EXCLUSIVE: Maahra Hill Talks What’s to Come for Marisa on ‘The Irrational’

NBC’s new series, The Irrational follows world-renowned behavioral scientist proffesor, Alec Mercer (Jesse L. Martin) as he uses his skills to assist on high-stakes cases. Airing Monday nights on the network, we got the chance to hear from one of the stars of the new series, Maahra Hill.

Playing FBI Agent Marisa Clark, ex-wife to Alec, we got the chance to chat with Hill about joining the cast, Marisa’s relationship with Kylie (Travina Springer), her relationship with Alec, and so much more. Check out what she had to say below.

Let’s get into your new series, The Irrational, and your fantastic character who can’t seem to catch a break this season. Everything is being thrown at her every which way.

“Thank you for noticing.”

When I first started watching this series, I thought it was going to focus on her being an FBI agent and focus on her past relationship with Alec. All of a sudden, they add Kylie in and then a potential romance. I’m like, this girl’s never getting a break.

“Yeah. She goes through it quite a bit, and if you think that’s something, wait to the next couple episodes.”

When you first read for this character or were first approached to play this character, what made you want to do it?

“Well, a friend of mine in 2019 gave me this book called Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely. I felt like, first of all, when I got the offer, there was no turning it down because just as an actor, you want to work. Then it’s NBC. Then what they’re doing is in service, I feel, to the audience. My personal belief is that we are all here to be in service to one another, and it’s just a cycle. You know what I mean? It all comes back. Everything goes out and it comes back. It goes out and comes back, but you don’t do it for that reason. You just do it because we’re here to help each other.

The most exciting part about it is how much I feel the audience stands to gain from watching the show. How much more curious you can be about life itself and others’ behavior and your behavior and what motivates that, and maybe the things that you believe, questioning your beliefs as well. So I think that the most exciting thing for me is to be a part of a show that’s in service to the audience and the way that this one is.

I also felt magically tied to it, because I had been given this book a couple years before we ever shot the first episode, and there’s another castmate who was also referred to the book. I feel like we just have this energy on the show that is beautiful. When I first did the read with the producers, I felt like that’s my family over there. I need to be with them again, and I got to be with them again. The whole process really is pretty exciting, but I do love what the show offers the audience.”

Let’s talk Marisa’s relationship with Kylie. I love that the show is focusing on Marisa’s relationship with her ex-sister-in-law. That is not a relationship that is often explored on television.

“I completely agree with you. We don’t explore the heartbreak that comes from a friendship that’s broken down often. The fact that they were sister-in-laws, but they felt more like actual, to Marisa, like a real sister to her. She’s hoping to open the door for them to be able to spend more time together, to reconnect, to reestablish the relationship in some way. It’s new territory, so it is not going to be because of her brother or her husband, because he’s her ex now. Just something that has this relationship standing alone and seeing what to say about what’s to come is that Kylie is very good at certain things that work really well with the things that Marisa’s good at. So maybe there’s an opportunity or potential for them to work together more, but I think that there’s definitely room for them to create more growth within that relationship and see it grow in new ways. Now that it’s reestablished, I really appreciate that part of that relationship dynamic as well.”

It peels back another layer for both of your characters. It shows you both in a different light, which I’m really enjoying. I’m rooting and hoping that we continue to see the positives of their relationship, but of course there’s going to be negatives.

“We’ll see. You never know what the writers are planning, but I thank you for talking about that, because she and I feel the same way. We are just really grateful to have been able to explore a sisterhood and how meaningful and how impactful they are. So I think they’re hoping that the worst is behind them and that they can just hang out again. Yeah, you’re absolutely right. It peels back a layer for both of them that you don’t get to see, just how they are in friendship and in relationship to someone that they love, like a sister. I’m excited to see more of that too.”

There’s always going to be someone in between them. It’s not like the ex-husband just disappeared and is no longer in either of their lives, the ex-husband is very prominently in Marisa’s life. I think the chemistry between you and Jesse L. Martin is beautiful. The banter between you two comes off extremely easy and believable. Can you tease anything about potentially anything between Marissa and Alec and what we can expect?

“I think that they’re in a healthier place now post-divorce. Since both of them got their eyes in a different direction romantically, I don’t know how much that we will explore romance between them, but you just never know, because from one episode to the next that the writers are working with. I do believe that you’ll consistently see the love that they have for one another and the bond that they have. They have a certain dependence on each other professionally in the workspace that is really beneficial too. The banter, it’s real. It just based off of their connection and the time that they’ve spent together. They’ve been married for 20 years, so they get each other and they know. They walk in stride with each other in life in a way. I think that’s a little different than they used to before, but it’s a healthy post-divorce relationship at this point.

I don’t know what right now the direction they’re going in is. Romantically, in two different directions, so we will have to wait and see if that changes at all.”

Well, for my final question for you, can you talk a little bit about Marisa’s relationship with Jace, what we can expect from that?

“She just opened a new door. She just let a wall down. She was keeping her boundaries up there and not really willing to go to lunch. She asked her probably, at least five times. She’s like, ‘I’m too busy. I can’t do it. No. I don’t think this is good. No.’ Then they started working on the case together. I think she’s been very attracted to the progress that he’s been able to make and having new eyes on it, and his sensibilities around putting two and two together in that regard. I think it’s heartwarming for her because it’s a case that means so much. It’s so dear. It’s like a child, I think.

I think she’s embarking in a new relationship and going in a new direction, and her heart is opening up to him, and the potential of finding new love. Probably is something that she didn’t expect and I don’t think she ever felt like she would experience that level of closeness with someone again after Alec. So she treading cautiously, but she’s definitely opened the door wide open for him to walk into her heart, so we’ll see.

Well, I’m excited to hopefully see that explored after last night’s episode. I have my questions now with how the episode ended and how they’re laying it out, but I’m really hoping it’s all good.

“What are your questions about it?”

I just have this feeling in my heart that Jace either isn’t going to be with us for that much longer, or he’s a dirty cop, or there’s just something going to happen.

“Oh, no. Because of the bug in the closet, I guess.”

Yes.

“Anything’s possible.”

A brand new episode of The Irrational will air tonight, February 12 on NBC. Make sure to check it out!

*This interview has been edited for length and clarity

Photo credit: Sergei Bachlakov/NBC