‘Palm Royale’: Matt Rogers on Working With Kristen Wiig & What Was ‘Cathartic’ About His Role

[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Palm Royale Season 2 Episode 7 “Maxine Plays Dead.”]

“Are you the dead socialite with the funeral tomorrow?” guest star Matt Rogers‘ character Bruce calls out breezily to Palm Beach social climber Maxine Dellacorte (Kristen Wiig) in the seventh episode of Palm Royale’s madcap second season, set in 1970. It’s the beginning of a beautiful, but brief, friendship between two beautiful people.

Rogers, an actor and comedian best known for co-hosting the pop culture podcast Las Culturistas with Bowen Yang, matches Wiig’s frantic energy as they become instant besties. Bruce and Maxine spy on her “funeral,” attended by his secret lover, Rock Hudson; prank Maxine’s cheating hubs’ baby mama; and party in a hot tub at a no-tell motel. Rogers dishes details.

Did you base Bruce on anyone?

Matt Rogers: I would’ve been Bruce in 1970, I hope. I love that he wears his heart on his sleeve as much as he can, that he enjoys his life, that he’s the sort of king of this gay motel. He’s a fun and vibrant representation of what I would imagine an extroverted gay man of the time was like.

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Any qualms about wearing that tiny swimsuit in the hot tub?

When I book a role, I am in a full suit or a Speedo. I was like, which one’s it going to be? Before I read the script, they brought me in for a fitting and measured every single inch of my body. I am thinking, they’re probably custom making me a suit. I show up, and it’s hoochie daddy shorts and a tank top. I was not complaining. I had on the mustache, wig and was airbrushed and in my Speedo, and I was getting certain looks.

Does that mean you might grow a real mustache?

I sent a picture of me in the look to my dad, and he was like, “Oh, you look like me when I was younger.” I was like, “OK, were you some sort of antique porn star, Dad? I didn’t know about this past of yours!” But it is genetically possible.

Had you worked with Kristen Wiig?

I had not. Obviously, my best friend Bowen was an SNL mainstay. They were always very close, and he only had the best things to say about her. I briefly met her at an awards show. I got the offer to do this without needing to audition. When I showed up, they were so interested in my instincts for the character. Kristen was a huge part of that. You get to set and completely forget that she’s the icon that you’ve looked up to your entire life. Afterwards, she came and did an original character at the Culture Awards, which me and Bowen hosted. I welcome any time I get to spend with her in the future on or off set.

What was your favorite scene to shoot?

A three-way tie. The hot tub was fun — essentially me hanging out with Kristen Wiig and tanning all day. Spying on Kaia Gerber’s character — we did a lot of fun stuff that they had to cut because it was just too much. I improvised the dive roll. That was the peak hijinks day. And the funeral dressing up as Carol. I got a photo that I will treasure for my entire life of me as Carol with Carol. She was so gracious and kind and every bit the icon and true star.

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At the funeral, Bruce screams at Nancy Reagan, who is with Rock Hudson. Was that cathartic, considering how the Reagans first responded to the AIDS crisis?

Oh my God, of course. Some reality came through. It was cathartic. I was sort of using Bruce as a vessel for me and all the gay men who have something to say and a piece of their mind to give to Nancy Reagan and her husband. But one thing I loved about this [episode] was we’re showing a vibrant, fun gay community. Sometimes when we think back on our history, we focus on the trauma that was to come. During quiet moments, I was like, these are sexually active, extroverted gay men in 1970 — what would befall them? But we have an expansive history beyond that. A lot of [period pieces] that look at the gay experience and gay history focus on that time because it is such a turning point in our history and is unfortunately in the fabric of what it means to be a gay man and a queer person. I love that we were able to see men of this time having fun without that on their mind.

How do you think Bruce changed Maxine in their time together?

Oh, what a good question. When we meet Maxine at the beginning of Season 1, she’s about attaining status and proving she belongs in top tier society. She gets exposed to so many kinds of people and she sees the humanity and comes to realize that she contains more multitudes than she even thinks she does. It feels like maybe this is one of the first times Maxine would spend a lot of time with a queer person or an explicitly gay guy like Bruce. She has fun. She’s able to immediately connect. It’s a beautiful story about the fun and comradery that can happen between characters like Maxine and Bruce.

Bruce left pretty angry at Maxine. Would he come back?

If it were up to me, he would!

This streams on Christmas Eve. What will you be doing?

I’ll have just finished my tour to promote my album, “Have You Heard of Christmas?” and I will sit my ass down and get to watch this with my parents in Florida. It’ll be kind of full circle!

Palm Royale, Wednesdays, Apple TV