It's a small miracle that anyone on the set of the HBO series "Barry" keeps a straight face whenever Anthony Carrigan opens his mouth.
Carrigan plays NoHo Hank, a Chechen mobster who is way too nice for a life of crime. Just about every line Carrigan utters elicits at least a chuckle, though more often than not he earns full-body laughs. Carrigan is so funny that he makes it hard for even "Barry" co-creator and star Bill Hader to maintain his composure.
"It's a particular delight to make Bill Hader crack up," Carrigan told the Post-Gazette. "It doesn't get much higher than that. I also just cannot keep a straight face for the life of me some days. It's too hard and things are too funny. I have to give myself permission to laugh, because the show's hilarious."
"Barry" returns Sunday for its third season after an almost three-year hiatus. HBO provided the Post-Gazette with the first six episodes of the new season in which Barry Berkman (Hader) finds it increasingly difficult to balance dual lives as an actor and hitman for hire.
As usual, Carrigan's NoHo Hank is around to provide the Emmy-winning comedy with equal doses of heart and humor as he navigates the latest threats that could only befall him and his friends.
"Never count out Hank to just get in a complete mess of a situation," he said.
There's not an ounce of fear in Carrigan's performance as NoHo Hank. Not many actors would be willing to try such a tricky accent, let alone use it for comic effect the way that Carrigan does without devolving into caricature. He said Hank's distinctive personality was in the show's scripts, and the specific way he read the character "was immediately there and activated."
"Barry" is "a unicorn job," Carrigan said, because it's helmed with such confidence by its creators, in this case Hader and Alec Berg. Carrigan had been a fan of Hader since his "Saturday Night Live" days and got a sense of his true depths as an artist after seeing his work on the IFC series "Documentary Now!" When he heard Hader was developing a show at HBO, Carrigan knew he had to get involved somehow.
"He's a tastemaker," Carrigan said. "The guy knows what's up."
The last two-plus years were tough for Carrigan and the whole cast and crew as production on season three continued to be delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. "Barry" proved to be "a real beacon of hope" for everyone involved, Carrigan said, and gave them something to look forward to once it became safe to shoot in person again.
Season three is a continuation of NoHank's evolution from low-level lieutenant to a leader of the Chechens' criminal activities in Los Angeles. Hank has a lot going on with both his personal life and the Chechens' conflict with the rival Bolivian gang. Getting to portray "who Hank is behind closed doors" was yet another fun acting challenge, he said.
A major selling point for Carrigan and "Barry" viewers is how adept the show is at making audiences care about some truly despicable characters — especially Hank and Barry himself, who literally kills people for a living.
"I think that his intentions are pure, question mark?" Carrigan said of Hank. "With each of these characters, the show does a wonderful job of making the audience root for someone and then maybe making them question if they should have rooted for them in the first place. ... The show does a good job of toeing that line of ethics and morals."
While "Barry" hasn't officially been renewed yet, Hader revealed last year that he and the show's writing team had already mapped out a potential fourth season. Carrigan is excited for the chance to keep inducing belly-laughs from "Barry" viewers and exploring NoHo Hank in all his ridiculous glory.
"As much as I can," he said, "I want to keep the ball rolling."
