Whenever there’s a chance to chat with any of the cast of Warehouse 13 (Syfy, Mondays, 10/9C), I jump at the chance because these guys love to talk about their show. I mean, really love to talk about their show! Where most Q&A’s run for half-an-hour, the folks at W13 will go for as long as they can – and the result often feels more like a conversation with old friends than some obligatory press thing.
Late last week, I had the chance to participate in a call with showrunner Jack Kenny and stars Eddie McClintock (who plays Pete Lattimer) and Joanne Kelly (who plays Myka Bering). The call did not disappoint.
Hey guys, great to talk to you again.
Jack Kenny: Hey, how you doing?
Good, great. So I know this season obviously after what happened to Leena everybody’s upset, can you talk about – I mean I know obviously they’re going to forgive Artie but can you talk about how kind of just the emotions from that is going to continue throughout the rest of the season?
Kenny: Sure let me… sorry?
How it will affect them, sorry.
Kenny: Right obviously we have to – I mean Artie’s the first person that has to deal with this and I’m sure you’ve seen the premier episode already and so we do a really cool thing where Claudia who’s our most obvious choice to go after Artie and bring him back to us, we have a really kind of emotional moment. And yes Artie is dealing very – Artie’s having a very hard time dealing with what he did. He doesn’t – yes he was affected by an artifact but he sees it as his hand is the one that did it and so he’s responsible. So there’s that hurdle that has to be leapt over in terms of Artie making his piece with what an artifact made him do.
And then there’s the tension between Claudia and Artie where we spend actually the next three episodes dealing with in terms of what she had to do him. She had to stab him and bring him back when he didn’t want to come back and a lot of other tension-riddled issues that they have to deal with.
So those are some big hurdles to get over and then also the rest of the crew has to help Artie with this. I mean there’s a second episode where Myka and Steve are helping Artie and dealing with it and then ultimately we bring – and there’s a beautiful moment too where Pete sort of stands up and gives a speech to the regents on Artie’s behalf. I mean the family is rallying around their essentially patriarch to help him deal with this and to help the warehouse move on with that it has to do.
And then we bring in Kelly Hu who essentially comes to run the B&B and we find out that she actually has a deeper purpose and ultimately an even deeper one that I don’t want to reveal yet, but a deeper purpose in that she is there for our people to talk to because I think the regents come to the conclusion that when you die and come back to life, when you kill someone you love, when you are attacked by an artifact and almost killed that maybe there’s some issues that have to be dealt with so a little PTSD that has to be dealt with. And so Kelly’s here for that.
Eddie McClintock: Like I understand the guilt that Artie’s going through. When I was in college I drank and I was in a blackout and when I woke up I had shaved the dog. And I felt guilt about that but everybody was like but Eddie it was the tequila and I said no but it was my hand.
Very true.
Kenny: That’s a beautiful story. Did the dog forgive you?
McClintock: We’re now married.
Kenny: And that’s what everybody was afraid of. That’s that slippery slope that everybody’s been afraid of.
McClintock: Thanks Jackie.
So in the midseason premier you have guest stars James Marsters and Polly Walker, can you talk about what it was like working with them and what other guest stars we can look forward to seeing the second half of the season?
Kenny: Yes sure Eddie do you want to talk with them first and then I’ll dive in?
McClintock: Sure. You know one of the great things about being on Warehouse 13 is when you’re on a successful show, successful people want to be a part of it and so I think we’ve been really lucky in regards to our guest cast. And having James Marsters and Anthony Head in the same show in the same season it’s pretty cool. The legions of Buffy fans are just going to go crazy.
Polly Walker – and not just the fact that they have fans but that they’re also great actors. I would do well to sit back and take notes a lot of time because the talent that we’ve been able to have come through has been really great and it’s a testament to the show and to the writing and to the network.
Kenny: They were – I have to say they both dove in feet first into our family and really fit in nicely. I mean we had a great time. The first episode as you know is mostly – more James than Polly. Polly has a couple of beats in it and then Polly comes back later in the season and has a very big episode, Episode 18, with Artie and Pete and Myka. And they sort of partner up together in search of an artifact which is kind of fun.
So they were just great. You know it’s nice you get actors and they understand the genre and then as Eddie was saying they’re also tremendous actors so they can really play into the sci-fi fantasy of it and also bring you some real good, just some real good acting if you know what I mean. They just fit right into the group. They joined us at our level and that’s always welcome and exciting.
