"If the first season was defined by control, the second season is defined by chaos."
— Westworld (@WestworldHBO) December 5, 2016
The #Westworld cast & crew dive into the season finale pic.twitter.com/1D9lEbolQ7
What did you think when you learned that William and the Man in Black are the same person?
I was looking at [Jimmi Simpson] and thinking, "I don't have that mole on my cheek. I don't particularly look like him, but at least we're somewhat similar!" I was thinking, "Good luck, buddy." I like Jimmi. I like him a lot. I think he did a great job. But I was more concerned with what I was doing show-to-show and what was happening in the present time. I was certainly aware of the former relationship with Dolores and all of that. But I wasn't looking back. I was looking forward.
I was looking at [Jimmi Simpson] and thinking, "I don't have that mole on my cheek. I don't particularly look like him, but at least we're somewhat similar!" I was thinking, "Good luck, buddy." I like Jimmi. I like him a lot. I think he did a great job. But I was more concerned with what I was doing show-to-show and what was happening in the present time. I was certainly aware of the former relationship with Dolores and all of that. But I wasn't looking back. I was looking forward.
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Dolores turns the gun on the crowd, and we see her through Teddy's eyes. He looks terrified, and you can understand why. He and Dolores are star-crossed lovers, but he's also Wyatt's sworn adversary. Teddy is looking at his great love and his great enemy in the same person. Did you sense that conflict in the character?
Yes. I think the question on a lot of people's minds is if they're now going to be enemies, or are they going to join forces? I think that's a good question. I did love filming that scene. I think I really surprised James with my delivery. In my first take, I came up behind him and just pulled him into me and whispered in his ear, and when they yelled cut, he was just like, "Jesus Christ, Evan! What the hell?" (Laughs.) I had been this sweet and innocent Dolores with him, and now here was this sultry, primal, evil thing. I think I made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up a bit.
Hopefully it won't require too much arm-twisting to get Dolores and Maeve in a scene together.
I'm really looking forward to that. I only got one scene with Thandie, and that was a real bummer. I think she's just incredible. I would certainly look forward to this newfound Dolores and newfound Maeve either joining forces or going toe to toe.
Yes. I think the question on a lot of people's minds is if they're now going to be enemies, or are they going to join forces? I think that's a good question. I did love filming that scene. I think I really surprised James with my delivery. In my first take, I came up behind him and just pulled him into me and whispered in his ear, and when they yelled cut, he was just like, "Jesus Christ, Evan! What the hell?" (Laughs.) I had been this sweet and innocent Dolores with him, and now here was this sultry, primal, evil thing. I think I made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up a bit.
Hopefully it won't require too much arm-twisting to get Dolores and Maeve in a scene together.
I'm really looking forward to that. I only got one scene with Thandie, and that was a real bummer. I think she's just incredible. I would certainly look forward to this newfound Dolores and newfound Maeve either joining forces or going toe to toe.
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Speaking of teasing, I love the glimpse at Samurai World. Or perhaps it’s Shogun World or Sensei World? Anything you can tell us about this glimpse into the other park. We also got the other hint of “Park 1” being written the note telling Maeve her daughter’s location.
JOY: We’re definitely teasing there are other worlds. How many other worlds and what is the nature of the other worlds is something we’ll start to explore more in season 2. But it was definitely fun filming those samurai.
NOLAN: It was awesome. Something we’re constantly asked is, “Is there a Roman World and Medieval World?” We couldn’t say “no,” because we wanted to go in a slightly different direction. This samurai-shogun world, for us, has a very specific relation to the Western. Some of my favorite movies are the Sergio Leone adaptations of the Akira Kurosawa samurai films: The Seven Samurai and The Magnificent Seven. In the period when the Western was the biggest genre in the world, the interplay between Westerns and samurai films in the domestic market in Japan was really cool. On that meta level, those two genres have this almost incestuous relationship with each other. We just couldn’t resist.
JOY: We’re definitely teasing there are other worlds. How many other worlds and what is the nature of the other worlds is something we’ll start to explore more in season 2. But it was definitely fun filming those samurai.
