Here’s the conclusion to the interview with Haven’s Emily Rose (Audrey Parker) and Lucas Bryant (Nathan Wuornos)!
Haven returns September 11th at 10/9c on Syfy.
There are so many creative Troubles, can you tease any new Troubles that you like?
Lucas: Oh, they’re running out of ideas. This new season we have weird, bottom of the barrel Troubles. Like this guy whose eyes cross when he gets upset.
Emily: [Laughs]
Lucas: No, that’s not true. Somehow they keep coming up with totally off the wall stuff.
Emily: This season has a few of my favorite ones that we’ve ever had. One of them affects our dear friend, Eric Balfour, who plays Duke Crocker. That was really, really… it’s earlier on and it’s funny, in my opinion. Then another one affects everyone in the town and I can’t really be specific about that, but it’s pretty funny. So it’s dramatic and freaky as this season is. What I do like about the Troubles is they don’t always take themselves too seriously and provide a lot of levity for the show. There’s a couple of those that I really like. I can’t obviously say what those are.
Lucas: I think we can say that one that’s probably, well, it’s my favorite […] from this year. I won’t tell you specifically what happens, but there is a kind of Freaky Friday style Trouble. If you know anything about Freaky Friday, that’s a reference to a movie where the people got trapped in each other’s bodies.
Emily: It’s really well done and really funny.
Emily, you mentioned the 26-episode order was a harbinger of doom…
Emily: I don’t think I worded it exactly like that. “Ah, it’s the harbinger of doom!” [Laughs]
Can you talk about your favorite moment of shooting this season?
Emily: I have a couple, as always. One we shot the other day that will come at the end of this season. It was just a cool moment in my career, in general, just to be able to do. That will play out at the end of the first season. The other one isn’t necessarily a specific moment but it’s kind of like what the 26 episodes – shooting a double block – has allowed us (it’s been a love hate relationship for me) in creating these double blocks, we’re in these locations all day to make it easier on production in terms of not having moves or anything. So inevitably what happens, we end up block shooting a lot of the day, which means we’re in one direction filming all the scenes for the day, then we turn around and do them all again on the other side. A lot of what they did to alleviate the pressure on production, initially, was to do a lot of two person scenes. So with Mara being a character new to the forefront, I had a lot of scenes with just Nathan or just Duke or just Dwight or what not. These just kind of like one-on-one scenes and having been in a show that operates exterior mainly and dealing with the end of the world, to have it all pared down, to be able to do some scene work like back in theatre school was a huge challenge, but really rewarding at the end of the day. It allows for the water to my actor’s soul. To actually do scene work was a pleasant surprise and I really enjoyed being able to [it] do with Mara.
Lucas: Personally, like I mentioned, that Trouble before – the Freaky Friday. All aspects of that were a joy to shoot. You’ll understand why when you see it. But then also, what I really enjoyed this season is working with Emily Rose, honestly.
Emily: Shut up. [Laughs]
Lucas: Getting to see her play this totally outrageous character and getting to watch that character develop over the season, and then having to react to that character who is giving me something that is totally, as far as I can imagine, [different] from what I am used to getting from someone who looks exactly like Emily Rose, has been a real pleasure. I’ve really gotten to watch, literally on her face, her discovery I think of, like she said, the lengths that she can go to in this character. The freedom and abandon with which she’s attacked it has been really easy to react to and be with. So that’s been a real pleasure.
Emily, do you want to direct?
Emily: Very much so. I was different from Lucas in that when Lucas, I think the minute he started Haven he had it in his mind that he would want to direct. It’s been an aspiration of his for a long time. For me, I started Haven with no desire to direct at all. I think mainly because I didn’t quite fully understand all that it was. As the show has progressed, I found out very quickly that I really want to direct because I’m bossy in nature, not that directors are bossy. I have a very specific take on, when I read a script, how I feel it should be executed, what I feel it should look like. I just soon discovered that’s a director’s brain. I’ve always really enjoyed photography and I’ve always enjoyed storytelling through acting and stuff. So I definitely, definitely want to direct and was really doing my best – it’s hard when you’re in all the time, as Lucas knows, to shadow part of prep and all of that stuff. But, I tried to do as much as I could. I have a few things working against me. I’m not Canadian, so I can’t just direct if I want to. We have to have Canadian directors. Also, it’s not working against me but it does make it a bit harder for me, just having my son this last year. Every spare minute that I’m not working, whereas I would like to maybe go be a part of a meeting or go shadow something, I have to be home with my baby. So I don’t know when I will get to do that in the future. I’m working on it. I wish it could be with Haven, but I don’t know if that will realistically happen. But, I think the thing that Haven has given me is the opportunity to work and be around and stand next to some really great, great directors that they have here in Canada. And to learn a lot from them and to be around the camera crews and soak it all in. I’m really hoping that whenever that opportunity presents itself, it will be with a family as lovely as this one. I hope it’s sooner, rather than later.
Normally, this would be a cheesy question, but I think it’s not for Haven. Do you have a message for the fans who have really stuck with you guys and pushed to keep Haven on the air?
Emily: Totally.
Lucas: Other than just like vomitus love?
Emily: Yeah, he’s a love sucker for you. Here’s the deal, when I go back and rewatch all the episodes, I start to buy into it around season 2. So for everyone who stuck in through season 1, I’m like, “Really?” You know what I mean? We were just babies back then. I love it. I hope that it keeps paying off and the stories are exciting and enjoyable. We’re really thankful and humbled by your dedication to our show and the fact that we know we wouldn’t be coming back if you weren’t watching and Tweeting and getting on line and making things like…What was it on Get Glue? Making our show one of the top 10 watched shows? All on Netflix and everything… All of this stuff is a result of our fandom. We’re really, really thankful for it. Not only just here in North America with Canada and the States watching, but our global audience is so impressive. I was staying in a bed and breakfast and there was an Italian family there and they were like, “Oh my gosh, you’re on Haven? We love that show!” I was like, “In Italy, really?” It boggles my mind. It’s so impressive. So thank you so much. And also know that we personally, as the characters, are always fighting for the little things that made Haven original in the very beginning and trying to keep it true to some of its original form. We not only do that for ourselves – we’re always like, “We think that the fans will really like it.” You’re always in our minds.
Lucas: Yep.
Emily: Again, I steamrolled Lucas!
Lucas: No, no. It’s absolutely true. Like you said earlier, especially this year, I think, more than any year we’ve been up here, there’ve been people showing up in town from all over the world because they were inspired to come here not just necessarily to try and track us down, but because they wanted to see – or were introduced to Nova Scotia through seeing it on their TVs. It’s not a place that is normally shown on television. There was a family here this year who has been saving – who traveled from France. They decided two years ago that they were going to make the trip and started saving so they could do it. They came and they spent a week here. That sort of dedication, like Emily said, is totally humbling. We are honored that people love this show as much as we do. Really, I know that we all know that we would be – it is reason number 1 that we are still here and able to do this every day – is the fans. So thank you, for all of that.
Emily: And tell your friends, they can catch up and binge watch on Netflix before the next two seasons. The more the merrier and the longer!