How Erin Foster's series 'Nobody Wants This' is inspired by her real-life story
Erin Foster, the producer of the new Netflix series Nobody Wants This revealed that the series is based on her real-life story with her now-husband, entertainment executive Simon Tikhman.
The 10-episode series follows the story of a Jewish rabbi named Noah (Adam Brody) and an agnostic sex podcaster named Joanne (Kristen Bell) who meet and develop a romantic relationship despite their differing backgrounds.
In an interview with Netflix’s Skip Intro podcast, Erin disclosed that this series was included in the list of her writings where she talks about "whatever was happening in her life."
“For a decade I had been writing from whatever was happening in my life. And every project had a real cynicism to it, because I felt cynical about relationships and myself and love,” she said.
Erin added, "It wasn’t very hopeful because that’s just the place that I was in. It was always about a woman sabotaging herself and self-destructing in some way and choosing the wrong things. And that was totally working for me in my career.
She went on to say that everything goes differently when she met his husband, Simon.
"So in some ways, it was like art was imitating life and I was on this rinse-and-repeat situation in my life. And if I was on a bad date, I would think, ‘Oh, this is going to be really good to write about.’ I wouldn’t even care that my life was crumbling. I was excited to use it."
"And so when I met Simon, who is my husband now, honestly, I thought he was kind of killing my vibe," she concluded.
Erin also told Today.com that the series' roller coaster of emotions is "very accurate" to how she and Simon got together.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Erin, the daughter of legendary music producer David Foster and former model Rebecca Dyer, was raised without religion. When her mother dated a Jewish man, she allegedly "enjoyed" going to the temple during that period more than the church.
She was said to have attended a few classes about Judaism with a friend to learn more about the religion. The idea of converting didn't sscare her because of her "complicated" family.
While Simon doesn't regard himself as especially religious, he doesn't want to disappoint his parents, who were persecuted because of their Jewish identity. Hence, upon settling in San Francisco, they imparted in him the belief that he bore a responsibility to uphold the Jewish lineage.
“I really respect my parents and know the adversity they went through because they were Jewish. I wouldn’t want to disappoint them," he told the Los Angeles Times
For her love of Simon, Erin was converted to Judaism.
"A big part of what drew me to Simon was that he was someone who was funny and cool and modern, but he had a bit of an old-fashioned feel about him," Foster said.
In 2019, the couple tied the knot on New Year's Eve and now has a nearly five-month-old daughter, Noa Mimi.