In Big Mistakes, there’s a moving scene in which Dan Levy’s character, Nicky, is in bed with his partner, Tareq (Jacob Gutierrez). Nicky is a Christian pastor — and Tareq asks him why people would cite God in condemning a love like theirs.
“God is perfect — but the people who interpret him are not,” Nicky responds.
It’s a layered testament from this gay man of faith, who is not open about his relationship with his congregation or his family. Imperfection — to act human, versus divine — is a through line of the series. His character has found himself in another closet of sorts due to a sin. His sister, Morgan (Taylor Ortega), stole a necklace to appease an overbearing mom, Linda (Laurie Metcalf), as her own mother lay on her deathbed. The theft sets off a chain of events that ropes the siblings into a world of organized crime in their New Jersey suburb.
Levy is the co-creator of Big Mistakes, along with Rachel Sennott (I Love LA, Bottoms) — he’s also the showrunner, star, and executive producer. The Netflix series marks his return to TV comedy following Schitt’s Creek, a production he created with his dad, Eugene Levy. That show also focused on a family in flux — it lost its wealth, whereas in Big Mistakes, the siblings lose a measure of their free will due to blackmail. Tragedy occurs, and comedy ensues.
Schitt’s Creek was groundbreaking for many reasons, perhaps most notably for the love story between Levy’s character, David, and Patrick (Noah Brewer). Queer themes connect these two projects — as well as Levy’s 2023 Netflix film Good Grief, about a man who loses his husband but learns to treasure his love of found family. But don’t interpret those themes as any form of gay agenda.
TAYLOR in DOLCE & GABBANA Full Look; SUSANA VEGA Earrings / DAN in SAINT LAURENT Full LookSam Waxman
“I was just telling stories of lives that I knew or people that I knew — and in doing that, I think that is representation,” says Levy. “I’m always really kind of hyper-aware when there’s a heavy hand associated with representing something. It feels less authentic to me.”
There’s a caveat, though. Nicky’s family — especially Linda — criticizes him for many reasons. But his gay identity is not among the grievances. “What’s important is showing parental acceptance, because I think it starts in the home with queer people…. That is the one form of activism I think that I actively put into something — if you can show people accepting their kids, it will reverberate,” Levy says.
Taylor Ortega, through her character, Morgan, also pushes against heteronormativity in Big Mistakes. An engagement ring from her boyfriend, Max (Jack Innanen), boomerangs several times into her life, a patriarchal knock at the door that her “messy” character is not enthused to hear. “Even for straight women…their partnerships are not really what they would choose for themselves, and a lot of that just has to do with society,” says Ortega.
“She sees the ring, and it’s sort of like…this is a really nice version of [that] life. Am I crazy for not wanting this? Am I just the most difficult person alive? I think that that’s a really common feeling too. I felt that 100 million times,” Ortega observes.
Ultimately, Morgan, who teaches at an elementary school but seems far more enticed by the excitements of a life of crime, is seeking a path in which “her brain is being used to its full capacity,” says Ortega.
Levy relied on co-creator and executive producer Rachel Sennott to help round out the character of Morgan and the male-female dynamic of that relationship. The pair first connected as actors cast on the widely panned 2023 HBO drama The Idol, which starred Lily-Rose Depp as a pop star seduced by a self-help guru played by the Weeknd.
DAN in SAINT LAURENT Full LookSam Waxman
“I don’t like writing by myself,” says Levy. “I wanted to make sure there was a female perspective there to write the character of Morgan with me that spoke to the minutiae, the tissue, the idiosyncrasies that I, as a man, wouldn’t know about.”
Levy, who says Big Mistakes has been about six years in the making (he signed a multiyear TV and film deal with Netflix in 2021 following the stunning success of Schitt’s Creek on that platform; the Canadian show originally aired 2015 to 2020 on CBC Television), also admires Sennott for her creative synergy. He initially contacted her with the premise, which was inspired by a viral social media post of a man who had dug himself into a hole he couldn’t escape from and died, a manifestation of Levy’s worst nightmare. “I have an unfounded phobia of being trapped…. Being blackmailed by a criminal organization where you are then tethered to them, I guess forever, is terrifying to me,” he says.
And when he and Sennott got together in person, the creative sparks flew. “We wrote the entire pilot in a day. I’ve never done that before in my entire career,” he marvels.
As a comedian, Ortega had met Sennott previously through the New York City comedy scene. “You’d be shocked how many girls come out of those basements…how many successful girls,” she quips.
