The Big C Producer Jenny Bicks on Keeping Cancer Light and Liam Neeson's Other Big Cameo

There may be a negative stigma associated with cancer but when it comes to Showtime's freshman series The Big C -- in which a superb Laura Linney stars as a suburban wife who reevaluates life after being diagnosed with cancer -- critics reviewed it positively and a record-breaking number of viewers secured the series a speedy second season pick-up. As the sure-to-be Emmy nominated series hurtled through its first season, executive producer/writer Jenny Bicks phoned Movieline recently to talk about writing cancer, avoiding the "best girlfriend" trap and a Weeds crossover episode.

The subject matter of your series puts you in a unique place planning out your show. Given that Cathy has cancer and -- to put it bluntly -- her own expiration date, do you feel like there is an expiration date on the The Big C?

Well it's always on our minds. But we feel like if, God willing, we were given six seasons, we would have plenty of time to explore what is happening with her across eighteen months maybe.

When the season started, we watched Cathy deal with her diagnosis by indulging in riskier behavior than she had experimented with in the past. Will that behavior get riskier this season as she checks items off her bucket list?

I think that you will quickly see that the show is not about her and the bucket list as much as it is about her deepening and exploring the relationships she has and developing new relationships. She is testing herself in a bigger way than what a bucket list would be. She doesn't have a list of 100 things she wants to do before she dies. She is reacting much more from her gut now. She definitely will be taking chances and will be taking some big risks that she would not have taken before.

How difficult is it to write a character who is faced with death?

Well, we have two things going for us with Cathy. We have Laura Linney who is so beloved and does so much with the material that even when she is doing very unlikeable things, I think you still root for her. And the cancer in some ways gives us more leeway to allow for her behavior but we also believe in telling the truth. If she is going to behave differently and is going to be doing things that are "unacceptable" then there have to be ramifications. She is going to discover quickly that not only is she going to change but the people around her are going to change too.

What has Laura Linney brought to this character that surprised you?

What Laura does so well is illuminate the fact that even in the midst of the comedy and the craziness of her situation, what this woman is going through is an underlying sense of her mortality. You see at every moment, Laura kind of playing both of these things. Even in her most joyous moments, there is this bittersweet element to it because Cathy is aware that she is dying. I think Laura also brings such an interesting element to Cathy. Cathy is not always likable and Laura plays her as not always likable, which i like. It's not as simple as "Let's root for her." Sometimes you look at Cathy and think "That's a really selfish bitch." And you should feel that way. Laura is really good at playing both sides.

Laura Linney and Gabourey Sidibe have great chemistry. How did Gabourey become involved in the project?

They read together and we honestly did not anticipate how they would work but we are really pleased with how it worked out. They both kind of goad each other in a great way. Gabby is such a delightful person to work with. They have a good time working together and I think it shows onscreen. They play two really disparate characters who are actually teaching each other how to navigate life.

Usually female characters on television shows have one best female friend but Cathy does not. Was that a conscious decision?

First of all, she is a teacher. So if she did have a best friend she would probably be a fellow teacher. And she's teaching summer school so most of the other teachers are off vacationing. We really wanted to go against this theory that every woman on TV has her best girlfriend to rely on. Because in a way, this woman has lost touch with who she is and what she wants and has kind of cut herself off from her old friendships. You will see Cynthia Nixon come back as her best friend from college who she has lost touch with. If we are lucky enough to have more seasons, she will have more friends that come back.

Speaking of Cynthia, you have some great actors guest starring on this first season like Brian Cox and Liam Neeson. Had you built characters long before casting each of them or did you have these big name actors before knowing what they would play?

Well, with Cynthia, we created the character first and then we were brainstorming on set and the name that came to me was Cynthia because I thought that's exactly who I would want to see. First of all, I would love to see Laura Linney and Cynthia Nixon play together because they are both such great actresses. But this also needed to be a woman who was kind of unhinged but in an understandable way. I knew that Cynthia could do that and also be very funny and very real.

How many episodes will Liam Neeson appear in?

He's just in one for now. Number 11, which is the one before the finale.

What can you say about his character?

He plays this kooky alternative beekeeper/doctor whose specialty is administering bee sting therapy. It's very possible but very rare that when people are stung by bees, their immune system kicks in to such an extent that it eradicates cancer, which sounds crazy but it's true. Actually there are a lot of people that practice bee sting therapy for things other than cancer like MS and we became kind of fascinated with that. So i wrote this kind of off-the-wall counter culture character for him to play. He's called the Bee Man.

Was there actual bee wrangling involved in filming this episode?

There was bee wrangling. There was a lot of bee wrangling. I learned a lot about bees that day. You have to keep them cold and wet to keep them from flying all over the place and stinging people. The bee wrangler brought bees with their stingers removed to act in the scene and there were bees with stingers. It was elaborate.

Where did you get the idea for Cathy to have a homeless environmentalist brother?

That came from the brain of Darlene Hunt who wrote the pilot. I know she was interested in writing someone for Cathy to have in her life who was outside the bounds of her world and who would challenge her to go back to who she used to be and what she really wants in her life. That became Sean. He is obviously very complicated and not just a freak. He lives off the land and dumpster dives -- I think he's got a complicated psychological past that we will see a little bit more of as the season goes on. I don't think, in general, people are homeless by choice and that is what we wanted to explore.

Finally, I read that Laura Linney has suggested a Weeds crossover. Is that a possibility?

That's something we joke about. Certainly, we know that pot is something that cancer victims reach for to alleviate certain symptoms. So it's not completely out of the realm of thinking. I haven't spoken to [Weeds executive producer] Jenji Kohan about it but it would be kind of funny.