Imagine a scenario where everyone you’ve ever been intimate with starts dying one by one. Is it a curse? If so, then who is cursed? Stephanie Hsu’s character Ruby struggles with these questions in the new crazy comedy “Laid”. Ahead of the series’ release, Stephanie and co-star Zosia Mamet spoke exclusively to HT about their roles, the series’ unique premise and the horrors of dating as millennials. (Also read: Dune: Prophecy star Emily Watson on working with Tabu: “She’s a real treasure”)

Stephanie Hsu on her character’s flawed morals

Laid, created by Nahnatchka Khan and Sally Bradford McKenna, is the story of Ruby (Stephanie Hsu), who learns that all of her sexual partners are dying one by one and she must warn them. Her best friend AJ (Zosia) helps her with this unique task. The funny thing about “Laid” is that the protagonists are not the usual likeable characters. “She is absolutely an antihero of our story. I really love that,” Stephanie says, referring to Ruby’s moral cruelty. “I am not a perfect person and I love playing flawed characters. But it was difficult. The makers told me that she is a total narcissist. But narcissists don’t believe they are one, so I had to find a way to love.” For me, playing Ruby was about delving into her psychology and finding the innocent part of her – which is that she just only wants love,” the actor adds.

While sitcoms usually add the best friend as the voice of reason, Laid deviates from that, with AJ being even crazier and more morally ambiguous than Ruby. About playing such a colorful character, Zosia Mamet says: “If you play characters that are not so likeable or crazy, people don’t believe that they are like that. I don’t think AJ wakes up every morning and thinks, ‘I’m absolutely crazy.’ It’s about trusting the writing and finding an organic approach to these characters so that they feel grounded, real and relatable.”

Stephanie and Zosia reveal the worst gifts they’ve received from partners

In “Laid,” Ruby gives the gift of death to the men she’s with, even if it’s unintentional. Ask women about the worst “gift” their partner has ever given them, and the discussion turns to the unusual horrors of modern dating. “I got a vintage wooden duck decoy from someone. He was broken and I thought, ‘What does that say about our relationship?’. “They didn’t know me well enough to know if I wanted that, but also that she gave me something old and sick,” Zosia says with a laugh.

Stephanie, too, was once unsure what to think of a gift, she reveals. “I had my heart broken many years ago and then I didn’t speak to that person for five years. Then a few years ago they came out of necessity and sent me a bag full of gifts. One of them was a hat.” “I’m not wearing your mother’s hat,” says the actor.

“Laid” also stars Michael Angarano and Tommy Martinez. The series premieres on December 19 on Peacock and will be available in India on JioCinema.