SXSW 2024 Interview- Neo-Dome Stars Michael Mosley And Nicholas Logan Share The Secrets To Quirky Characters Larry And Gary

Neo-Dome is the quirky genre-defining television series you didn’t know you wanted. Ahead of the Pfeffer brothers pilot premiere at SXSW 2024, I got the chance to talk with two of its stars, Michael Mosley(Ozark) and Nicholas Logan(Dark Winds), about their fabulous chemistry, the oppressive desert heat, what might be in store for Gary and Larry in the future, and a decade’s long friendship.

Tracy Palmer- I am, first of all, a big fan of both of you guys. Collectively, you have done some of my favorite works. I loved Dark Winds and loved Ozark. And you guys were great in both. I feel like there’s a certain level of creativity that you don’t have in a feature film in a weird way. What do you guys think about that?

Michael Mosley– Yeah, well, this was very independent. I mean, you know, and it’s always so freeing when it’s just a group of friends. It’s almost being in a band, you know, and everybody’s just kind of playing their instrument. And, but yeah, you don’t have a bunch of people in suits hovering around a monitor, you know, not looking anybody in the eye and kind of trying to, you know, flex their creative. You know, but that’s cool, too. But that’s when it gets bigger. So right now, we’re still kind of the runt, and so it’s fun to just kind of end up with whatever the best idea floats. So, if it’s funny, it floats. It was really just us lifting ourselves up.

TP- Love it. Love it. Do you like shorts as well?

Nicholas Logan– Yeah, I mean, it’s funny. I don’t watch a ton of shorts. But every time I do, like, I’ll get on.
Criterion Channel, right? And they’ll have some like, you know, director up there, and I’ll go down there and there is a bunch of shorts. Like, oh, what are all these? And it is really fun and cool to drop into a concept and an idea for just a little while. And it’s not two hours. It’s not an hour and a half. And what I love about this is that it’s, you know, an actual pilot for a TV show.

And that’s what was so interesting about it. It’s like, oh, how can we sum up the concept and the vibe of this show? In, you know, 15 minutes. So that way, people can get into the world. I think that’s what Bonnie, the Pfeffer brothers, and Anna, and everyone did so well is executing. And I can’t wait to see how it expands. And what goes on with these guys, because I just had a blast playing this guy and playing with Mike and Anna.

TP- Well, they’re great characters, all three of them. And I mean, none of you are particularly great people, but you kind of get the impression, at least from, you know, the information that we were given, that the world is on fire. And it’s, you know, just save yourself or give up and dig a ditch. So, is that kind of how you went into both characters for both of you?

MM- Yeah, I think It was pretty much in the script right away that you knew that this world was not doing well and was probably on life support. But for some reason, there’s this city on a hill over here that everybody’s running at, and it’s somehow going to be, you know, it’s going to save us. But yeah, you knew there was a desperation to it just immediately. It was really fun to see how we were
going to manifest that. I mean, you know, Larry’s, you know, dental life is just, it’s so I mean, if you just take one look at the man’s mouth, you know, we’re, we’re in a bad place. You know what I mean? No dentists because clearly there are no dentists in Neo-Dome world, maybe in the dome, maybe
there are dentists in there.

NL– Larry likes it, too. He doesn’t know he has a problem. That’s what’s so great about Larry. For me, it’s like for Larry, it’s like all that is so true. But for Larry, I think Larry doesn’t know anything different. And this is like one of the best days of Larry’s life. I mean, I think the only thing that’s interesting for Larry is when Gary has him do stuff or when he knows he has to do stuff to stick to this plan that he’s been sold on by Gary. It makes him sad because I think in his heart he’s not a bad person. He’s just like, okay, I gotta do this thing, and I don’t like doing that, but I’ll do it. And you know, but this is exciting. I mean, this dude’s been stuck in this tiny, small world for so long.

And now they’re on the road, and there’s hope, and there’s excitement. And there’s a beautiful woman on
the side of the road. And there’s a promise of something really cool. And I don’t know what that is, but we’re gonna find out.

MM– Yeah, there’s an adventure.

TP- If this gets turned into a pilot, or, I mean, it already is a pilot, if it gets turned into a series, it
It feels like there’s a lot of room for humor on top of, you know, the apocalyptic nature of things.
Is that kind of what you always had in the back of your mind because you guys are
funny, even if you’re not intending to be? You are funny.

MM- Oh, good. Yeah, I think it reminds me of a comic book, you know, where it’s like, the bad guys have funny lines. And, you know, yeah, I think comic books do have a wit to them. You know what I mean? There’s like a wink, but not necessarily at the camera or whatever. But the writing has kind of a wink to it. It kind of has a come-on. Come check this out, you know, but behind the curtain. Yeah.

NL– Like, come along with us. You know, we’re having fun. And if we’re having fun, you can have fun, and I mean, for Larry, I mean, yeah, like it definitely, I’m definitely aware of it. But it’s one of those things where that’s what makes Larry so great for me. I felt like, in some ways, that was sort of my role. You know, is to bring some of that levity and absurdist kind of quality to this big thing, because all my favorite stuff is like all the great Coen Brothers work.

For me, Raising Arizona really stuck up in my head a lot when I was reading this. And, you know, John Goodman and his partner in that movie first came to my head. And I was like, oh, that’s what sort of became a bit of an inspiration and a jumping-off point.

And that is what makes this movie so great: you are funny, and you are having fun. And then it’s scary, like, Bong Joon Ho is so great, right? Like all his movies, it’s like, you’re having fun, you’re laughing, it’s kind of different. You don’t know what’s going on. And then he, like, hits you in the face. And you’re like, Whoa, just hit me in the face. Like, why did you hit me in the face? I was laughing. And then it’s like, I know, but let’s listen to this funny joke. It’s like, Oh, that’s funny. I’m having a good time again. I’m gonna hit you in the face again, you know? And, like, those are, to me, the most fun things to watch because it just keeps you on your toes.

