Was it really David Harbour pulling off that Olympic-level pommel horse number in DTF St. Louis Episode 3? Absolutely not, but he’s flattered you think that.
**Spoiler alert: Details ahead from Episode 3 of DTF St. Louis, now streaming on HBO Max**
In the most recent episode of Steven Conrad‘s outrageous limited series, which also stars Jason Bateman and Linda Cardellini, Floyd Smernitch (Harbour) is hanging out with his stepson on a playground when he busts out an impressive jungle gym routine. To anyone at home who may have thought it could be the Stranger Things alum actually pulling out those moves, well, bad news.
“That’s me, of course it is, doing an Olympic pommel horse routine,” Harbour said sarcastically while sitting down with DECIDER. “It’s so funny when people say that because there are moments when I can’t even, like, pick myself up. Yeah, it is so insane, it’s very funny. I have the footage of us stitching that together — we had a lovely gentleman who is like number one in the world in Atlanta [do it].”
In the scene, Harbour’s character explains that he’s done the gymnastics moves every day since he was a pre-teen and that, at some point, it became a part of him as a person. He uses his own unexpected skill as an analogy, telling Richard (Arlan Ruf) that using manners is a lot like his impressive routine; practicing every day only helps to make the skill stronger and come easier.
“They put him in a big old Michelin Man outfit and he was amazing. I actually did have to tell him I was like, ‘Can you tone it down a little bit?’ Because the first thing he did was like, crazy windmills. I was like, ‘Just tone it down a little bit, make it a little look [worse],’” Harbour said.
It’s a heartwarming (if not slightly hilarious and odd) metaphor that Harbour’s character uses to try to impress upon his stepson the importance of treating others with respect. Since the beginning of the season, Richard has struggled with treating others and their property correctly, and it’s been something Floyd has worried about from the jump.
Although it’s worth noting that Floyd may have too much practice with his manners as Episode 3, “The Go Getter” also sees him passionately kissing the man he met on the DTF St Louis dating app. Floyd showed up to meet the person, who went by the screen name “Modern Love,” only to realize that it was not a woman as he suspected.
Still, in an effort not to be rude, Harbour’s character leaves the diner where the meet-up takes place and partakes in an emotionless makeout session with Christopher Spruce (Peter Sarsgaard), even letting “Modern Love” feel him up because he felt bad over the miscommunication. It’s another one of those moments that shines a light on just how “wonderful” Floyd truly is, and it’s another reason that Harbour loves the show.
He shared, “There’s all these things throughout the series where these little bonbons of hyper reality that stay grounded enough for you to watch the show, but also kind of, as you say, like make you stop and go like, ‘What is this?’ And I love making TV like that.”
The first three episodes of DTF St Louis are now streaming. New episodes premiere on Sundays.
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