Kaitlin Olson Explains Why, Even on ‘High Potential,’ Her Characters Always Find Humor in the Darkness
Kaitlin Olson believes that being able to create genuine moments of levity in depressing situations is the secret to compelling television. It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia fans know that dark humor has been one of Olson’s specialties since the Lethal Weapon sequels.
On her smash hit ABC crime drama High Potential, Olson has had the opportunity to deviate from her typical TV type and play an intelligent, emotionally stable and productive member of society, as opposed to the mercurial addict roles she’s used to knocking out of the park. Olson’s High Potential character, Morgan Gillory, is a genius-level cleaning-lady-turned-crime-solver who helps the LAPD investigate some of the most grisly murders in Southern California while navigating her complicated personal life and raising her three kids on her own.
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Compared to Olson’s other most famous characters on It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia and Hacks, Morgan is a much more grounded and sympathetic figure to the massive High Potential audience, but Olson insists that, even on a broadcast TV police procedural, there’s always room for a good laugh at a gory crime scene.
In a recent talk with Deadline, Olson discussed her shift in focus from comedy to drama for High Potential, explaining that she still felt it was important for her to incorporate comedic elements into her performance, even if the show wasn’t as joke-y as her usual projects. “I wanted to create a character that was very well-rounded, and there’s a lot going on in her life, she’s always overwhelmed," Olson said. “There’s always a lot going on in her brain, and sometimes she’s able to laugh at herself.”
“She definitely feels fine making fun of people, especially when they’re underestimating her, so there’s comedy in that,” Olson continued. “That’s just human nature.”
And, even if Morgan’s version of making fun of people is a calm, concise quip that deconstructs their facade, that doesn’t make her casual destructions any less entertaining than when Sweet Dee drunkenly screams swears into a stranger’s face. “I think that the best character-driven dramatic pieces of material, whether it’s TV or movies, have comedy sprinkled in, because that’s life,” Olson posited. “There are funny moments and there are snarky things to be said that can be funny, and you have to be able to laugh in dark times. That’s just the way the world works, it’s also just more fun to watch.”
But, to be clear, Olson’s dramatic chops are in no way overshadowed by her preternatural comedic timing in High Potential. Said Olson on her recent switch from comedy to drama, “I grew up doing theater, so I’ve done all kinds of things and you get to see little glimpses of it in Hacks and the film Champions.”
We also got to see her thespian side in a little regional theater production called The Nightman Cometh:
