“He gets frustrated by the locals who deem him unfit for office or think he’s bringing in the wrong kind of business or other kinds of obstacles. But his goals aren’t selfish. To me, it’s his son that’s his North Star — everything he does, he does for him,” Matthew Rhys says. “[That’s what] keeps him on track. And, in relation to that, they’re [goals] for the good of the island as well. But ultimately, all he wants is for his son to grow up in a prosperous place, and the locals who live there, as well. He wants to do that, so there’s good in him.”
Stephen Root, who plays resident island conspiracy theorist, Wyck, says his character is similarly “frustrated: — but for very different reasons.
“I think he sees himself as a protector, as the island’s protector. He knows these things that other people don’t know. He’s known it all his life. And then this interloper, who came into town as a teenage kid that annoyed him, is trying to take over and be the head honcho on the island. He doesn’t feel like he can do it — in fact, he thinks he knows he can’t do it — and Wyck, as the protector, feels like he can. So I think he’s just frustrated by this person. And the fact that he’s the town drunk doesn’t help at all, because he’s got this inner embarrassment about things that have happened earlier in his life. He’s frustrated by a lot of things. But then finally we find a common purpose.”
The show’s actors are all quick to praise the “found family” relationship that develops between its three leads.
“It felt really lovely to play off Matthew and Stephen,” O’Flynn says. “I really enjoyed it. Every day it just felt like, oh, I’m with my buddies. But it’s the writing, it’s all in the writing, the building of that bond.”
“[Our characters] all have these flaws. We all have this journey to overcome. But what was incredible was getting to do it as a trio,” Rhys says. “I know we talk about the nods towards other films [in the show], but it also reminds me of those movies where there’s suddenly a united front, and there’s hope again,” Rhys adds. “There’s a nostalgic feeling to that. It’s a surprisingly hopeful show.”
