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Marsha Warfield and John Larroquette on the Enduring Power of Night Court
Warfield reunites with her longtime pal Larroquette for the Season 2 finale of NBC's new Night Court; here's what they said about working together again.
Original Night Court fans were thrilled to see Marsha Warfield, a.k.a Rosalind "Roz" Russell, appear in the Season 1 finale of NBC's successful reboot of the show. And they were even more excited when Roz appeared in the Season 2 premiere back in January. Now, it's time for the Season 2 finale, and guess who's stopping by? That's right: Marsha Warfield — again!
This means fans get even more scenes between Warfield and Dan Fielding (John Larroquette), who returned to the reboot as a series regular. These two are powerful together on screen, and their reunion certainly brings up nostalgic feelings for fans. Below, the actors opened up to NBC Insider about joining forces again and why they think Night Court has endured four decades since its premiere.
RELATED: Night Court's Melissa Rauch and Marsha Warfield Celebrate the Return of Roz
Marsha Warfield and John Larroquette reunite (again) for Night Court's Season 2 finale
NBC Insider: What has been the best part for you about returning to Night Court?
Marsha Warfield: Being on the set with John. It's so easy to work with him. I play his straight woman, so I get to sit there and watch him just take lines and do things you can't imagine with them. He's a very supportive partner to work with. And Melissa [Rauch] is probably the sweetest lady in the world.
John Larroquette: [I love] seeing the multi-camera situation comedy have a revival — a renaissance, as it were. I love to see that only because that's really what I cut my teeth on. As a boy, that's what I watched on television. You're actually doing a little play in front of an audience every week. And if the writing is good and the people love the characters, it's a great time, and people seem to enjoy watching [the reboot].
RELATED: Where Is the Original Night Court Cast Now?
How did Night Court change your careers?
Warfield: It changed overnight back then. Night Court was often number four in the top 10 shows. It was Must See TV. The day after the first show I did debuted, people were excited when they saw me on the street, and I had to really get used to that. I'm used to being a stand-up, and stand-up comedy is observational. I'm used to being an observer, and now I'm a participant in other people's lives. That took some getting used to.
Larroquette: The show was like an asteroid hitting the world. All of a sudden, it made me be able to live a life that I probably would not have been able to without it. To provide for my family and do work that was noticed and work that was rewarded and work that was appreciated. It was a seismic event. I had done movies. I had done Stripes. I had been in a series called Baa Baa Black Sheep in the late '70s. I had worked, but nothing with the impact of Night Court, obviously. That changed everything.
How has it been reuniting with each other on screen?
Warfield: One of my mentors used to tell me what comes from the heart goes to the heart. What you see between me and John is that heart-to-heart connection, and that underlies all of the jokes, all of the humor, all of the pratfalls, and all that slapstick. I genuinely respect him and care about him as a person. And I think that's mutual.
Larroquette: It's felt very much like old times. We both like each other very much. It was very emotional for me to have her back on the set and very emotional for her. Her birthday happened to be the week we were filming, and so we got to celebrate her birthday on set, which was remarkable. As I say, there's only Paul and Ringo [from The Beatles] left. She and I are from the original cast, [and] we look at each other and sort of know there is no one left. I suppose it's encouraging that she and I are still working and plugging away.
But also you see ghosts stand between you, and that's very emotional, especially in that place on that set in the very rooms that we worked for nine years with those other people. Those wonderful other people, Harry [Anderson] and Markie [Post] and Charlie [Robinson] and Richard [Moll] and everybody. We were a family, as dysfunctional as most families are, but a family. So it was joyous to be able to hug her and to be able to work with her on camera again.
Why do you think Night Court has continued to find success and new fans so many years after the original's premiere?
Warfield: People tell me they used to watch the show with their parents, their grandparents, aunts, uncles — someone they really loved. And they got to associate the show with that affection. And so now, those people have children, and they're giving their children the same kind of experience. "I used to watch this show when I was a kid." And I guess the affection for the show and the love that people have for the characters transfers to a whole other generation.
Larroquette: Occasionally, I find myself sticking on [the original Night Court] for 30 seconds via the death-scrolling apps in the world that one gets addicted to. I find myself all of a sudden, boom, there's a 30-second clip of Harry and Markie or Charlie or just some scene from the original show. And I do find myself stopping and watching.
— Reporting by Stephanie Gomulka
