Nick Mohammed has proposed his own explanation for why the UK audience dislikes Ted Lasso.
The 42-year-old actor stars as Nathan Shelley in the blockbuster Apple TV Plus comedy, which follows an American football coach, excellently portrayed by Jason Sudeikis, who is suddenly hired to manage a Premier League football side.
Hannah Waddingham, who plays AFC Richmond owner Rebecca Welton on Sex Education, recently said that British people believe the wholesome show is all about football.
‘But it’s actually very much about the human condition that we find via humour, all the absurd things about ourselves, with the backdrop of football,’ she explained on This Morning.
In an interview with Metro.co.uk, Nick offered his own opinion, claiming that the UK is simply’more sceptical’ about dealing with a programme like Ted Lasso.
‘If someone like Ted came into our lives we’d be a little bit like “eww who’s that.” That’s how some people treated him at the beginning of the season until they realise how much of a force of good in their lives.’
The first season debuted on the streaming site in August 2020, at the height of the epidemic, and critics hailed the series for providing the perfect’serotonin boost’ during the trying time.
‘When the show came out I think fewer people had Apple TV Plus,’ Nick added.
‘Which was bigger in the States and it’s definitely caught on here in terms of me going in the street, if people stop and chat it’s almost always because of Ted Lasso.
‘It was more of a sleeper hit here than it was in the States.’
This season, coach Ted has been brainstorming new strategies to help his beloved AFC Richmond club win, but his devoted buddy Nate (Nick) is coaching the squad’s adversaries, West Ham United.
Speaking about co-star and showrunner Jason, Nate added: ‘He was always there directing all the scenes at West Ham anyway, so I had a lot of contact time with Jason, but when we filmed that scene in the lift, that felt really oddly emotional because it was the first time we had done a scene together since season two.
‘Without giving anything away, there’s more stuff to come, and it makes it more emotional for me because I love those guys, absolutely adore them and really miss them.
‘So when I then get to act with them, it’s like “finally I’m back!”‘
Ted Lasso is available to stream on Apple TV Plus, with new episodes premiering every Wednesday.