Spoiler alert for Season 5, Episode 5 – “The Pirate Queen” – of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel ahead. If you aren’t caught up on the comedy, check it out with an Amazon Prime subscription, and catch new episodes every Friday on the 2023 TV schedule.
One of the most unique aspects of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’s fifth and final season is how it flashes forward to seemingly random points in Midge’s future after she becomes a wildly successful comedian. So far, we’ve learned about how she’s risen to a legendary level of fame and what her kids are up to. Now, in episode five we found out what happened to her ex-husband Joel, and let’s just say it was surprising for both the audience and Michael Zegen, who plays him.
When Rachel Brosnahan spoke about playing Old Midge, she noted how “wild” the experience was, and how surprised she was by the direction the show’s creators Amy Sherman-Palladino and Daniel Palladino took the comedian. As for Michael Zegen, Old Joel was a surprise to him too, especially when he learned that his character was in prison from a makeup artist on set. The actor told CinemaBlend:
It was a total shock. I had no inclination that he was going to end up in prison. But you know, it was admirable as to why he ended up in prison. So at first, it was like, ‘Oh, God, what did he do?’ Because I was warned. I'm the kind of actor, I don't like to know what happens from episode to episode. Some people in our cast will go up to Amy and Dan and, you know, they’ll divulge secrets. But I just like to not know anything. And somebody spilled it, I think it was somebody in makeup. They told they were like, do you want to know what happens to him? And I'm like, sure. They said he's in prison.
I also had no inclination Joel would end up in prison, and finding out how Zegen learned this information would have made it all the more shocking. While many of us haven’t liked some of Mr. Maisel’s choices over the seasons, he's undoubtedly been on a redemptive journey, and he has proven to be a good friend and co-parent for Midge. However, somehow he ended up in prison, and based on Episode 5 he and Midge are still on good terms, so whatever he did must not have hurt her. Zegen continued to talk about how he found out, and why he was happy about Joel’s ultimate fate, saying:
And so I didn't know what he did. And it was amazing. I mean, when we finally find out why he's in prison, I mean, that's just the cherry on the sundae. But, you know, it was so much fun because we got to wear all the makeup and I got to see what I could potentially look like in 20 years or so.
As the actor noted, Joel is looking pretty good after all these years, especially since he’s been in prison. He also took a moment when this new episode came out to show off a photo of him as Old Joel with Old Midge on Instagram, and you can see both their transformations for yourself here:
Zegen then talked about Joel’s fate and trajectory over the course of Maisel’s five seasons, saying he had absolutely no idea what was coming. He explained that he likes to evolve with the scripts, and he enjoyed following the roadmap set up from episode to episode. The actor said:
It was always a surprise. He had so many different jobs, he started out wanting to be a stand-up comic and ends up in prison. Joel’s whole journey was a surprise for me.
As one of Amazon Prime’s best shows continues its final season, it’s clear that there are still a lot of surprises coming our way from the entire ensemble, including some exciting Gilmore Girls vets as guest stars, and Joel. Since Zegen mentioned it, it sounds like we’ll find out how he ended up in jail. However, for now, we can rest easy knowing that Old Midge and Old Joel are still close friends who love each other and brisket after all these years.
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