Kayvan Novak, Kristen Schaal at the series finale of WWDITS

(Editor’s note: This article contains spoilers for What we do in the shadows.)

What we do in the shadows ends with a wonderfully strange shot of Nandor The Relentless (Kayvan Novak) and Guillermo (Harvey Guillén) descending into a tunnel on Ashley Street in his modernized coffin. The two embark on this fun ride together after reaffirming their touching friendship – aAnd tonally, it’s a damn fitting conclusion to the series.

The Meta”The finale“, which aired on December 16th, concludes after the documentary crew finishes filming New York Citaaay’s Laziest Vampires. This development forces Guillermo to make a crucial life decision, while Nandor, Laszlo (Matt Berry), Nadja (Natasia Demetriou), Colin Robinson (Mark Proksch) and The Guide (Kristen Schaal) carry on as usual. Well, Nadja does Try to momentarily hypnotize us, the audience, resulting in craziness The Usual suspects Homage. The show has remained absolutely bold, which is one of the main reasons we will miss it.

To reflect on the journey and the end of the series, The AV Club spoke with Novak and Schaal (who were in joke mode) about Nandor’s final gesture towards Guillermo, his crush on The Guide, her rejection of his feelings, and the melancholy that came with filming the show’s sixth and final season.

The AV Club: Given how last season went, were you both looking forward to a reality where Nandor and The Guide would get together? Do you think that would have made for an interesting twist?

Kristen Schaal: I don’t mind because I would have liked to have done more scenes with Kayvan. I think she could still end up with him, probably in 2063 or something. He needs to work on his relationship skills, but he’s too tired for that.

Kayvan Novak: (Speak with Nandor’s accentt) Yes, I would agree with that. I really enjoyed working with Christian.

KS: Um, it’s pronounced Kristen.

KN: That’s what I said. (Laughs) See, that’s what it’s like on set. I say, “Hey, Christian, I’m excited to work with you,” and I say, “I’m Kristen.”

KS: I feel like I corrected you for the first time.

KN: I told Kristen before you rudely interrupted me. See, this is what the relationship between Nandor and The Guide would have looked like. Nandor would call the guide “Geed” or something and she would interrupt him.

AVC: That’s actually a funny snapshot. Kristen, what was it like playing this version of The Guide who receives romantic affection from Nandor? There is also a mini love triangle with Cravensworth’s monster in the series finale.

KS: You know what? Any attention the guide receives is welcome for me. She’s always on the outside, hoping to get a little taste of something on the inside. So that was fun. Every time I look at the script, highlight the guide and read my lines, I’m just thrilled if there are any. I love that.

AVC: Kayvan, why do you think Nandor is developing feelings for The Guide at this point in his long life?

KN: I think he’s kind of running out of options. Nothing against The Guide. (Laughs) I think she is his last possible option for romance. I mean, who else is there?

AVC: I think some fans would say that Guillermo exists.

KN: I’m not sure, but I just think he will never have sex with Guillermo. He just won’t do it. But I guess he was thinking about having sex with The Guide and then she said, “Keep dreaming.” That’s what makes him realize, “Oh, you’re right; That’s ridiculous.” I’m glad she gave him that (reality check). I think it would have been strange if the two of them had gone down that tunnel at the end of the episode instead of Nandor and Guillermo.

AVC: Do you think Nandor and Guillermo would be together romantically in an alternate world?

KN: Only in the world of erotic fan art that already exists.

AVC: Let’s talk about it Usual suspects-like scene. Kristen, you portrayed a normal human detective and brought a different energy to the series. And it was shocking to watch the day Shadow.

KS: It was so exciting and scary because yes, it was a new energy. You’re right, it was the first time we spoke on the phone before sunset. We had to take some vitamin D. It was fun to work with that in this scene Mark Proksch. He was such a good Kevin Spacey, and I also tried to do my best on Chazz Palminteri. What was so funny was when I watched Usual suspectsand I’ve seen it so many times that you never think, you never wonder: What is he looking at when they take the close-ups of Chazz’s face while he’s looking at the bulletin board? When it was my turn to take these close-ups, there was nothing to see. There was just space and I thought, “Oh man, he’s such a good actor.”