And then we’ve got coming up this season we’ve got Joel Grey is coming to join us in Episode 14 with Steve Valentine and Nora Zehetner. In Episode 13 we do an episode where Pete and Myka fall into a world of film noir and we’re joined by Missi Pyle and Enrico Colantoni, sort of a Galaxy Quest reunion, two people also who had just – I mean Enrico had such a great time on the show he came back to hang out on the set on another episode just because he liked everybody so much.
McClintock: He goes man the vibe on this set is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. I just want to come and hang out with you guys. And if I may say so it really comes from the top down. Jack sets a tone on the show. The tone is basically…
Kenny: Well we also make sure that when they show up everybody gets a hooker in their hotel room so that makes a huge difference.
McClintock: There you go.
Kenny: And people really respond that.
McClintock: And then we shave dogs.
Kenny: But we also – and Missi sings in the episode which is also a lot of fun. We have…
McClintock: Ricardo Chavira
Kenny: Ricardo Chavira, Charlie Weber comes on to play with us in Episode 6.
McClintock: Cynthia Watros.
Kenny: Cynthia Watros is in Episode 17. When I say 6 I mean 16. Sorry it’s the ten episode thing that throws me.
And of course Anthony Head is coming to join us for the last three episodes and he turns out to be quite a powerful character. As it’s been released he plays a 16th century alchemist, rogue alchemist names (Paracelsus) and I like to joke that our show is probably one of the only shows on TV that you can have a great time, laugh, cry and get course credit for watching because we do lots of teaching.
Well the first few episodes are great and it sounds like we’ve got a lot of great other episodes to look forward to. Thanks a lot.
Kenny: We do thank you. Thank you. Oh and I didn’t also mention Emily Bergl is coming on as well in Episode 12 and oh God Eddie help me I’m forgetting Ranger Smith.
McClintock: Oh gosh I can’t remember.
Kenny: I’ll think of it in a minute.
McClintock: It was so long ago.
Congratulations on a great midseason premier. I really loved the way that especially Eddie you and Joanne deal with the (unintelligible) aspect and Jack I think it’s all presented really, really nicely. Was that whole aspect kind of one of the more favorite storylines for each of you for this season or is there something that was particularly good or fun or memorable for you?
McClintock: Thank you. I wouldn’t say that it was a particularly – I don’t know if it stands out as a favorite necessarily which I guess that can tell you something about how good I think the following episodes are. They’re just as Jack said we get caught in a noir novel and that was so much fun to play.
Again it’s Warehouse 13 so we’re traveling around the world and we’re doing crazy, fun, exciting stuff from episode to episode. I mean I couldn’t tell you that I have a particular favorite storyline in that regard because they’re all so much fun to do.
Kenny: We had – I will say that I know are you talking about the ten episodes of Season 4?
The ones that are about to premiere that you screened.
Kenny: Oh the ones that (unintelligible). It was – premieres are always – and I usually end up – premiers are always so heavily involved with cleaning up the mess we made in the finale of the season before that it’s a lot of – it’s oftentimes a lot of exposition but it’s really fun. They’re always my favorites because of the amount of work that goes into just cleaning things up and starting an entirely new arc. So I have a great time with premiers.
And I know that Saul really – Saul and Allison both really got to sink their teeth into some major stuff in the premier episode and coming out of last season as well. So I know that they both really, really dug diving in there and we get to see James McPherson again and Lindsay Wagner and we just had a great time with these guys coming back.
But like Eddie was saying in this next group of ten the noir episode, the Las Vegas episode where people get levitated up into the sky, there’s a pirate – we go in search of pirate’s treasure in Episode 18. There’s a really beautiful moment in Episode 17 where we explore Pete’s last really bad ugly drunk when he was drinking years ago and the really awful event that happened because of that and it revisits it in a very painful and emotional way that he and Myka are dealing with and it’s just really – we get to deal with some nice, deep stuff and stuff that you need your family to hang onto while it’s happening.
It’s been a really fun ride this Season 4.5. We’re very excited about what’s coming up.
The first few episodes back were great. I just finished watching the second one earlier today. So Jack my first question right now is how did you choose the previous/current characters to be in Artie’s mind or subconscious or whatever when Claudia and Steve went to pull him out?
Kenny: Well we went with our two well I guess most people’s two basic instincts — love and hate. So there’s – and even with McPherson there’s a love/hate element to it. But we went to the most powerful people in Artie’s mind that our people could also immediately relate to. I mean we could have introduced entirely new characters.
We could have had – we talked briefly about suddenly Artie’s mother shows up and she was the terror of his youth or something. But you spend so much time explaining who the character is that by the time they get to actually talk, you don’t have time to do a story. So we felt like the most visceral things in Artie’s mind were the woman that he’s in love with, the man who he most fears and hates because of what he’s done to him and then the woman who’s also the most powerful presence in his life Mrs. Frederic.
