What's Next

A Backstage Pass to The West Wing, Its Cast and Crew, and Its Enduring Legacy of Service

By: Melissa Fitzgerald, Mary McCormack, Aaron Sorkin - foreword, Allison Janney - introduction

Narrated by: Melissa Fitzgerald, Mary McCormack

Length: 16 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's summary

A behind-the-scenes look into the creation and legacy of The West Wing as told by cast members Melissa Fitzgerald and Mary McCormack, with compelling insights from cast and crew exploring what made the show what it was and how its impassioned commitment to service has made the series and relationships behind it endure.

Step back inside the world of President Jed Bartlet’s Oval Office with Fitzgerald and McCormack as they reunite the West Wing cast and crew in a lively and colorful “backstage pass” to the timeless series. This intimate, in-depth reflection reveals how The West Wing was conceived, and spotlights the army of people it took to produce it, the lifelong friendships it forged, and the service it inspired.

From cast member origin stories to the collective cathartic farewell on the show’s final night of filming, What’s Next will delight listeners with on-set and off-camera anecdotes that even West Wing superfans have never heard. Meanwhile, a deeper analysis of the show’s legacy through American culture, service, government, and civic life underscores how the series envisaged an American politics of decency and honor, creating an aspirational White House beyond the bounds of fictional television.

What’s Next revisits beloved episodes with fresh, untold commentary; compiles poignant and hilarious stories from the show’s production; highlights initiatives supported by the cast, crew, and creators; and makes a powerful case for competent, empathetic leadership, hope, and optimism for whatever lies ahead.

* This audiobook edition has been adapted for the audio format, and the content deviates slightly from the printed version. It includes a downloadable PDF that contains a list of organizations important to the cast and crew and behind the scenes photos and images from The West Wing.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2023 Melissa Fitzgerald and Mary McCormack (P)2023 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“An entertaining history of the show grounded in extensive interviews with its stars, writers, and crew…the insider stories amuse, and meditations on the show’s legacy highlight its influence on real-life politicos.”—Publishers Weekly

"[This] lively, engaging booktakes a deep dive into the series, including its origin, creators, casting, key episodes from itsseven seasons, and more... Fans of the series (aka “Wingnuts”) will enjoy these on- and off-camera stories, and those who have never watched anepisode will find out what they’ve missed."–Booklist

“Mary and Melissa have brought me back to those glorious days on the West Wing set with What’s Next. A perfect storm of talented people lucky enough to find each other in a seminal moment of television history: this wonderful book remembers the 17 hour days and 80 hour weeks and the grind and glory of the impossible pursuit of excellence. We formed a tribe that adored each other and respected each other and elevated each other to heights we could not ever reach alone. What a joy to read from the memories of all our perspectives that bring us right back to stage 23 on the Warner Bros. lot.”–Richard Schiff

Behind the scenes!

Such a great, read. well done audiobook! can't wait to start it over. Read by the authors always makes it better!

if you liked The West Wing show, but only a lot, listen to this book.

I wasn't sure what I was expecting when I bought this book. I really enjoyed The West Wing television show, and this book is a 16-hour love letter to that series. It goes in chronological order and doesn't pull any punches such as Sorkin leaving and Rob Lowe's thoughts in hindsight. Overall I don't know if it told me anything I didn't know or hear before, but it did settle some inner turmoil that I wasn't alone with irrationally liking this show. The greatest drama behind the scenes wasn't a Charlie Sheen disturbance, but the death of John Spencer. Again, it was a love letter, but I liked it.

A beautiful rendering of a deeply touching set of insights into dazzling creativity and caring.

I liked that this book was read and presented by talented actors, Mary and Melissa. They converted a reading to a performance, making it more real and impactful than the words alone could have been. I also liked how heartfelt and value driven were so many of the words and segments. The only thing I didn’t like was that the book came to an end. I would have been delighted if the book, like the series on which it was reporting, could have continued indefinitely.

Yes, I am a WingNut

It's always fun to get a peak behind the curtain of a favorite show, and this book is definitely that. It's hilarious and sentimental.. But it is also so, so much more. Just like the show, this book is both a love letter and a call to public service. Mary Mccormick and Melissa Fitzgerald lovingly share stories that inspire and tangibly encourage us to, borrowing a phrase from former real life FLOTUS Michelle Obama, "Do something!" I could say so much more, but this review is long enough, so I'll just go binge watch the West Wing now (for the 2,162nd time) and leave you to go read and/or listen to "What's Next?". And then go do something.

The loving narration

I want more!!! There was talk of a sequel and I for one would heartily welcome one.

This wingnut is so happy this book was written!!

where do I start? it was a delightful visit with old friends and a wonderful introduction to so many who made this great show possible. thank you Melissa and Mary and ALL involved in The West Wing.

