Fear The Walking Dead – Part 1 – SDCC 2019

By starrymag | July 31, 2019

By: Heather Tollis

 

 

 

Q) I feel like every season the world kind of expands. What is the arc of the season and how will it affect the characters?

Speaker: The world is going to expand in a big way. The end of the season will shake the entire crew to the very core and really change the way we go into Season 6.

Danay: They write on page and whole page cause one page really affects entire season and that’s the beauty of it.

Q) No matter the location Salazar is always there. How do you explain it?

Speaker: There is an explanation for why Salazar is where he is in Season 5. It is something we will reveal, but there is an unbelievable cool story that we’ve been working on for like a year.

Q) I have a question about how much time has passed during the episodes this season.

Speake 1r: Between 508 and 501 it is a matter of a week or so. 509 we will be jumping ahead a little bit and, uh, finding our characters in circumstances that they’ve been in for several months.

Speaker 2: There are some interesting aspects of learning that occurs as well. We have different things happening at different times. At one point, they may catch up with each other.

Q) Do the actor’s backgrounds change how you write the characters?

Speaker 1: We have such a strong, uh, yeah, I think we’re very lucky because really we have, I think one of the best casts on television who can do everything from, uh, comedy drama to these incredible action sequences. Everyone shows up every day and seeing continually surprises us with what they deliver. Um, and it’s great because it gives so much freedom to explore the show. We can see what the show can do tonally and we really get to stretch our legs. It leads to some surprising stuff. It’s fun to write this stuff and see where these people take it and really elevate it – even to place we may not have intended when it was written on the page.

Danay: Like playing the accordion.

Ruben: Be happy they didn’t give you a tuba!

[audience laughter]

Q) Talk about some of the funny moments from filming.

Danay: During the plane crash it was raining so it was muddy and wet. Cooper and I are covered in fake blood. It’s getting cold out. He turned to me and sneezed in my face. That was a huge bonding moment when he sneezed in my face. He’s adorable by the way. The crew is really nice and visible.

Q) [inaudible]

Jenna Elfman: Like any relationship to go through things, but unfortunately in this world the universe says shoves them into their discomfort. They are so good together. Together I think are unbreakable. I don’t think there’s anything within themselves that would rip them apart, Period. Outside of themselves.

Q) Going down the line, tell us your wish for next season.

Alexa: I would just love to see Charlie continue to, to redeem herself and to truly, truly forgive her. And also I would really like to see Charlie like maybe at least saved someone’s life, but like something super cool to just truly redeem her.

Ruben: With Salazar you never really know what is going to happen. So, basically, my goal is to stay alive.

[audience laughs]

Ruben: That’s my goal. Those guys over there know more than I do. So, that’s my hope for Season 6, 7, 8 and 9. Well, it’s a good thing that I have a cat too because that cat has seven lives. That cat is like Salazar in a way. They compliment each other. Smart cat.

Danay: I feel like Luciana has proven herself to a degree, now emotionally and mentally. This season has been very mental for her. Going forward, it’s like a full circle. She’s strong physically and mentally. She knows exactly what it’s like to be out.

Jenna: When you challenge them, they grow stronger. Finding what is next is to see her warrior.

Q) [inaudible]

Speaker: When we shot it, Austin [Amelio] was on the ground holding an axe. And we had some specialty shots of the axe where it was stabilized. [inaudible] We were pitching all of these trick shots.

Q) Sound is really incorporated into the season. And I’m just wondering if that’s something that’s conscious thing or is it something that goes episode by episode?

Speaker 1: It started with the plane crash as part of that and putting the audience and all of the characters. The sound design and really feeling like always have as we’re coming to in the middle of this absolute scene. You want to create this environment that just felt different than being part of that.

Q) So, one thing that I really liked was the introduction of contamination of the power that I thought that was really awesome and different. How did that spark?

Speaker 1: I’ll preface this by saying it’s something we talked about in season four. My dad was an engineer and he was working in the power industry. I just always come back to the idea of what they would be like in an apocalypse – all of the things that would happen. So, I called him a lot of times and picked his brain. Believe it or not, there is a lot of research.

Q) Does being a part of a show like this make you want to prepare for an apocalypse?

Jenna: I definitely started researching a custom-made emergency kit and that expanded my point of view about what I might need for me and my family. It’s definitely given me a broader insight into the thought process

Danay: The crew gives us these incredible gifts. They gave me this bag with an emergency cross on it. Inside was a flashlight. It was like an emergency kit. I’m like, “Let me open this.” I realized, I’m ready. [laughs] I have a lot. I’m like, “If I do one more season, I’m set for my entire life.” I have flashlights, batteries and extras.

Ruben: I would have like nine thousand cans of pork and beans and three hundred thousand rolls of toilet paper.

[audience laughter]

Alexa: After the earthquake, my mom was like ordering backpacks and she ordered like five, like emergency backpacks. They are like, “We’re fully stocked.” I feel like I would have the supplies to be prepared, but I don’t think I’m being like mentally prepared.

Ruben: But listen, here, you in California, you need to be prepared, you know? I mean everybody. I lived in California for a while and then you had water, you had batteries, you got everything, everything ready in case something happened the other day. There was a big one here. I mean, for whatever, you know, thank God. Nothing happened, but you gotta be ready.

Q) What was your favorite episode to film and why?

Ruben: I know which one, but I can’t talk about it.

Alexa: Me too! I’ll say my second favorite, one of my favorite episodes that I did was episode four with Ruben and we went through that whole journeys with our characters together and got to work with Skidmark.

Ruben: I can’t talk about that one and I agree with her. I mean, for me it was special because I did something I never do, you know? And, and I didn’t make a fool of myself doing it, which I could have easily. So, I had a ball.