Adapting a beloved novel comes with expectations, but Rufi Thorpe’s “Margo’s Got Money Troubles” presents a particularly unusual challenge. Its story moves between single motherhood, financial desperation, sex work, professional wrestling and the indignities of trying to survive when adulthood arrives considerably faster than expected. In the wrong hands, any one of those elements could overwhelm the humanity at the center of the story.
Apple TV’s adaptation, created by David E. Kelley with Dearbhla Walsh directing, instead finds something unexpectedly warm within the chaos. Elle Fanning stars as Margo, a young woman whose life is upended after an affair with her college professor leaves her pregnant. With a new baby, mounting bills and few conventional options for supporting herself, Margo eventually turns to OnlyFans, applying lessons from her estranged father Jinx (Nick Offerman), a former professional wrestler, to the decidedly different business of building an online persona.
The series surrounds Fanning with an impressive ensemble that includes Michelle Pfeiffer as Margo’s mother, Shyanne, along with Offerman, Nicole Kidman, Greg Kinnear, Thaddea Graham and Michael Angarano. But what could easily have become either an overly broad comedy or a bleak portrait of economic desperation instead treats Margo and the people around her with remarkable empathy. The humor can be raunchy and occasionally absurd, but Margo herself is rarely the punchline.
Creating that balance required an equally carefully constructed visual identity. For Emmy-nominated cinematographer Tari Segal, one of the guiding principles was finding a way to place viewers inside Margo’s experience rather than simply observing or judging her choices. Working with Walsh and the creative team, Segal used everything from lenses and lighting to camera movement and music to reflect Margo’s constantly shifting emotional state.
“The thing about the book is that you’re walking this line between a reality that could be quite depressing and dark, while also embracing the colorfulness of the characters,” Segal tells Awards Focus. “We never wanted you to simply feel bad for her because of the circumstances she was under. We tried to take that colorfulness from the book and bring it to life.”
That philosophy becomes visible throughout the series. When Margo or the other characters retreat into themselves, the lighting can become cooler, the environments blander and the camera more restrained. As Margo begins to regain confidence, color returns and the camera itself seems to come alive. Segal and the creative team even established a distinction between moments when audiences are merely watching Margo and those when they are experiencing the world alongside her. “When you’re watching her make bad decisions or fall apart, the camera is much more static,” Segal explains. “But when you’re really with her, it becomes more handheld, more lyrical, more Steadicam.”
Perhaps nowhere is that tonal balancing act more evident than Episode 5, which sends Margo and the women in her life to Las Vegas. An initially playful bachelorette celebration gives way to one of the series’ most vulnerable conversations, all while the characters remain dressed in the ridiculous accessories of the party they just left. Rather than abandoning those visual jokes when the story becomes serious, Segal found that the contradiction made the emotion feel even more truthful. The episode also gave her an opportunity to capture some of the series’ most spontaneous images, including a shot of Margo overlooking Las Vegas from the High Roller that the production had only one rotation to capture.
In our conversation, Segal discusses developing the series’ visual language, responding to Fanning and Pfeiffer’s performances in real time, photographing nudity without sensationalizing it, pulling off the Las Vegas sequences with little room for error and the unexpected challenge of putting Nicole Kidman inside a professional wrestling ring.
Awards Focus: First of all, congratulations on the nomination. The series balances so many things: comedy, drama and sexuality. What visual tone did you, Dearbhla and the rest of the team set out to establish from day one?
Tari Segal: I think it’s always challenging to put yourself in a character’s perspective and really join them on their ride, trying to find the right language to do that. One of the key things we were trying to accomplish was making the audience feel like they were on this ride with Margo. It was important to feel her emotions. Music had a lot to do with it. The lens choices had a lot to do with it. Everything was designed to accentuate what she was going through.
AF: How did you become involved with the show? Had you worked with Dearbhla or anyone else on the creative team before?
Segal: I had worked on “Interior Chinatown” with Eva Anderson, who was one of the co-showrunners on “Margo.” She recommended me for the show. I met with everyone, we had one meeting, and we all really connected. That was it.
AF: Was there anything you drew from the book? Books aren’t inherently visual, but was there something in the source material that inspired the visual identity we ultimately see on screen?
Segal: The thing about the book is that you’re walking this line between a reality that could be quite depressing and dark, while also embracing the colorfulness of the characters. We wanted to find that balance visually because we never wanted you to simply feel bad for her because of the circumstances she was under. We tried to take that colorfulness from the book and bring it to life.
AF: There are scenes, particularly in Margo’s apartment, that have a darker, less lit tone. Then the series shifts into these incredibly vibrant scenes with colorful production design and costumes. I think about the flamingo episode, which almost feels like an “Alice in Wonderland” lunch. What is the story trying to tell us through the lens as you shift between those visual palettes?