Joy filled

Backstage stories and inspiring true stories of service offer hope in a world where so many seem to be focused on self.

I never knew I was a Wingnut

Thank you to the authors. A wonderful, thoughtful and intelligent audio book. Well read and produced. I have to add that the content made me jealous of those who had a direct involvement in The West Wing. What a gift. That said I can still watch, rewatch and. Rewatch. It’s very much intellectual comfort food. If anyone reads this, please pass on my deepest appreciation to Alan Sorkin, Tommy Schlame and John Wells. (Sp?). I’m 73 and this is my first fan letter. Finally, no mater his sins, Martin Sheen is going straight to heaven and John Spenser will be there to meet him.

Wonderful!

This book brought me a lovely mix of laugher at back stage antics and tearing up over talents beloved and lost. The whole West Wing family is wonderful. I may need to go get a physical copy too!

Building a Legacy One Episodes at a Time

There is an old expression that says that art does not exist in a vacuum. It is often influenced by, and can have impact upon in return, the wider world in which it was created. The West Wing, the television series created by Aaron Sorkin, has proven to be one such example of that. Having told the story of the fictional President of the United State Jed Bartlet (played by Martin Sheen) and his senior White House staff, is a show that not only spawned seven seasons from 1999 to 2006 but also helped inspire a generation of elected officials, their staffs, and creatives. Helping document the series and its legacy across 25 years is What’s Next from authors (and series actors) Melissa Fitzgerald and Mary McCormack and read by the authors.

First things first: What’s Next is not an exhaustive guide to The West Wing. That’s something that Fitzgerald and McCormack make clear at one point in the book and it’s worth noting here. While there are dives into best and most important episodes of the series (including the season two finale Two Cathedrals and the live debate episode from the final season) that delve into those episodes and sometimes the minutiae of them, this isn’t the guidebook to the series that some have been waiting decades for.

Instead, as the subtitle says, this is something of a backstage past to the series and its cast. Drawing on interviews new and old (the latter especially in the case of the late and still clearly much missed John Spencer), What’s Next is in part an oral history of the making of the series. Some of the anecdotes and stories told will be familiar from DVD commentaries and The West Wing Weekly podcast (which this reviewer must confess not to have been a listener to), but the gathering of the material all in one place is a godsend in its own right. In one volume are stories of how a misunderstanding about a lunch meeting led to the series creation, the castings that might have been (from CCH Pounder as Leo or C.J. to a whole host of other contenders for the President), and the personal stories of the experiences making some of the most remarkable hours of television you’ll ever watch.

And those memories are a major part of what makes What Next so enjoyable and insightful. There’s plenty of good times remembered from Martin Sheen’s fatherly attitude toward almost everyone on set that extended to paying for cast and crew trips to Vegas to Joshua Malina’s pranks (some remembered more fondly than others) and McCormack finding the series welcoming as a first-time working mom. The rough patches are here too, from the circumstances that saw Rob Lowe leave the series followed in quick succession by Sorkin and executive producer/director Thomas Schlamme with the vacuum they left behind. Indeed, as one of those who maintained that the series never recovered from their leaving, I found a new appreciation in this book for how remaining executive producer John Wells and the team he assembled kept the series going for three more seasons. Revisiting the Wells Administration (as the book calls the latter years) is now something I’m looking forward to doing in my current re-watch. There’s also a chapter dedicated to the passing of Spencer during the final season that is worth the price of the book alone for fans, full as it is of memories of the actor and the remembrances given by his co-stars Bradley Whitford and Richard Schiff. It’s a look behind the scenes of a favorite series done with love and fondness but not, thankfully, entirely through rose-tinted spectacles.

What’s Next’s subtitle also promises a backstage pass to “Its Enduring Legacy of Service.” Readers and fans can learn about the causes that many of the show’s cast and crew have been a part of before, during, and after the series from Sheen’s long-standing history of activism to Fitzgerald’s work for Justice for Vets to projects to promote the arts and more. There’s also chapters that explore the series interactions with real-life figures both while the show was being made (where the cast being invited to the 2000 Democratic convention caused havoc on its production) and since with figures on both sides of the political spectrum inspired to run for elected office or to work as public servants as a result of the series and its vision. Or, indeed, it’s impact on larger popular culture in works such as the hit musical Hamilton or the reunions such as 2012’s Walk and Talk the Vote and 2020’s A West Wing Special to Benefit When We All Vote which also display the enduring legacy of the series to raise awareness and the bond between cast and crew or the influence the series has had.

And, it seems, will continue to have as the series continues to resonate even in a very different political and cultural climate than the one it first appeared in a quarter-century ago. Long may it do so. And long may fans seek out What’s Next for insights, joy, tears, and much more about one of the greatest television series ever produced.