The team behind Masters of Sex made their first appearance at PaleyFest in Hollywood on Monday night to discuss the show’s unique storytelling.

Though production on the new episodes began earlier this month, the cast and crew stay tight-lipped about what to expect in the forthcoming sophomore season which premieres this July on Showtime. All we learned was that earlier today co-stars Beau Bridges and Allison Janney shot a scene that left the executive producers “weeping.”

Instead of season 2 teases, cast members Michael Sheen, Lizzy Caplan, Caitlin FitzGerald, Teddy Sears, Annaleigh Ashford, and executive producers Michelle Ashford and Sarah Timberman discussed joining the drama and shared the challenges they’ve faced so far.

Television versus Film

Lead stars Sheen and Caplan had interesting takes on the blurred lines between the quality of television and film in today’s world. “I was looking for work,” said Sheen when asked if he was looking for a television role when he joined Masters. “I first came to Los Angeles twelves years ago, and I think very much when I arrived here it was, ‘If you want to do film, don’t do TV,’ and now that has changed.”

He continued, “Just because you’ve done well in one beacon doesn’t mean you won’t do as well in the others,” he said before noting that this wasn’t always the case. “I was aware the best kind of storytelling was going on in TV,” which led him to joining Masters.

Meanwhile, Caplan shared her audition story in which she revealed she wasn’t at all confident she got the part. When it came to deciding to audition, the actress says, “on one level it was proving to myself I could do more than one thing, which I wasn’t convinced of honestly,” she said. By auditioning for a deep character like the one she portrays in Masters, “going after this job was proving something to myself.”

“I walked away from the audition thinking, that was the best audition I’ve ever done, and I’m never going to get the part.”

There’s a lot of story left to tell

Even though the season 1 finale ended on a major confession from Bill, executive producer Michelle Ashford put the fans at ease when she noted just how long the love triangle between Masters, Virginia, and Libby went on for in real life. “This three way marriage continued in real life for ten years,” she said. “They babysat each others children, they spent time with each other. It’s so compelling. It became a great challenge for us because we spent hours upon hours thinking, ‘what was each woman thinking?'”

This lengthy amount of time between the beginning and end of the real relationship will comfort viewers who already know who Masters ended up with.

To that end, there was a bit of talk about the network’s overseeing of the show. Timberman said they’ve been very supportive but recalled one time when Showtime called and said “There’s too much sex in this episode!” Her response? “Thank you.”

From left to right: Michelle Ashford, Michael Sheen, Lizzy Caplan, executive producer Sarah Timberman, Caitlin FitzGerald, Teddy Sears and Annaleigh Ashford

Give the credit to the women

Caplan took a moment to appreciate the fact that Masters is being run by women and pointed to Ashford and Timberman. “Having our show run by a woman, it’s a relationship that I don’t think would make sense if it were a man running the show. It’s impossible – this relationship for all three of [the characters] – the way you’re portraying it in the scripts is beyond realistic. These are real people,” referring to the characters and the fact that they were accurately adapted for the screen.

The actress also touched on how feedback from viewers has been so positive. “I did not anticipate the reaction to be so in line with what we were going for. Usually it takes a few years for people to say, ‘Oh, that WAS good. You were right about that.’ [Masters of Sex] doesn’t degrade women in the least. It’s so refreshing and I think it proves how smart audiences are getting.”

Sheen credits drawing from personal experiences to bring these stories to life. “The arc I did in the show which peaked in episode 5 when I cried in front of Virginia, that didn’t pre-exist when I first started telling the story. It came from us being honest to ourselves. I asked myself, what would I be most afraid of? We meld these characters with our experiences.”

The challenge of portraying women in the 50s

One of the biggest challenges on the show is not the sex, but walking, talking, and looking like you’re living in the 50s. Caplan explained how the show has improved her physical performance and the way she follows scripts.

“My posture has changed. I no longer say ‘like’ and ‘um’ – I say every word and I don’t pad the script. I remember when we were shooting the pilot, and I said ‘yeah,’ and [the showrunner] said ‘Stop it. Say ‘yes.” There are no cutting corners. Being word perfect in a script is something I’m not used to. It’s made me a much more disciplined actress.”

“Yeah, that shit doesn’t fly,” added Sheen.

To that end, FitzGerald discussed their wardrobes and how nuts it is to think that women dressed like they did every day – corsets and all. “Women would run everything in the world, but we’re too busy getting ready [for the day]. We’ve shot [the show] at 5 a.m. and it’s a solid 2 hours of setting the hair, and the make up, everything. And these women did it every day. And that’s CRAZY! Crazy!” she said to laughs from the audience. “They were also taking care of their house and children and cooking hot, well balanced meals. That’s a full time thing.”

There has been one other issue for the women. “Undergarments can change how you walk and talk,” Ashford explained. And evidently, “it was really hard to pee back then. You have to ask somebody to come in and help you when it’s time to go pee,” she said referring to her time on set. “I haven’t done that since I was 4. I need to call my grandma actually and ask her [for tips].”

Photo credit: Kevin Parry for Paley Center for Media