We felt like those would be instantly recognizable and easy to deal with and also the most fun because especially when you have McPherson in an episode it’s going to be some good snarling fun.
Right, right. Yes they seem to be the characters who have shaped Artie and his character, not Saul’s character but Artie’s character himself.
Kenny: Exactly. Right absolutely. I mean someday it would be nice to meet Artie’s mom to find out what that was like. I think there’s an episode somewhere in the past where he talks about something horrifying about his mom and he said you’ve never met my mother. There’s some comment like that. So someday we’ll meet his mother and she’ll be a piece of work.
McClintock: What about Pete’s sister?
Kenny: Sure we’ll meet Pete’s sister. I don’t know when but absolutely. You got your mom in the show, what more do you want?
McClintock: I want to meet her.
Kenny: You want to meet her because you want a sexy actress to play her.
McClintock: Hello!
Ew.
Kenny: I know, see?
McClintock: I’m nasty.
Yes, exactly.
McClintock: Thank you.
On the subject of Leena’s death I wanted to thank you for the way her death was resolved in Episode 12. I thought it was wonderfully and meaningfully written and handled. And I wondered if you could share what originally motivated the decision to kill her character and what the loss of Genelle has meant to the behind the scenes Warehouse 13 family.
Kenny: Well it was very difficult for all of us because Genelle was so sweet and wonderful. There’s a lot of different levels that that played on for me as a showrunner and head writer too.
Essentially we needed somebody to die and stay dead because we’d brought back Artie, we brought back Steve and if death doesn’t mean anything then the stories no longer have stakes. If you can bring back anybody from dead then death is no longer a danger and so it becomes impossible to make something dangerous to raise the stakes in the story. So we had to lose someone that stayed lost so that we could deal with real mortality since mortality was such a strong element of our season this year. So that was one thing was very important.
Then it became well who can we lose, who in the cast can we lose and yet it would still have a powerful impact on everybody. And Leena was the obvious choice because it was hard to get Leena into stories, into artifacts snag and bag since she’s not an agent and yet it would have meaning for the cast to lose that character for the characters to lose her because she’s such a warm and lovely presence and such a loving presence in their lives.
So it was sort of the perfect opportunity to really punch everybody in the gut and have them have to deal with something monumental in their lives. Any other external character wouldn’t have meant the same thing. And also such an innocent, such a pure innocent who was literally turned around to help Artie when she thought he needed it, essentially gave her life.
And then in the second episode one of the things we tried to show was that everybody knows what they’re getting into when they take this – when they go to work for the warehouse. It is a dangerous job. It’s like joining the military. You could lose your life and you have to be prepared for that. So that was also very important.
But everybody – Genelle was so lovely and so sweet and everybody loves her. We do get to see her in a few more episodes because as you know it’s sci-fi, one you’re dead it doesn’t mean you’re off the show just because you’re dead.
McClintock: Right.
Joanne Kelly: Hi everybody! Sorry I’m late. It’s Joanne.
Kenny: Hi Joanne.
McClintock: Hey Joanne.
Kenny: All right Joanne Kelly.
McClintock: Now Jo you have to do all the talking from here on out.
Kenny: That’s it.
Kelly: I’m so sorry. I was like I feel like there’s something I should be doing. I don’t know what it is.
Gary Morgenstein (Syfy): All right Joanne you definitely get the next question. (Benjamin) will you put forward the next question. It has to do with Joanne — and a tough question.
Okay fortunately it actually is for Joanne except for one thing.
Kelly: Oh yes just in time.
No, really. But first of all Eddie I just got make sure I know this. Is that deeply touching story about shaving the dog, is that a true story or were you just joking? because using a head razor to shave a dog scares me.
McClintock: It was a euphemism.
Okay thank you very much. I want to get that out of my mind.
Kelly: Oh my God what did I just come into?
((Crosstalk))
McClintock: You’ll find out later.
Kenny: I don’t want to know what he shaved.
Anyway my question for Joanne kind of a two-part thing here. Archery is the new big thing nowadays and you get to shoot Da Vinci’s gargoyle which hardly anybody ever gets to do. I was wondering if any of these things are skills that you had a Canadian kid because you seem real handy with everything you do, guns and now a bow and arrow and riding and everything.
Kelly: Yes actually. My dad was a gun collector. I was a top female with a .22 in my region was I was I think 14 or 15. I was a girl…
McClintock: (Unintelligible) 32.
Kelly: What?
McClintock: Murphy region 32.
Kelly: I have no idea what you’re talking about.
