Daniel Bonjour – iZombie

By: Jamie Steinberg

Q) What are the recent projects that you are working on?

A) Right now I’ve been writing and am developing a feature on a project I would be funding and directing as well. I’ve been writing a tv series that I’ve been pitching. So, I’ve kind of been on the creative side during the down time. Then, as soon as the other shows start picking up I’m going to jump on another show. So, it’s been fun kind of relaxing a different creative muscle.

Q) How was your character Levon on “iZombie” originally pitched to you?

A) Originally it was all based on the first episode so he was very much a hockey player with doing the documentary layered in the background. He was somebody who wasn’t intimidated by Clive (Malcolm Goodwin) and Liv (Rose McIver), stood his ground and had a sense of humor to play along. Then, it was revealed he was a zombie. So, that was how they wanted to do it because they didn’t want to hint too much of him being a nice guy and doing a documentary and the future of Liv and Levon getting together. So, it was almost playing against it a little bit so the audience could maybe believe that he would be the main suspect for the crime.

Q) Levon and Liv has such great chemistry. What is it about her that he connects to?

A) I think it’s endearing to Levon to find someone who at times doesn’t want to hide that she is a zombie and at other times leans into the brains. I think he understands the idea of eating a brain and probably runs across people who are embarrassed when they’re on a brain. She’s not. She has fun with them and I think that’s the chemistry right there. This is a serious world of sneaking people in and out so he probably hasn’t had much levity in his life and when she comes in it is this breath of fresh air. I think that’s what he connects with and then she has a heart at the end that she’s willing to come on board and kind of fight for the same cause. So, I think that combination really resonates with Levon and they make a good fit.

Q) What is Levon’s ultimate goal with his documentary?

A) I think right now coming from the mindset of him being a film maker like any film maker it is to show two sides to any story. Fillmore Graves has one side to them to protect the brain rations and he is trying to show the other side of the story. These aren’t criminals as they are trying to reconnect families and try to save lives. I think the ultimate goal of any documentary is to even handedly cover a topic and let the audience decide. I think deep down he thinks that humans and zombies can kind of coexist. Hopefully, this documentary sheds some light and that there doesn’t need to be this divide. By showing that they have families, they miss people, they have loved ones, people are separated…I think that all those topics can hopefully shed light onto it. There are great ties between what is going on in today’s society with refugees and everybody has a story. Deep down everybody has this humanity whether they are zombies or not. He kind of breaks down this divide then maybe there won’t be this animosity or putting up walls, threatening, fighting and killing off people. Ideally that is a world he envisions in the future and he doesn’t know how to get there so all he can do is shed light on it.

Q) Most of your scenes are with costar Rose McIver. Talk about working alongside of her.

A) She is insanely sweet and very welcoming. My first day was my birthday and I kind of didn’t want to tell people because I was new to the set. She found out somehow and had the whole crew singing “Happy Birthday.” She really did her best to make me feel welcome and from there it just opens up such an easy, fun going atmosphere on the set. They are there making a show that is just as much fun to make as it is to watch. They are jokes and having fun with each other. Then, if there is anyone who needs their serious time it is given to them. So, it’s this really, really laid back, open understanding set. And she is at the top of it. I think that personality and leadership trickles down to everybody else and everybody knows it. So, they love working on the show and every actor that comes on board feels that. And she’s at the top of it.

Q) Does Levon have a real, sincere romantic interest in Liv?

A) I mean, I think so. If he didn’t he probably would have jumped into the player brain she was on and taken advantage of it. I think that’s the reason he doesn’t because he wants to be more than just a “brain fling.” They see eye-to-eye on a lot of topics and there is a possible future there because they are kind of on a similar path for what they want for Seattle. I think anybody could have jumped on this brain and hooked up with Liv, but I think the ultimate goal is to create a real foundation for a relationship and see where it goes.

Q) Since you are a part of social media, what has the fan reaction been like to Liv and Levon?

