EXCLUSIVE | 'Avocado Toast The Series' creator Heidi Lynch says she outlined the queer show based on her own life
Spoilers for 'Avocado Toast the series'
Heidi Lynch has been working on the Amazon Prime series 'Avocado Toast the series' with co-creator Perrie Voss for over four years now. She describes the experience "a rollercoaster!"
'Avocado Toast the series' is a thoughtful coming-of-age comedy that highlights sexual politics through the stories of a close-knit circle. Through 10 15-minute-long neat episodes, creators Voss and Lynch tell the story of what happens when two 30-somethings discover more about their parents' sex lives.
Molly (Lynch) and Elle (Voss) are childhood friends both dealing with a crisis. After a lifetime of dating men, Molly comes to discover that she is bisexual after she falls for a woman. The character is closely written based on Lynch's personal life.
"I fell in love with a woman unexpectedly and realized I was bi, just like Molly," she tells MEA WorldWide (MEAWW) in an exclusive chat. Molly's parents and Lynch's parents both were supportive of their daughter. But unlike Molly's parents who had an open polyamorous relationship, Lynch's parents "have a 44-year monogamous marriage in real life."
On the show, when Molly comes out to her parents, they are more than supportive. But she nurses within herself a self-consciousness that prevents her from fully accepting herself. "While playing Molly, she was so deeply ingrained in me from writing. Our similarities of experience, based on my real life to our differences made her feel real as I spoke her words."
On several occasions through the first half of the show, Molly finds herself stuck in 2014 both emotionally and physically, unable to venture forward and move on. "I really tried to imagine that she is just stuck. When I feel stuck or down I am overly proactive," Lynch tells us. "Molly is the opposite. She couch-potato mopes and is quiet and physically stuck. I imagined her stuck between lesbian and straight and feeling frozen."
The right story came from multiple sources. "I did a lot of research into the bisexuality community and mental health ramifications of feeling without a tribe," Lynch explains, "I also remembered my own feelings at that time in my life but to express them in a way Molly would and not the way I did."
Even as Molly's parents are supportive of her sexuality, the eighth-grade teacher finds herself quite taken aback by her parents' lifestyle. She refuses to talk to them and know better and even shames them. There is a scene in the series where Molly's mother Meredith (Mag Ruffman) tells Elle's mother Patricia (Brenda Robins) how their daughters wouldn't be this judgmental if they weren't their mothers.
The intention was to capture just that. "As feminists, we want to promote women embracing their sexuality and having a full life outside of their family. But how does it feel when it's your own mom - exploring her sexuality - leaving you in the dust to find her new life?"
A heartfelt, lively story of sexuality, love and friendship, the series is a wonderful watch that teaches a lesson or two. Written by Lynch and Voss from a very personal space, 'Avocado Toast the series' tells a very earnest story.
All episodes of 'Avocado Toast the series' are currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.