERI: “We should go to the doctor and get your knee checked out.” And you’re like, “Right, because I’m hurt, from the crumbs, and the cookie I did not eat.” [Laughs] It just gets so out of control.

You’re like, “Are you okay? What’s your deal?”

MAYERI: [Laughs] Have you? Have you got caught in a lie?

I mean, I’m sure I have. For me, it would probably be, like, if someone misheard my name or something, I would feel bad, and I’d just be like, “Yeah, that’s my new name.”

MAYERI: Yes. I’ve gone along with that so many times, for sure. Because you don’t want to make someone feel bad, but it can get really out of control.

This was so much fun. I feel like I could talk to you forever, but I have to wrap. Thank you so much for taking the time. I hope I bump into you at some point!

MAYERI: Yes!

Good luck with the show, congrats. I want Season 2!

MAYERI: Me too. Thanks for asking such thoughtful questions. That was really fun. It was nice talking to you.

Mr. Throwback is available to watch on Peacock in the U.S.

Watch on Peacock