Younger’s Sutton Foster Says Liza and Josh’s Final Scene Was the ‘Perfect Bookend’: It ‘Felt Right’

Credit: Nicole Rivelli/2021

Younger’s Sutton Foster Says Liza and Josh’s Final Scene Was the ‘Perfect Bookend’: It ‘Felt Right’

Are Liza and Josh really endgame? That’s what Sutton Foster believed after she read Younger’s series finale script. “It was like a perfect bookend! They never told us anything. [Creator] Darren Star gave me a little bit of an idea of how it was going to end. He said, ‘Liza is going to be the boss.’ And I was like, ‘What?! How is this going to happen?’” Foster, 46, exclusively told Us Weekly while promoting her partnership for Banana Boat sunscreen. “And then romantically, I was like, ‘What’s going to happen?’ And he’s like, ‘Well, she’s gonna end up without anybody.’ And as I read the script, I realized the Charles scene in the bedroom. And I’m like, ‘Oh my God.’ It, like, broke my heart. And then when I got to the last scene, I was like, ‘Wait a minute!’ I thought he said she wasn't going to end up with anybody, but then here she is in the final scene with Josh.” In the final scene of season 7, exes Liza Miller and Josh (Nico Tortorella) bump into each other at the bar, which perfectly mirrored their initial meet cute in the pilot. Liza says, “Sorry, I didn’t see you there,” as Josh replies: “Really? Because you know what? I’ve been right here by your side. All along.” “I really liked it. I was so pleased with how it ended, and it felt very satisfying to me,” Foster told Us. “As I read it, I went, ‘Oh, there's no other way it could have ended.’ That's how I felt. For me, it just felt right,” she continued. “I’m sure there are a million fans out there that have a million opinions about all of it, but I felt that they gave Liza a proper end of this chapter for her story.” The Broadway vet wasted no time telling Tortorella, 32, about the ending. “I was shooting a scene that day with Nico. And I said to Nico, ‘It’s you and me at the end. It’s you and me!’” she recalled. “And of course, Nico's like, ‘Yes!’” Star, 59, however, had a different interpretation of Liza and Josh’s run-in. “When I talked to Darren, he said, ‘Well, it's not definitive. It's just, it's left open-ended.’ And I'm like, ‘Yeah, but you finished with Liza and Josh in the bar!’ But he's like, ’It’s up to the viewer.’ And I'm like, ‘But I think you made her — now she's going to be with Josh!’” she told Us. “I thought for me, who knows what will happen with Liza and Josh. But I just thought it was beautiful because the whole show, Josh was the catapult. He was, like, what set her on this whole journey. And so to have him be at the end, I thought it was incredible symmetry, but really a beautiful end. I don't know, we'll have to wait for the movie or the reunion special.” The unexpected exchange was a shock to many — especially because the majority of the season focused on Liza and Charles’ (Peter Hermann) relationship. The pair broke up when Liza didn’t want to get married, reconciled late in the season, but then ultimately split for good. “I do think that they really love each other. That's what's so tricky. But I think ultimately Liza’s lie [about her age] had consequences. And so, I think in the end it was her lie. And I think Charles’ character and who he is and what he stands for ... It's like they knew on a very mature level that it would always be this thing. That he would never fully be able to trust her,” Foster explained. “I don’t know what to say to the [fans],” she added. “But what I do love about that final scene with Charles and Liza, where he gives her the company and he goes off to pursue his dream that he had. There's something really, in a way, they do get a happy ending. I know it's not romantic, but they're not at war or hate each other. They end in a very amicable way. They sort of let each other go, yet Liza has given Charles this gift because she signed him up for the [exclusive artist retreat] Yaddo. She has given him that gift and he has given her the gift of the control of the company [Empirical]. There's something really beautiful to me. I find their end incredible. I think it's generous and it wouldn't have been satisfying, I don't think, if they had been walking down the aisle together. It felt like the right end for me. I thought it was beautiful. But I know people are going to be mad!” Although Liza and Charles didn’t work out, the actors did film their final scene together in the “Older” episode before wrapping on set. “It was actually the scene after the Scamalot performance and it's Charles and I on the street. I say, ‘I’m going to go home. I'm kind of rattled by the performance.’ And then we say I love you. And then he puts me in a taxi and the cab drives away. And so that was the last scene we shot. And it was like four in the morning, and it was freezing. And we were outside the Bowery ballroom in downtown Manhattan. Everyone had already wrapped. Nico had wrapped and Debi [Mazar] and Hilary [Duff]. I had already said goodbye. I had already been crying for, like, two weeks,” Foster revealed. “But it was Peter and I at the end, which I thought was really beautiful. That we were able to have that. We don't end up together on the show, but we were the last ones standing for the show. It was so bittersweet.” The Bunheads alum felt “so lucky to be a part of something that was really special with an amazing group of people” during her years as Liza. “Seven years of your life. I’ll miss it. I think there's a part of me that still thinks we're all going to get back together again next year and film another season,” she told Us. “I don't know if I’ve properly said goodbye to Liza. I think I need to light a candle for her and wish her well. I don’t know if I’ve actually said goodbye to her. I think I still need to do that.” Following Younger, Foster has since temporarily moved to London with her husband, Ted Griffin, and their 4-year-old daughter, Emily, as she stars in the London West End production of Anything Goes. She’s also teamed with Banana Boat sunscreen in launching the brand’s new biking challenge, Pedal For Our Planet. [embed]https://www.instagram.com/p/CQgPqWpl5Ec/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link[/embed] “Banana Boat has teamed with the Strava app and on their app there is the Pedal For Our Planet Challenge. And for every 10 miles that you log cycling, Banana Boat will donate $10 for the Captain Planet Foundation,” Foster told Us. “Banana Boat is my go-to sunscreen. I literally have, like, five cans of all the different types." Banana Boat will donate up to $20,000 for the cause. Riders can download the Strava app, set up a profile and look for the Banana Boat’s Pedal for Our Planet cycling page to join. The challenge will run for two weeks from June 24 through July 7. “It's just a great way for you to do something active with your family and also raise awareness and maybe help save the planet a little bit,” Foster noted. Scroll through for more scoop from Foster on Younger’s series end below.

