With the show having already only lasted one season, Zoë Kravitz reveals that High Fidelity producers thought her character to be too toxic. The Hulu series acted as a second adaptation of Nick Hornby's novel of the same name, following John Cusack's 2000 romantic dramedy movie, about a record store owner named Rob who struggles to get a handle on the world of relationships, lamenting the inability to maintain any one partner for too long. Developed by Ugly Betty alums Veronica West and Sarah Kucserka, High Fidelity scored largely favorable reviews from critics and audiences alike, though one key group weren't as sold on the show.
In a recent cover story with GQ, Zoë Kravitz reflected on her time with the short-lived High Fidelity series. When looking on the development of her central character, Rob, the star recalled how producers thought her to be too toxic and angry of a personality for audiences to truly resonate with. See what Kravitz shared below:
What was interesting is I had to really fight the producers in a lot of ways to let me be as toxic as she was they really wanted to dull things down. Even at the end of Episode Two, when I screamed, ‘What fucking Lily girl?’ they were like, ‘Can you be less angry?’ Or when I fantasized about beating the shit out of Lily, they were like, ‘It’s so violent.' They wanted it to be this cute, likable version of this piece-of-s--t character. The point was to show that women could be pieces of shit too. If you make something and no one liked it, and it’s not good, then it makes sense. But when people connect to it, it’s sad. I felt really out of control.
How High Fidelity's Producers Misunderstood the Whole Point of the Character
In the wake of the show's cancelation, Kravitz has proven very vocal about her frustrations regarding how High Fidelity was handled by Hulu and its producers, slamming the streaming platform for its lack of diverse shows in the way of hers. The Batman actor previously has also expressed her feelings that Hulu made a mistake in canceling High Fidelity, noting the amount of positive she's received from fans both online and in public about the show's positive POC and female representations. While audiences weren't as vocal about saving the show as they have been with others, it's clear High Fidelity remains as much of a cult favorite as Cusack's film before it.
Kravitz's latest comments regarding producers thoughts on her character further go to show how poorly they mishandled High Fidelity. Even going back to Hornby's novel, part of the appeal of Rob was his curmudgeonly nature, with his existential crisis effectively highlighting the various foibles of the dating world, even as audiences rooted for him to realize the error of his ways. The same was largely said for Kravitz's take on the character in Hulu's High Fidelity, with her apathetic attitude actually engaging audiences to see her growth across multiple seasons of the show as she tries to accept the possibility of being open to love at some point in the future.
Unfortunately for those who did fall in love with the series, including Kravitz herself, Rob's journey of growth was cut short after High Fidelity was canceled after just one season. Luckily for audiences, this wasn't a full stop for Kravitz, as she since went on to score acclaim as The Batman and recently completed production on her feature written and directorial debut, Pussy Island, featuring an ensemble cast led by Naomie Ackie and Channing Tatum. Audiences can revisit her short-lived turn as Rob with th entirety of High Fidelity available to stream on Hulu now.
Source: GQ