‘Palm Royale’ Creator Had “Biggest Imposter Syndrome” When Carol Burnett Signed On

As Carol Burnett makes Emmy Awards history this weekend, Abe Sylvia is reflecting on his collaboration with the comedy legend.

The Palm Royale creator explained that he had the “biggest imposter syndrome” after Burnett came to be cast as wealthy comatose matriarch Norma Dellacorte in his Apple TV+ series, which was renewed for a second season back in June.

“I didn’t have anyone in mind. But we have a fantastic casting director, Kerry Barden, and he really encouraged us to shoot for the moon,” he recalled to Collider. “It was his idea to go after Carol Burnett for Norma. I said, ‘I don’t know. She’s in a coma. Does that feel too small?’ And he was like, ‘Let’s just ask. There’s no hurt in asking.’ And when Carol said yes, I went into my office and cried with the biggest imposter syndrome. I was like, ‘Who am I to be at this party?'”

The role earned Burnett an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, making her the oldest female acting nominee at 91.

Palm Royale stars Kristen Wiig as Maxine Dellacorte-Simmons, an outsider attempting to fit into 1969 high society Palm Beach, Florida, at the town’s exclusive eponymous country club. The show also stars Laura Dern, Ricky Martin, Josh Lucas, Leslie Bibb, Amber Chardae Robinson and Allison Janney.

Sylvia continued, “But once the actors were cast, I looked at it like a costume fitting. If the script is a costume, the actor comes in and tries it on, and you’re gonna take it in, you’re gonna raise the hem, you’re gonna put a dart in, you’re gonna lower the neckline. Actors have rhythms, especially in comedy, and you start to tailor patterns of speech to the particular actors you’ve cast. And then, as we got to know the actors, there were these reserves of talent, even in the depths of talent that we were dealing with, with our particular cast. As we got to know them, we realized, ‘There is this reserve of this person that the world has never seen, so let’s make sure we showcase it.’ … And so, moving into Season 2, it’s really exciting because we’re able to start from the get-go knowing all of the wonderful places our extraordinary cast can go.”

Following the show’s Season 2 renewal, Sylvia revealed that filming will begin at the end of September. “We’ve been writing Season 2 for the last seven months. We’re well into it,” he said.