Credit: Nicole Rivelli/2021

Younger’s Sutton Foster Says Liza and Josh’s Final Scene Was the ‘Perfect Bookend’: It ‘Felt Right’

Are Liza and Josh really endgame? That’s what Sutton Foster believed after she read Younger’s series finale script. “It was like a perfect bookend! They never told us anything. [Creator] Darren Star gave me a little bit of an idea of how it was going to end. He said, ‘Liza is going to be the boss.’ And I was like, ‘What?! How is this going to happen?’” Foster, 46, exclusively told Us Weekly while promoting her partnership for Banana Boat sunscreen. “And then romantically, I was like, ‘What’s going to happen?’ And he’s like, ‘Well, she’s gonna end up without anybody.’ And as I read the script, I realized the Charles scene in the bedroom. And I’m like, ‘Oh my God.’ It, like, broke my heart. And then when I got to the last scene, I was like, ‘Wait a minute!’ I thought he said she wasn't going to end up with anybody, but then here she is in the final scene with Josh.” In the final scene of season 7, exes Liza Miller and Josh (Nico Tortorella) bump into each other at the bar, which perfectly mirrored their initial meet cute in the pilot. Liza says, “Sorry, I didn’t see you there,” as Josh replies: “Really? Because you know what? I’ve been right here by your side. All along.” “I really liked it. I was so pleased with how it ended, and it felt very satisfying to me,” Foster told Us. “As I read it, I went, ‘Oh, there's no other way it could have ended.’ That's how I felt. For me, it just felt right,” she continued. “I’m sure there are a million fans out there that have a million opinions about all of it, but I felt that they gave Liza a proper end of this chapter for her story.” The Broadway vet wasted no time telling Tortorella, 32, about the ending. “I was shooting a scene that day with Nico. And I said to Nico, ‘It’s you and me at the end. It’s you and me!’” she recalled. “And of course, Nico's like, ‘Yes!’” Star, 59, however, had a different interpretation of Liza and Josh’s run-in. “When I talked to Darren, he said, ‘Well, it's not definitive. It's just, it's left open-ended.’ And I'm like, ‘Yeah, but you finished with Liza and Josh in the bar!’ But he's like, ’It’s up to the viewer.’ And I'm like, ‘But I think you made her — now she's going to be with Josh!’” she told Us. “I thought for me, who knows what will happen with Liza and Josh. But I just thought it was beautiful because the whole show, Josh was the catapult. He was, like, what set her on this whole journey. And so to have him be at the end, I thought it was incredible symmetry, but really a beautiful end. I don't know, we'll have to wait for the movie or the reunion special.” The unexpected exchange was a shock to many — especially because the majority of the season focused on Liza and Charles’ (Peter Hermann) relationship. The pair broke up when Liza didn’t want to get married, reconciled late in the season, but then ultimately split for good. “I do think that they really love each other. That's what's so tricky. But I think ultimately Liza’s lie [about her age] had consequences. And so, I think in the end it was her lie. And I think Charles’ character and who he is and what he stands for ... It's like they knew on a very mature level that it would always be this thing. That he would never fully be able to trust her,” Foster explained. “I don’t know what to say to the [fans],” she added. “But what I do love about that final scene with Charles and Liza, where he gives her the company and he goes off to pursue his dream that he had. There's something really, in a way, they do get a happy ending. I know it's not romantic, but they're not at war or hate each other. They end in a very amicable way. They sort of let each other go, yet Liza has given Charles this gift because she signed him up for the [exclusive artist retreat] Yaddo. She has given him that gift and he has given her the gift of the control of the company [Empirical]. There's something really beautiful to me. I find their end incredible. I think it's generous and it wouldn't have been satisfying, I don't think, if they had been walking down the aisle together. It felt like the right end for me. I thought it was beautiful. But I know people are going to be mad!” Although Liza and Charles didn’t work out, the actors did film their final scene together in the “Older” episode before wrapping on set. “It was actually the scene after the Scamalot performance and it's Charles and I on the street. I say, ‘I’m going to go home. I'm kind of rattled by the performance.’ And then we say I love you. And then he puts me in a taxi and the cab drives away. And so that was the last scene we shot. And it was like four in the morning, and it was freezing. And we were outside the Bowery ballroom in downtown Manhattan. Everyone had already wrapped. Nico had wrapped and Debi [Mazar] and Hilary [Duff]. I had already said goodbye. I had already been crying for, like, two weeks,” Foster revealed. “But it was Peter and I at the end, which I thought was really beautiful. That we were able to have that. We don't end up together on the show, but we were the last ones standing for the show. It was so bittersweet.” The Bunheads alum felt “so lucky to be a part of something that was really special with an amazing group of people” during her years as Liza. “Seven years of your life. I’ll miss it. I think there's a part of me that still thinks we're all going to get back together again next year and film another season,” she told Us. “I don't know if I’ve properly said goodbye to Liza. I think I need to light a candle for her and wish her well. I don’t know if I’ve actually said goodbye to her. I think I still need to do that.” Following Younger, Foster has since temporarily moved to London with her husband, Ted Griffin, and their 4-year-old daughter, Emily, as she stars in the London West End production of Anything Goes. She’s also teamed with Banana Boat sunscreen in launching the brand’s new biking challenge, Pedal For Our Planet. [embed]https://www.instagram.com/p/CQgPqWpl5Ec/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link[/embed] “Banana Boat has teamed with the Strava app and on their app there is the Pedal For Our Planet Challenge. And for every 10 miles that you log cycling, Banana Boat will donate $10 for the Captain Planet Foundation,” Foster told Us. “Banana Boat is my go-to sunscreen. I literally have, like, five cans of all the different types." Banana Boat will donate up to $20,000 for the cause. Riders can download the Strava app, set up a profile and look for the Banana Boat’s Pedal for Our Planet cycling page to join. The challenge will run for two weeks from June 24 through July 7. “It's just a great way for you to do something active with your family and also raise awareness and maybe help save the planet a little bit,” Foster noted. Scroll through for more scoop from Foster on Younger’s series end below.

