Even before “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” became a hit, interviews from the early days of the promising new series reflected how the show’s ensemble cast was already beginning to meld. For Andy Samberg, a big part of the show’s breakout success was his character’s on-screen relationship with Andre Braugher’s Captain Holt. As Samburg himself noted in a preview of “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” published in Entertainment Weekly, much of his comedy is based on the kind of goofing he would do as a child to annoy members of his family — if anything, resistance to laughter in those around Samburg makes him up the funny.

“It’s easy to make lines funny when you’re playing them to Andre,” Samberg claimed back in 2013. “And the way that he’s playing that character, which is really quite deadpan and grounded, makes me want to be more annoying. I feel like at best, I’m America’s younger brother.” Though Braugher, who was 16 years Samberg’s senior, plays his boss on the show, the comedy dynamic between the two is arguably that between a younger and older sibling. As a consummate professional, Braugher would resist cracking a smile or breaking character, but Samberg claims that even in the early days he was occasionally able to get his co-star to mess up a take. “I have made him break a couple of times. It’s been wildly satisfying,” he added.