AWAKE at NBC TCA: Our Liveblog

It’s time for AWAKE at TCA!

I’ll be liveblogging the panel (which includes stars Jason Isaacs, Cherry Jones, Steve Harris, Wilmer Valderrama, BD Wong,  and executive producers Howard Gordon and Kyle Killen.

Join us now for the liveblog!

4:40 – Howard notes that Isaac’s character serves as a bridge for the two worlds. Isaacs notes he’s the only actor who gets to act with everyone. Valderrama notes there are some people he only sees in passing, like, “Oh, hey, we’re both on this show,” despite the fact that his character exists in both the reality where Michael Britten’s son has died and the other where Britten’s wife has died.

4:42 – “I am sure she is not right,” Wong says about Jones’ character’s assertion that she is real. (They each play Britten’s therapist on the separate sides.)

4:42 – Their characters may not share screentime, but the therapy scenes are shot on the same stage, so Jones and Wong often see each other on set. “I get to tell him his approach is ridiculous,” Jones says. “And I comment on her furniture,” Wong finishes.

4:45 – A critic notes that this is the second series where Killen has write dual identities (LONESTAR was about a man with two separate lives), but there is a difference. “We want him to have both,” Killen says of Britten’s struggles.

4:47 – “There is a self-contained question in every episode,” Killen says. So if you join midway through the series, they’re hopeful people will still be able to understand what’s going on.

4:48 – “We’ll work hard to avoid frustrating you,” Killen says of not wanting to annoy audiences with the eventual conclusion. “I think ‘It was all a dream’ is not particularly satisfying.”

4:49 – “This is a vehicle where there are no operating instructions,” Gordan says of working on AWAKE.  He says compares it to building and learning to operate a car driving 65 miles an hour on a freeway.

4:51 – Killen says he has no problem or worries about being critically praised. He doesn’t think that will hurt the show.

4:52 – Isaacs is questioned about his apparent quote where he said the show might be too high-concept for network television, but he says he was either misquoted or mispoke. He thinks it’s fabulously high-concept, but says his five-year-old daughter can understand the show and he has a video of her explaining it on his phone.

4:53 – Yes, Valderrama is guest starring on an episode of ARE YOU THERE, CHELSEA?

4:56 – Allen says she has the benefit of being very clear about her reality. She says Britten’s “dreams” aren’t discussed beyond the pilot, because Hannah is trying to be hopeful about who they can be after their son’s death. Allen hopes her character is grieving in a natural way.

4:57 – The show will tackle what happens to Britten when he can’t sleep under traditional circumstances, given that he changes realities when he goes to sleep.

4:59 – “Whatever learning curve there is, we hope it’s a shallow one,” Gordan says of viewers being potentially confused.

5:01 – “It’s a room full of critics…you are the #Community fans,” Killen says, when he’s discussing the whiteboard from “Remedial Chaos Theory.”

5:03 – “He’s the perfect person to be in this position,” Isaacs says of Britten. Because of the situation, “his emotions are close to the surface.” He does know with every new case, he has to wonder if he’s imagining it.

5:04 – “I think this is a show about a man who is actively living in two worlds…our drama is he’s a man in the middle trying to keep a foot in [each reality] as these two worlds separate,” Killen says.

5:06 – Isaacs confirms they have a plan for how the show will end, but they won’t be telling us any details.

5:07 – And we’re done with the panel. Thanks for reading the liveblog!