TP- So things did not end? Well, for the two of you, is there a way that you guys are going to be
resurrected? Or maybe you’re not as injured as we thought you were? If you move forward with
a series?

MM– Well, we don’t know. I mean, the Pfeffer brothers kind of have this all mapped out in their heads, and we’re on a need-to-know basis. But I would, you know, if the thing goes to series, I hope we learn more about our guys before, you know? This is kind of an appetizer for what this world is and what can happen. I don’t know if this is the starting point of the movie or the series, or if this is in the middle, we don’t know, you know, we’re just these guys have a whole world in their head that we’re just kind of you’re trying to service.

NL– Yeah, like, and I’m lucky that I’m a Celtics fan. And so the Pfeffer brothers, so we’d become
really close, bonding over the Celtics. And, anyway, so I’ve talked to them a lot. And yeah, I wasn’t sure either until kind of recently if this was all going, and I was like, Oh, I’m so excited. Man. I love the project. He was like, Well, just so you know, we like you two. We want you guys; they want more of Gary and Larry. So I think if you like Gary and Larry. If you enjoy it, I think there’s definitely an arc for both of these characters.

And like Mike was saying, this kind of gives you the quality of what can happen, like the limits that are willing to be crossed with this show. I think that’s why the short(Neo-Dome) goes the way it does. But I don’t think it’s necessarily the exact story that the TV show itself will become. I think there’s a lot to find out lots to find out.

MM– But we can give you the Pfeffer brothers’ email, and you can post that. And you can have everybody tell them, email them, and tell them you want more Larry and Gary in the series.

TP- Have you two worked together before? You have great chemistry.

MM– No, we’re just friends. We were friends for years. And then we kind of peeled off and went
in different directions. And we came back for this thing. But, um, we knew each other for years back in the day, coming back in Hollywood running around, you know. So it was it was great when I heard that Nick was going to play this creepy dude. Be the Larry to my Gary, you know what I mean? I was like, this is great. This is going to be fun. And then we just hit the ground running, and it was just fun.

NL– He’s called me Larbear often. And he’s my big Garbear. I put my tooth in, and he puts on that sweet little cross. There’s no going back. Okay, that just sparks that chemistry there. These eyes clicked. But yeah, I mean, I like to say it just because I do love the story partners, and I was so stoked on this was, you know, we were like Mike was just saying, We were friends years ago, and we were friends through friends. And we hung out a lot.

And then Mike was good enough because he was working on TV, and I was a struggling actor, and it was, you know, personal training, and I was a valet, and Mike was like, well, I need a trainer, man, I’ll hire you. And so Mike kept me afloat, like living for a couple of years in LA, you know, paying like he was, I’m sure, like 100 bucks a session. I had no business charging him that much a session, and he like didn’t bat an eye at it, because I think he was just doing like a good thing.

And Anna helped get me with my managers. So. You know, I love these two, and everybody was always so kind to me. So, I got nothing but love for this whole crew. And it was so fun just to get reconnected. And they’ve all these people have been really good to me. I can’t say enough about how wonderful they are.

By this point in the interview, their affection for one another and enthusiasm took over. When I asked them about the shoot, they jokingly said it was “two days but felt like four. But who was counting the time?” On location outside of LA, the desert was hot and sandy, but for Nick, the scorpions were the biggest obstacles.

TP- Do you guys ever talk about what was in the dome?

MM– Yeah, I mean, that’s, I think kind of, that’s one of the big set pieces of it was the biggest set piece of the movie. The show is called Neo-Dome. The Neo Dome is the star, I think, and you know, I think it’s a distraction and, you know? It’s a sanctuary to these people, and I think whatever is on the other side of that dome can be different, probably for everybody.

It depends on, we don’t know, I mean the Pfeffer brothers, but that’s kind of my thought is that there’s probably some little room in there that’s perfect for you and perfect for Larry and perfect for Gary and that again, this is me just talking out of my ass. But to me, that’s what it feels like. If you want a casino, if you want a wife, a love partner, maybe that’s theirs.

NL– Whatever, you know, their dental plan. Yes, if you want a decent dental plan, that can be there too.

TP-One last quick question. What’s next for you guys?

NL- Um, right now, I’m in the middle of shooting this show for Netflix called The Core, and we’re just getting back post-strike. So that’s going, and then I have a couple of movies. One that just premiered is Red Right Hand, which is like an Orlando Bloom film. I play another really weird dude in that, and then a movie that I produced and I’m in with Francis Galluppi and Jim Cummings called The Last Stop In Yuma County.

We just got that sold, and we’re getting that we’re going to be, you know, doing little screenings across the country, and then we’ll be streaming soon. That’s a really fun movie. We won Best International Film at Stiges last year and are super excited for everyone to see it. It’s another cool desert adventure film, too, so it’s actually got some ties to this world. Which is, yeah, there they would fit. It’d be a good double feature. I’d love to watch an episode of Neo-Dome. Watch Neo-Dome and then watch Last Stop.

MM- I just shot a movie in Covington, Georgia, outside of Atlanta called Signing Day with Mira.
Sorvino, and it was a comedy. It was fun. I met Marshawn Lynch. You know, it was great. It’s about a college football recruiter. And then I’ve got this TV show a little heavier, a lot heavier, that Apple’s doing this year with Jessica Chastain in it. We’re going to be shooting that till June, off and on.

Neo-Dome premiers at SXSW 2024 on March 10, 2024. Find all our SXSW 2024 coverage here.