Grant Feely, who portrays Ted Lasso's son Henry, is embracing his expanded role in the acclaimed Apple TV+ series. The young actor, who previously appeared in shows like "Obi-Wan Kenobi" and "Five Nights at Freddy's," found a dream role in "Ted Lasso," a show he was already a fan of before auditioning.
Feely's character, Henry, is central to the narrative as Ted Lasso, played by Jason Sudeikis, returns to Kansas City and eventually decides to move to London with Henry and his ex-wife, Michelle, so Ted can coach a new women's team. This move sets the stage for a more prominent father-son dynamic in the upcoming season.
"It's so great working with Jason," Feely shared. "He's such an amazing actor, such an amazing person. It's easy building chemistry because it's all just built up for you. The scripts are so amazing, and the writers are so great at fleshing out relationships and dynamics."
Feely himself played soccer until he was about 10 years old, a passion that now aligns with his role on "Ted Lasso." He even hired his older brothers, who are big soccer fans, to give him lessons to prepare for scenes in the new season. "My older brothers are big soccer fans. And to prepare for this role, because the first episode I play soccer, I had to hire them to teach me soccer lessons, and they negotiated 5% each on my first episode," he recalled.
One particularly memorable scene for Feely involved a classic father-son moment where Ted teaches Henry how to tie a tie. The experience proved more challenging than expected. "I did not know how to tie a tie," Feely admitted. "And that scene was so hard to do, because it was my first time tying a tie. And tying a tie is hard to do yourself in the mirror, and then I had to think of the dialogue, and perform, and then 15 minutes before we did the scene, Jason came in and completely redid all the dialogue. So I had to learn that. I had to tie a tie. I had to perform. It was a hard scene to do; it was probably the hardest scene to do out of all of them, but it was really fun."
Beyond his on-screen interactions, Feely has also connected with his younger co-star Elodie Blomfield, who plays Phoebe. "It's really good to have someone my age there, especially when I do school on set, so I'm not bored out of my mind," Feely said. He also formed a bond with veteran actress Annette Badland, who plays Mae. "Annette's amazing. She's so lovely. She's nothing like Mae in real life... Annette is just nice. She's very kind, and such a great actress."
Feely expressed admiration for the show's creative talent, including Sudeikis and Brett Goldstein, who are involved in writing and producing. "I've learned a bunch, especially how they manage all their different roles on set. They do it so well and flawlessly. They wear so many hats on set, and they wear them all so well," he noted, stating it has inspired him to pursue writing in the future.
Looking ahead to the rest of the season, Feely sees parallels to the show's first season, particularly in how Ted navigates new challenges with the women's team and its personalities. "There are a lot of parallels to Season 1 with how Ted is handling the new women’s team, and how he’s kind of bumping up against new personalities, and all the problems he might face," he said.
Feely's biggest takeaway from "Ted Lasso" is the Season 1 mantra, "Be curious, not judgmental." He believes this message is particularly relevant for the new season, encouraging viewers and characters alike to approach new situations with openness and understanding.