By the end of its first season, ‘The Good Place’ had transformed into an entirely different show. What started out as a charming comedy turned into something much darker when it was revealed that everything we saw and loved is actually in hell.
While this plot twist might have stunned even the most observant fans, it was also a secret from the cast itself. Creator Mike Schur wanted to make sure that almost everyone involved in the show could stay oblivious to the truth. And in doing so, he had to go to certain extraordinary lengths.
Mike Schur Kept The Bad Place A Secret From Everyone
The first-season finale of ‘The Good Place’ revealed that Eleanor, Chidi, Tahani and Jason were not in eternal paradise. In fact, they were in the complete opposite: fiery Hell. Here, Michael had been orchestrating an elaborate experiment to psychologically torture them. It was a revelation that completely redefined the show, but even the cast was kept in the dark. Near the end of filming season 1, creator Mike Schur finally revealed the secret. Hilariously, Kristen Bell even filmed everyone’s reaction to the surprise.
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Schur chose to let Bell and Ted Danson in on the truth because their roles were central to the story and he wanted them to understand the bigger picture. Of course, so did many writers since they needed to maintain consistency across the storylines. However, several directors, crew members and even many NBC executives remained unaware of the twist.
Schur had a rule of thumb while keeping this secret, which is something Chidi even tells Eleanor in the series: It’s okay to keep a secret as long as it doesn’t do anybody any harm and if revealing the secret can actually hurt the person.
The Many Struggles Schur Had To Face To Keep The Twist A Secret
Keeping such a major secret under wraps was certainly no easy task, particularly when Ted Danson was involved. While Kristen Bell took the responsibility of protecting the twist seriously, the same couldn’t be said for Danson.
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When he would talk about the show with other people, Danson would explain that he plays the architect of heaven. When people wouldn’t find the premise that surprising, Danson would proceed to hint at the twist, unable to resist from explaining the entire story.
Danson’s loose lips led to plenty of people knowing about the twist. Schur even joked that his claim that fewer than 20 people knew the truth came with one important exception: Danson and his social circle, which he estimated could include another thousand people.
Despite everything, the twist remained intact for the viewers and the cast. This is why the revelation was so much more iconic. Looking back, the genius of ‘The Good Place’ lies not just in the twist but in the way the entire story was carefully constructed. On a rewatch, we can see that clues were there from the beginning, hiding in plain sight. This only makes their entire effort so much more commendable.
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