Jocko SimsandKeiLyn Durrel Jonesare no strangers to TV. Sims has appeared on just about every long-running show imaginable, includingNCIS,Castle,Criminal Minds, andGrey’s Anatomy. He found a niche in that medical drama space, acting as a recurring character on Season 1 ofThe Residentbefore becoming a main cast member onNew Amsterdam. Durrel Jones has experience in that space, too, appearing inBlue BloodsandChicago Firebefore having multi-episode arcs in award-winning HBO showsThe Other TwoandSuccession. They each have another hit to add to their already impressive resumes withHow to Die Alone.
Created by and starringNatasha Rothwell, the show centers around Mel (Rothwell), an insecure airport employee who refuses to take any risks in life and has closed herself off from the idea of love. After a freak accident, however, she changes her mindset, deciding to make bold moves — includinggoing after her ex-boyfriend, Alex (Sims), despite the fact he’s engaged to be married soon. To complicate matters further, there seems to be a spark between her and Terrance (Durrel Jones)as well. Oh, and did I mention that they’re all coworkers? What ensues is a predictably messy — as well as frequently funny and romantic — time.
Collider got the chance to sit down with Sims and Durrel Jones to discuss whether they’re personally Team Alex or Team Terrance, their favorite episode of the series, and which of the many hilarious scenes were the hardest to get through with a straight face.
Jocko Sims and KeiLyn Durrel Jones Reveal Whether They’re Team Alex or Team Terrance
COLLIDER: I feel like I need to start with the most obvious and burning question, which is: are you guys personally Team Alex or Team Terrance?
KEILYN DURREL JONES: Oh, no one’s asked us that. That’s a good question.
JOCKO SIMS: I’mTeam Terranceall day.
DURREL JONES: That’s funny. As an objective viewer, I thinkI’m Team Terrance also.
Nice. I love that. It’s hard to choose.
DURREL JONES: It really is.
Because they both have so much to offer, and I honestly can’t imagine anyone else in either of your roles. Your characters have such beautiful and unique relationships with Melissa. I’m curious how you each developed that chemistry with Natasha.
SIMS:Natasha is one of those people who I feel is very easy to like and fall in love with. She’s so warm, she’s authentic, and she just draws you in. We’ve said many times that she does a great job of making sure that we stay tightly knit and that we’re family, and all of that works to her advantage.
DURREL JONES: I agree.He took the words right out of my mouth. She’s really easy to fall in love with. She’s so smart, she’s a great leader and a great scene partner, and so the rest of the work just kind of does itself.
Keilyn Durrel Jones Initially Auditioned for a Different ‘How to Die Alone’ Character
I was watching another interview with you, KeiLyn, and you said you actually initially auditioned for another character, which was really interesting to me. Can you share who that was?
DURREL JONES: Sure, I don’t mind. I actually, initially, when I first got the breakdown in my email — when I was just in my apartment in my underwear —it was for Alex, and the first sides that I saw were for Alex, and I hadn’t read a script yet. And so all that I had to go off of and garner from the world was a scene or two that Alex and Melissa had together, and then, later on, we just collectively steered towards Terrance.
Yeah, everything happens exactly how it’s supposed to. Jocko, did you audition for anyone else as well, or was it always Alex for you?
SIMS: I didn’t.I came in late in the gameand read for Alex at the end, and it was all she wrote at that point.
Jocko Sims and KeiLyn Durrel Jones Reveal Their Favorite ‘How to Die Alone’ Moments
I love that. There’s an episode with you, Jocko, that feels sort ofBefore Sunrise-y where Melissa and Alex go get Thai food and go out on the frozen pond — can you talk a little bit more about shooting that? It feels like such a classic romantic sort of thing.
