Rachel Marsh’s Luna found herself immersed in all the Ellis (Rob Lowe) and Jackson Dragon (John Owen Lowe) ups and downs in the first season of Netflix’s Unstable. Being a Dragon scientist, Luna worked alongside father and son with her best friend and co-worker Ruby. Over the course of the first season, it became clear that Luna and Jackson had feelings for each other, which resulted in a sweet finale kiss. HollywoodLife spoke EXCLUSIVELY with Rachel about the build-up to the Luna and Jackson romance.
“I love it. I don’t know if that’s where it’s going to go in season 2, but I really loved exploring it in season 1,” Rachel said. “I think it is so special for two people who are awkward and have the same kind of social anxiety to find friendship. I think that was really important to set the foundation for them and then get to explore a new relationship, a new romance, and that was super fun. I think just playing this character that has no self-awareness was already super fun for me, and then for them to be a love interest was also super fun. For me, it was two things I had never done on on TV shows before so hopefully there’s more Luna and Jackson. I love the writing and the show. So whatever they choose to do, I’m going to be all for it.”
Unstable avoided the trope of pitting two women against each other because of a guy. Luna and Ruby’s friendship in and out of the lab was always strong and supportive. Turns out, it was the same for Rachel and Emma Ferreira as well.
“She didn’t know anyone in LA, so we would spend every day together,” Rachel revealed. “Me, Emma, and Aaron [Branch] would just go out for dinner after we shot and just hung out every second. I think there was really this trust built between me and her, which I hope you can see in the scenes. We both trusted each other to really be these characters. I just really loved a dynamic of a best friend in a TV show, and I feel like that is something that people really want to see but don’t get to see very often, especially when there’s a love interest. Sometimes that can be really competitive, and I love the writing didn’t really go there. They were just like, no, we really value this relationship more than any kind of love relationship or love triangle. I think my favorite thing was just how special the writing was and that it didn’t make it competitive at all.”
She continued, “I think the thing that we found together is friendship. I’m sure that’s a very normal thing in a workplace setting, especially in a science setting where it’s very competitive. There are not a ton of women at the top, and I think that that was really special for us to portray. We were always trying to get it right. We had an on-set scientist, and she would show us how to do something.”
For most of the season, Luna had an offscreen boyfriend named Brian. They bonded over watching Dateline episodes, but the relationship was never a place where Luna could truly thrive. After some encouragement and advice, Luna ended things with Brian.
“I think it was probably really hard for Luna to stand up for herself in that way,” Rachel told HollywoodLife. “I love that that is kind of her journey throughout the season. It’s just her learning how to speak up and find her own voice. I think she really did that for herself. I don’t know how long they’d been dating. Probably years. It was a long time coming. I love that the show really portrayed that as something really hard and something that Luna and Ruby could go through together. I love Brian, though. I have a soft spot in my heart for Brian.”
Rachel already has hopes for where Luna’s journey could go in a potential second season. “I just would love for Luna to go through something even more challenging. She really did stand up for herself and break up with her boyfriend, but maybe something challenging in the workplace,” she said. “Maybe trying to get a promotion or switching positions or something where she has to already stick up for herself in a different way I think would be super fun. Obviously, keeping the same relationship with Ruby and Malcolm and just more shenanigans. I just love these light-hearted comedies. I grew up with Parks & Rec where it’s not really about the workplace, but it’s really about the relationships and what they go through together. I just love the whole ensemble cast of Unstable, and I want to see us go through big, weird situations altogether and what that would look like for the series.”
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