Segal: We were really trying to mirror real life. You can be alone, sad and depressed one moment, and then something happens that gives you a little boost, and you ride that feeling for as long as you can. It was important to have those moments that really juxtaposed the good times and the bad times, while allowing the audience to move between them naturally.
I related it a lot to life experiences. One day you’re just down. Like Nick Offerman’s character sitting in his room, the light is cool and there’s a blandness around him. You have those moments where you feel like you can’t get out of it, where the shadows feel more present. Then you pick yourself up, just like Margo does, and suddenly the light becomes more colorful, the wardrobe becomes more colorful, and the camera starts moving more. That’s the balance we were trying to create.
AF: Is it difficult to find that balance? Every episode uses handheld shots, tracking shots, reflections and so many different visual techniques. How much of that is established in prep or in the script versus discovered on set?
Segal: That was definitely one of the fun parts. During prep, you eventually develop a feeling for what each scene is supposed to be.
Early on, we talked about the difference between being in Margo’s perspective versus watching Margo. When you’re watching her make bad decisions or fall apart, the camera is much more static. But when you’re really with her, it becomes more handheld, more lyrical, more Steadicam. That became our foundation.
Once we got to set and watched Michelle and Elle perform the scenes, everything changed. You read it on the page, but then you watch them perform for the first time and it’s just, “Whoa.” It elevated everything. We became much more improvisational depending on what they were bringing to the scene.
Sometimes we’d begin a scene completely static, then suddenly switch to handheld because there was a moment that became deeply personal for one of the characters. Staying open to what the actors were giving us became a huge part of the process.
AF: I want to talk about a scene in Episode 5. The group is preparing for the wedding and they’re at Shyanne’s self-proclaimed bachelorette party. Then Margo reveals that she’s on OnlyFans, which leads into this really powerful conversation. You have these beautiful tracking shots as they move outside, some soft focus in the background, and yet they’re all wearing these tiny bachelorette party hats with little penises bouncing around. How do you find the right amount of levity so it doesn’t take away from the performances or the importance of the dialogue?
Segal: It was such a risk. That was a real risk that we took with that choice.
One of the great things about the show was creating environments that felt authentic and real, then letting things happen naturally. It just felt right. They’re at a bachelorette party, they’re out together, and they’re wearing those hats. Why should that make any difference to the conversation they’re having?
The girls loved it. It’s such a heartbreaking scene, but those little details added something magical to me. They balanced everything so you could stay emotionally present with them. It actually made the scene feel more raw because of those details.
One of the harder parts of that sequence was that we filmed the restaurant scene about a month before we shot them running outside in Vegas. In the restaurant, you’re in this colorful, fun set in Los Angeles. Then suddenly you’re in this raw, dirtier Vegas environment. It really felt like going from a fairy tale into something much more serious, and that contrast helped the scene tremendously.
AF: Another challenge is the amount of nudity in the first few episodes, particularly because so much of it isn’t part of intimate scenes. It’s simply part of Margo’s everyday life. What were the guiding principles for approaching those scenes?
Segal: Elle really took charge of that. She wanted the show to be as authentic as possible, especially in portraying motherhood. She didn’t want to hide those moments.
She felt that breastfeeding should simply be part of the language of the show. If she’s breastfeeding, she’s breastfeeding. If she’s outside doing it, that’s just part of her life. Starting with that honesty from the beginning allowed us to carry it throughout the series.
Another reason we were very lucky was with the babies we cast. We didn’t want to constantly cut away to close-ups. Elle really wanted the audience to see that she was interacting with real babies. That authenticity was always part of the plan, and we worked very hard to make it feel completely natural.
AF: Michelle Pfeiffer, Nick Offerman and Elle Fanning all received Emmy nominations, and Greg Kinnear easily could have been nominated as well. When you’re filming, can you sense in real time that you’re witnessing special performances? Does that create an added responsibility in how you choose to photograph them?
Segal: Absolutely. Within the first couple of days, I remember thinking, “This is a special show.”
The performances they were giving were incredible. One thing that really struck me was seeing these actors play characters I’d never seen them play before. Michelle especially was having so much fun. She loved that character. She was adding all these little details, from wanting her character to look like she’d had cosmetic work done to the way she carried herself. She wanted to go all the way.
There was definitely a responsibility to make sure the cinematography matched what they were bringing. From the very beginning, I wanted to showcase everyone’s performances as well as possible while also giving them the freedom to move naturally. We wanted to frame and light everything in a way that supported the performances without ever getting in the actors’ way.
