Ted Season 2 Cast Talk Cracking up On Set, MacFarlane's Genius & Butt Jokes [Exclusive]

Directed and written by Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane, 2012’s Ted feature film chronicled the crass escapades of man-child John Bennett (Mark Wahlberg) and the titular animated wise-cracking teddy bear (voiced by MacFarlane). Ted‘s prequel TV series turned back the clock to John’s (Max Burkholder) teenage years, as he and his crass furry companion navigated hormones and high school. Rounding out the Bennett household were his father Matty (Scott Grimes), mother Susan (Alanna Ubach), and college-student cousin Blaire (Giorgia Whigham), who lives with them.

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Now, the bear is back for John’s senior year – and more laughs – in Ted’s second season premiering this week. The cast spoke to ComicBook about butt jokes, keeping a straight face, the genius of MacFarlane, and more Orville.

ComicBook: When you sign onto a series like Ted, how important is it to check your egos and humility at the door and just be game for anything?

Scott Grimes: I am in my 50s now. I like acting. All the other stuff doesn’t really mean much. I watch a lot of television and I can tell when an actor cares more about fame than they care about the project. For me, it’s just about that work. This show has been some of the most fun that I have ever had. It’s odd. I have done big dramas, but I have felt more like an actor on this show than I ever have and it’s because of what you said. Everybody came in and said, “Let’s be goofy. Let’s be good. Let’s be fun. Let’s have a good time.”

Alanna Ubach: That’s just it. Leave your ego at the door. There is no way around it. If you start to judge what you are doing at all, you will immediately drop the ball. It’s a big exercise of being as humble as possible.

In the season premiere, Matty falls down the stairs, gets whack-a-moled in the nuts and hoisted bare-assed over his brother’s shoulder. How much fun is it doing those physical gags as well as the witty dialogue?

Grimes: I am a huge fan of physical comedy. I will say, when it comes to falling down the stairs, I am too old for that. That was a great stuntman that made me look really good. This one… Alanna Ubach… is really great at the physical comedy that maybe isn’t as broad as falling down stairs. She’s just good at where her leg goes in a certain thing. I love that kind of stuff, but as far as the other stuff, let the young kids do that. But that is my bum. No stunt bum there.

Ubach: You had said earlier that when your buddy lifted you over his shoulder, you were connected to something…

Grimes: I’m on a wire, right? A guy can’t pick me up all day. Scottie Campbell is a muscular dude, but nobody could do that all day. So, I’m on a f*cking wire, like a cool stuntman. Yet, I’m naked. They are hoisting me up. Before they say, “Roll camera,” they are hoisting me up like freaking Peter Pan. I had to lay my belly onto my buddy’s shoulder. We had to position my bum and Seth would come up and sometimes he would grab my bum, shift it, because he’s the director. It’s very humiliating, but thank God we had such a great crew that I had worked with for so many years, so you feel safe.

Alanna, what do you enjoy about the physical comedy? That was an extreme example, but it can be nuanced, as well.

Ubach: Absolutely. 100 percent. I definitely feel like there is so much to play with, especially with somebody as conservative as Susan. When she does the physical comedy, I love surprising people. I love surprising people. I love to treat comedy like it is a big huge magic trick. And when the rabbit is pulled out of the hat and everyone goes, “Ooo… I wasn’t expecting that,” that’s when you know you’ve really hit your mark.

How do you not crack up during filming?

Grimes: Oh, we do. First of all, the writing itself is just funny. And then, I can only speak for myself, but the way Alanna… She doesn’t say the line the same every time. It doesn’t mean it’s bigger every time. It doesn’t mean it’s smaller. She finds different things. When she does that, it’s the hardest thing to do because you have already gotten used to her saying this funny line. Now, she will say it even funnier in a different way or finding a new avenue to go down. As great as that sounds, it pisses me off cause I just laugh. I am a fan.

Max Burkholder: We do. All the f*cking time. It’s not actually tough with the Ted lines because there is nothing there, and we are just imagining the bear there. It is a lot tougher when we are opposite Scott or Alanna or you. It can be tough to keep a straight face.

Giorgia Whigham: Definitely Scott and Alanna. Those two crack me up. I think a lot of the times we break on set is not even inherently because of the writing specific. It’s the way they choose to deliver or improvise.

Ubach: Whacka whacka.

Grimes: Just to let you know, once she has me and she knows I am laughing, she then will continue to do a take better and different because she’s like, “I want him to keep laughing.” Her instinct is to spread joy.

Ubach: I love tickling Scott.

Grimes: She loves it. So, it’s not easy at all. Eventually, you have to be a professional.

Was there a take this season that you couldn’t keep it together?

Burkholder: It’s hard to pick one that stands out when it does truly happen a lot. There are a couple of scenes where I am sitting in a car with Scott, and it’s just me and him and the stuffy in the back. Having to look at his face and hear him talk is always hard. When we are doing the dinner table scenes and we are doing the car scenes, he is always sitting to my left. And God dammit! That guy is loud. I leave set everyday with a left ear ringing. I’m not kidding.

How does having Seth MacFarlane direct the episodes enhance or inform your performances?

Giorgia Whigham: I mean, he taps into that effortlessly. He won’t say that. He knows exactly what he is looking for.

Max Burkholder: It’s a trust thing. He knows exactly what he is looking for. We know what he is looking for is going to be good. We are not leaving until we get it. At the end of every day, you are not so worried about how you did that day. “Oh, I wouldn’t be going home right now.” We wouldn’t be done with the day unless we got something good that he wanted.

Whigham: The proof is in what he’s producing in the world of comedy.

Burkholder: As much as the direction helps, having him there to do the voice of Ted is also instrumental in being able to do this. 100 percent.

Scott, we haven’t seen the sci-fi TV series The Orville since 2022. Do you have any updates?

Grimes: Funny enough, I do. I have an update because Seth and I were just together about 10 minutes ago. I turned to him when he said something. I went, “Why did you say that?” And he said, “We are allowed to say that.” My update is the scripts are written. That’s the update I can say. Now that doesn’t mean anything. I know everybody involved wants to do it. I know that the scripts are there. We are excited, but that’s what I’ve got. That’s at least something. This show is absolutely not dead or over, as far as I’m concerned. I would drop everything right this very second and run to that set when it is finally announced.

Giorgia, you were a part of the MCU in the Punisher TV series. Your character Amy Bendix was last seen going off to forge her own path. Do you feel there’s more story to tell with her?

Whigham: Oh my God. If she had a place in that world. I don’t know where it would be specifically. She was such a fighter. Amy was so inherently scrappy and clever. There is a spot for her in the superhero zeitgeist, but I don’t know what it would be specifically. There’s a scene that got cut. You probably don’t remember, but I wanted to be a deep-sea diver. They cut a scene of me diving for a gold bar at a swim school. There’s also this side of, “You know what? I am done with that life. I am going to go dive.” I don’t know what they cut it. I probably looked silly holding my breath.

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