Credit: Nicole Rivelli/2021

Us: What are your thoughts on Nico teasing that Josh should get a spinoff?

SF: Of course! And it's just called Josh because Josh still doesn't have a last name. He never had a last name on the entire show and even on his cards for his [tattoo] business card, it just says “Josh.” They never gave him a last name. Oh yeah. I mean, I would watch that show. Of course.

Credit: Nicole Rivelli/2021

Us: What did you take from set?

SF: I almost stole — stole! That sounds terrible. There was this bizarre, and it lasted for seven seasons, this bizarre little candy tray. And it was like these little red candies and it was for seven seasons. Somehow it was a prop that lasted for seven seasons. And Hilary and I would laugh at it because it was these little hard candies. By the seventh season, the candies were no longer hard. They were, like, squishy soft and oozing. It was like this random little flat bowl, these red disgusting candies. It was in a different office every season. They always kept showing up. They would be in Hilary's office, and then it would be in Charles’ office. They were everywhere. So I almost swiped those just so I could mail them one day to Hilary in about five years. But I was allowed to take Liza’s white coat that she wears in the finale. I put it on and I was like, ‘This is the perfect coat! I must have it.’ Liza is just borrowing it. This is Sutton’s coat. So they let me have it.

Credit: Paramount+

Us: You just wrapped the show. You’ve been on Broadway for years, and are in the upcoming The Music Man. Would you consider jumping back into a TV series again?

SF: I would absolutely love to do television again. I feel like I hit the jackpot with Younger. And if it's the right character, the right creator, the right cast. If all of the pieces were there. I'll be chasing that forever. May I be so lucky to be able to work in television again. It would be a dream.

Credit:

Us: How would you like 'Younger' to be remembered?

SF: The thing I'm most proud about the show, honestly, that it was hopelessly optimistic and it was really about multi-generational relationships. Yes, it started off as this premise, you know, lying about your age. But I really think it was about all these women of different generations who loved and supported one another. And I think that was really nice and important to see on TV. Women in their twenties, thirties, forties, fifties. And we all kind of grew up together too. It's funny. I think that about Liza too. I was like, we both grew up. I hope that's what people think when they look at Younger. I feel like I learned a lot on that show even about my own ideas about even age. All the lines just got blurred. They just kind of went away. I think that was a real gift that the show gave to me is that I don't have any of these preconceived notions. Age doesn't factor and I think that was a really important conversation that the show dealt with obviously. One that I think maybe got people thinking.

Credit: Nicole Rivelli/2021

Us: Would you want to reprise the role of Liza down the road?

SF: Are you kidding? Of course! I would jump at the chance. I would jump at it. It was so awesome. It was so special. It really was, it was like the best job anyone could ever ask for. It really was. I feel like everybody agreed. It was just joyful. We had so much fun. We worked crazy hours. We worked through a pandemic and we all managed to smile, keep smiling behind our mask. There was just a lot of trust and respect and love on that set. I can't speak for everybody, meaning I don't want to speak for anyone else, but I can say for myself personally, that I would jump at the chance to reunite with everybody.