McClintock: Never mind.
Kelly: Okay sorry, sorry.
McClintock: Sorry, sorry.
Kenny: I’m sorry.
Kelly: And I grew up – I was a bit of a tomboy. In theater school I worked with rapiers and (unintelligible) blades and I’d get a lot of stage combat because I come from the theater and I think all that kind of helps. Plus I played a lot of sports when I was a kid. So as clumsy as I am I can kind of find my way around I guess.
And this is continued as a just a second, you’re with some of the original female pioneers of sci-fi. When you’re with Kate Mulgrew and Lindsay, too. Were those shows that you watched as a kid and were you excited when you got a chance to act with them?
Kelly: You know it’s so weird. We didn’t have cable growing up. I didn’t watch TV really so the answer is no. I mean of course you know you kind of – when I went to university and stuff, you know, when I started to really watch television, of course I know who they are and I know like what Star Trek is and stuff like this, I didn’t miss that stuff. But the truth is no, no I come as a – when I get to work with these people and stuff I see how amazing they are and I hear about their stories. But I don’t know. That’s not a part of I guess my history at all.
Kenny: I think Lindsay was relieved because she didn’t have sign a lunchbox. I think Lindsay’s always – folks like that are always relieved when somebody says oh you know I didn’t watch the show. “Oh thank God I don’t have to talk about it.”
Kelly: Yes I feel bad sometimes but I also – I don’t know, it never seems to really matter one way or the other which I’m quite grateful for.
I wanted to ask you guys about the new timeslot. Is that – because the show has kind of a taken a darker turn and embracing the humor and the darkness, is that timeslot going to help you proceed along those lines?
Kenny: Well this probably going to come as shock but they don’t ever ask us what timeslot we’d like to be in so we never get to really – really get a say. And I don’t think it’s a response to the darker storyline that we did last season because in terms of all their research people seem to really enjoy that so I don’t know that it’s a response to that.
Honestly my only concern about – because I don’t know the last time I watched something when it was actually on so I don’t know that timeslots matter anymore. Most of the shows I record I don’t know when they’re on. I just know there’s a show I want to get and I watch it. Oh look there’s a new Game of Thrones on the TiVo, I get to watch that now.
So I don’t know that the timeslot’s going to have much of an effect accept for hopefully the great huge number of people that will be tuning live next Monday night at 10 o’clock to catch our show and then hopefully they’ll just stay up late to watch it. So I don’t know that it hurts or helps anymore especially on a show that’s been on for a while. People just type it into the DVRs and grab it.
But let me add to that please, please, please watch our show live Monday night at least for the next three weeks so our numbers are huge and we get picked up for Season 5.
Kelly: Yes please.
McClintock: That would be great.
Kelly: Please watch it live because I think that they have the premier up on SyFy’s Web site, is that correct?
Kenny: Yes it’s everywhere right now.
McClintock: You also can watch it On Demand.
Kenny: And on Hulu.
McClintock: And on your TV.
Kelly: Oh so I guess we really need the people who support the show to tune in on that day even if you just turn it on and walk around in the background, to tune in to support the show for realsy, for realsy.
Well thank you guys. I’m glad you stole Jaime Murray from Defiance for a little bit there. That was kind of neat and I actually watched Warehouse 13 on my Kindle so…
((Crosstalk))
Kenny: You know Jaime’s coming back in Episode 15 of the next ten.
Oh, cool.
Kenny: Yes it’s a really great storyline with her and Pete and Myka on a chase and we kind of find out where H. G. ended up and what’s she’s doing and is she happy doing it. It’s a great episode. It was directed by (Jennifer Lynch), David Lynch’s daughter. It’s really fun.
Cool.
Kelly: Yes it was – sorry.
No, go ahead please.
Kelly: Oh I was just going to say it was one of – there’s some really, really nice moments with Myka and H. G. during that episode. I really, really enjoyed it. It’s worth checking out.
One of the best things you guys did was having H. G. Wells as a woman, fantastic. I loved it.
Kenny: Oh, thank you.
Kelly: Thank you. Well I guess that just not me thank you. That’s just Jack thank you.
McClintock: It can be a group thank you.
Kelly: Really? Oh good.
Kenny: Oh sure.
McClintock: Jack’s generous right Jack?
Kenny: Well yes. So go ahead.
Speaking of H. G. Wells, we’re curious as to how that exploration of Myka and H. G.’s relationship will be explored and what would it do since we don’t know what’s coming in the next eight episodes, for some of us who haven’t seen them, but how it’s going to pan out and how Myka’s going to handle it. We saw she handled it when she lost H. G. the first two times.