A) It’s great! The fans are so supportive and fun. I had never heard of “ship” names until “iZombie,” as out of it as that makes me. I had no idea what a ship name meant. That was fun for me and getting the ship name of “Livon” – there are fans that love it and are very supportive. There are people who have their opinions and wish she would get back together with Major (Robert Buckley). So, I’m learning different opinions about who the favorites were and where they think they are going. Also, from watching the show I see that the kiss of death from Liv…Any guy that gets in a relationship with Liv is not well off so I’m hoping to break that streak. [laughs]

Q) Was there anyone else you would have liked to have had more scenes with or someone you came in hoping to share screen time with?

A) I was hoping to work with everybody and with Levon, I think there is more interaction. I won’t say with whom, but there definitely is more interaction with Liv’s world as their relationship intertwines a bit more. Everybody does have their own personality on set that is similar to their character, but it’s all the same fun. It’s just such a fun group to work with that they are cracking jokes all the time. I love every actor. Every actor on the show has something that is fun to work with. I’m a huge fan of David Anders and Rahul [Kohli]. We all stay in touch now. So, just getting to work with a good group of people that doesn’t try to one-up anybody else is a treat. I was really looking forward to working with them all and as the scripts came out I enjoyed seeing who I was working with and it was just a blast.

Q) The cast seems to enjoy sharing some silly and sweet behind the scenes photos and videos. What were some of your most memorable moments from filming?

A) A lot of us just show up and if we have down time we’ll go watch other people work because there is so much fun behind the scenes. Sometimes you’ll read a script and see something like some brain that Liv is on or some scene that Rahul is doing and you kind of want to see it. So, you show up and watch it for a bit. The cast and the crew and everybody is so supportive and they let you try different things. I think behind the scenes is like that because you don’t feel trapped into doing one certain thing. There is room to play and experiment and sometimes experiments fail and sometimes they work. So, it’s just a lot of laughs and levity. I don’t want to say it’s goofing off as it would make it seem like we’re not taking it seriously. It’s more having fun with it. So, those behind the scenes moments are very organic. Nobody is trying to be funny or throw someone off for a behind the scenes goof reel. Some of the crew have a fart machine that they’ll let go off after certain scenes. That’s after a certain amount of takes so you just never know.

Q) What do you think it is about “iZombie” that continues to make it such a fan favorite series?

A) I think it’s a couple things. It’s got its procedural and I think a lot of people like that where they show up every week to solve a crime and it’s kind of diverging from that this season, which I think is great, risky and great creatively. Then, it also has this aspect of Liv on different brains, which she does so well. I think it has this layer of humor that just changes every episode slightly. I think overall it’s this perfect blend of self-aware comedy and also grounding subjects. If you’re able to tell a grounding story also with a bit of levity by using comedy, brains and quirky characters then it doesn’t feel as serious some other shows that maybe have this strong message that you’re trying to get across, but I think that “iZombie” does the exact same thing in a much lighter and fun way. So, I think that audiences can have fun watching a show that talks about some serious stuff.

Q) You are an actor, producer, writer and filmmaker. Is there anything else you would like to try your hand at in the entertainment industry?

A) I’m doing it! I’m trying it. I think I’m still trying the writing and directing. I’ve directed one film and I’ve written a couple. The entertainment industry is a funny thing where you never really completely feel settled and content in what you are doing. You always feel like you’re trying. I still feel like I’m trying at acting because you always worry that the next job isn’t going to be as fun or great as the one you just had. If I was a singer I would love to try writing some music, but that is not a talent that I have. [laughs] But I just have so much fun exploring everything there is in the entertainment industry as far as TV and movies. Just storytelling, whether it is acting or writing – I love it so much. Getting to explore it from different angles is a dream come true. I’m always trying new things, but within the same world.

Q) What else would you like to be sure our readers know about your time on “iZombie?”

A) I would say expect the worlds to kind of blend a little more. Right now, Levon is very separate from Liv’s world. IN the last episode, Peyton (Aly Michalka) stumbles into the room while Liv is making these Id’s. That starts the intersection of the two worlds – the hidden life of renegade that she is living and her life as a mortician are going to start bleeding a bit more. That becomes really fun because you’ll feel like it is a whole complete show with all of these characters intertwining and this massive scale topic of the wall, zombies and humans and murders and all that stuff. It really, really is a great season and covers so much.