For Emmy Award and Tony Award-winning actor Billy Crystal, filming Apple TV+'s upcoming series Before was both "thrilling" and "exhausting."
Crystal—who is known for his comedic roles—flexes his dramatic muscles as Eli, a child psychiatrist grappling with the recent loss of his wife, Lynn, played by Judith Light. His world takes a chilling turn when he meets Noah (Jacobi Jupe), a troubled young boy who seems eerily connected to Eli's past.
As Eli tries to process the recent death of his wife, the mysterious bond between him and Noah deepens, uncovering haunting memories and disturbing secrets. The plot explores themes of grief, love and the supernatural, with the lines between what is real and what is psychological blurring together. The ensemble cast also includes Rosie Perez, Maria Dizzia and Ava Lalezarzadeh.
During a conversation with Newsweek, Crystal spoke about how much he enjoyed starring in, and being the executive producer of, the psychological thriller.
"Oh, I loved it. I loved every second of it because once we got to do it, having been part of the whole creative process, then you got to go play him after conferring with [show creator] Sarah [Thorp] on the scripts and working on the sets and all the stuff that you have to do. Then you got to play it, and it's time," the Hollywood star said. "And once we were fully cast and young Mr. Jacobi came into our lives, it was like kismet, it was meant to be."
As the character-driven series unfolds, viewers gradually uncover the source of Eli's haunting personal demons and witness his struggle to confront his deepest fears. Central to his emotional journey is the memory of Lynn, whose lingering presence profoundly shapes how he copes with his grief. Eli's late wife's presence is pivotal to his emotional evolution, even after her death.
"For me personally, I had an incredibly enlightened experience playing [Eli], very freeing, [I've] never had to play a character who was losing his mind in the way that Eli is, but while he's losing his mind, he's finding himself at the same time," Crystal explained.
The actor added: "And then all the inventions that Sarah and her other wonderful writers invented for me to do, for Eli to go through were—I don't know, I just kept giggling sometimes. We would finish something horrific and they'd go, 'Cut,' and I'd go, 'What a job! I loved it! Look what I get to do!' I got this thing coming out of my neck or whatever it may be. It was actually thrilling, you know, exhausting. It's a tough schedule, shooting two shows at once, so it's hard to let go of it."
Despite what some might expect, 76-year-old Crystal shows no signs of slowing down, continuing to juggle multiple projects. He previously reprised his iconic role as the voice of Mike Wazowski in Monsters at Work, an animated sitcom that serves as a direct continuation of the film Monsters, Inc., in which he also starred. The show premiered on Disney+ on July 7, 2021, and its second season debuted on Disney Channel on April 5, 2024.
As well as this, his film Witch Which?, where he stars and is a writer, is currently in development.
"After a while, I just didn't want to let go of Eli, I just wanted to keep in his head because I was in a groove, I was in a good groove with him, and I just didn't want it to stop," Crystal added.
When asked if there is any part of Eli that lingers inside of him now, Crystal told Newsweek that once the show was complete, he was ready to leave Eli behind.
"Once we wrapped the shooting, once the shows were cut and you prove all the cuts and you give your notes on the editing and then Sarah and I worked side-by-side in post on the music and video effects and you know all that stuff," he said. "So we just finished about a month ago and I'm good. I feel very complete; that we got what we wanted to achieve. We got it there and that's very satisfying."
Crystal also heaped praise on Jupe, who plays young Noah. The first time viewers meet Noah is when he is scratching symbols onto Eli's front door with bloody hands. His character's presence introduces an element of supernatural suspense that pervades the show.
Jupe does a terrific job of playing such an eerie and unsettling role, with Crystal saying he can't wait to see what his career has in store.
"He's a 35-year-old, eight-year-old. I mean he's an extraordinary young talent, he's very smart, he's raised well, he's got great parents, his mother's a terrific actor and his brother's a very good actor," he said. "When you come up with a series and your co-star is going to be a young actor—Jacobi's 11, he played 8, that's how good he is, and he's incredibly smart."
Crystal continued: "Noah doesn't speak a lot, and he has traumas, and he has episodes of fear, and only he is seeing what is scaring him. I can only interpret as his psychiatrist, and I get him to draw what he can't say, and there are symbols in it, there are images in it that I have to put together to solve the mystery of what's tormenting him. And he has amazing eyes that are very wise and eyes tell you everything. I can't wait for the audience to experience him in this show and personally, I can't wait to see what he's going to do next and where this career will take him because I think it's going to be pretty extraordinary."
The 10-episode atmospheric and character-driven psychological thriller was created by Thorp who also served as showrunner, writer and executive producer. Crystal executive produced alongside Eric Roth, pilot director Adam Bernstein and producing director Wilkinson.
The 10-episode limited series will make its global debut with the first two episodes on Friday, October 25, with one new episode every Friday through December 20.
English (US) ·