Kenny: Well you know what we find on our show interestingly enough for relationships we discovered it, what was it, Season Two, we had Paula Garces playing Dr. Kelly as a love interest for Pete and we tried it with Claudia and honestly even with Artie and Dr. Vanessa, because the show is basically an action adventure comedy and our guys are always out in the field or it isn’t really much of story, there aren’t too many stories that happen in (Univille) at the B&B, it’s really hard to service any kind of relationship even close friends or more than friends relationships.
It’s just really hard to service that because it takes them out of the story or we have to manufacturer something else happening. There’s just so many artifacts that are going to show up in your boyfriend’s life or you girlfriend’s life. The show just gets weird if it gets too inside baseball, you know? So we discovered that relationships can pop up briefly on the show but then they just have to be in the background.
And as far as the way we view Myka and H. G. I just think it’s a relationship – to me it’s important to show a relationship where two women who obviously care about each other, obviously love each other, obviously have a great deal of respect for each other and what they do, there’s no threat, there’s no competition, they’re just very close and they’re great, great friends and could it be more? Yes sure, in another world where they were doing other things, sure possibly. But frankly neither of them have time for a relationship, you know, with anybody. So it just becomes – we become a slave to the show in that regard.
I was curious if it would affect Myka the way had it previously.
Kenny: You mean the Episode 15 coming up?
No before in Season Three she had with H. G. Wells turning, how it affected her, not a relationship like together but the way that it affected Myka and her performance and sometimes it seemed she doubted herself. That was really deep and intense at times.
Kenny: Jo you want to dive in?
Kelly: I’m having trouble understanding the question I’m so sorry.
Kenny: I think that…
It’s going to – H. G. is coming back for the latter half of the season and I was just wondering if that affects Myka in a positive or a negative way, if you were able to tell us because we’ve seen how it has affected her in the past.
Kelly: Well obviously when we see H. G. you know kind of give her life for the warehouse it was a huge moment. I think there’s a lot of confusion and I think that we see these women trying to connect and try to redefine themselves after the huge events that kind of have befallen them both. And I think that their relationship is kind of a constant journey.
And I think H. G. will always kind of have a positive – I think there’s something really nice about having two women as Jack mentioned earlier that aren’t you know bitchy to each other, that two women yes women actually do like each other and sometimes can love, you know, and I don’t think H. G. is ever a negative thing in Myka’s world.
Kenny: It’s nice to see that each – it seems like each character makes the other one ask themselves really good questions about where they are in their life and what’s going on.
I know that in Episode 15 some issues come up between H. G. and Myka where Myka asks the way you would of a close friend that you really care about, she asks some tough questions. She raises some really tough issues with her about where she is and what she’s doing and only someone who loves you can ask you those kind of questions without getting thrown out of the room.
Kelly: Yes definitely. I think it’s any relationship between two people of the same sex, roughly the same age sometimes it’s like looking in the mirror a little bit especially with your best friends, you know? You ask the questions maybe you can’t ask yourself of the other person, you know?
So I think it’s a really interesting dynamic and I’m excited for the fans who are fan of that relationship to see that episode because I think they’ll be very happy.
This question is for Eddie. Your character Pete confuses many situations with your goofball humor and in the episode coming up, Living and the Dead, the subject matter kind of becomes a little bit gray for Pete. Would you like to see the writers give Pete more of a subdued humor in episodes like that or do you think it’s Pete’s humor that saves him from falling apart at the seams? And to follow that up, for Joanne and Jack is Eddie as funny as he thinks he is or is it just the brilliant writing?
McClintock: Well I guess I don’t do subdued first of all. I’m not really – subdued is not really in my wheelhouse generally. No I love Pete, I love the way that writers, the way Jack has – I mean Jack and I have known each other since 1998. He was one of the writer producers on my first show ever so he knows me pretty well and I trust him.
And actually I’ll even say to Jack I’ll say, “Well what if I do this?” And he’ll say, “Well we don’t want Pete to look like a fool, you know? We want Pete to – we want him to be competent and you want to be careful not to cross that line.” So I’m real happy with the direction of the character and I think that as you said Pete uses his sense of humor to protect himself. It’s a defense mechanism.
And I mean I think if he were also not good at his job than you could say he’s an idiot but he’s good at his job and he’s loyal and he’s heroic and ultimately if you notice he ends up solving a lot of the things that maybe Myka didn’t think of because Myka thinks more linearly than he does. So I think you need his type of mentality around.
