Hitting a karaoke bar after an historically bad day at work might not put the world to rights, but when FBI agent Nora Washington (Quincy Tyler Bernstine) belts out Meatloaf’s “I’d Do Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That)” it is enough to forget the horrors of her current situation.
Well, copious amounts of booze and a bright tropical shirt—a far cry from her office-appropriate attire—also temporarily help turn down the volume on the realization that Nora’s career has seemingly imploded in the penultimate episode of Hulu’s summer hit, Furious.
While Nora’s job as the head of the FBI’s sex crime unit in New York City is in jeopardy, Bernstine, an award-winning audiobook narrator and stage actress, is experiencing the opposite in the standout role that should garner Emmy Award attention. You might not immediately recognize her, but Bernstine has 20 years of TV and film credits, including the New York actor Law & Order rite of passage (Criminal Intent in 2005 and Special Victims Unit two years later), as well as Ray Donovan, Evil, and last year’s excellent Devil in Disguise: John Wayne Gacy.
Bernstine talked to the Daily Beast’s Obsessed from her Brooklyn home, explaining that she still feels like a chameleon, as she has had only one in-person fan interaction so far. That may well change as more people discover this brilliant performance and show by creator Elizabeth Meriwether, which is one of the best shows of the year so far.
“It’s been very overwhelming,” Bernstine says. “There’s so much love and support coming from so many different places. It’s been really remarkable. I have only had one lovely little Jamaican woman in my neighborhood call out of her car, ‘Furious?!’, and I said ‘Yes.’ She’s like, ‘I love your character!’ That made me so happy.”
What begins as an investigation into a female serial killer quickly snowballs into a sprawling conspiracy centering on underage sex trafficking and the senior law enforcement figures actively looking the other way. Nora thought she had evidence proving her boss Ed George (Danny McCarthy) was corrupt and could prove that billionaire Jay Easton (Peter McRobbie) was guilty of raping a minor (and maybe murder).
Unfortunately, by the end of the previous episode, Ed outplays Nora. Not only has a crucial laptop been wiped clean, but Nora’s drinking on the job finally catches up with her, and she is benched.
To make matters worse, rookie FBI agent Alice Black (Emmy Rossum) let killer Catherine Grace (Lola Petticrew) slip through her fingers. They have been left with nothing, and Nora is quick to blame Alice for ruining this rare chance to arrest a powerful man like Easton because she played the hero to save her abusive ex Marshall (Jake Lacy) instead.
Nora and Alice are certainly not giving off the same BFF dynamic of Meriwether’s previous celebrated duos like Jess (Zooey Deschanel) and Cece (Hannah Simone) on New Girl or Dying For Sex’s Molly (Michelle Williams) and Nikki (Jenny Slate). Still, Nora and Alice’s thorny mentor-mentee relationship is equally compelling, offering a unique, layered depiction that ensures Furious isn’t just another crime thriller to be forgotten in a month.
“I was like, ‘This woman, Nora, is unbelievable. I have never seen anything like her on screen, and yet I know exactly who she is,” Bernstine says. From the jump, Bernstine was blown away by Meriwether’s pilot script and the three audition scenes depicting the singular Nora, who is “perfectly imperfect.”
As the season progresses, we learn that Nora has been belittled, bullied, and reduced to a diversity hire by her superior, Ed. One moment in the fifth episode illustrates how little respect (rightfully so) Nora has for Ed when she makes fun of him by mimicking his walk. Bernstine’s in-character improvisation is a fan-favorite choice that speaks volumes. “That was not in the script,” she admits. “That was Nora. That just came out. I’m glad they kept it.”
Whereas Alice is quick to color outside the lines, Nora admits that Ed told her to close the case of the dead 15-year-old Isabel (Larissa Campos) back in 2012. The deceased teenager is at the heart of the crimes being committed by Catherine, who wants justice by any means necessary. With each episode, more pieces of the puzzle reveal how little law enforcement has done to protect girls like Catherine and Isabel. At the same time, Alice and Nora attempt to build a case against these powerful men, adding another layer to this cat-and-mouse narrative.
“As the scripts kept coming out, it’s like, ‘Oh, this is a character study.’ It was thrilling to get to work on such a unique piece,” Bernstine adds. Whereas Alice and Nora hit a low point at the start of Episode 7, “Some Days It Don’t Come Easy”, before rebounding by the end of the episode, Bernstine and Rossum immediately hit it off.
“We had a chemistry read, and I feel like we bonded instantly,” she says. “I was like, ‘I love this woman, and I want to work with her.’ I had trouble leaving the chemistry read. I was having such a good time. I was dragging my heels because I wanted to stay and keep working.”
The two-hander scenes with Rossum throughout the series are electric, with the penultimate episode delivering a hat trick of outstanding one-on-one interactions that plumb their emotional reservoirs.
The first is the spikiest when Nora gives Alice a dressing-down at the hospital. Bernstine likens it to a breakup scene and notes the episode’s overall melancholic tone, with Nora at her lowest ebb. “The way that she interacts with Alice comes from a vulnerable place,’ Bernstine says. “She’s putting up these major walls to protect herself. They’re so cruel to each other at the end.”