AF: Michelle also has some intimate scenes with Greg Kinnear. With her husband, David E. Kelley being an executive producer on the series, is there another layer of pressure when you’re the cinematographer responsible for shooting those scenes?
Segal: I don’t believe we had an intimacy coordinator for those particular scenes. Michelle and Greg were both completely comfortable, and Michelle was so committed to playing the character.
For Elle’s scenes, of course we had intimacy coordinators, but for Michelle and Greg’s scenes, everyone was genuinely excited to film them.
I was probably the only one with night sweats the night before, thinking, “Oh my God, I have to shoot this tomorrow.”
There was definitely some anxiety, but you try not to show it. Everything came together really well. Michelle actually gave us more than I expected. She wanted to do even more, and she kept adding little moments that made the scene even better, which was pretty funny.
AF: Looking back at “Margo’s Got Money Troubles,” were there any particular shots or sequences that surprised even you when you saw the finished episode? Moments that turned out even better than you’d imagined during storyboarding or prep?
Segal: The beauty of Episode 5, especially the Vegas material, was that we had such a limited amount of time there. We shot so much, including unscripted moments. Elle was wonderful about suggesting ideas in the moment.
One of the things we added was the High Roller. We knew we wanted to figure out a way to use it, but it became a huge logistical operation. The pods take about 30 minutes to go around, so we basically had one opportunity.
You never know what’s going to make it into the final cut, especially once the edit begins. Fortunately, our editor came to Vegas, which is actually pretty unusual. He saw everything we were doing and immediately understood the vibe we were creating.
Because those moments were incorporated into the edit so early, they became part of the storytelling instead of feeling like extras. Normally you’re assembling the script first, but because we were all there together building the episode, many of those unscripted moments stayed in.
Episode 5 is especially beautiful to me because of those quiet moments. There are shots of the characters looking out windows, sitting by the pool, and of course the High Roller shot where Margo is simply looking out over the city. I was so thrilled that those moments made the final episode.
AF: When you say you had 30 minutes, does that mean they didn’t stop normal operations? You had to work within the attraction’s regular schedule?
Segal: Exactly. Vegas doesn’t stop.
When you’re filming inside a casino, you don’t lock it down. They simply tell you which area you can work in while everything continues around you.
The Ferris wheel was operating as usual. They gave us two pods, we lined everyone up, waited our turn, and when they briefly stopped it, we loaded everything in as quickly as possible. Then it started moving again. We put Elle in with the camera operator, and we only had enough time in our schedule for one full rotation.
The people there were fantastic. They supported us as much as they could without interrupting business. They even let us choose the lighting color for the wheel. We picked this pinkish-purple hue that felt very Margo, and they lit it for us.
It really was a stolen moment.
AF: There were multiple cinematographers working on the series. I’ve asked directors a similar question, but how do you maintain visual continuity when you’re not shooting every episode?
Segal: You either get really lucky with a partner who wants to collaborate with you, or sometimes it doesn’t work that way. Most people probably won’t notice the differences except for a trained eye.
In this case, Carl Herse was shooting alongside me. He started the series with Dearbhla on Episodes 1 and 2, and he’s just an incredibly open collaborator. We were constantly sharing what we were doing.
Each episode explores different things story-wise, but we both understood what the show was visually. His lens choices might be different from mine, but the overall feeling and look remained very consistent. We were fortunate to have that kind of partnership.
AF: I have one technical question for you. Earlier you talked about seeing actors play characters unlike anything you’d seen from them before, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen Nicole Kidman play a professional wrestler before. There are moments where the camera pulls back to capture the action and others where it feels like it’s right there in the ring, moving with the wrestlers. How did you technically pull those sequences off?
Segal: There were definitely a lot of moments where I had night sweats the evening before and thought, “Let’s just go.”
The funny thing was that we didn’t have much time with Nicole because she was actually sick one of the days, so our window was very limited. We went in and shot her close-ups first. We made the camera as light as possible because there was so much movement. We wanted the action to feel energetic without the camera bouncing all over the place, so we built the rig in a way that allowed the operator to really cradle it.
Working with Nicole was surprisingly fun. I expected it to be much more technical, but she was incredibly loose and playful. We had a fairly simple piece of choreography, and we only needed to do it two or three times.
She just understood the camera angles instinctively. I don’t really know how to explain it. She simply knew where everything was.
Then Nick came in and we let them move naturally together. We also had the lighting programmed to dim and brighten throughout the sequence to create different shadows and textures. It all happened very quickly. We shot it in about two hours, and then we were done.
AF: Well, congratulations again and it was so great meeting you.
Segal: You too. Thank you very much. It was great meeting you.