Kenny: The other thing about Pete’s humor is it’s survival technique, it’s a way to – I mean he gets into some pretty scary, dangerous type situations and I think it’s the way he kind of relaxes and sees the way out, you know? He makes a joke, it keeps him calm, it keeps him moving rather than focusing on the danger in the moment. That’s the way his mind works. It’s his survival technique as Eddie said.
And a quick question for Joanne, Eddie is actually tweeting while this conversation is going on…
((Crosstalk))
Kelly: Of course he is. I would not expect anything less.
He just sent me a personal tweet. Are we going to see you on Twitter any time soon?
Kelly: No.
McClintock: (Unintelligible).
Kelly: You know what? There are certain things that it’s not my jam, it’s not my jam. I don’t follow on – I don’t really understand it. I always say I’ll start tweeting when I stop drinking.
So the answer’s no then?
Kenny: No cable TV, no Twitter. She sounds like my mother.
((Crosstalk))
Kelly: I like the printed page. I love the smell of a new book. Those are the things that I get excited about. Maybe in the future if something about it stokes my interest but at this point in time I’d say no I don’t think so.
My first question really I’ve got is for Jack. You know Jaime Murray she’s now doing Defiance and I know that she’s coming back in to Warehouse 13 for an episode, but there was something awhile back about a spinoff series with H. G. Wells. Is that kind of now been put to bed sort of thing now or do you still hope to do a movie or something (unintelligible)?
Kenny: Well you know we – Bob Goodman and I, one of the other writer’s on the show here, Bob and I pitched a series for H. G. and I think at the time we pitched it as a period piece, 1890s New York as she was kind of a Sherlock Holmes kind of character, also scouting for Warehouse 13. So it was – but those things get expensive and I think that the development slate gets filled up with other things and so they take their time.
Nothing’s ever dead in Hollywood. Sure a movie would be great. I’d love to do a movie with that character. I’d love to do a series. I’d love to have her back on the show occasionally just playing H. G. in our world. So I can’t say that anything’s in the (unintelligible) but I can say that I’m open to anything anybody wants to do because I love the character, I love the relationship and the dynamic she has both with our characters and with the world in general. And I think it world be a really dynamic, fun character to have on TV that kind of isn’t there right now, that sort of metrosexual period piece woman who is smarter than anybody else in the room. I’d love to dive into that sometime.
And Jaime Murray’s just so good at playing those sort of characters well. I remember back in the day when she was on Hustle over here in the U.K.
Kenny: Yes she’s fantastic.
A quick question for Joanne, Joanne you did a couple of episodes last season where you were working very, very closely with Claudia and you were taking Claudia out into the field. Would you like to do more of those kinds of episode where it’s just you girls? Because I just found that the dynamic between those two characters was kind of fun to watch.
Kelly: Yes I mean I love the mix and match episodes. I think, you know, Eddie and I are such old hands at being together all the time and there’s this sort of ease when we do our episodes together. But the mix and match are fun. They’re different, it’s a different stride.
I like to see the way that Myka’s and Claudia’s relationship has like kind of grown as their relationship has grown. We see sort of at the beginning in Season One a big sister/little sister kind of a deal and as Allison herself and Claudia the character has gotten older we see them more on equal footing which has been really interesting to explore.
Cool. And one last question Jack before I got. I noticed that I actually read somewhere that you’re anxious to explore the thing with Claudia that she’s essentially the caretaker of the warehouse. Could you talk a little bit about that?
Kenny: I’m sorry just the first – the what with Claudia?
That she’s kind of like a caretaker to the warehouse, that she could potentially replace Mrs. Frederic. I read somewhere about it and they actually (unintelligible). Are we going to see something about that this season?
Kenny: Absolutely. Actually that’s a big driver to our season finale.
We’ve always teased that Claudia has a destiny at the warehouse beyond just being an agent. And one of the things we’ll learn into certainly into Season 4.5 and even in Season 5 that we’ve been talking about here in the writer’s room these days is that there are certain people destined to be connected to the warehouse, to be in the life of the warehouse no matter what the world does or what the world looks like, they will always be connected. And Claudia is just one of those people that was destined to be here as you’ll hear Artie talk about it in Season 4.5 that she was kind of born to this.
So yes we tap on it a couple times. As you know last year we had Mrs. Frederic take Claudia along with her to see the birth of an artifact so that she could have a little peak behind the curtain into what Mrs. Frederic does and we’re going to keep playing that dynamic of Claudia’s starting to sense her own connection to the warehouse, starting to sense that she actually is in a way organically connected to Warehouse 13 in a way that’s beyond what anybody else is. And it’s kind of beautiful.
