Ghosts Star Utkarsh Ambudkar On the Challenges of Ignoring The Rest of the Cast

By Russ Burlingame

Between Free Guy and Mira, Royal Detective, the last couple of years would have been busy for Utkarsh Ambudkar even if he hadn't stepped into a lead role in a new sitcom. But tonight sees the double-feature debut of Ghosts, a new series he is heading up with iZombie veteran Rose McIver. The premise of the show centers on McIver being the only person alive who can see a group of ghosts haunting a palatial country estate, and Ambudkar plays her character's husband, meaning a lot of his time is spent having to react to McIver, who is reacting to other actors in the ensemble.

The series is a remake of a British series that's new enough that it's actually still around. Per its official synopsis, in the American version of Ghosts, Samantha (Rose McIver) and Jay (Ambudkar) throw caution to the wind when they convert their recently inherited country estate into a bed-and-breakfast. Call it mislaid plans. Not only is the place falling apart, but it's also inhabited by spirits of previous residents -- whom only Samantha can see and hear. And that's where the complications begin for the actors who have to perform around McIver and her spectral companions.

"Literally an hour ago, I was on set and Rebecca Wisocky, who plays Hetty, our robber baron," Ambudkar told ComicBook. "She was acting. And I was for sure not supposed to be able to see her, but in my lizard brain, I'm watching her and I'm like, 'Oh my God, Hetty's a very good actor.' And I had to catch myself...like I do probably three to five times a day, and tell on myself. I'll be like, 'I was looking right at her,' and everyone's like, 'Yeah, we know. We saw you.' And then we reset and we go again, and I apologize profusely. And it's easier for Rose, I will say, because she can see all the ghosts, but I have to find new and interesting ways to act like I can't see them every day, and with varying degrees of success."

Of course, iZombie began its first season with nobody but Ravi (Rahul Kohli) aware that Liv (McIver) was a zombie, but by the time it was done, pretty much everybody was in on the secret. So we had to ask Ambudkar whether he would want to see his character brought in on it, or whether he likes the dynamic of having to play the outsider.

"It is something I would love to do, for a very selfish reason," Ambudkar admitted. "Because I'm a huge fan of the ensemble. I can't really interact with any of the cast, and they're major heavy hitters and improvisational wizards. Richie Moriarty, Brandon Scott Jones, Sheila Carrasco...to be able to work with Devan Long or Roman or Danielle, Hetty played by Rebecca, or Asher. So yeah, just selfishly so that I could be scene partners with them, I would love that."

Ghosts premieres Thursday, Oct. 7 at 9 p.m. ET with a one-hour premiere featuring two back-to-back episodes on CBS and available to stream on Paramount+. Those interested in seeing all Paramount+ has to offer can click here for a free streaming offer. Disclosure: ComicBook.com is owned by ViacomCBS Streaming, a division of ViacomCBS.

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