Brunson has gone from inspiring memes to sparking meaningful conversation in teachers' lounges across the country.
Brunson told Insider in a January interview that her "Abbott Elementary" character, second-grade teacher Janine Teagues, "is at the forefront of telling this story," unlike Pam of "The Office." And whereas Pam's entire character in earlier seasons revolved around her first romantic interest, Roy, "Janine's whole life is teaching and growing up."
"Janine has more personal goals," Brunson added, pointing out that she purposely didn't introduce Janine's boyfriend, Tariq (Zack Fox), until the second episode of the series, in order to establish Janine's "authority" for the audience.
That said, Brunson is well aware that fans have latched onto the potential romance between Janine and one of her coworkers, Gregory Eddie (Tyler James Williams). But Gregory is no Jim Halpert — his "mission," as Brunson described it, is to be a principal.
Janine and Gregory "will both be going on totally different personal journeys than what we've seen in 'The Office,'" Brunson explained.
She points to her characters' attitude towards their work as the single biggest difference between her show and its NBC predecessor.
"Everyone cares about this job," the showrunner said of the characters on "Abbott Elementary." "Everyone is dedicated to doing a good job because if they don't, it means a child doesn't learn."
That's quite a heavy responsibility to put on characters in a mockumentary-style TV comedy, but it's at the core of why "Abbott Elementary" is sparking so much conversation right now. Teachers have hard jobs, but there's also plenty of humor in their lives.
Crafting that delicate balance of laughter and heart has cemented Brunson's ABC sitcom as one of the most talked-about new comedies in recent memory.
'Abbott Elementary' is wholly the brainchild of Brunson, but she almost wasn't the star of it
The mockumentary series of Brunson's dreams follows the lives of teachers and administrators at an inner-city elementary school in Philadelphia. Brunson's Janine is a delightful and sometimes overly-optimistic public school teacher, trying to do the best she can for her students, with a principal that is more concerned with social media fame than being an efficient helm of their ship.
While Brunson got her start, years ago, in front of a camera, it wasn't on a Hollywood set.
She launched herself into the spotlight almost unintentionally when a skit she wrote for an Instagram character she created, called "The Girl Who's Never Been On A Nice Date," went viral around 2013. Brunson's pitch-perfect humor had people actually convinced she was serious about being impressed that her date could buy Skittles, Reese's Pieces, pretzels, and popcorn at the movies.
That viral skit eventually led Brunson to a job at
WB said, 'You're crazy if you think we are buying the show without you in it.'
The multihyphenate has been deliberate about taking advantage of the wave of opportunity she created for herself since then, which has allowed her to quit the traditional nine-to-five job and write a book. The wave eventually dropped her off at Warner Bros. and ABC Studios, which ultimately opened the door to "Abbott Elementary." But her journey hasn't been entirely void of roadblocks.
Brunson told Insider she'd actually pitched another show to Warner Bros. a few years before creating "Abbott Elementary." Even though that series never made it to air, Brunson was grateful that the studio executives showed belief in her and told her in no uncertain terms that they wanted to work with her again because they enjoyed the collaborative experience.
"To me, that was priceless," Brunson said.
The support allowed Brunson to create a comical and critical look at an inner-city public school with teachers who are in the spotlight instead of relegated to background players.
Her vision of her show's characters was clear from the start, but Brunson confessed to Insider that viewers should thank Warner Bros. executives for one of the most beloved teachers at the school.
"'Abbott Elementary' was pitched without me in it," she said. "There was no me in the project. I just saw it as a pure show idea that I wanted to be made."
Brunson added that Janine was a staff member at Abbott, but described her as a "side character" originally, with Sheryl Lee Ralph's Barbara Howard, a strict but fair older kindergarten teacher whom Janine admires, meant to be the "driving force."
"And then WB said, 'You're crazy if you think we are buying the show without you in it,'" she recalled. "And I was like, 'Oh, okay. That's fair.' So, I had to put myself in it."
'Pizza Fridays' and classic TV tropes are at the heart of 'Abbott Elementary,' inspired by Brunson's own mother
T hough she's made headlines for naming the show after her beloved sixth-grade teacher, Joyce Abbott, it's primarily inspired by her mother, who taught at the school Brunson attended as a child.
