4 4 S X S W O R L D | M A R C H 7, 2 0 1 9 | SXSW.COM
There is a moment early in the first
episode of the new Hulu series Shrill
when Aidy Bryant's character Annie
puts on a shirt and checks herself
out in the mirror. She doesn't feel
comfortable in it, so she squats down
and pulls the shirt over her knees
to stretch it out a bit. It's such a
normal, relatable moment. Yet, when
you really think about it, when is the
last time you saw this exact move —
which you've probably performed at
least once in the last few months —
on television? It's moments like this
that make Shrill feel special.
According to showrunner Ali
Rushfield, people who have seen the
show often cite another favorite
moment that is equally relatable in
its glaring normalcy — It happens
in the second episode, when Annie
removes her bra the moment she
gets home, before she does any-
thing else. "It's details and things
that everyone does, but you don't
necessarily see."
There's something else viewers will
notice about Shrill, which was inspired
by Lindy West's memoir — Annie is
fat, but unlike most larger-bodied
women on television, she isn't trying
to change her body. While Annie's size
inherently informs her specific point
of view, Rushfield cautions that "it's
not what everything is about."
Here's what it is about — Annie is a
journalist struggling to get her career
off the ground while dealing with a
narcissistic boss (John Cameron
Mitchell), her ailing father (Daniel
Stern), and the usual dating problems
New Comedy Series Takes
On the Struggle for Self-Love
By Britt Hayes
continued on p.46
Shrill. Photo by Allyson Riggs/Hulu
