‘The Good Place’: Ted Danson Was Terrible at Keeping the Shocking Twist Under Wraps
When it comes to shocking twists, The Good Place certainly delivered on some of the best in recent television history. And while the series was packed full of twists and turns that entertained the audience, perhaps none was as shocking the original twist in the first season. But the twist wasn’t just kept from viewers, it was also kept from all but two of The Good Place cast members.
[Spoiler Alert: This article contains spoilers from ‘The Good Place’ season 1 finale.]
Chidi, Jason, Tahani, and Janet were all shocked when Eleanor announced that they were actually in The Bad Place during the season 1 finale of The Good Place. But, the characters weren’t the only ones who were surprised by the twist. Mike Schur (creator of The Good Place) opted to keep the twist a secret from all the actors with the exception of Ted Danson (who played Michael) and Kristen Bell (who played Eleanor). The other cast members (and many crew members) didn’t find out what was going on until they began shooting the episode.
Most of ‘The Good Place’ cast was kept in the dark about the twist
While Bell and Danson managed to keep the secret from their fellow castmates on The Good Place, Bell had a better track record for keeping the twist under wraps than Danson did. In an interview with Rolling Stone, the Frozen alum admitted that she didn’t even tell her husband about the twist. Contrastingly, Danson told all of their mutual friends and some of his friends also.
One friend that Danson told about the twist prematurely was John Krasinski. Krasinski had worked with Schur in the past on the set of The Office, and Danson was trying to impress him. When Krasinski pressed him about the premise of the show, Danson couldn’t help reveal the twist to explain just how unique the show really was.
Ted Danson revealed the twist to John Krasinski
“Well, it takes place in the afterlife and I kind of play a middle management guy in the Good Place,” Danson began, recounting his conversation with Krasinski. “And I could see his eyes go, ‘Oh, The Office but in heaven, got it.’ I went, ‘No, motherfu*ker, no. See, what happens is, I’m not really batting for the Good Place, I’m batting for the Bad Place. I’m a demon.’ And he went, ‘Oh, wow, that’s amazing.’ I’m like, ‘Yeah, there you go.’ And walked off feeling better. So I did not keep the secret very well,” Danson hilariously revealed.
Danson might not have kept the secret from his friends and family, but he made sure to keep the twist a secret from the other members of The Good Place cast. But, that hardly stopped them from speculating about what was to come from the series. D’Arcy Carden (Janet), Jameela Jamil (Tahani), William Jackson Harper (Chidi), and Manny Jacinto (Jason) all had varied ideas of what they thought was coming. Jacinto even though that Danson and Bell would be exiting the show.
Manny Jacinto though Kristen Bell and Ted Danson were leaving ‘The Good Place’
“My main theory was that Ted and Kristen were so big, they’re these legends on TV right now and they don’t have time to be playing with us. So I thought that they were going to leave at the end of this season and it was just going to be the four babies running the show. That was my speculation. They were going to pass the baton. I was so wrong,” Jacinto revealed. Fortunately, all of the talented cast members stuck around for all four seasons. We’re sure fans of The Good Place wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.
