The chaos of the family-crime comedy Big Mistakes is set off by an impulsive but well-meaning gesture. In a misguided theft for a gift to give her dying grandmother, Morgan — the middle sibling of the Dardano family, played by actor and comedian Taylor Ortega (Another Simple Favor) — steals a diamond tennis necklace from a seedy local store. The theft inadvertently brings Morgan and her brother, Nicky (Dan Levy), into a threatening world of organized crime, putting the duo in potentially deadly hot water. They get blackmailed into cooperating with an underground drug operation controlled by the mob, with their exploits taking them on a journey far beyond their tight-knit suburban town in New Jersey.
The unparalleled stress destabilizes Morgan, already a long way from her early dreams of making it as an actor in New York City. Working a thankless job as a public school teacher and stuck in a lackluster relationship with her long-term boyfriend Max (Jack Innanen, Adults), the messy and aimless Morgan is judged for her choices by both her overbearing mother, Linda (Laurie Metcalf, Lady Bird), and the youngest — and favorite — Dardano sibling, Natalie (Abby Quinn, Knock at the Cabin).
Dan Levy as Nicky and Taylor Ortega as Morgan
For Levy, who is a co-creator of the series in addition to serving as showrunner, casting the right performer to play his onscreen sister was a tall order, as Morgan and Nicky share a hilariously fraught yet ultimately supportive bond, but any fears went out the window when Ortega came aboard. “There was like an instant sibling dynamic,” remembers Levy. “It does have to either be there or not with chemistry,” says Ortega. The performer notes that as she and Levy got closer and developed their working relationships, they found parallels in their own familial bonds that may have contributed to their true-to-life dynamic. “We grew up in similar households, [and] our communication style must be similar with our families, [because to us,] this is how siblings would communicate.”
Big Mistakes is not afraid to explore what family can really feel like and the complexities of adult sibling relationships. Morgan and Nicky have their fair share of arguments, and they struggle dealing with their domineering mother, but ultimately, they share a fierce love and protectiveness for one another as they face the unexpected. “When my own mom came to set … for her it felt very realistic,” Ortega says, noting Big Mistakes' honest approach to interfamilial conflict. “The woman watches a lot of television; I know she knows it’s scripted, but it was hitting for her.”
Taylor Ortega
Ortega is still relishing the fact that she found her comedic kindred spirit in Levy, with whom she felt connected long before cameras rolled on the comedy thriller. “There were even times I would watch Schitt’s. I remember watching that and just being like, ‘This is the way my parents describe me,’ ” says Ortega. “We have a bit of [a] similar sensibility where I can sort of anticipate a little bit where [Levy] might go with something, and then that makes it easier for us to be very quick with it.” Their shared sensibilities make Big Mistakes a laugh-out-loud ride, with Morgan and Nicky coming across as a natural sibling duo. “Taylor has brought such a fresh earnestness to that character, and she’s so spontaneous in her performance that it led to this game of sparring with each other that constantly feels fresh,” says Levy. “So much of what you see is, like, just us having fun with each other, and she’s the greatest scene partner, and we just had a blast.”
