Share and Follow
Highlights
- Jerry’s apartment underwent changes throughout Seinfeld, much like the characters, with different layouts, colors, and even an identity crisis in the apartment number.
- The small size of Jerry’s apartment posed a unique challenge for the actors, especially when all four main cast members were present. However, they worked with what they had to deliver quality comedy to viewers.
- Seinfeld revolutionized sitcoms by breaking the traditional formula, giving each character their own complex storyline, and creating a show about nothing. The limited space in Jerry’s apartment forced the actors to be creative in their performances.
Jerry’s apartment is as much a character in Seinfeld as Jerry, Elaine, George, and Kramer are. Much like the characters evolved (as slight as the evolving may have been) over the course of the show, the apartment did as well. Transforming from a one-bedroom to a studio and back again, to different couch colors, different paint colors for the kitchen, and even an apartment number that seemed to have an identity crisis, there were always changes, small or large, happening in Jerry’s apartment.
As iconic as Jerry’s apartment has become over the years, it caused a unique problem for the actors, especially if all four of the main cast members happened to be at Jerry’s place at the same time. It may not have been apparent to viewers who were more focused on the lines being delivered or the physical comedy that was being performed, but the issue would plague the cast for the run of Seinfeld.
Unfortunately, making the change would have caused more of a distraction to viewers than it was worth, so Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jason Alexander, and Michael Richards, who all love one another despite not seeing much of one another these days, worked with what they had to bring quality comedy to viewers week after week for the nine seasons that Seinfeld aired.
‘Seinfeld’ Achieved Something Unique, Even Without Its Set
Seinfeld and Larry David created Seinfeld, and are still making millions from it today. At the time, their goal was to create a sitcom that was different from anything that had been on network television before.
While they had to let some of their ideas as far as using just one camera to shoot an interior scene or not filming in front of a studio audience go in order to get Seinfeld to air, fans could immediately feel the difference between the 30-minute comedy show and others as soon as the pilot was aired.
Magic had been created and the way that sitcoms were written and shot had been forever changed.
Before Seinfeld, sitcoms all followed a very simple formula. The more formulaic the show, generally the more successful it was.
“Sitcoms, minus commercials, are typically 22 minutes long [with] a script of 25-40 pages,” actor Dan Richter explained. “Every sitcom episode has a main plot (story A), as well as one or two subplots (stories B and C).”
Seinfeld took the formula of the sitcom and turned it on its head. Instead of having two subplots, each character was given their own rich and complex storyline. People were able to get invested in the main characters on the show because they all had backstories, something that was not thought of before Seinfeld aired.
What else was interesting about Seinfeld was that the show was about nothing. As such, there was never any storyline to advance. Essentially, every episode could be seen as a stand-alone.
While there may have been references to previous characters, places, or events that might make the episode funnier to watch if viewers were in the know of what was being talked about, essentially, anyone could sit down and watch the show with little background knowledge of the characters and still find it entertaining.
This is quite a feat, given that a large portion of Seinfeld took place in Jerry’s apartment, which proved to be a challenging place for the actors to deliver their lines given the size of space they had to work.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus Revealed The Seinfeld Set Was A Big Challenge
While Jerry’s apartment underwent some changes from season to season, what could not be changed about the apartment over the series’ run was the size. The set for Jerry’s apartment was small.
Read Related Also: Patrick Mahomes’ Mom Loves How ‘Sweet’ Taylor Swift Was to Her Daughter
While other sitcoms, such as Friends, The Big Bang Theory, and How I Met Your Mother, had a large portion of their scenes happening in one of the characters’ apartments, there was always plenty of room for the cast to move around.
The actors did not have to work hard to find space to deliver their lines or do a bit of physical comedy. But even with limited space to work, Seinfeld brought something unique to the traditional comedy, which is why the show is still incredibly popular and making money in syndication today, years after it ended.
“What we were always challenged by was, as soon as you walk into the apartment, what are you supposed to do? ‘What business am I going to find to do in this apartment?’ You’re not just going to come in and sit on the couch every time,” Louis-Dreyfus explained on Hot Ones.
“You had the couch, you had the kitchen, and then you had the sweet spot, which I believe we called the ‘alleyway’ between the counter and the couch. That was where a lot of stuff happened.”
Louis-Dreyfus went on to say, “It felt like you could hold court there in a way, but you also had to figure out what you were going to do, which is why I often would go to the refrigerator and just find things or even just go and look in the refrigerator and not do anything, but we were limited, but we had to be creative about it.”
The lack of space to move around, especially if all four of the main cast members were in Jerry’s apartment made the actors think outside the box to make their presence on the set look natural.
However, the explanation also helped long-time fans piece together why a lot of the activities that happened in the apartment happened, recognizing that they were not as random as they appeared at first viewing.
For Fans, The Set Issue Explained A Lot Of The Characters’ Activities
As much as fans think they know about Seinfeld, there are always new bits of information that come trickling out every now and again that show there is still much about the sitcom that has yet to be revealed.
But with the revelation that the set for Jerry’s apartment was too small for the actors to work without thinking outside the box, (a fact that fans would come to realize if they visited any pop-up exhibits that had the set on display). After the explanation from Louis-Dreyfus about how the cast had to navigate the apartment set, the way the characters behaved while visiting Jerry became so much clearer.
“Now it makes sense why they would sometimes walk in and start taking Jerry’s food like they own it,” one YouTube user stated.
Another YouTube fan said, “I always liked how Elaine would get herself a snack when she came in! And then in the bizarro episode, the other Jerry was like ‘Ever heard of asking?'”
“This makes it more obvious what an amazing talent Michael Richards is,” a third user commented. “Just owned every scene and knew Jerry’s apartment better than anyone.”
Knowing what fans now do about the size of the set that was Jerry’s apartment, makes for a better appreciation of the level of talent the actors brought to the show. While it may have been difficult to work on, the vibe of Seinfeld may have been completely different were a larger set built.
Just another first that Seinfeld brought to the small screen that may be able to be imitated but will never be duplicated.