NOLAN: It was awesome. Something we’re constantly asked is, “Is there a Roman World and Medieval World?” We couldn’t say “no,” because we wanted to go in a slightly different direction. This samurai-shogun world, for us, has a very specific relation to the Western. Some of my favorite movies are the Sergio Leone adaptations of the Akira Kurosawa samurai films: The Seven Samurai and The Magnificent Seven. In the period when the Western was the biggest genre in the world, the interplay between Westerns and samurai films in the domestic market in Japan was really cool. On that meta level, those two genres have this almost incestuous relationship with each other. We just couldn’t resist.
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How dead is Ford?
Jonathan Nolan: Oh, he’s dead.
Is he “Anthony Hopkins is available for pilot season” dead?
Nolan: Working with Anthony Hopkins on this season of TV has been one of the greatest pleasures and privileges for Lisa and I in our careers. It’s been an incredible experience, and we’ll see where our story takes us.
So a longer gap than viewers might be expecting between seasons.
Nolan: We won’t be on the air until 2018. We started that conversation with the network when were shooting episode two and we realized the complexity of trying to write and produce the show at the same time. We both work in the movie business as well, and in the movie business the best that you can possibly hope for with a film franchise is to turn around another installment in two or three years. So really on that schedule, we’re doing great.
Joy: We’re racing ahead.
Finally, “SW” stands for Samurai World, right?
Nolan: Stay tuned.
Jonathan Nolan: Oh, he’s dead.
Is he “Anthony Hopkins is available for pilot season” dead?
Nolan: Working with Anthony Hopkins on this season of TV has been one of the greatest pleasures and privileges for Lisa and I in our careers. It’s been an incredible experience, and we’ll see where our story takes us.
So a longer gap than viewers might be expecting between seasons.
Nolan: We won’t be on the air until 2018. We started that conversation with the network when were shooting episode two and we realized the complexity of trying to write and produce the show at the same time. We both work in the movie business as well, and in the movie business the best that you can possibly hope for with a film franchise is to turn around another installment in two or three years. So really on that schedule, we’re doing great.
Joy: We’re racing ahead.
Finally, “SW” stands for Samurai World, right?
Nolan: Stay tuned.
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“You don’t get that when you’re working on a movie, but here we could react to what the actors were giving to us,” adds the co-creator.
What we saw last night took approximately four weeks of shooting time, however, its filming intertwined with episodes 8 and 9. Like Mr. Robot, Westworld is shot by location, with a handful of episodes shot at once. While Mr. Robot‘s creator Sam Esmail directs all the episodes under his watch, Westworld works differently with several different directors like Stephen Williams, Michelle MacLaren and Richard Lewis all meeting on set at the Paramount ranch talking about sequence and tone, so that each episode is matched properly. Much like on Game of Thrones, Westworld directors face 180 situations, which is par for the course: On one day, Nolan found himself directing intimate scenes between Evan Rachel Wood, Anthony Hopkins and Jeffrey Wright, and on another he’s shooting a big action spectacle like Dolores’ shooting spree at Ford’s retirement party.
What we saw last night took approximately four weeks of shooting time, however, its filming intertwined with episodes 8 and 9. Like Mr. Robot, Westworld is shot by location, with a handful of episodes shot at once. While Mr. Robot‘s creator Sam Esmail directs all the episodes under his watch, Westworld works differently with several different directors like Stephen Williams, Michelle MacLaren and Richard Lewis all meeting on set at the Paramount ranch talking about sequence and tone, so that each episode is matched properly. Much like on Game of Thrones, Westworld directors face 180 situations, which is par for the course: On one day, Nolan found himself directing intimate scenes between Evan Rachel Wood, Anthony Hopkins and Jeffrey Wright, and on another he’s shooting a big action spectacle like Dolores’ shooting spree at Ford’s retirement party.
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Ford is no longer the last man standing, thanks to Dolores. Why did Ford need to die in order for this revolution to begin?
Joy: It's a little bit like when Arnold says: "The violence has to be real. The stakes have to be real." Ford is doing this in such dramatic fashion in front of the Delos board. He's basically taking the safety off. There's no turning back from this. It's not a kind of fiction anymore. I think that's part of it.
