Ben Stiller has a strict rule on Severance set that everyone must adhere to

Apple TV+’s sci-fi workplace drama Severance had won the hearts of both critics and viewers alike when it premiered in 2022. After a gap of almost three years, the show is back with its second season, and this time, it also seems to be living up to the hype.

Severance Season 2 also sees the return of Ben Stiller as the director and the executive producer. While talking on Mike Birbiglia’s Working It Out podcast, he revealed that he has a “no phones” rule on the set.

He further revealed that since he has worked with directors like Wes Anderson and Noah Baumbach, he tries to implement certain strategies like them, which would help the actors to focus only on their work and not get distracted.

Let us now explore Stiller’s rule on the set of Severance in detail and what was his motivation behind taking this decision.

---

Ben Stiller does not allow phones on Severance set

As mentioned previously, Stiller does not allow phone usage on the set of Severance. On the Working It Out podcast, he mentioned,

“Crew have to use phones sometimes to communicate, but, for me, I like no phones anywhere near the eyeshot of the actors. My least favorite thing is to see a dolly grip guy hunched down while an actor is acting their brains out, and he’s scrolling or whatever. It drives me crazy.”

This shows how Stiller wants the actors only to focus on what they are doing on the set and not get distracted by any kind of calls, texts, or other forms of entertainment available on their phones.

He also added,

“As a director, you want to protect that environment for the actors. But by the way, you also have to be respectful of the crew. … These people are actually working really hard, and you have to figure out how to motivate them to want to be on the team. They haven’t been with the script that you’ve been writing for five years. They just came on last week. So, it’s on you as a director to figure out a way to get everybody on board.”

Stiller also mentioned that he views acting as a vulnerable thing, and that’s why he believes that it is extremely important for the actors to stay focused.

Also Read: Severance Season 2 Episode 2: Did Helly R. get replaced by her outie Helena?

---

What is Severance about?

Severance is a sci-fi workplace drama that follows a company named Lumon and its severed employees. They have voluntarily gotten themselves severed to lead a personal and professional life with two personalities, the innies and outies.

While these two personalities of the same person do not have any idea about each other, the finale of Severance Season 1 showed the innies and outies making a moment of contact in an attempt to expose Lumon and the shady and unclear activities that go on there.

Severance Season 2 picks up right where the first season had ended. The audience sees the main four severed employees, Mark Scout (Adam Scott), Helly Riggs (Britt Lower), Irving Bailiff (John Turturro), and Dylan George (Zach Cherry) coming back to Lumon to better understand what exactly happened after they had blown the whistle on the company.

Severance Season 1 and the first two episodes of Season 2 can be streamed on Apple TV+. Season 2 has ten episodes, and new episodes drop every Friday.

---

Stay tuned to SoapCentral for more updates on shows!