After a hell of a season finale BBC’s Being Human is finally back for its fourth season. Many of the old characters are now gone, but in spite of that they’re still keeping the momentum going with new cast members and new epic storylines. EW recently chatted with Lenora Crichlow (Annie), Damien Molony (Hal), and Michael Socha (Tom) on the cast change, past seasons and the new season. Check it out:
(Warning: If you are behind on BBC’s Being Human there are spoilers below)
Cast changes are always tricky, especially in a long running, beloved show. How nervous were you?
Lenora Crichlow: I was apprehensive but I have a lot of faith in the production team behind Being Human, so I think I was more excited than nervous. Well, I can say that now because they pulled it off, but probably at the time I was terrified.
What about you men, were you afraid of being compared to your predecessors?
Damien Molony: You can’t avoid comparisons and comparisons are the biggest fear I had. But the writing is so good — they had to reinvent the show. Obviously, they had to maintain the fact that there’s a vampire, a werewolf, and a ghost living together. But Mike developed a character so different to Russell’s and I hopefully have gone a completely different way than Aidan. That comes from performance, but also from the writing, from the directors, and the crew. Everyone was trying to bring this new story alive.
Michael Socha: I completely agree. At first, I was quite nervous because I thought, well, Being Human is definitely not going to be the same. And Being Human has got such a massive group of fans — a very hardcore, loyal group of fans. I thought that they had the potential to lose all of them. But I think now that people have actually watched the show, they’ve gotten themselves back into it and trust us nearly, if not as much, as the previous cast. And the fact that none of the characters are similar, that we’ve been able to come onto the set with a fresh character and fresh ideas, has helped us dramatically.
Did it tear your heart out to film George’s death scene?
Michael Socha: For me, it was hard work because I really like Russell and think he’s a brilliant actor. And obviously, Lenora was with him for years so it must have… well, it was obvious on the day how upset we all were. I think it helped with the scene. The sadness of Russell leaving really helps the feeling of George actually leaving for good.
Are we going to have to wait much longer for Tom, Annie, and Hal to meet? Will it be love at first sight?
Damien Molony: Hal is, obviously, living in a barbershop in South End with Leo, the werewolf, and Pearl, the ghost. In episode 2, we realize that in order to save Leo’s life, we have to come to this house in Barry wherein dwells a werewolf and a ghost. And through a series of misfortunate events, Hal is left on his own and, hence, with Tom and Annie. He really has to rely on them to look after him, because he’d had this amazing support for the last 55 years in order to stay off blood, and that’s suddenly been taken away. Tom and Hal don’t necessarily get on and Hal is reluctant to see Annie as a friend, but at the same time he needs them. As the season develops, it’s lovely watching those relationships soften and really prosper.
We didn’t learn much about Hal in the first episode, besides that he likes dominoes and hates spiders. He also seems pretty posh and essentially obsessive compulsive.
Damien Molony: He’s developed these tactics in order to keep his mind clean and his bloodlust at bay. So he has these techniques, and as the season goes on they become more and more related to doing exercise and press-ups — which was extremely tiring to film when I didn’t get it right and had to retake it.
I know you can’t say who — or what — it is, but can you tell us anything about this season’s big baddie?
Michael Socha: He’s really bad.
Lenora Crichlow: Ooh, he’s really bad. And he has horrible teeth.
Damien Molony: Horrible teeth and horrible hands.
Michael Socha: And a very veiny man. He’s very veiny.
Read the full interview HERE (the interview is huge, so there’s much more to see there).
What do you guys think of the new season? Does the huge change in cast bother you? Are you looking forward to all of the new characters and storylines this season?
– Moonlight
About the Author
Moonlight loves to write about, read about and learn about everything pertaining to werewolves and other supernatural beasties. She writes for top genre sites like Vampires.com and Werewolves.com. You will most likely find her huddled over a book of folklore with coffee in hand. Touch her coffee and you may lose a limb. You can stalk her via her Twitter.
Its sad that they are breaking up, but one must always try to find greener pastures