Felischa Marye says she wrote 'Bigger' from her own experience of wanting something 'bigger and better' in life
When BET+ launches on September 19, the subscribers will get access to many original shows including 'Bigger' from writer Felischa Marye who was one of the writers for Netflix's '13 Reasons Why'.
The comedy will consist of ten 30-minute episodes and is about five college friends in their mid-30s who have reached a point in their lives where they stop and ask themselves if there is something "bigger and better" for them when they learn about the death of a random college acquaintance through social media.
In an exclusive interview with MEA Worldwide (MEAWW), Marye spoke about how her own life inspired the characters on the show.
In her mid-30s, while on the journey to becoming a senior executive in public relations and marketing—set in her 20s, being ambitious—she started assessing her life as she checked off more items from her checklist: get a car, have a nice dinner, move into a cool neighborhood and so on.
It was then she realized that she wanted to work in Hollywood, and so she quit her job and went to UCLA for an MFA in Screenwriting. This is what 'Bigger' is about as well—these five friends are upset over not getting to where they wanted, they wanted a bigger dream. "If they've gotten what they thought they wanted, they realized it's not satisfying and reevaluate their lives".
The show explores the question of wanting bigger and better in their personal and professional lives. Main character Layne Roberts, played by Tanisha Long, takes a risk in her career, quitting her job in PR to open up a vintage shop. She also takes more risks that result in her blowing up her own life, especially in her personal life.
One of the characters on the show is Tracey Davis, played by Rasheda Crockett. Tracey is a former reality television star and Marye wanted to explore what their lives are like in between or after the reality shows are filmed, and how their personalities are often not their own. Tracey wants to be a social media influencer and Marye spoke about the big role social media plays in society and on the show.
"That's what social media is, it's an image of ourselves that may or may not be who we are", says Marye. There is also Veronica Yates, played by Angell Conwell, who has a successful real estate business. Veronica has a nemesis who doesn't even know that she is Veronica's nemesis, "we're trying to get bigger than someone who doesn't even know they're in the race. If (social media) is what we use to assess our lives, then we're in trouble because we are measuring ourselves against a false ideal". The show doesn't just deal with society's need for social media but also some people's dislike of it. Vince Carpenter, played by Tristen Winger, is an old-school DJ—he is stuck in the 90s and resists advancing, which Marye says in some ways is respectable but it also means that he gets left behind.
'Bigger' is set in Atlanta and Marye spoke about how the neighborhoods are like characters on the show, having been inspired by Donald Glover's 'Atlanta'. Little Five Points, where Layne's vintage shop is set, is the main character. But the sitcom also shows all and not just the flashy parts of Atlanta and so the show also includes Buckhead, Old Fourth Ward, and Downtown Atlanta, to name a few, where different characters live or work. Marye says she wanted to show all the different neighborhoods that have different feelings in them, "we wanted to give personality to each neighborhood in Atlanta so that you can see how fast it is growing and how these neighborhoods are becoming more and more distinct".
Marye also takes a different look at gentrification on the show. She wanted to explore the concept from the view of "young, Black professionals" who are increasingly becoming upwardly mobile, like herself. She wanted to take a look at the internal struggle they "have with the social responsibility of protecting our people and our community and our desire for personal success, the need to get bigger and to be successful and have the outward trappings of it that put us in the class of wealthy white people if we have the same amount of that money". Marye wanted to explore what that battle looked like and where people should or would land in that argument. Said Marye, "we don't have a lot of answers, but we have a lot of questions to explore".
Marye's experience of working on '13 Reasons Why' helped her become comfortable as a drama writer and her appreciation for a show with heart meant that she tried to make 'Bigger' a "funny show with a lot of heart". A lot of the plotlines involving gentrification and love, especially later on in the season, are serious and grounded with emotion. However, Marye assures that "as soon as we get heavy, we're going to hit you with some ridiculous right after that."
Marye is currently working on some features and would like to create more for television and deliver similar stories about women. "Women being the key in stories I tell, stories with a lot of heart and comedy is what my brand is."