Interview: Colin Morgan Reveals Merlin Season 5 Magic

One of the biggest Sunday highlights at Comic-Con in recent years is the Merlin panel, where cast and producers come all the way from “the other side of the pond” to discuss the series, which sees its fifth season premiering later this year.

Prior to the panel, KSiteTV spoke with Merlin himself, Colin Morgan, in a Merlin press room, and we got some scoop on what kind of magic to expect in Season 5.

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For starters, Morgan enthused that he himself has been surprised, and that fans will be surprised too when Series 5 comes along. “That’s what it’s all about,” he says. “The fans are going to be surprised when they see what direction we’re going this year. We’ve seen Merlin as the boy, we’ve seen that going through, and now he sees a vision right at the very beginning which just changes everything. Right from the get-go, he knows things are coming to a head, and that he has to up his game. He has to become more poweful. He needs to be more mature. He has to think things through in a more complicated and dynamic way.”

Relationships are expected to change, including Merlin’s interactions with the Knights of the Round Table. “It does definitely change this year, because the Knights are this band of brothers who are there for each other, and Merlin’s not a Knight. He’s not a fighter in that respect, and he’s not like them, and they don’t know why, obviously,” Colin says. “But their relationship does change, because he gains a lot of respect, particularly in one episode, when Merlin becomes the leader. He’s entered into a stage of manhood this season, which we’ve never seen before. There’s a huge maturing of all the characters, but I think particularly for Merlin, it’s business time. He’s going to take care of it.”

Will that new maturity mean some new people – maybe even Arthur – will finally learn about Merlin’s magic secret? “There are several situations where Arthur has to directly confront magic. I guess in a way, that could be good for everyone. It could be good for the kingdom, but there is something massive in the way that it isn’t right. Merlin has to make sure that everything is in place, and sometimes that means denying himself, which is hard, but he has to do it,” Colin explains.

One massive thing that will fall in the “isn’t right” category is the return of Mordred, now older and played by Alexander Vlahos, who replaces Asa Butterfield. “That’s a big, big thing in the show, is that Mordred’s back, but he’s not the Mordred that we knew. Obviously, physically,” Colin laughs. “But there’s something else that Merlin doesn’t respect in him. I think he likes him, but he’s denying a huge part of who he is, and part of that is his magic. And that’s a really, really disturbing thing. There’s a telepathic thing, for example, between them that isn’t there anymore. Or maybe it is, but maybe Mordred’s done something. There’s a huge intrigue about that character, which Merlin can’t work out, but that’s the huge worry. That’s the big threat, and that’s the big force that he needs to fight.”

Mordred’s return is just one of the things that will bring more magic to Merlin in its fifth season. “This year is touching more on the magic,” Morgan says. “I don’t think we’ve seen enough of it so far. Merlin witnesses a lot of things, but not a lot of things happen directly to him. He’s in witness of it all and has to act. But, magic is one of the big things this year, in which he’s forced to confront elements of himself that are a little bit scary, I think. He doesn’t like to do what he has to do, and [with] the people he has to confront, in a way, it’s necessary.”

Stay tuned for a Merlin Season 5 premiere date as it becomes available, and in the meantime, come by KSiteTV’s Merlin forum! More interviews are coming… for now, enjoy our Katie McGrath interview!