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HBO Room 104 creator Mark Duplass says Dave Bautista's performance is beautiful

Duplass also received an Emmy Award nomination for his portrayal of Charles "Chip" Black in The Morning Show on Apple TV Plus.

Patrick Holland Managing Editor
Patrick Holland has been a phone reviewer for CNET since 2016. He is a former theater director who occasionally makes short films. Patrick has an eye for photography and a passion for everything mobile. He is a colorful raconteur who will guide you through the ever-changing, fast-paced world of phones, especially the iPhone and iOS. He used to co-host CNET's I'm So Obsessed podcast and interviewed guests like Jeff Goldblum, Alfre Woodard, Stephen Merchant, Sam Jay, Edgar Wright and Roy Wood Jr.
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  • Patrick's play The Cowboy is included in the Best American Short Plays 2011-12 anthology. He co-wrote and starred in the short film Baden Krunk that won the Best Wisconsin Short Film award at the Milwaukee Short Film Festival.
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Patrick Holland
2 min read
Scene from HBO's Room 104 with Mark Duplass

Mark Duplass (right) plays the fictional obscure underground '90s rocker Graham Husker in the season 4 premiere of Room 104 on HBO.

 Tyler Golden/HBO

When you hear the name Mark Duplass, the question isn't what does he do, but rather what hasn't he done? The actor, writer, director and producer, known for his roles in The League, The Mindy Project and the film Bombshell, received an Emmy Award nomination on Tuesday for his role as Charles "Chip" Black on the Apple TV Plus series The Morning Show. 

This story is part of I'm So Obsessed (subscribe here), our podcast featuring interviews with actors, artists, celebrities and creative types about their work, career and current obsessions.

It's not the first time Duplass has won acclaim. In 2018, he and his brother Jay won an Emmy Award for producing the hit Netflix documentary series Wild Wild Country. The brothers will continue working together on both scripted and unscripted podcast series they're creating exclusively for Spotify. And if that's not enough, the pair oversee the brilliant and inventive HBO anthology series Room 104, which is currently in its fourth and final season. 

Room 104 is a fascinating and bold look at storytelling and creativity. Each episode is a different story told in a different style featuring different actors. But all episodes take place in the exact same generic hotel room.

Duplass was a guest on the I'm So Obsessed podcast on CNET. He explained where the idea of setting an anthology series in a singular hotel room comes from.

"The core idea is that we're all a little bit different in hotel rooms and we all let this other side of ourselves out," he said. "Also, I just love a hotel. I don't know why. I have always loved a hotel room. It's so much fun for me to get out and experience something different. The new smells and the feelings of history in the room. And that ding on the wall and what could that ding have meant? My brain goes to that place."

In our interview, Duplass talks in-depth about Room 104, including starring in the fourth season premiere as a fictional obscure '90s rocker named Graham Husker. He also wrote and directed the episode. In addition, he discusses working with Dave Bautista on an episode called Avalanche. He describes Bautista as giving "one of the most beautiful performances we've had on the show."

Duplass opens up about his early days as an indie filmmaker, having his films labeled as Mumblecore, his time playing in the band Volcano, I'm Still Excited!! as well as his working relationship with his brother.

Listen to my entire conversation with Duplass on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. You can subscribe to I'm So Obsessed on your favorite podcast app. In each episode, I catch up with an artist, actor or creator to learn about work, career and current obsessions.