Alice and Steve: “Do you find that acceptable?”
Can you date your best friend’s daughter? The trio from the brilliant Disney+ comedy answers the thorny question for us. Meeting with Nicola Walker, Jemaine Clement and Yali Topol Margalith.
It’s a forbidden romance, a story of taboo feelings, as sincere as it is problematic, between Steve, a fifty-year-old, and Izzy, the daughter of his best friend Alice. Behind its biting dialogues and its scathing humor, the Alice and Steve series wonders if we must always accept the reasons of the heart, and questions the limits that everyone is ready to cross in the name of love. For us, the trio at the center of the series, Nicola Walker, Jemaine Clement and Yali Topol Margalith, take part in the debate. Encounter.
PREMIERE: Can we say that Alice and Steve is a romantic comedy?
NICOLA WALKER: It’s true that there are elements of romance in this series, and clearly comedy. But it’s more a journey from friendship to clash.
YALI TOPOL MARGALITH: It’s an anti-rom’com, in my opinion. It has all the aspects of the traditional romantic comedy, but we’ve never seen a rom-com like this.
JEMAINE CLEMENT: It’s actually more of a revenge drama basically…
Besides, the tone of the series is very acidic…
NICOLA WALKER: Yes, because Sophie Goodhart’s writing is very realistic in fact. She manages to turn certain totally absurd situations into ridicule. The general idea is to cause serious discomfort. It can be funny at times, but because all these characters find themselves in very concrete and uncomfortable situations.
How would you describe the relationship between Steve and Izzy?
JEMAINE CLEMENT: Inappropriate is the right word! (laughs) At first, they are just reacting to the feelings they suddenly have for each other. For Steve, it’s strange because he hasn’t felt this way in a long time. He has a decision to make: will he cross that line? And he doesn’t take more than a second to make his decision…
YALI TOPOL MARGALITH: Izzy above all seeks to reconnect with simple feelings. Her previous relationship was very toxic and she finds Steve, who treats her well, who is gentle, kind, who trusts her to take the reins of this story, and that suits her very well.
NICOLA WALKER: For Alice, the right word would be: totally unacceptable!
Why do you think this is totally unacceptable for Alice?
NICOLA WALKER: Do you find that acceptable? We understand very well why she reacts like that! Alice is not very nuanced. She is a very protective mother and she sees this as a double betrayal: she feels betrayed by her best friend and also by her daughter. She didn’t imagine for a second that this could happen. Besides, she would surely prefer that Izzy stay with her toxic ex rather than get into a relationship with Steve.
JEMAINE CLEMENT: It’s quite difficult to explain, but naturally, instinctively, we know it’s bad.
So, isn’t love stronger than anything? Are there limits?
NICOLA WALKER: No, that’s not the question! For Alice, it doesn’t happen like that. She is his mother and, from there, we cannot open an intellectual debate on the issue. We are only in raw emotion and, in fact, all supposed reflection disappears.
How would you react if such a situation happened to you in real life?
JEMAINE CLEMENT: Honestly, I wouldn’t be happy at all. This has already happened to people I know and I can tell you that the friendship has completely exploded…
NICOLA WALKER: I would react exactly like Alice. And besides, all the people I spoke to about it, my friends, my loved ones, all share the same vision of things: they would be furious! Completely overwhelmed by their emotions. Not because of the age difference, but really because of the betrayal. And then, for a mother, you have to realize what that means: her best friend, her confidant, falls in love with the person she loves most in the world. So she has to deal with a very strong feeling of exclusion. It must be terrifying to experience.
What do you know about season 2 and the rest of Alice and Steve’s story?
JEMAINE CLEMENT: It’s difficult to say, because Sophie Goodhart’s mind is boiling so much that everything can evolve very quickly… (laughs) But for now, we’re waiting. We don’t know at all if it’s going to happen. We’re waiting to see what the scores for season 1 will be.
Alice and Steve, in six episodes, to watch on Disney+ from June 8, 2026