And Allison plays it very nicely, very subtlety and you’ll see it in Episode 14 as well. There’s a cool story where — sorry, Episode 15 — there’s a great story where she and Kelly Hu are on a hunt in the warehouse to find out what’s – something’s going wrong with the warehouse and they’re trying to figure it out. Kelly and Steve and Artie also are in this story and its kind of fun.
So yes we definitely will tap on that.
Yes I can’t wait either. And I’m also curious to know which hot, sexy Hollywood actress Eddie would want to play his sister.
Kenny: Oh, my. That is such a dangerous question.
McClintock: What actress would I want to play my sister?
Yes.
McClintock: Jennifer Lawrence.
Okay. Well Jack I’m pleased to hear that you’re putting your feelers to get her signed up.
Kenny: Oh yes. absolutely. I’m sure she’ll… yes absolutely. If anybody online knows Jennifer Lawrence…
McClintock: (Unintelligible) Warehouse 13.
Kenny: If anybody online knows Jennifer Lawrence and can connect me with her, please help because I don’t know how to reach her.
So Warehouse 13 is notorious for its ability to crossover into other shows. As you look to 4.5 and beyond are there any shows you would like to crossover that you haven’t yet?
Kenny: I know Eddie has – we were talking about doing some weird kind of thing with Alphas and we never got that chance to do it.
McClintock: Oh yes.
Kenny: It’s tough because some of the other SyFy shows don’t exist sort of in the same universe that exist in. Like I don’t think we could crossover with Defiance unless we did a time traveling episode. And I’m not saying that’s out of the question, I’m just saying that’s what it would require. Or we put Pete in very, very old makeup.
But it’s – I think we probably could crossover with Haven because it’s sort of the same kind of kooky world where weird stuff happens. It would be tougher with Being Human, not that we couldn’t do it, it would just get to be a little tougher because we don’t – in the world of Warehouse 13 there aren’t real werewolves or ghosts or vampires, it’s always due to an artifact. So it would be sort of lying to our audience to do a crossover in that way.
But Eddie are there other shows that you want to crossover with?
McClintock: Antiques Roadshow.
Kenny: That’s actually a great idea for an episode.
((Crosstalk))
Kenny: That would be good, we should do that.
McClintock: And the Ultimate Fighter like maybe I have to go and fight Jon Bones Jones.
Jack I got two questions for you and Joanne and Eddie if you want to jump in on the first one go ahead. And by the way I came on the call late so if this was asked I apologize.
Your thoughts on Defiance, A, as a show, B, as your lead in.
McClintock: That was asked.
Morgenstein (Syfy): They’re not going to comment on other shows but we can talk about the lead in okay?
Sure.
Kenny: I loved it just to put that out there. I thought it was great. I had a great time watching it. I think those actors are fantastic and I had a great time.
I don’t – like I was saying earlier I’m fine with kind of anything that leads us in. I don’t know that matters anymore. I mean I think it’s great. It’s a powerful show and we need a powerful lead in and that’s always great. I just don’t know that – I don’t watch TV that way and most of my friends don’t. Most of our friends just you hear about a good show and you go and get it.
And if something’s promoted and you see the ads for it, you go oh I want to watch that. But I don’t know that – I think that the days of people parking themselves on a channel and sitting in front of the TV on that same channel all night just because they’re too lazy to pick up their remote, I think those days were gone a few years ago.
I think it’s something that I think networks still strive for and they still are still looking for ways to hang onto the viewership and of course we really like hang onto Defiance’s audience. I think we will. I think the Defiance audience is our audience and vice-versa so I think it’s a good match in that regard. I just don’t know that it actually is a live or die moment of our series or of the future. But I think we’ll do great.
I think the audience will love us and our audience will love them.
((Crosstalk))
I was wondering if you could tell me about the upcoming noir episode.
Kenny: You know I think it’s one of our most fun episodes that we’ve done. Eddie and Jo do you guys want to talk about this? You guys had so much fun working on it as you said many times.
McClintock: Well you know what I think…
Kelly: Yes I think it was my…
McClintock: Go ahead Jo.
Kelly: No, you go ahead.
McClintock: I’ll make it brief. You know what I really – what stands out for me in regards to the show is we didn’t just put on the era costumes and then take color and turn it into black and white and rely on that. I mean we – Chris Fisher who directed the episode I mean shot it with the lenses and depth of field that they used to use back in the day. The lighting was the same type of lighting that they used. So it really once you see it on the screen, I mean it really looks like we are in an old film, in an old noir film.
And it was great because there were a lot of times that Joanne and I had to work in noir speak I’ll call it, you know, that stylized kind of staccato way of speaking and then somebody would leave the room and then we’d have to switch to Pete and Myka speak and then they’d come back in the room and then we’d have to go back. So it was interesting acting exercise for Joanne and I to pull off and so much fun, just so much fun.
