Abbott Elementary's Janelle James doesn't ship Janine and Gregory
In an interview with The A.V. Club, James said the show's central will-they-won't-they romance was "boring"
Today might be all about love and romance, but Abbott Elementary’s Janelle James isn’t feeling any sparks between the central pair in her own show. In a recent interview with The A.V. Club, James weighed in on the extremely slow burn courtship between Janine (Quinta Brunson) and Gregory (Tyler James Williams), which she says fans have been “clamoring for.” (She’s right.) “Eventually, sure, but I think that’s boring,” James told The A.V. Club of her desire to watch the two characters seal the deal.
It’s not that James, who plays bumbling principal Ava, is a total hater; she just doesn’t see any reason for the show or the characters to get too far ahead of themselves. “I don’t think [romance] is as interesting as them having a friendship and finding themselves,” she continued. “Quinta always reminds people that these are two people in their twenties. They don’t necessarily have to have some deep relationship right now. This is a comedy, and I think she’s doing it in the correct way. We have a bunch of story to tell before we get to the sitcom wedding.”
James also took the opportunity to praise series creator Brunson for how she “subverted what you think will happen” in regard to the maybe-couple’s progression. (Spoiler alert for the next bit!) “I think she’s done it in a clever way to have them hook up and then become friends,” she said. “To explore friendship before the relationship is harder and more unexpected. And if it happens so fast, then what? Relationships aren’t interesting to anyone outside of it, so I think she’s done a smart thing.” (Also a good note for any real-life couple considering hitting “post” on their fifteenth Valentine’s story of the day.)
If it wasn’t already clear, James’ dislike of Janine and Gregory’s flirtationship also doesn’t have anything to do with either party involved. “Again, it’s a testament to Quinta and the writers that people are so intensely wanting them to be together. That’s major character writing and development that people think that they know these characters enough that they should be together,” she concluded. “So I think that that’s a good thing on our part, and it gives people something to hope for and to continue watching.” Maybe one day!
Abbott Elementary premieres weekly on Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET on ABC.