Adam DeVine Found Catharsis in <em>The Righteous Gemstones</em>

I don’t know if you noticed, but the funniest show on TV has been on the air for the past six years, and it’s coming to an end this spring. I’m talking about the hilarious, outrageously crude HBO series about a family of televangelists, The Righteous Gemstones. Series creator Danny McBride managed to give the larger-than-life setup a grounded sense of humor and camaraderie. You often find yourself cheering for the narcissistic, juvenile family of millionaire preachers. After this last season ends, I’ll look something like Eli Gemstone (John Goodman) in the first episode of the fourth season–letting my hair grow long and listening to Jimmy Buffett on my (imaginary) boat.

Thankfully, before the series ended, I caught up with Adam DeVine, who plays Kelvin Gemstone, the youngest and most flamboyant member of the family (which is saying a lot). DeVine has been a mainstay in the comedy world for almost two decades, starting with a YouTube sketch comedy group called Mail Order Comedy that he created with his friends Blake Anderson, Anders Holm, and Kyle Newacheck. The four then went on to star in their own Comedy Central sitcom, Workaholics, that defined millennial humor for the better half of the 2010s.

DeVine’s portrayal of the outlandish Kelvin is ludicrously childish yet still earnest and lovable. The best part of his portrayal is his chemistry with his costars, played by comedy legends Edi Patterson, John Goodman, and Walton Goggins. Or with his best friend and newly minted boyfriend, Keefe (Tony Cavalero). Their relationship—the catalyst for Kelvin’s character development in the new season—was spawned by the already close friendship between the two actors. “We always have these creative calls to start the season, and Danny [McBride] asked me, What do you want to see more this season?” Cavalero told me. “I said the scenes I love the most are the ones where Adam and I are lovey-dovey with our stupid banter.”

After the dramatic kiss between the two characters at the end of the third season, fans finally get to see Keefe and Kelvin in their new romance. “It’s turned into a bit of a joke now that Danny saw Adam and I working out,” Cavelero says, “and then wrote us into a love story. But there’s probably many best friends that in another universe could be husbands.”

The cast’s natural rapport—coupled with masterful writing by John Carcieri, Jeff Fradley, and Danny McBride—has created a successful recipe for keeping comedy alive on primetime. Before the series finale, DeVine talked with me about Kelvin’s big coming-out moment in episode 7, a hilarious scene that didn’t quite make the cut, and playing an openly gay preacher.

“Danny creates such a communal atmosphere,” says DeVine of working with his Gemstones costar Danny McBride.

How did you, Edi Patterson, and Danny McBride create such a believable sibling bond?

Danny creates such a communal atmosphere. He moved to Charleston, and then 20 families came with him for the show. There’s a huge community that he has down there, and they’re so welcoming. He always throws a kickoff party, a midway party, and a big wrap party. In between, he’ll invite us to the beach or rent out a bowling alley or a Mexican restaurant, and then his wife just pours tequila down your throat. We’ve all become really good friends. It makes the acting that much easier. Especially in comedy, you want to have that closeness with each other.

Speaking of closeness, I know a lot of fans were anticipating this new season because of Kelvin and Keefe’s relationship turning romantic. How did you approach Kelvin’s arc this season, knowing that he would have this relationship?

I have a family member who came out, and it’s been a long time ago now. But I remember when they came out, all of a sudden they blossomed. They were a different person and they were proud. You just saw the weight come off of their back after carrying this secret.

In Kelvin’s case, it wasn’t a very well-kept secret. Everyone was like, He’s gay, right? Kelvin was one of the last people to fully embrace it. I’m sure it seemed like a very hard thing for him to do, being in the church environment and being a figure in the church. Finally he just said, I’m gonna do it. And that’s when things started to go well for him in this season. He was finally himself. And when Kelvin is himself, he wears head-to-toe Balenciaga.

This role is groundbreaking, because there are not a lot of characters on TV who are queer, Christian, and really vocal about both. How did you approach that dynamic?

I approached it with gusto. When Kelvin came out, he said, Screw it, I’m going to be loud and proud. Whether that crashes and burns, so be it. And the church embraced him. That’s what was so cool in Danny’s writing—he could have taken it in a different route where the church exiled him. But the family was like, Okay, you’re doing that, and I’m going to work on my prayer pods. Or whatever the hell dumbass idea that Jesse Gemstone is working on.

Back to being a role model, I think Kelvin is just being himself. And that’s what the LGBTQ+ community really related to. You can be yourself, and be a Christian, and do all the things that make me, me, while still having faith. A lot of LGBTQ+ people probably struggle with that, having this faith but then feeling excluded from church or Christianity. But at least in the case of our fictional church in The Righteous Gemstones, they are not.

