Behind The Scenes Of Greg Daniels’ New Amazon Show, ‘Upload’

The new Amazon series Upload imagines a future in which some people don’t die—they pay to “upload” themselves into a virtual existence, where they can live in perpetuity.

There are advantages to this, obviously. In many ways, it’s living the ideal life. But as the uploads soon learn, not everything is as it seems. A central mystery soon unravels, and some aspects of what initially seemed like Eden are unveiled as more treacherous.

The multi-layered concept is what viewers have come to expect from a Greg Daniels comedy. The writer, producer and director behind such beloved programs as The Office and Parks and Recreation mines new territory in the new show, which premiered last week, leaving office politics behind. Still, he continues to explore the big themes that drove his other hits, such as how our relationships to others define us.

For actor Kevin Bigley, who plays Luke, working with Daniels fulfilled a career dream. “I definitely tried to cherish it as much as possible—and I think ‘cherish’ is the right word,” he says. “It’s pretty cool getting notes from a guy who had a hand in so many of my favorite comedic moments. He created and directed comedy pillars that defined what you think is funny. I could go on and on.”

Bigley says Daniels sees things in unique perspective. When he gives a note, actors think of the scene in a different way, which opens it up to new comic potential.

Bigley remembers one scene in the pilot, when Robbie Amell’s character (new arrival Nathan) is exploring a cafeteria breakfast. “My character runs onto the scene, and he’s just missed breakfast, so he’s screaming. I was running on and stopping in front of the food and screaming,” Bigley recalls.

Daniels suggested a small change to Bigley’s approach. Instead of starting the scream when he got to the food, Daniels wanted Bigley to start making a sound off-camera as he approached.

The actor’s extensive knowledge of The Simpsons, where Daniels wrote eight episodes, helped him understand the entrance the creator wanted. “I knew exactly what he meant—it’s what Homer’s doing with his scream anytime he’s running into the camera,” Bigley says.