Tonight at 9PM ET/PT following the season premiere of Gotham, FOX will air the ambitious season premiere of their new series Minority Report, sequelizing the Steven Spielberg movie of the same name.
Spielberg is an Executive Producer on the series which stars Meagan Good, Stark Sands, Nick Zano, and Wilmer Valderrama. That 70’s Show veteran Valderrama, whose credits also include From Dusk till Dawn: The Series and Awake, plays Lt. Will Blake on the science fiction drama. We spoke with him last week about the show’s FOX premiere.
“It’s very exciting,” he says of the show finally hitting the air. “It’s been an interesting, long road. It’s been an action-packed road, as we get to be ready for this premiere. We’re excited because the whole journey has felt really special, and to have someone like Steven Spielberg, and Kevin Falls, and Max Borenstein actually come together with Mark Mylod who is an incredible director, and establish a look, an aesthetic, an energy, a dynamic, a plot, an arc, and a structure that formats the world of Minority Report into television… I mean, it’s just something you have to experience. When we were in Toronto shooting the pilot, it felt different. It’s about the people in a world that will be intrigued by, but also, it was about people living in a universe that we all wish we could live in. I think that Max Borenstein, Kevin Falls, and Steven Spielberg did such an incredible job of adapting it for an episodic [show] with a great season arc, which has not only conspiracy, but action and humor and possibly romanticism later,” he continues. “I’m super excited. It’s complex to shoot, but it’s a blast. I’m excited for people to see it, because I think television has never seen anything like it.”
With a From Dusk till Dawn TV series among Valderrama’s recent credits, it’s an interesting coincidence to note that now two of his recent roles were in titles were based on popular movies. “I really believe that today, there’s a number of titles in cinema history that you always want to see just a little more, or you at least want to go deeper into those characters and see what else would happen after the movie,” Wilmer explains. “Where else would they gone? And if the people that really conceived those first movies and created that experience for cinema and film actually put the same efforts into expanding [to a new medium], I feel like that’s a show, and that’s a series that you’ve got to fight to be a part of.”
Important for Valderrama is that the original creators are involved. “Today, we have the opportunity to see some of these incredible visionary guys explore further with some of these iconic titles,” he enthuses. “I don’t think five years ago we would have been able… I don’t think ten years ago, we had the technology. I think, only today we can pay tribute to those titles. But I’m only a fan when the [original creators] come in and do it themselves.”
Pre-Crime – the concept where three young “precogs” predicted crimes before they would happen, as seen in the Minority Report film – has now been abolished for a decade as the series picks up. Valderrama describes his former Marine character as being one who would have believed that the “numbers didn’t lie” about that program.
“They solved hundreds if not thousands of cases, and saved hundreds if not thousands of lives. When Pre-Crime was abolished — and I’m almost quoting myself as a character, we went back to the Stone Age. In the future, 2065, we went back to solving crimes so conventionally that we’re now just mopping up messes. Now we have to start with the breadcrumbs, when before, we could come in and knew that somebody was going to commit murder,” he explains.
“Right now, Pre-Crime doesn’t exist. Right now, those precogs can’t be found. No one knows where they are. It turns out that one of my ex-partners and possibly ex-girlfriend, maybe not only communicates with one, but may be working with one. Right now, I’m not suspicious about it, but I do believe that if there is an opportunity — a moral opportunity — to make a choice, he would have a tough time knowing whether to embrace this as an illegal form of going behind the force and the law and the rules. Where does that leave his friendship with Detective Vega, and how much is he willing to do to cover her?” he questions.
The actor, at least, has some clues as to what’s coming next. “I had an amazing meeting with Kevin Falls and Max Borenstein this morning, and the stuff they told me — where this season is going — blew me away. It’s so exciting. I’ve never seen television or a series take such turns since the X-Files. It’s going there. I’m thrilled and excited,” he says.
Minority Report airs at 9PM TONIGHT on FOX. Come talk about the show on the KSiteTV Forums and if you’d like, here’s a special video feature spotlighting Valderrama’s character:
3 Comments
Meagan Good rocks!
I only watching for the diverse cultures in it especially Meagan Good as lead actress.
I only watching for the diverse cultures in it especially Meagan Good as lead.