Editor’s Note: This interview contains minor spoilers for High Desert.Patricia Arquette has had an amazing film career, starring in films like True Romance and winning an Oscar for Boyhood, but her focus has been on TV lately — to incredible results. In the past few years alone, she’s racked up an Emmy win for Escape at Dannemora and nominations for other dramas The Act and Severance. Like Severance, Arquette’s new project, High Desert, is also on Apple TV, though she gets the chance to flex her comedic talent alongside Matt Dillon. Dillon’s resume is equally impressive, with highlights including an Oscar nomination for Crash and a range of instant classics ranging from slapstick comedies like There’s Something About Mary to crime thrillers The House That Jack Built.
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High Desert follows Peggy (Arquette), a former addict who tries to make a fresh start after her mother dies by becoming a private investigator. Dillon plays Peggy’s equally eccentric and rough-around-the-edges husband, Denny, who’s currently in prison. The two have a complicated and dysfunctional dynamic, to say the least, but there’s clearly love there — as there is throughout this fun, quirky series.

I chatted with Arquette and Dillon about why they love their characters, what inspirations they brought to their roles, and what their “stuck on an island” meals would be.

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COLLIDER: Something I really love about the show is how specific each character feels. I think my favorite thing about Peggy is her ability to figure anything out by looking at coffee in a trash can. I thought that was so amazing. Patricia, I’m curious if you have a favorite quirk or personality trait about Peggy.

PATRICIA ARQUETTE: You know what? They created such a beautiful character with Peggy. Our writers came in, and they just had such a funny sense of humor — that off-kilter kind of sense of humor, which I appreciate. She’s a real hustler. She loves beauty, she loves art, she loves opera, she loves Wagner, she loves good style and clothes. Her driving skills and her vehicle. She loves Denny, and she hates Denny.

Don’t we all? Speaking of Denny: Matt, I want to ask that question to you, too. Do you have a favorite part of him? I love his compassion for dogs, personally.

ARQUETTE: I know! I know.

MATT DILLION: Yeah, he’s a dog lover, and the character is so rich — the backstory. There’s so much that I really loved about doing this because he’s a man of contradictions, right? On one hand, he’s on this spiritual journey, and he really means it. He feels it, and he wants Peggy to come — he wants her to experience that with him. But it might involve a little breaking and entering. I think he is a guy who wants to be judged by his intentions, but he just can’t help himself. I think he’s also a manipulator, and I like that about him. He doesn’t mean it in a bad way. It’s coming from the right place. He’s got a good heart, and he absolutely loves Peggy. He adores her and believes they’re meant to be together. And it’s that simple. That’s something that’s very clear for Denny. In other aspects of his life, he’s sending mixed messages, but that’s pretty clear that he wants that.

I really love the relationship. Another relationship I really love is all of the female friendships in the show with Carol and all the women at Pioneertown — they’re some of my favorites. Can you talk a little bit about that element? Because we don’t get to see that in projects as much as I wish that we did.

ARQUETTE: I think, if there’s ever a second season, there’ll be more of that, too. But basically, all of these characters are displaced. They’re in this weird world. They’ve come to the desert, they’re a little bit fringy, and they’re all looking for family — all of them. And they’re all having these connections. Weruche [Opia’s character Carol] is having this relationship with her stepdaughter, and that’s scary. And is she gonna be able to be there and have this connection or not? And she’s really the only mother that this kid has had. We have our family dynamic — Bernadette, our mom, my sister, and my brother. And then the whole Pioneertown family.

And Peggy — she’s, like, an addict, so the drive is always to get your needs met and get what you need and what you want. At the same time, she’s got the same kind of beautiful heart Denny does. So she’s always collecting these broken birds — these wounded people. Like, “I want what I want. But, oh, you need that? Okay, come with me — we gotta get what I want, but come with me, and I’m gonna take care of you.” So she’s gathering all of these kinds of injured people and hustling them at the same time.

I love that dichotomy and her character in general. I read that Peggy was based on showrunner Nancy Fichman’s sister but that you also brought a lot of your own late sister Alexis to her, which I think is such a beautiful tribute. Can you talk a little bit about what that was like bringing real people into the mix to be inspired by?

ARQUETTE: Yeah, like my first boyfriend that I ever had OD’d and died. And, you know, he was a beautiful person. And Alexis wasn’t a drug addict, but she collected these people and took care of people, and she loved art. Apparently, [Nancy’s sister] Marjorie loved opera and all of these things and animals and was a hustler. And so just really coming from a place of love. I feel like the writers wrote all of these characters in this whole world from love. And I feel like, right now, we all need to laugh, and to me, it’s very funny material. That life force that’s joy is in the show.

Absolutely. And Matt, in terms of finding your character, did you bring anyone who you know in real life into the mix?

DILLON: Denny was so real. Very real for Nancy. I think Denny is based very much based on Marjorie’s boyfriends. Denny is very real to them, which was great. I’m different than Danny, obviously, but I know a lot of people like Danny. I mean, there’s a lot of Dennys out there, and there’s a lot of Peggys out there. Look, they’re messed up people, and I think the viewers will recognize that. It’s not glorifying their behavior in any way — it’s showing them for who they are. It doesn’t glorify, and it doesn’t pull any punches either. It’s true. It’s real. So as far as Denny goes, I didn’t really specifically base him off any one person — he’s sort of an amalgamation of real people coming from me but especially from the creators of the show. Danny was real, and it felt like that on the set — that these characters really exist. When we talk about them, we talk about them in real time.

Patricia, your daughter actually plays the younger version of Peggy, which I think is so cool. I’m curious what that process was like and if you sort of worked with her to make her feel consistent.

ARQUETTE: Well, she’s kind of seen me all over the place. We talked through the scenes, but I wasn’t there when she was shooting. But they added these little teeth things to her, too. [Laughs] She has straight teeth, but they added those little things. But I thought she did just a great, great, great job. I mean, she knows me so well. She knows how I move. She came to the set; she was watching things. She did a great job.

My last question is a bit of a fun one. I love the concept of “stuck on an island meals” that your characters discuss. Obviously, Peggy’s is chicken cacciatore. I’m wondering what yours are.

ARQUETTE: Well, my mind always goes to practicality — like, how hot is it on the island? Do I need to cool down? But if I don’t have to be practical on this island, then I’ll probably have a whole Thanksgiving dinner, and I’m gonna have some caviar with blinis and cream.

DILLON: Nice. Very nice.

ARQUETTE: Maybe some lemon gelato. Pineapple because it’s hot there.

DILLON: Sounds good. For me, I’m gonna keep it real simple. I think chicken and mashed potatoes.

ARQUETTE: Mm.

DILLON: But done roasted, you know? I think that’s what I would want. Is that kind of boring? I guess it’s kind of boring.

No, I love that. It’s comfort food. It’s what you need if you’re on a desert island.

ARQUETTE: Denny’s a meat and potatoes guy.

DILLON: Yeah. Or, you know, maybe some pasta. I have a weak spot for spaghetti.

High Desert is available to stream on Apple TV+.