And Joanne looked stunning and the costumes were amazing and it’s fun and the writing and I’m really excited to see it.
Kenny: Jo did you want – was there something you wanted to say?
McClintock: (Unintelligible)
Kelly: Yes. I mean, he basically said everything. It’s so fun to go into work for us as actors and not only do we get to do Myka and Pete but also do noir versions of them. It was a really, really, really awesome eight days of work.
Kenny: And I have to also add that Franco De Cotiis and Joanne Hansen outdid themselves with set design and wardrobe — and makeup too for that matter, hair and makeup. It was – everybody just had such a great time recreating this world of a noir movie and it was – and I made Eddie and Jo watch Double Indemnity so they could really hit the ground running and they did. I mean it was just – they dove into the noir speak beautifully. It’s really just a fun ride. It’s the kind of thing our show does two or three times a season and we just had a great time doing it.
I have a question first for Eddie. I absolutely loved you in Malibu Country and my question is…
McClintock: Thank you.
You’re welcome. It’s just so fun to see your period. You’re just a matinee idol.
McClintock: Oh thank you. That’s very sweet.
You’re welcome, no problem. How do you want Season 4.5 to be remembered creatively from your standpoint?
McClintock: From my standpoint? As long as we continue to be thought of by the fans as, you know, the term we’ve coined is a thrilleromedy. You get everything kind of – you get fantasy, you get drama, you get romance, you get horror, you get sci-fi thrown in there and then you get great comedy in there. And I think that’s what keeps people coming back is because it’s an entire show you can watch – the entire family can watch the show and they get to really experience a lot of different beats in one episode and sometimes even from scene to scene.
So if we can continue to be viewed in that aspect then I’m good with that. And I think we pull it off again here in 4.5.
Kenny: I’d like it to be remembered as the middle year of our nine-year series run.
McClintock: There you go.
Good because I just want to say Jack that you are a visionary brilliant genius. Watching Warehouse 13 is actually to me like being on a rollercoaster that I get every thrill you name it, everybody’s absolutely phenomenal and I need to tell you that so thank you.
McClintock: There you go.
Kenny: Oh thank you. That is so sweet of you to say it. I really appreciate it. We’ve got some great fans. I forward emails to the cast from my friend (Todd Holland) who’s a director and producer in Los Angeles is Warehouse 13 fanatic, addicted fantastic, and I always forward his emails.
McClintock: He’s an Emmy Award winner right Jack?
Kenny: Sorry?
McClintock: He’s won a few Emmy Awards too, yes?
Kenny: He has. He’s done all right for himself. But I always forward his emails to the cast when he says stuff like that about the show. That’s what we’re striving for, a rollercoaster ride. It’s a fun ride and I want you to laugh and cry and just have fun with it. So that really means a lot. Thank you so much for saying that. I’ll pass that on.
McClintock: Yes thank you.
You’re very – no problem. The cast is amazing, everyone is. Now Joanne I have to say for you how do you want 4.5 to be remembered for you creatively?
Kelly: You know I think 4.5 is one of our strongest seasons yet. I really like the fact we don’t get to play characters for this long ever. It’s a real pleasure to go and play – to go on this journey with Myka and this is the fifth year and you know I’ve grown as a person and she’s grown as a character and I think it’s really – this year’s a really, really interesting perspective on that journey.
And something happens in this arc of this season that will change my character’s life forever. And because we have someone like Jack Kenny who continues to push the envelope and to really to delve into the personal stories of these characters, it’s exciting. And I’m excited to see how everybody reacts to her arc this season because it’s going to be a wild ride.
Kenny: That’s very sweet of you to say too Joanne by the way. And one of the things that we talk about in the writer’s room is how can we give these guys the next level of something to do? The last thing we want to do is for them to ever feel like they’re standing there holding a pad and asking then what happened. We always want to give them something bigger, something scarier, something funnier, something wilder, a bigger thing to play than in the last episode.
And I think by the way going into Season Five we’ve got some even huger things planned for everybody to do. So our goal is to make them excited to come to work which I think will make you guys excited to watch.
Thank you. And my last thing to say is that you guys make it so easy to watch the characters and the actors meld smoothly into each other and while everyone is like melting into each other you don’t see them become one. You actually see the separation between everyone. So thank you again for that.
McClintock: I think we need to hire you.
Kelly: Oh, thank you.
Kenny: Yes, really, thank you.
Photos by Steve Wilkie/Courtesy of Syfy