Mayfair Witches – Season 2

By starrymag | January 5, 2025

By: Jamie Steinberg

 

 

 

Q) Each of you talk about your kind of your character in relation to Rowan this season, because obviously, Alyssa and Ben, your characters are new. But Tongayi and Harry, they’re definitely different interactions this season. Let’s just say so if you could each talk about that.

Ben Feldman: I, Sam “Lark” Larkin is Rowan’s ex-boyfriend. And he runs a genetic Genetics Company. I don’t know how much I can say about any of this, but he’s sort of reeled back into her life for the story that takes place over the season, and there’s a lot of nuance and subtext to their relationship because it didn’t work out once. And now they’re back together. Will they or won’t they? That’s what I want to know.

Alyssa Jirrels: I am Moira, and Moira is Rowan’s cousin. So, she is basically has wants nothing to do with the family but is again reeled back in because of her sister Tessa being killed, and all she knows is that Rowan has quite a bit to do with that. And so she really doesn’t trust her at the top. And they sort of go through a process of bit of a you know, a power play together, and then they it’s also a bit will they or won’t they? In a different way?

Tongayi Chirisa: Well, you know what’s going on with me. And oh, she wants nothing to do with me. Okay. She done walked off end of season one and now I’m left to figure out a couple of things about who Cip is and what his relationship is with the Talamasca and I think we start to see him just making some more informed independent decisions outside of the organization, and his feelings towards Rowan concerning Lasher (Jack Huston). But, yes, as far as season one goes, they’re not seeing eye to eye right now.

Harry Hamlin: Cortland is the supposed patriarch of this family of witches. And I’m not sure whether I’m the father of Rowan, the brother of Rowan or the uncle of Rowan. I know I’m related in many ways to many of the witches in the family. Anne Rice had her own idea about exchanging bodily fluids among family members. So, I definitely I’m finding out with each season and each script how weird the relationships between Cortland and all the other witches are, and it’s always fun to read these scripts, because they don’t tell us in advance where we’re headed at the end of the season. So, we find out that we’re not really who we thought we were. For those of you who have seen the first seven episodes, Cortland makes a pretty dramatic change during this course of the season which is really fun for me as an artist to have two canvases to play with. I don’t know if you know what that means exactly, but you’ll find out when you see the rest of the show. It’s been a really fun season for me and getting to know Ben. And you guys are great inspirations for me as an artist, as an actor. I just hope that we do a season. 3.

Q) Ben, and this is such a darker role than we’ve seen you in lately. Were you looking to do more dramatic work these days? Or is this just a project that found you, and you couldn’t pass it up.

Ben: I kind of both. I mean I haven’t done a lot of this. I mean, I’ve done horror films which this often felt like. But it’s weird. It’s a weird show, and it’s crazy. Everything is just bonkers. And I think that’s what appealed to me specifically. I can’t speak for the rest of the cast, but it was just unlike anything that I’d done, and unlike anything that I watched, and I liked the idea that I could be in this world where sort of anything is possible, and it’s dark and it’s creepy. But at the same time, I don’t have to do a lot of running and screaming and magical witch stuff. I’m sort of an observer which made it really interesting to me. I could still kind of be me, and not have to learn any Latin chants.

Q) In the words of George Costanza “worlds are colliding.” The world of the vampires is now kind of colliding with the world of the witches. Is this change exciting for you guys?

Ben: We have had characters from the other universes on the show. Yeah. I mean, that’s what I offer.

Tongayi: Yeah, I think Esta [Spalding] mentioned that on one of the panels that we had a vampire. She didn’t say who, but there was a vampire that makes an appearance. On our season. So, yeah, very excited to see more of that. And hopefully, at some point we’ll see one of us topping over to “Interview” hopefully for their season 3 who knows.

Q) This is such a huge franchise and such an important lexicon of pop culture. What does it mean to each of you? Be part of a franchise that’s so huge.

Harry: I’ve been in some franchises before. Then some, you know. Some shows that were considered big. We don’t really know that on the inside, you have that perception of what we’re doing. We are just showing up for work every morning and doing the next indicated action. And then you guys form your opinion about whether it’s a big franchise or not, so I’m glad to hear that you think it is a big franchise. That’s great. How do you guys feel about it?

Alyssa: That’s a great answer.

Tongayi: I mean, it’s actually pretty true. It’s like the pebble effect you. You throw something in the water. It ripples out, but you don’t quite understand or quite know how far reaching it is, you know, until you start to get the feedback. So, I haven’t personally heard anything, but I think with, if anything is a testament, I think, with it being released on Netflix a couple of months ago and being in the Top 10 for what? Six to eight weeks or something like that? I don’t know what those numbers translate to, but I think that’s a big deal to be Top 10 for that long so hopefully that that will translate to something monumental at some point we’ll know these numbers. But very excited, nonetheless.

