This Is the Friendship Bracelet of the Future

Lauren Graham & Nico Santos say 'The Z-Suite' is the perfect winter TV show.

"It's a fun world. It's easy viewing in a fun, comforting way," Lauren says of the new series, which premiered on Tubi February 6. "It's speaking to a moment in our culture, but without kind of taking a side or being too militant about it. We haven't kind of seen these generations interact, and I don't know, it's fun."

"It's a comedy for everybody certainly, but if you look at our cast, it's I think one of the most diverse casts you'll see out there, which I think is really important," Nico says. "We're telling the story through this lens and just sort of giving the other people a chance to tell their story as well."

And working behind the scenes created a "creative and fun" environment for the cast.

Gilmore Girls fans have been wanting more from Lauren Graham ever since the GG finale, her 6-season hit Parenthood, and the Gilmore Girls: Year in the Life Netflix revival came in quick succession. Despite the fact she's found TV gold multiple times, Lauren admits choosing the perfect project is "probably less of a science than people think."

"There's so much that goes into what kind of job you're looking for versus what kind of job comes to you," she says. "I try to think in terms of, is this something I feel I can add to, like can I bring something that maybe is not on the page? And then is this far enough away, because in TV especially, you tend to get offered what you've already done, and so for this to even have a little bit of stretch, which I think it does, was really just a fun opportunity."

"For me it's all about the comedy in the scripts," Nico Santos adds. "That's my background and if I don't laugh reading a script, then I'm like, I'm not gonna do it."

"That is a huge part of it too," Lauren agrees. "Who the creator is and, in speaking to Katie [O’Brien], Nico knew her already, but I just thought this is someone I want to spend my days with, and that's really probably the most important decision, or a piece of the decision is, does this seem like it's going to be creative and fun?"

And one of Lauren's favorite parts of bringing the character of Monica to life was fleshing her out beyond the stereotypical "mean" boss archetype. "You know, the sort of like a tough older boss — I hate saying older, but I relative to the rest of everybody, yes!" she laughs. "I just wanted there to be kind of a reason behind her drive and a heart there, even though it is a pretty broad comedy. We talked about that and tried to find those moments where she's softer."

"There are moments that aren't really grounded and very sort of ridiculous, but it's also very important to infuse that sort of craziness with being grounded," Nico says. "So I think it's creating that balance and that's what makes the character so likable, I think."

Lauren Graham also loved the community aspect of filming 'The Z-Suite.'

With the Gen Z, virtual workplace of it all, there will be some The Z-Suite viewers who have never worked in an office, including myself (and Lauren apparently). But seeing all the characters together creates a community that I totally didn't expect when I sat down to watch.

"Any opportunity to be with the community and be working and be back to anything resembling normal is a real gift," Lauren says. "It was fun too, it's like playing in a new kind of place, and I found after a little initial awkwardness that I really could walk into my office and take charge and that was like a new kind of a channel to walk into."

"I just like being a part of an ensemble," Nico says. "On my previous job with Superstore, it's like ensemble comedy and we did that for so long. So that's an environment where I really thrive, so I love it."

And in the spirit of past projects, I can't help but ask how they think Crazy Rich Asians' Oliver and Gilmore Girls' Lorelai would fit into the picture?

"Lorelai would not do well," Lauren Graham says. "She would be bored by the world of the office and I think would relate way more to the Gen Z people cause in her mind, she's always kind of one of the kids. But the office culture, she'd bring them coffee and then leave."

"Oliver would be a client," Nico Santos says. "He'll come to the ad agency with some asks."

Monica Barbaro loved working with Timothée Chalamet on 'A Complete Unknown.'

Monica revealed in a Rolling Stone interview that she met Timothée Chalamet a week before filming — and that he was already more-or-less in character. "The first time we met was a music rehearsal," she tells Brit + Co exclusively. "So we just really launched right into it, which was nice because I admired his work so much from afar and any level of intimidation that I may have had, I could just sort of funnel into music prep, which was great."

"It was a beautiful experience of getting to hear our voices harmonize as these characters and hear the accompaniment of our guitars," she continues. "And we were able to kind of like anchor ourselves in the music and have sort of a meeting of minds that was maybe a little more similar to Joan and Bob because they met in the music scene as already very proficient musicians. So that was a beautiful magical day. And then we like launched right into filming."

Monica Barbaro (who you'll recognize from Top Gun2) stars as musician Joan Baez, and even though Monica had to learn how to play guitar for the role, you'd never guess just by watching the film. She carries herself with such confidence and ease that I'd have believed she'd been playing her whole life. And the fact her voice sounds like a Disney princess is just the cherry on top.

"I'm not a singer, I didn't play guitar," she says. "So there was sort of this introductory level thing going on where I just had to figure out how to form my hands and in some way, I thought about how she might have done that at like 14, I think, when she first picked up guitar. But that was just like an overhaul of everything — I mean, all my time just poured into that training."

She was doing her own research, but also worked with vocal coach Eric Vetro, who's also worked with Ariana Grande, Sabrina Carpenter, and Shawn Mendes. "He encouraged me to consider what the lyrics of songs meant to her," Monica says. "Because the best musicians are storytellers and that's one of the best things about he renditions of these folk songs is you feel the story of the song."

And because of that, focusing on the lyrics "was also a part of the character development. So there were sort of siloed things like voice, guitar research, and then her speaking voice," she says. "And then all of those things started to just kind of like meld, you know. You have to play and sing at the same time and tell a story and do it from the perspective of Joan. And so so they just sort of over time kind of like bridged."

But no matter how much prep Monica, Timothée, and Elle Fanning (who stars as Sylvie Russo) did for the film, they still had to film in the middle of New York City, which came with its own set of 2024-specific challenges. "It was interesting to be filming and have people sneaking videos and posting them on the internet," she says, admitting that she "really just tried to turn all of that off to the best of my ability."

The film highlights the tension between celebrity and fame, considering we meet Bob Dylan right before he becomes, well, Bob Dylan. "It's a privilege to have to have so much attention and excitement on a project and I appreciate the intent, but you kind of just sort of turn it off a little bit and disengage," Monica says, "especially when you're talking about just a very different kind of fame in the sixties."

Joaquim Valente and Gisele Bündchen's baby is here!

Gisele Bündchen shares two kids with ex-husband Tom Brady, a 15-year-old son named Benjamin Rein and 12-year-old daughter Vivian Lake. According to TMZ, while we haven't gotten an official birthday yet, the baby was born recently, and "mom and the baby are healthy." That's the best news yet!

Gisele and Joaquim were also waiting until giving birth to find out the baby's gender, and a source tells People the couple welcomed a baby boy. Stay tuned from an official announcement from the couple — if they choose to share, of course. The source also reveals the baby's middle name is River, which continues the tradition of Gisele choosing water-related middle names for her kids!

"Gisele and Joaquim are happy for this new chapter in their life and they're looking forward to creating a peaceful and loving environment for the whole family," a source told People in the fall of 2024.

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Just a week ago, Gisele was active on Instagram, posting a video compilation that's set to Nate Broskii's "Memories Don't Fade Away" and features multiple clips, including a gorgeous beach sunset. "Happiness is an inside job," she says in the caption. "Remember, you are the only one who has the power to create the life you want to live."

We can't wait to see how Gisele's next chapter unfolds! Because if there's anyone who can inspire us to create our dream life, it's her.