'What We Do In The Shadows' Cast And Writers Tease Some Of Season 3 While Looking Back At Season 2 [Comic-Con 2020]
What We Do in the Shadows has become a huge hit on FX, surprisingly match and maybe even exceeding the high bar set by the original mockumentary movie from Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi. The second season just wrapped up this past June, and fans are already hungry for more blood in the third season.
Straight from the Comic-Con at Home panel for What We Do in the Shadows, learn what cast members Kayvan Novak, Matt Berry, Natasia Demetriou, Mark Proksch, and Harvey Guillén have to say about making one of the best comedies on television, and hear what's in store for the future from executive producers and writers Stefani Robinson and Paul Simms, all led by the hilarious second season guest star, Haley Joel Osment.
By the end of the second season, Guillermo (Harvey Guillén) had killed a lot of vampires, mostly in protection of his vampire master Nandor (Kayvan Novak), but also to keep his accidental vampire hunter friends from getting hurt. In fact, in the second season finale, it seems that Guillermo may have finally embraced the fact that he's naturally good at killing vampires, thanks to being a descendant of Van Helsing.
After saving Nandor, Laszlo (Matt Berry), Nadja (Natasia Demetriou), and Colin Robinson (Mark Proksch) from being executed by the Vampiric Council, he delivers his full name as Guillermo de la Cruz. Since that Spanish surname translates to "of the cross," it seems Guillermo really is destined to kill vampires. That's something Harvey Guillén didn't even know was coming at the end of the first season, and for the second season, he actually had to hit the gym and do some training to prepare for the stunt work required.
Proksch also had a unique challenge during the second season. Unfortunately, it was during the episode where his character Colin Robinson had the spotlight and saw his powers as an energy vampire grow exponentially after getting a promotion at work. While Colin's powers may have grown, Proksch had to deal with being sick while shooting on location in Toronto, Canada.
What We Do in the Shadows is no stranger to big guest stars stopping by the show, and the second season brought one of their biggest yet with Star Wars legend Mark Hamill making an appearance as Jim the Vampire. After seeking out Laszlo to reclaim an old debt, the two vampires get into a bar fight and nearly have a lightsaber-style fight with pool cues. Surprisingly, it's a gag that wasn't written into the script, but director Yana Gorskaya (who is also the editor of the feature film version of What We Do in the Shadows) and stunt coordinators Jean-Francois Lachapelle and Tig Fong came up with it when planning the sequence. Matt Berry was particularly giddy when shooting that sequence. He explained:
"You've gotta understand what that was like. I stood in front of Luke Skywalker and he held something [like a lightsaber] right in front of me. It doesn't matter how cool you think you are, or in-character you are. You're not. You're seven years old with Luke Skywalker right in front of you. Pretty special."
The second season also gave Guillermo the courage to stand up to Nandor. Not only does Guillermo get a day off from being his familiar each week, after 10 years of service, but Nandor promised to turn him into a vampire...at some point. However, has Nandor really turned a corner in his treatment of Guillermo? The two have relied on each other in some capacity, but it seems that Novak has no insight into how Nandor's relationship with Guillermo is going to continue. The actor said:
"I have no idea how this relationship is going to evolve. Because why would Guillermo stick around? He could kill Nandor. So Nandor has someone who could kill him. It's a complete – I don't know. I'm concerned."
Executive producers and writers Stefani Robinson and Paul Simms said they know what's going to happen, but unfortunately they were unwilling, or unable, to tell us much. Thankfully, they hinted at a couple little details for the new episodes that have already been ordered. First up, joining the slew of creatures we've met throughout the first two seasons, there will be some "creatures who live on edifices" making their debut on the show, which leads me to believe we might be meeting some gargoyles in the third season. Plus, the vampires gets some new animal friends in the form of hellhounds to help protect the house from unwanted visitors.
As for the storylines we can expect, Robinson and Simms were a little more tight-lipped, but they did mention that everyone will be searching for something throughout the season, including Nandor maybe looking for romance, and Colin Robinson digging into how he became an energy vampire. No matter what everyone is looking for, we know it will bring even more hilarious, twisted, and bloody antics, and we can't wait to see what happens.