Big Mistakes marks Ortega’s biggest acting role to date — other credits include Succession, Welcome to Flatch, and Kim Possible. She felt the weight of it. “I’ve never been in this position before…being an actor who’s there every single day is a different responsibility,” she notes.
Ortega handled the pressure well. There’s an authentic on-screen sibling dynamic between Levy and Ortega, though the pair hadn’t met before Ortega’s audition. She had the misfortune of being the first to try out for the role, which drew out the process.
“Taylor was the very first person we saw — and one of the last we saw,” says Levy, adding, “You never want to be the first person in an audition room…we have 900 other people to see…. When she submitted the second tape…[it was like], ‘This is the person we needed.’” That second tape was submitted at the behest of Ortega’s management as well as the New Jersey native’s strong resonance with Morgan; she knew it was a part she was born to play.
TAYLOR in KIDSUPER Shirt, Trousers, and Coat; JIMMY CHOO Shoes; JIMMY FAIRLY Sunglasses / DAN in MOSCHINO Denim Blazer, Reversed Denim Trouser, Love Leather Belt; HENRIK VIBSKOV ShoesSam Waxman
Levy shares nothing but praise for Ortega, whose abilities allowed him to expand the part of Morgan from his initial conception. “Taylor came on set with such an ease…and understanding of her character and humor and lightness and buoyancy and intellect, and it was like, that’s the good stuff,” says Levy. His resulting note to the writers’ room? “Boost it, boost it, boost it.”
Levy and Ortega portray family; in Big Mistakes, they also have a perfectionist sister played by Abby Quinn, a father who is a former police chief in Joe Barbara, and a potential in-law in Elizabeth Perkins. But they cite “familial camaraderie” as a key element in the show’s behind-the-scenes dynamic, a “transformative” blessing that Levy also experienced with Schitt’s Creek.
“If you don’t like [the people you hire]…that likely is not going to go away. In fact, it will be exacerbated over time,” Levy notes. “I never thought I would be able to re-create that dynamic again,” he adds.
The crew’s enthusiasm for the project was also a bellwether for Levy about Big Mistakes. “That’s how I knew we were onto something good,” he observes. “The crew [members would say]…‘This is one of the best projects I’ve ever worked on…. I’ll clear my schedule.’ Those are things you don’t often hear.”
In his own character, Levy enjoyed exploring the frisson of Nicky as a gay man and religious leader. “There was something fascinating about the nonpracticing homosexuality that exists in areas of leadership within religion. Just the term ‘nonpracticing’ I thought was both devastating and funny,” Levy says.
“He made the choice to explore love with his partner…and essentially break the rules of his church — but at the expense of what he believes is doing the right thing,” he adds.
To help flesh out this dynamic, Big Mistakes hired a gay minister as a consultant, for “guiding us down a path of what is plausible,” Levy explains. During one session, the writers’ room was “tiptoeing” around topics of decorum when the minister “disarmed us almost instantly” with his revelations, Levy recalls.
“His relationship with his friends was very different than his relationship with his congregation,” says Levy. The reverend shared that the man of God role can “slip” in different company, an insight that was key in having “more fun” with Nicky’s character (and comedic moments), Levy says.
TAYLOR in VEEJAY FLORESCA Dress; JIMMY CHOO Shoes; SUSANA VEGA EarringsSam Waxman
Levy compared the show’s portrayal of religion to Schitt’s Creek’s loving portrait of people who live in a small town. “It was really important that religion never be the butt of the joke,” he says.
The part, which includes escapes and fight scenes, also gave Levy more freedom to play. “As a gay actor, I don’t get a ton of action movie roles sent my way.… So if I’m going to write something for myself, let’s do things that I would never normally get the opportunity to do, like stunt work and high-octane, high-anxiety, high-pressure situations.”
While Big Mistakes has overt queer themes — in addition to Nicky’s storyline, it’s suggested that the grandmother had a secret same-sex lover before she passed — Levy also acknowledges that characters forced to live double lives and keep secrets about illegal doings is also a potent metaphor for the closet. Nicky “just keeps finding himself in all of these different closets when all he wants to do is stay out of it,” he says.
Ortega, who is queer, likewise drew a parallel. “A really common form of queer thought that a lot of people develop really young is having to double-think constantly. You’re accepting a truth of like, ‘And then eventually, I’ll live the same normal way everyone else is living, where I’m not double-thinking and I’m not doing these laps,’” she shares.