The actress said she got a lot of inspiration from sitting in the car on the way to school, listening to her mother speak to the coworker she would pick up every morning.
Brunson would hear the women discuss workplace issues they were having, but she also heard them talk about the "small joys" of teaching, like when classes were having pizza parties on Fridays. All the talk of pizza on season one, episode nine, titled "Step Class," similarly portrays the importance of pizza in everyone's lives, especially teachers.
The actor watched her mom's coworkers become her "best friends throughout the years" as they shared their professional passions and their personal lives.
"I saw people who bonded over the shared experience of trying to help children," Brunson told Insider. "And I'm not sure that my mom and that teacher would've been friends otherwise, you know what I mean? But wanting to take care of kids and to teach bonds people in a very beautiful way."
Those deep and unexpected friendships are at the core of "Abbott Elementary." They make a wonderful base for a comedy because, as Brunson pointed out, "in what world would Melissa and Janine really be hanging out with each other, if not for at work?"
On top of being deeply personal and a true joy to watch, the show is making history for ABC.
In January, it became the first comedy at the network to quadruple its ratings in a month, per Deadline. And its impact goes beyond viewership. Insider's Catherine Henderson spoke to real teachers who said that Ms. Teagues and her "Abbott Elementary" coworkers are reminding them why they became educators, even as they are struggling with issues like burn-out, low budgets, outdated supplies, and low wages amidst the pandemic.
"Abbott Elementary" is making an impact in the
"Ava is also a part of the trope of bad bosses. It's fun to watch," Brunson said. "And I'm a big fan of TV tropes. Let me just say that."
Ava, expertly played by stand-up comedian-turned-actress Janelle James, is a breakout star of the series in part because many people can relate to having a frustrating boss. But she's also somewhat inexplicably easy to root for.
"What I do think is cool about Ava is, I think it's rare that we've gotten to see a Black woman perform like this and still be funny and still be lovable," she said. "And I've seen so many people say, 'I know so many people like Ava and I've never seen her on TV.' And that's the stuff that makes her different to me than what we've seen already."
And yes, Janine and Greg are stuck in a typical "will they or won't they" pattern — but they're both also growing. Brunson compared Janine to Peter Pan.
"One of the reasons that she's such a good teacher is because she's so childlike," she said. "She has to figure out how to keep that child innocence and also be an adult at the same time in order to get to the status of a Barbara, who she admires so much."
Brunson is committed to exploring topics that are authentic to inner-city schools. That's why it won't touch on a buzzy educational topic, Critical Race Theory.
Fans should brace themselves because just like kids graduate in real life, Ms. Teagues' students will eventually leave her classroom.
But Brunson already has a long-term plan for Abbott Elementary's staff members. One of the questions on her mind when planning the first season was: "In the event that this show would get nine seasons, where would I want these characters to be by then?"
It will be a long time before we know those answers, but "Abbott Elementary" has already tackled important issues that loom large for public-school teachers like under-funding, new technology, and gifted and talented programs.
Critical Race Theory — that is not what the teachers I know in public schools and inner-city schools…they're not talking about that shit.
One topic that Brunson is unsure she'll explore on the show is Critical Race Theory.
"Look, I'm going to be honest: Critical Race Theory — that is not what the teachers I know in public schools and inner-city schools…they're not talking about that shit," she said.
Brunson called the debate about whether or not Critical Race Theory should be taught in schools a "suburban" issue.
"The whole argument of it is just stupid," she continued. "In the schools with majority Black staff and kids, Black history is taught throughout the year. It's just a part of the makeup of the schools. If you look at the walls in Abbott, there's Black history everywhere."
However, Brunson is "very interested" in tackling an issue like charter schools, and the tension between them and public schooling — though she doesn't know how she'll approach it yet.
"It's like, why can't we give public schools more though? Why do they have to change into a charter school in order to be considered worthy?" she pondered.
Either way, Brunson said Janine will be our guide through it all. Her character has many layers within herself to discover before she can become the ideal second-grade teacher she wants to be, she teased.
"By the end of the show, Janine will be everything she imagined and more. She will be Barbara Howard, but it's not going to be overnight the way she thinks."
"Abbott Elementary" airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on ABC.