Nolan: We talked about the Julian Jaynes book [called The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind], which we thought was a very interesting place to start in terms of understanding the hosts' cognition. They would be coaxed into life by this voice of god, and then at a certain point, this god has to realize that his partner was right. The appetites of the audience they were catering to and the story they were telling wasn't what they wanted it to be. These creatures had grown into sentience within that story. They realize the only way for these creatures to be truly free is for that god to die. If on a very literal level, if Ford's voice is the last thing … we've established his voice as an almost telepathic control of the park. The only thing standing between the guests and the hosts is Ford, so he removes himself from that equation.
Will we see Anthony Hopkins in season two?
Nolan: I think with this show, you want to assume nothing. We had a wonderful experience. It was one of the greatest privileges of my career so far, getting to work with Anthony for the first season. It was an incredible experience.
Maeve was thisclose to escaping the park. Will we ever see the outside world, or learn more about it? Is the state of the world a major mystery and/or player in the mythology, to your mind?
Nolan: As Lisa said, we wanted our narrative to follow a simple set of rules, which is that the hosts don't know much about the world that's around them, and therefore neither should the audience. As the seasons go by and our hosts begin to understand a bit more about that world — and this applies to the last question as well — this series is called Westworld. So Westworld the place and the idea of it remains central to our story as we go forward. But the hosts are going to become more curious about what else there is in this world for them to understand and explore. That's where we want our show to go as well.
Joy: It's a little bit like when Arnold says: "The violence has to be real. The stakes have to be real." Ford is doing this in such dramatic fashion in front of the Delos board. He's basically taking the safety off. There's no turning back from this. It's not a kind of fiction anymore. I think that's part of it.
Nolan: We talked about the Julian Jaynes book [called The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind], which we thought was a very interesting place to start in terms of understanding the hosts' cognition. They would be coaxed into life by this voice of god, and then at a certain point, this god has to realize that his partner was right. The appetites of the audience they were catering to and the story they were telling wasn't what they wanted it to be. These creatures had grown into sentience within that story. They realize the only way for these creatures to be truly free is for that god to die. If on a very literal level, if Ford's voice is the last thing … we've established his voice as an almost telepathic control of the park. The only thing standing between the guests and the hosts is Ford, so he removes himself from that equation.
Will we see Anthony Hopkins in season two?
Nolan: I think with this show, you want to assume nothing. We had a wonderful experience. It was one of the greatest privileges of my career so far, getting to work with Anthony for the first season. It was an incredible experience.
Maeve was thisclose to escaping the park. Will we ever see the outside world, or learn more about it? Is the state of the world a major mystery and/or player in the mythology, to your mind?
Nolan: As Lisa said, we wanted our narrative to follow a simple set of rules, which is that the hosts don't know much about the world that's around them, and therefore neither should the audience. As the seasons go by and our hosts begin to understand a bit more about that world — and this applies to the last question as well — this series is called Westworld. So Westworld the place and the idea of it remains central to our story as we go forward. But the hosts are going to become more curious about what else there is in this world for them to understand and explore. That's where we want our show to go as well.
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Dr. Robert Ford’s journey on Westworld came to an unexpected and apparent conclusion in Sunday’s finale. Below star Anthony Hopkins chatted with EW about his role playing the theme park’s mastermind on the show – and the classic film roles that helped inspire his take on the character.
This was your first serious TV show, at least in the United States. What drew you to this project originally?
They sent me the film book to read. I love to work. And I’d seen the original Westworld. But I couldn’t remember it, I only remembered the actors – Yul Brynner, Richard Benjamin. My agent phoned me and said will you meet [showrunner Jonathan Nolan] in order to talk about Westworld and I said, “Yeah.” And I said: “What do they want me to be?” And he said, “Some doctor.” So, Jon, we met and he gave me the script. He said you play the man who invents Westworld. I said, “Is it like Walt Disney?” He said, “Yeah, but it’s even darker than that. It’s almost like a Frankenstein.” So I said, “Yes, I’ll do it.”
What drove Ford? What was his motivation?
I honestly don’t know. He’s obviously a very proud man fascinated by human intelligence, the nature of intelligence, the history of the human being, the nature of consciousness, and the theory that human consciousness – as we know it today – started very recently.
This was your first serious TV show, at least in the United States. What drew you to this project originally?