What’s next for DeVine? A return to stand-up comedy might be in the cards. “I did for the first time in years the other night at the Comedy Store,” he says. “I’m getting that itch again.”

I’m curious about your preparation for Kelvin’s big speech at the Top Christ Following Man of the Year award show.

I wanted it to feel so natural and not stilted, and feel like it’s pouring out of him. At the beginning of the season, I printed out that scene five times and kept it in my car, in my trailer, at my house, and I’d walk around with it. I keep it in my backpack that I travel with. And whenever I’d have a free moment, I would run it five or six times. I felt I could connect more with who he is that way. I wanted him to seem clear-eyed and strong in his convictions.

How do you feel the home-invasion event affected Kelvin as he grew up?

He has this deep fear within him that someone or something could just come and take him or expose him. That’s why he's so guarded with his secret. It really stuck with him for his entire life. The big speech toward the end of episode 7 was a cathartic release and the releasing of the traumas of his youth. It’s beyond the home invasion. For Kelvin to finally come out so publicly, it feels like an amazing release. I was like, Go get ’em, little guy.

We’ve all become really good friends. It makes the acting that much easier.

I love your chemistry with McBride and Patterson. How do you guys get through scenes where you’re really going at each other?

In episode 4, when I’m taking them both down and we’re standing in front of Mama’s statue in the garden, I only had one take to do that. We got all of Edi’s and Danny’s coverage on the other side when they’re saying, “San Francisco” and “You’re a token.” And I’m like, How dare you? You’re a loser, Jesse. Your kids don’t even respect you.

A storm came in and we only got one take on my side. And a lot of that scene was improvised. When it’s just the three of us, we’re able to improv a lot. Improv’s hard when there’s ten people in a scene, because then you’re there all day long. But when it’s just us and we can quickly bounce between the three of us, it really works. We have such great chemistry together. We bring that nasty hot sauce. Other people might think it’s too spicy, but not for us. Gobble, gobble. We’ll bring that improv heat.

Now that Kelvin is out, his outfits are even more loud and flamboyant. What was your favorite look this season?

I’ve loved them all this season. This season was the most fun. Every day I would go in my trailer to start the workday, and I would look in and be like, Oh, this is what I’m wearing today? I’m like a peacock every day. It was fun to be so loud and proud and wear these things that in my regular life I would not be caught dead in. But it’s fun to just play this flamboyant character who’s just saying it. I am who I am, and I don’t care who knows it.

It turns out that the more expensive and the cooler the clothes are, the less comfortable they are. When we’re having the party for Prism, I’m wearing this plastic Balenciaga outfit. And it was so hot. It’s like you’re a wrestler trying to make weight.

“He has this deep fear within him that someone or something could just come and take him or expose him,” DeVine says of Kelvin. “That’s why he’s so guarded with his secret.”

Were there any funny moments that we don’t get to see this season?

This was sort of Kelvin’s big coming-out season, and they gave me a lot to do, so there wasn’t anything really left on the table. There is one scene where Kelvin and Keefe are in the treehouse. We walk over to the windowsill and I fall back into his arms and he wraps me up in his and I say, “We’re like young Tarzans swinging in the trees.” And then I start banging on my chest. But it’s heartfelt. And he’s holding me. I remember on the day thinking, This is so funny but also sweet in a weird way. And that didn’t make the cut, so I was a little bummed on that.

We need the director’s cut. I love the little moments between you and Tony Cavalero this season.

We’ve had such a great time doing this show together and becoming best friends. Having those intimate moments are really fun with him, because you’re able to play and you feel so safe with each other that you’re not questioning, Is this too far? Is this going to be weird? And both of us not being homophobic really helps with these characters. If we were homophobic even a little bit, I don’t think it would have worked. [Laughs.]

What do you see for Keefe and Kelvin’s future?

I hope they would take a page out of Eli’s playbook and buy a boat and sail off into the sunset somewhere and live life as pirates. I could see them taking Prism and starting their own church and waving that flag for people that have been othered by society.

What is next in your comedy career? Are you interested in doing stand-up again?

I did for the first time in years the other night at the Comedy Store. I’m getting that itch again. Stand-up is a grind, and you’ve got to be doing it a lot. I’m jealous of seeing all of my friends go on tour and all the fun that they’re having. So I would love to get back to that. I’m also selling a show with the Workaholics guys. We want to get back in business together. We love each other so much. It’s like working with your brothers. We didn’t realize how good we had it on Workaholics until you realize being the boss, doing all of your own ideas, and seeing a project from beginning to end is pretty rewarding.