One of Bernstine’s biggest challenges throughout the season is calibrating Nora’s level of drunkenness and functioning alcoholism. The karaoke scene is Nora at her most inebriated, but even then she isn’t blackout wasted. Nora is off the clock and drowning her sorrows, but Alice won’t let a bitter interaction get in the way of a significant breakthrough that does lead to Catherine.
The moment she found out about the singing scene is burned into her brain. “I remember where I was standing when I got the text from Liz saying, ‘What if I was to have Nora singing a self-loathing karaoke song? What would that song be?” Bernstine recalls. “My jaw dropped to the floor.”
There was some initial back-and-forth about the track choice before landing on Meatloaf. Similar to fine-tuning the level of inebriation, Bernstine had to figure out how good Nora is at karaoke. (Nora telling the audience to “suck my d---” should give you an indication.)
“I used to karaoke all the time in graduate school, and as a young person here in New York, I’ve won karaoke awards on a cruise ship,” she says. “But I was terrified because it’s very vulnerable. I worked on that song forever. I would be on my morning run listening to Meatloaf over and over.”
Nora’s tropical-themed attire draws attention in the bar, but Bernstine was not the only one sporting this look: “The day we shot that scene, about three-quarters of the crew and production staff wore Hawaiian shirts. They surprised me and wore Hawaiian shirts in solidarity.”
Furious is a drama, but Meriwether’s comedic sensibility peppers dialogue throughout the season, including Nora’s comments about her off-duty look: “You like my shirt? I’m gonna be retired soon. I’m gonna wear this every day. No bra, baby. Hangin’ loose. My babies swinging back and forth like they just don’t care.” Lines like this bring Bernstine immense joy. “A dream. The things that come out of Nora’s mouth are like candy,” she says.
Alice asks Nora to stake out the motel, which proves extremely fruitful—and physically exerting. Nora chases a suspect twice her size, and Bernstine relished the opportunity. “I had a wonderful stunt double, but I wanted to do my own stunts,” she says. “We have our stunt coordinator, Jill [Brown], and our NYPD consultant, Jimmy Bodnar. They were so patient and kind, and helped me get through that sequence.”
However, Nora’s choice of outfit has some drawbacks: “It was freezing, and I had on a bralette to mimic not wearing a bra, so it was uncomfortable; I’m running with no support.” Bernstine was particularly fond of Nora’s line after she successfully cuffs Big Man (Jeremy Sample): “Goddamnit! Should’ve worn a bra.”
Before Nora leaps into action, she explains her approach to raids to Alice and how she avoids being jumpy in those heightened circumstances as a woman. Nora’s interest in Greek mythology is a recurring motif. Here she describes imagining growing muscular wings so that when she starts to run she feels like she is flying.
Being the head of the sex crimes unit requires this disconnect from the real world after seeing such monstrous acts. She has to become “a creature from a different world.” In preparation to play Nora, Bernstine talked to retired FBI agent Carrie Landau (who Meriwether also consulted).
“There would be no Nora without Carrie,” Bernstine says. “Carrie did this job for over 20 years in Ohio and Chicago, and she was incredibly generous in sharing her stories.”
Nora’s drinking, AKA her “liquid courage,” is so Nora doesn’t lose her wings. “I loved this scene so much because Nora’s still at her most vulnerable, and you see her facing her demons in that moment and putting voice to it,” Bernstine says. “I think it is so beautiful that she is acknowledging to Alice that she needs something to get her through.”
Alice takes inspiration from Nora’s experience and sets in motion one last-ditch attempt at being able to search Jay Easton’s home. “Even though Nora’s like, ‘What the hell are you doing, Alice?’ She’s like a proud mother,” Bernstine says about Alice letting Catherine go as part of this plan.
Going into the finale, the odds are stacked against Nora and Alice. Their only other ally is NYPD homicide detective Danny Kelly (Scoot McNairy), whom Nora has to call to pick her up from the motel after Alice leaves to pursue Catherine. Nora’s corrupt boss, Ed—who we now know has been covering up for Jay Easton’s crimes—is going to do everything in his power to ensure Easton remains free.
“Sparring with him has been absolutely incredible,” says Bernstine about McCarthy’s Ed. “He’s one of my favorite people; he’s such a sweet human being, which tells you what a good actor he is.”
While Bernstine says she could go at it all day with McCarthy, she also has some thoughts about Ed being in Nora’s life: “If we are lucky enough to have a Season 2, I’m going to need Ed to go away. We don’t need to put up with him anymore.”
Does Nora think some sort of change can happen despite the flawed justice system? Bernstine thinks so: “That’s the dilemma of banging your head against the wall—obstacle after obstacle—that you just keep fighting because maybe you’ll make a difference in one person’s life, and that is a win.”
Even when Nora seems down and out, dressed in a blue tropical shirt, she has enough reserves in the tank to try. “I would say never underestimate Nora Washington,” Bernstine teases about the finale. Now, that is something to sing about.