Levy, who had 80 episodes of Schitt’s Creek under his belt before embarking on Big Mistakes, brought a lot of TV experience to the table. “I actually feel like the first season of this show is a better first season than the first season of Schitt’s,” he attests. A key lesson from Schitt’s Creek? “Spend most of your time on character development…and that will allow you to tell the stories beyond a single season.”
“Schitt’s Creek was a warm hug, and this is a Six Flags, strap-yourself-in-and-go-for-a-ride type of show,” he differentiates.
Nicky and Morgan’s foray into crime overlaps with Linda’s launch of a mayoral campaign, a storyline that injects some real-world politics into the show, as she runs against an avatar for toxic masculinity. Levy downplays the Trumpian associations. “It was more actually about the politics of how we operate as members of a family tree,” he says, noting how Linda is only able to pursue politics after the death of her mother.
TAYLOR in KIDSUPER Shirt, Trousers, and Coat; JIMMY CHOO Shoes; JIMMY FAIRLY Sunglasses / DAN in MOSCHINO Denim Blazer, Reversed Denim Trouser, Love Leather Belt; HENRIK VIBSKOV ShoesSam Waxman
“This show is really at its core an examination of ancestry and how we as people are the by-products of our parents and our parents’ parents…. All we try to do is find ourselves within the inherited DNA of this long lineage of family members who have all somehow fucked up the DNA down the line,” he says.
However, Big Mistakes does highlight some limitations of democracy. “There’s a very faint class realization where it’s like…wealth and class do dictate who gets to participate in politics,” Ortega observes.
And then there’s Metcalf, who bowled over her castmates as the family’s matriarch. “She’s everything you want her to be, but in a much more low-key sort of way,” Levy says of the Lady Bird legend. “And then on-screen, it’s a level of brilliance that just lifts everyone around her.”
“I do feel like I’m watching a play,” Ortega shares of experiencing her scenes with Metcalf. “And I have to be like, You’re reacting to her, not watching her, even though it’s really fun to watch her.”
Levy shares a memory of Metcalf recording post-production dialogue of her scenes and laughing at the comedy on display; it was a major moment of validation. “When she laughs at herself…you’ve done something right,” he says.
Levy has excelled at exploring the relationship between a mother and a gay son before, alongside Catherine O’Hara, who tragically died earlier this year. O’Hara played Moira Rose, the mother of Levy’s character, David, on Schitt’s Creek. Like Linda, she accepted her child’s gay identity unconditionally, and she even officiated his wedding in an unforgettable papal look. O’Hara —a longtime collaborator of Levy’s dad, Eugene — had been a force throughout Levy’s life, and he fondly recalls “her brilliance” as an actor and human in the wake of her passing.
“She was the greatest, she was the funniest,” Levy reflects. “I feel very, very honored to have gotten to work with her in such a joyful chapter of her life and have the great privilege to help shape and write Moira Rose, which I think really opened her up to a whole new audience and really allowed people to see the scope of her brilliance and the singularity of her brilliance and how innovative she was as an actor and as a brain on this planet.”
“She will be dearly missed, and I will think of her every day,” Levy says.
Big Mistakes premieres April 9 on Netflix.
This article is part of Out’s Mar-Apr 2026 print issue, which hits newsstands March 24. Support queer media and subscribe — or download the issue through Apple News+, Zinio, Nook, or PressReader.
talent DAN LEVY @instadanjlevy TAYLOR ORTEGA @taylortega
photographer SAM WAXMAN @wamsaxman
photo assistant, digital tech AUSTIN RUFFER @austinyourface
creative director MIKEY LOMBARDO @djmikeypop
stylist SUTHEE JONASSON @sutheeritt
stylist assistants TIANYUN LAN @tianyun___ AUDRIANA RUIZ @audrianaruizstyling
tailor ANASTASIYA YATSUK @anastasiyayatsuk
dan’s grooming LAILA HAYANI @lailalhayani
dan’s manicurist SONYA MEESH @sonyameesh
taylor’s makeup SANDY NICHA @sandynichamakeup
taylor’s hair CHRISTIAAN VAN BREMEN @christiaan.vanbremen
taylor’s manicurist KHANYA DITH @khanyadith
videographer STUART SOX @sox_andthecity
location PEOPLE’S BAR @peoplesny peoplesny.com
Watch the Big Mistakes trailer
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