Ben: I’ll also say for me, personally, and this also goes to the earlier question for me personally and specific to this particular universe. Anne Rice was like my mom’s favorite. My mom passed away a couple of years ago, but when she was around, she had Anne Rice posters all over her walls and pictures of her going to Anne Rice parties and vampires licking her cleavage, and just like wigs. And she read all the books, and my mom considered herself a witch, and she did tarot cards, and she wrote in Wiccan. So, for me, it’s an incredible of the universes you could be a part of. I think this is such a really interesting and strange and bizarre one to be a part of, and that’s how it connects to me. Specifically, it was one of the reasons why I joined. The main picture in our office, like the biggest picture framed, was like this guy. I think he had like a leather collar with spikes on it, like it was a real S&M kind of dom situation and it was an Anne Rice party, and my mom had this like sequined super, low cut dress and like a wig on, and a witch hat, and he was he was groping her. So, if anybody wants a little window into how I grew up…

Alyssa: I think what Harry said and what everybody said, really, but it’s I. I wasn’t super aware of Anne Rice. But it’s a cool thing to sort of watch people come out of the woodworks. People are so passionate about this genre, like people who love this genre love this genre. So, that’s very exciting to sort of get to see various friends and families’ obsession with things like this, and it’s exciting to be in New Orleans as well because they’re so proud of Anne Rice. That’s so the culture of that. So, yeah, really it’s a blessing to be able to kind of go into a new world in that way.

Q) One of the things about the show is getting power, keeping power or seeking power. Talk about that – how it relates so far, maybe with the 1st season, and if you want to hint about season 2.

Alyssa: Yeah, it’s so interesting. I mean. I think on my end for Moira sheets. She’s very suspicious of specifically the Mayfair’s relationship to that power. And I think she’s very used to it being used for all the wrong reasons. But it’s also a tempting thing. So, yeah, I I think she’s kind of the only one. And maybe that’s not your guys’ perspective, but I feel like she’s one of the only ones who has perhaps a correct understanding and suspicion of how it can be used in all the bad ways.

Ben: Yeah, if you completely ignore my character’s existence, I would argue yours. You’re the only moral compass in the show.

[laughs]

Alyssa: Oh, yeah, sorry. You’re so easy to forget about.

Ben: I don’t know. I wasn’t here last year. But this this season feels more, to Alyssa’s point, a morality play because it’s not just getting power and keeping power is what you do with power, and what justifies what. Once you’ve gotten to a super dark and dangerous place is doing something bad for the greater good morally just. And I think there’s a lot of exploration of that in this particular season.

Harry: The end justifies the means. Is that what you’re saying?

Ben: I mean, that’s the question. I think a lot of times in this season. Does the end justify the means, at least, certainly from my character’s perspective. Who’s an outsider? And it’s just watching all this batshit crazy stuff happen in front of him and wondering if you know Rowan is as good as he thought she was.

Harry: Well, I think her answer to this question would be the seminal one because she’s the one who did not know she had these powers now has them and has to figure out what to do with them and how to deal with that. So, from Cortland’s perspective, I don’t really have any powers. I’m just. I live forever, I guess. I mean they can change that whenever they want. But right now I have job security. So, maybe.

Tongayi: I think, for Cip’s character, like you said some people power was bestowed unto them, like Rowan, who didn’t know. But I think for Cip, he’s starting to grow into that knowledge – not only for himself, but I think the position that he faces and he finds himself with the Talamasca and the opportunity to grow into the status quo power that he might eventually have and to see what he would do with that based off of his experiences, not only with himself, but within the context of the Mayfair family and every other supernatural entity that he might encounter. So, I’m excited to see what that looks like because he most certainly hasn’t tapped into everything. But he’s starting to understand and learn.

Q) Ben, you and Alexandra get pretty close this season. Talk about working with her.

Ben:  Alex is fantastic. Is a great is a is a really fun hang, which I think first and foremost is important to me. But she’s a great actress. You can kind of see she could be going through whatever in real life and then the camera will turn on and she’s like locked. She’s just she can turn on a dime in a way that I wish I could. I carry baggage everywhere I go. But we had a lot of fun. What was cool for Alex and I, specifically on this show without giving too much away, is that I would show up to a scene and she’ll be like, “Oh, thank God, it’s one of your scenes.” She’s like, “All day long I’ve been commanding a thunderstorm,” and we just get to have this kind of almost rom-com moment. I mean, there’s a lot of before things get a little out of hand. It’s just a character relationship study essentially. And so it was lighter. I got a much lighter experience, and whenever Alex and I were together it was a lot of fun because it felt like almost a different story than the bigger, greater, scarier, creepier one.

Q) What is it like to have Ted Levine, Buffalo Bill himself, will join this cast. And I mean, what did you find particularly special about his work as a fan myself?

Harry: Well, I guess I spend probably the most time with Ted, and I mean talk about a commanding presence. And, also, someone who can shake you to your bones with a look. I mean, all he has to do is, look you give you the side eye, you know, and my blood would run cold. But what a great guy! We had a tremendous amount of fun on the set. I won’t go into our last scene together, which was you know. No, he’s a fantastic, fantastic dude to work with. Yeah.

Alyssa Jirrels: Yeah, I went and watched him a couple of the days that he was working. I just went and sat in Video village, and he would do something completely different. Every single take just little subtleties or big swinging choices, completely different. He’s really quite a lovely guy; like he’s very sweet and but a very intense presence, for sure. And, yeah, extremely commanding on camera. And but I just really loved watching him because I thought he had some. He has just the ability to completely turn a scene over if he so chooses, which is really exciting to watch.

 

*CONFERENCE CALL*