They sent me the film book to read. I love to work. And I’d seen the original Westworld. But I couldn’t remember it, I only remembered the actors – Yul Brynner, Richard Benjamin. My agent phoned me and said will you meet [showrunner Jonathan Nolan] in order to talk about Westworld and I said, “Yeah.” And I said: “What do they want me to be?” And he said, “Some doctor.” So, Jon, we met and he gave me the script. He said you play the man who invents Westworld. I said, “Is it like Walt Disney?” He said, “Yeah, but it’s even darker than that. It’s almost like a Frankenstein.” So I said, “Yes, I’ll do it.”
What drove Ford? What was his motivation?
I honestly don’t know. He’s obviously a very proud man fascinated by human intelligence, the nature of intelligence, the history of the human being, the nature of consciousness, and the theory that human consciousness – as we know it today – started very recently.
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So you’ve said before you’re on board for Westworld season 2. Clearly being swarmed by hosts isn’t the last we’ve seen of the Man in Black.
I know we’re doing a second season. [Showrunners Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy say] we’re doing 10 episodes. Probably won’t start shooting until June or July. They sound pretty excited about what it’s about. But I have no idea what it will encompass.
Since you don’t know what happens, you’re free to speculate, though. What do you think is next for him?
I don’t know, but it sure seems like there’s going to be an awful lot of violence. I think all hell’s going to break loose. I don’t know if I join forces with the hosts, or what. But I’m happy for Jonah and Lisa. This has been something they’ve been working on for a long time. They have very specific plans for season 2. I think they’re gonna spend more time in Utah next season — they were there for two weeks last season, next season will be a month. They’ve done a great job. And it’s nice to be in a hit.
I know we’re doing a second season. [Showrunners Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy say] we’re doing 10 episodes. Probably won’t start shooting until June or July. They sound pretty excited about what it’s about. But I have no idea what it will encompass.
Since you don’t know what happens, you’re free to speculate, though. What do you think is next for him?
I don’t know, but it sure seems like there’s going to be an awful lot of violence. I think all hell’s going to break loose. I don’t know if I join forces with the hosts, or what. But I’m happy for Jonah and Lisa. This has been something they’ve been working on for a long time. They have very specific plans for season 2. I think they’re gonna spend more time in Utah next season — they were there for two weeks last season, next season will be a month. They’ve done a great job. And it’s nice to be in a hit.
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At long last, Westworld confirmed one of the most popular theories developed over the course of the show's first season: William (Jimmi Simpson), the mild-mannered cynic who rapidly became enamored with the park, is the same person as the Man in Black (Ed Harris).
In that regard, did you feel different on the days you were embracing William's darker sides?
Very, very, very much. I would say my biggest flaw as a performer in my opinion is that things tend to need to be emotionally connected for me to understand how to play them. I have a hard time with technical performance sometimes. If I can't make sense of it emotionally, I get a little bit lost. So at the start, this wide-eyed open was a really beautiful note to play. It's a way I feel in my life a lot, so I was able to go there. The later stuff, the really sad stuff with Evan, we were on the line the entire day. We would spend sixteen hours of the day just miserable that the love of our lives was being torn from ourselves, so we could be available for those scenes. So, very much. But it's by design. It's the way it has to be. I think it's part of what made this experience so immersive for Evan and I. We both go there 100% and we both leaned on each other so much. We really connected.
Do you know yet if you will be back for season two, or has William's story been told?
Well, you know. Nothing's permanent. I'm not contracted to go back, but I'm sure there's a possibility.
In that regard, did you feel different on the days you were embracing William's darker sides?
Very, very, very much. I would say my biggest flaw as a performer in my opinion is that things tend to need to be emotionally connected for me to understand how to play them. I have a hard time with technical performance sometimes. If I can't make sense of it emotionally, I get a little bit lost. So at the start, this wide-eyed open was a really beautiful note to play. It's a way I feel in my life a lot, so I was able to go there. The later stuff, the really sad stuff with Evan, we were on the line the entire day. We would spend sixteen hours of the day just miserable that the love of our lives was being torn from ourselves, so we could be available for those scenes. So, very much. But it's by design. It's the way it has to be. I think it's part of what made this experience so immersive for Evan and I. We both go there 100% and we both leaned on each other so much. We really connected.
Do you know yet if you will be back for season two, or has William's story been told?
Well, you know. Nothing's permanent. I'm not contracted to go back, but I'm sure there's a possibility.
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