Oral History of GIRLS

In preparation for the show's final season, the creators and actors of GIRLS sat down for an interview with The Hollywood Reporter to tell the show's oral history. Here are some highlights from that sit down:

LENA DUNHAM, CREATOR-STAR (HANNAH) "I wrote HBO this one sheet. [Scroll to the end of story to read.] It was like a tone poem about millennial life. It doesn't mention a character, doesn't mention a plot. "They're everything, they're nothing, they're everywhere, they're nowhere." I mean, it's the worst pitch you've ever read — pretentious and horrifying — but I remember writing it, sitting on the floor listening to Tegan and Sara in my underwear, being like, "I'm a genius.""

SUE NAEGLE, FORMER HBO ENTERTAINMENT PRESIDENT "There had never been a show that had skewed that young or that had been about people that age at HBO. The feeling had been that the HBO viewer was much older and more affluent and that they wanted to see shows about their experience — plus, people who were Lena's age can't afford HBO, so what's the point? So the biggest hurdle was wrapping people's heads around the idea of doing a show about this demographic."

JUDD APATOW, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER "I was given Tiny Furniture by my agents, and I loved it. The more I learned, the more shocking it became: how young Lena was, the fact that the budget was $50K. … So I sent her an email [scroll to the end of story to read] telling her how much I loved it, and I said, "If you want somebody to help screw up your career, give me a call.""

JEMIMA KIRKE (JESSA) "I said no a couple of times. I was working as a painter at the time. Honestly, it was the money [that convinced me]. I was 24 and about to have a baby, so I was vulnerable, and the contract was very long. (Laughs.)"


ALLISON WILLIAMS (MARNIE) "I had just moved to L.A. from New York very dramatically after I graduated from college. I came in to audition, and we improvised a scene where I braided Lena's hair, which was … dirty."

ZOSIA MAMET (SHOSHANNA) "I was in upstate New York shooting a movie, which was a piece of shit, and I was in the costume truck when my agent called and goes, "You got it, and they want to make you a series regular.""


ADAM DRIVER (ADAM) "I was doing a play at the time, so I was feeling very self-righteous. I thought that that was what I should be doing, and TV was for evil people, and I didn't want to be part of any system or corporation. (Laughs.) But because it was HBO, it seemed different. And then the writing was so good, and I thought it would be fun to play someone who does these things that are morally questionable."

Read the full interview at The Hollywood Reporter.