Gillian Robespierre

First things first: How did it take this long for someone to cast John Turturro as Jenny Slate’s dad?! Now that we’ve gotten that important business out of the way, let’s discuss the first trailer for Landline, which looks insanely good. Slate reunites with Obvious Child filmmaker Gillian Robespierre — and really, you don’t need much more of a sales pitch than that, but the trailer is still worth a watch (or two, or three…I may have a problem).

Ah, the 1990s. That glorious decade of eyebrow rings, prepaid calling cards, and Blockbuster Video. Landline makes you nostalgic for that great time, when you could go to the movies without fear of a jerk in front of you checking their phone the entire time, like the jerk two rows in front of me during Landline. That lady really knew how to put the divide between then and now into stark relief.

One of the best comedies (and best films) to come out of 2014 was Obvious Child, the Jenny Slate rom-com directed and co-written by Gillian Robespierre. The pair had such immense chemistry together that it’s hardly surprising to see them team up again, this time for a new FX comedy series that will take Slate on the road with Ari Graynor in what’s being described as “like Thelma and Louise — but nobody dies.”

If there's a way to emote both overwhelming exhaustion and unadulterated joy on one's face, somehow, Gillian Robespierre has pulled off that unique distinction. Shortly after meeting the first time director of the critically acclaimed 'Obvious Child,' she shows me a thick packet, which is just today's schedule...

When I met with Jenny Slate, she's sitting alone in a giant conference room in the basement of a Soho hotel, a room that is pretty much devoid of anything except for two chairs. Slate certainly isn't "on message" during this interview and speaks from the heart, which makes what's she's saying extremely appealing. And her face is constantly full of emotions; even though, as I find out, she's battling a cold.