It’s not long into a conversation with Kenny Hotz and Derek Harvie before the subject of bodily functions comes up.
“We share an office here, and when he gets nervous he farts a lot,” Harvie says of Hotz, with whom he created the raunchy new FX comedy Testees, which airs Thursdays beginning Oct. 9. “So I just ran out and bought a bunch of scented candles. They’re mostly pomegranate.”
“He’s, like, Pavloving me,” Hotz says. “Every time, I gotta stop farting because I hate the smell of the candles. It’s like battle of the scents in here.”
Such is the environment in which Testees is created. It follows the slovenly adventures of Ron and Peter (Steve Markle and Jeff Kassel), who make a living working for TESTICO, a facility that tests experimental products that come with various side effects.
Upon hearing the concept, it’s easy to picture episodes where the characters will have to deal with a third arm, a hunched back, or perhaps — going back to the bodily functions theme — chronic flatulence. But Hotz says the range of products is more eclectic, going beyond just medical testing to include electronic gadgets, household products and even military weapons.
And while the job has a detrimental effect on their personal lives, Ron and Peter decide it’s preferable to putting forth the effort to find some other way to earn a dollar.
“They know pretty much every time they go in there, something bad is going to happen,” says Harvie, a veteran of The Tom Green Show. “They think it’s a pretty easy job. They’ve convinced themselves it’s easier to go in every couple of weeks and put up with whatever nightmare side effects they walk out with than it is to go in 9-to-5 to work at Subway.”
Part of the appeal of the show, Hotz says, is in the familiarity. “We all know testees,” he says. “We’ve all heard myths and stories about them our entire lives. … Derek and I, if neither of us had become successful in television, we’d probably be testees.”
The premise of two dudes living together and doing strange things to their bodies will be familiar to fans of Hotz’s hit series, Kenny vs. Spenny. The Canadian import features Hotz and his buddy Spencer “Spenny” Rice facing off in ridiculous, Jackass-like contests to find out things like who can eat more meat, or go the longest without becoming sexually excited.
But whereas Kenny and Spenny are locked in competition, Peter and Ron are usually on the same side. Hotz says both shows represent “a microcosm of the male relationship. It’s very yin-yang. Ron’s a little better-looking, better with women. Peter is a bit more of a shlub, not so great with women.”
Since he’s also working on a new season of Kenny vs. Spenny, Hotz was content to stay on the sidelines with Testees, but a walk-on role in the pilot received such positive feedback from the production crew and the network that it’s turned into a full-fledged recurring character.
Hotz plays Larry, the “supercool testee.” He’s a lifer who, because of his seniority, gets to test the best products. His status has given him supreme confidence, with Hotz jokingly likening him to the Al Pacino role in Glengarry Glen Ross.
It’s a whole new world for Hotz, who has relatively little acting experience.
“I don’t really enjoy acting, but it’s very easy for me to click in to it,” he says. “I’m really starting to like it, and it’s so much easier than doing Kenny vs. Spenny, [where] I have to eat meat for a week, stay awake for a week, see how many girls I can kiss, run a 20-mile marathon … Not that I don’t love Kenny vs. Spenny — it’s my baby — but on this show it’s just so much easier … It’s so different, there’s really no comparison.”
Hotz also has a role in the upcoming Kevin Smith comedy, Zack and Miri Make a Porno.
While just keeping up with the workload will be challenging enough, Hotz and Harvie are committed to keeping Testees fresh.
“Some products and tests have an extremely minimal effect on their environment and other ones just totally destroy it,” Hotz says. “As the show evolves, we don’t want it to be just a standard, one-note show. We really feel like we have the ability to take this concept to places that are pretty unique.”