Kung Fu fans, you are not ready for the new episode that airs tonight (November 16) on The CW. There are some big and shocking things to come, and to preview it, we spoke with actor Gavin Stenhouse (Evan) for some ideas on what to expect…. as well as some insight on what’s going on with Evan in Season 3.
“Villains” airs at 9PM ET/PT tonight on The CW; you can find the interview below.
KSITETV: The first thing I was wondering after I watched this week’s episode is this: How is that not the mid-season finale?
GAVIN STENHOUSE: I know, right? I’m not sure that it isn’t; I’m not sure when the midseason finale is supposed to be [EDITOR’S NOTE: “Betrayal” airs November 30]. But this would be a fantastic one to end on, because it’s “grip your seat” kind of material.
What was your reaction when you read the script?
When I read the script, I was like, “oh, this is gonna be cool,” but it wasn’t until the table read when [SPOILERS DELETED] that I’d get tingles. [SPOILER] absolutely nailed that. They all do. It’s such a thrilling ride. So far, this is my favorite episode of the season.
Can you talk about where Season 3 has brought Evan so far?
When we opened up in Season 3, we find that Evan has left the DA’s office, or at least hasn’t returned to the DA’s office, and decided to open his own private firm. I think that that has both lifted a huge burden off his shoulders being feeling like he’s trapped in a box, working inside of a system that he perceives as rigged. On the one hand, he’s able to get his afforded more flexibility to actually help the people directly that he wants to help in the community that he loves. But on the other hand, it’s hard to start a business, and you don’t get a lot of money from the beginning… not like he was getting paid a lot of money as an assistant district attorney anyway, but as a private defense attorney, even less. So, you know, there are the other burdens that come with the job, but overall, I think that Evan is a renewed person, just because he he has a sense of freedom to do what he wanted to do for the last two years.
How do you like the set that they’ve built for Evan’s office?
It’s awesome. It’s so cool. It’s a lot bigger than I thought. When Christina [Kim] and Bob [Berens] were taking me through the arc of the season for Evan before we started filming, I think the initial idea was that Evan’s office was going to be like a desk in the back of a laundromat in a tiny little, you know, space that was rented [in the back of a] laundromat, which I loved the idea of, because it kind of reminded me that when I was younger and living in Hong Kong, there was this place called Stanley Market, and in those stores, it’s cramped, and it’s got so much life to it, and steam, and leaks… I just love that vibe. But ultimately, I don’t think that’s easily the best kind of location to put cameras through, so they ended up designing a slightly larger space, which is absolutely gorgeous, and it expands and grows over the season as well. It continues to grow and evolve as Evans started to establish himself. It’s really beautiful.
Can you preview Althea’s talking some sense into Evan about Nadia?
I think a lot of people have an issue with really reading between the lines of innuendos or conversations that have double meaning. I think that Evan is a pretty straightforward guy, [so] he often misses the nuances of relationship conversations in particular. Having Althea working in such close proximity to him is a blessing on so many fronts, not least of which is that maybe he can get finally have some kind of emotional education from someone who knows better. She can give him a long delayed education that he has so badly needed.
What is it like to get to work with Shannon Dang so much this year?
Over the last two seasons, the scenes where Althea and Evan get to work together are some of my favorites. There’s such chemistry, and banter, and an ease that comes with working with Shannon. She’s always so prepared and willing to experiment, flexible with finding different directions on the day and playing with the scene. I think that really lends itself to the light hearted chemistry between Althea and Evan. They have always had this platonic thing, poking fun at each other a little bit. It’s a fun dynamic to be able to play with, and I always enjoy my scenes with Shannon.
All of us have [a special] chemistry because we’ve been together for so long, and for all of Season 1, we were all locked down together, so that we were our only friends. We were doubling as a cast, and we were the only people that we were hanging out with. Our initiation as a cast was pretty extreme and intense, and I think that has been in no small part an influence on how the chemistry is so good on the show, in my opinion.
How do you think Nicky’s friends and family will react when they find out the truth about Bo?
I think that they’ll feel betrayed, obviously, and they’ll especially feel bad for Nicky. I think that you always have a defensive nature of a family member. You don’t want to see them hurting themselves, and you want to trust that they know what they’re doing. I think that, given the experience that Nicky has gone through in Seasons 1 and 2, I think that she has a lot of street smarts, and I think that her family trusts that she knows what she’s doing. That’s why at the beginning of the season, Althea is so encouraging of Nicky to move forward, to be able to branch out of the kind of hole that she she was in with her depression after after Henry leaves. I think the reveal would blindside everyone.
Will Evan and Nadia continue to get closer?
With any relationship, there’s always rocky moments, and those rocky moments don’t necessarily come from emotional struggles. There are other things that cause stress in a relationship, and that’s something that Evan is very cautious of. But there’s a lot more fun to be had between Nadia and Evan.
How would you tease Wednesday night’s episode as somebody who has not seen it yet?
This episode really is like a horror rollercoaster ride from a theme park. It draws on elements from some of my favorite films, and when I watched it, it felt like I was gripping onto my seat and popping out that moments of suspense when there was an exciting reveal. I’m really excited for people to see this, because I think it’s going to shock some people.
Kung Fu “Villains” airs tonight at 9PM ET/PT on The CW.
TAKING DOWN XIAO — After her latest mission unearths some startling information about Xiao, Nicky (Olivia Liang) and the team devise a plan to deal with her once and for all. Althea (Shannon Dang) gives Evan (Gavin Stenhouse) some advice on his relationship with Nadia (guest star Marissa Cuevas), and Jin (Tzi Ma) prepares for his first interview. Kheng Hua Tan, Jon Prasida, Eddie Liu, Vanessa Kai, Yvonne Chapman and JB Tadena also star. Joe Menendez directed the episode written by John Bring (#307). Original airdate 11/16/2022. Every episode of KUNG FU will be available to stream on The CW App and CWTV.com the day after broadcast for free and without a subscription, log-in or authentication required.