SIMS: Yeah, that was a very incredible experience. I’ll start with the downside of that, which was, despite us having a bunch of fake snow around, it was really, really cold out there, and it was just freezing shooting every night into the wee hours. But what was incredible was the writing.That was the first time — and I’m two decades in; I’m old — that I’ve been working on screen and in television that someone has written something for me to do that I can just be free, be myself in a lot of ways, and just have casual dialogue. I’m just so happy to be able to work with somebody like Natasha, who kind of gets me and lets me be me in that role, and in that particular episode, it was a lot of fun.
DURREL JONES: I love that episode.It’s my favorite episode, hands down.
SIMS: Aww. Thank you.
It just makes you feel so warm despite the fact that it was very cold, apparently, filming it, so it’s a nice little juxtaposition. You mentioned the writing, and I think the dialogue is something that is so strong in this and that I feel like I really connected to. KeiLyn, your character dropped some really great lines — there are some amazing monologues from Terrance, and the speech about the Roomba really stuck with me. I’m curious if you have a favorite line or scene that you got to do.
DURREL JONES: That scene was a lot of fun. I really enjoyed that scene because it also reveals a lot about the dynamic between Terrance and Melissa in that moment. Again, the writing is so fun and so brilliant, and I wish I could take credit for it as KeiLyn, but Terrance obviously can becausehe’s sort of the sage in that moment. They ask this question a lot — “what’s the best part about being on set?” — and it’s just, like, every scene, every time. I often say Jocko and I, we met early on and started hanging out offline very early on, but we didn’t get to work together until much later in the process. And every time I got to work with someone new, whether it was Conrad [Ricamora] or Jocko or whatever, it was just a hoot. It was just a hoot and a half.
That leads great into my next question because the show is, while moving, also hilarious. I can only imagine there was a lot of laughter and probably bloopers. Was there a scene or a line that you found the hardest to do with a straight face?
DURREL JONES:Anything with CP(Christopher Powell, who plays Deshawn) — that man is hilarious.Hilarious. He would ad-lib a lot and try different jokes. The scene with Jocko, he sort of ad-libbed a bit of a line on his departure that had us all — even the camera guy — cracking up. It was hilarious.
SIMS: Yeah, I think what’s really cool is there is room to play around. I definitely want to do a little bit more of that going into the next season if we get it god-willing. I know that once they write more for me and KeiLyn, I’m just gonna have a good time, man. AndI echo what he said about CP. It’s almost impossible to do a scene with him.
Jocko Sims and KeiLyn Durrel Jones Share Their Hopes for a Potential ‘How to Die Alone’ Season 2
Speaking of Season 2 — I’m very much crossing my fingers we get one as well — but what would you like to see for your character if a second season were to happen?
DURREL JONES:I’d like to see what Terrance’s life is like outside of the airportbecause he’s one of the few core characters who we don’t get to see outside of the airport.
SIMS: I’ll piggyback off that and sayI’d like to see more of the dynamic between Alex and his fiancée, what attracted him to her and their ins and outs. There was actually a scene initially in the pilot between the two of them that I thought was very, very funny, and I hope they bring that back.
I think that we need to see that as well. The fact that this show takes place in an airport feels like it would be easy to do a crossover with just about any show, so I’m curious, do you have a dream crossover that you would love to see these characters interact with?
DURREL JONES: Oh, wow — that’s a great question. I hadn’t thought about that.Game of Thrones. [Laughs] No, I don’t know.
I need that, actually.
SIMS: You know, it would be cool if we did a crossover withIt’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
DURREL JONES: Oh, sure.
That’d be comedy gold.
DURREL JONES: I’m trying to think of New York shows, specifically.
Now my mind’s going toLaw & Order,but I don’t feel like that really matches the vibe as much. But we can have Olivia Benson in the airport.
SIMS: I was gonna say Olivia shows up, and it takes a dark turn.
How To Die Alone
After a near-death experience, Mel, a broke JFK airport worker, embarks on a journey of self-discovery. Determined to live life on her own terms, she navigates through comedic and heartfelt moments while confronting her fears and redefining her sense of self-worth in this bold, character-driven comedy.
All episodes ofHow to Die AloneSeason 1 are now streaming on Hulu.