AVC: That’s funny because the bulletin board you’re looking at has so much attention to detail with its Easter eggs about the characters, including Nandor. Kayvan, do you wish you were part of this scene?

KN: I did it because I’m a fan of the film too. I guess I just didn’t fit this particular puzzle. I like when they mentioned me in the last part. I got goosebumps while watching. That was cool. But no hard feelings, because at the end I was allowed to walk through this tunnel with Guillermo.

AVC: Speaking of the tunnel moment: How significant was it that Nandor invited Guillermo into the coffin and admitted that he saw him as a friend and an equal? You and Harvey have such good chemistry here, and it felt like a moving ending WWDITS.

KN: I think it was necessary. What if he hadn’t done that? It would have felt wrong. It’s a testament to the writers having a very clear understanding of where this relationship could go in the eyes of the audience, what the audience wanted from them, and how they would tease the audience to the point of feeling cute and felt touching. Nandor’s gesture for Guillermo just felt right now. It seemed like the perfect time for him to do it. Not a moment sooner. In my opinion it was simply beautifully judged.



AVC: Colin Robinson wrote a line in this episode about how people tend to shit on series finales because expectations are sky high. Before you got the script for this finale, did you have any expectations or ideas about what should happen?

KS: Oh man, this is the first show I’ve ever been on where we knew ahead of time it was going to end. I was grateful for that because it didn’t leave us with something like, “Oh crap, they just pulled the plug and now we have no conclusion.” I think that’s what the authors did so well in the end, the book to finish better than I ever imagined. This exceeded my expectations for the finale because it has so many layers. It’s also fun and satisfying.

KN: I was aware that the writers had decided quite late on what they wanted to do with the final episode, and understandably they needed that time to make good decisions. It’s a bit of pressure. But they didn’t take long to think about what it would be. And I think that shows in the final execution of the final episode. They did it wonderfully.

AVC: Would you ever want to play these characters again?

KN: Yeah, I mean, I’ll always love playing Nandor.

KS: Oh, I would always come back.

AVC: It could be a Community-Six Seasons and a Movie style situation for What we do in the shadows.

KS: Thank you very much! I mentioned the same thing to Kayvan once and he had no idea what I was talking about. But I think we should do that.

AVC: What were the last few days on set like?

KS: It was a bit melancholic. Knowing the season was coming to an end was surreal because I remember we shot a scene in the library with Mike O’Brien and Harvey Guillén. Once we were done you could pretty quickly hear the drillers removing the screws from the set. Everything started to sink. I was still in the costume and I said, “Oh my God.” So by the time you get to the last bit, you’re so baptized into it that you know it’s over. Of course, you’re still depressed about it inside.

KN: Traveling to Canada for the final season and starting work was normal, as if we were filming a new season Shadow and do everything that goes with it. And then slowly this creeping feeling comes over me: “Oh no, the end is getting closer and closer.” It was more about the idea of ​​saying goodbye to everyone. That’s the worst. Otherwise, it’s cool that we get to do another whole season. But yeah, there were a few sad goodbyes and Matt Berry’s birthday cake at the end.

AVC: How are you feeling? Shadow fits into today’s TV landscape? Do you think it is necessary to have a comedy with constant jokes and laughter?

KS: I think that laughing non-stop is one of the hardest things to do, and that’s why I’m so proud to be on this show. It doesn’t take a break to figure out what’s funny. But it could always make you feel like you wanted to go back to these characters. There was still enough heart and soul in it that you were invested. I also think that as demonic characters we managed to explore everything. No topic was off-limits, and that was a lot of fun. Still, making a truly funny show is one of the hardest things to do, and I hope people get more out of it. It’s really important to the culture.

KN: I mean, the show is 100 percent committed to the craft of jokes and comedy. Every calorie burned served to produce that laughter, and it was burned by a lot of very talented, skilled people who knew how to do it. Anyone can pick up their phone and everyone has a sketch show on it right now. You just start scrolling and you have 10 seconds here, 15 seconds there, and 30 seconds there. Everyone else is doing character comedies or sketch comedies, and there’s some guy who falls over in the supermarket. Do you know what I mean? All types of comedy are here for you. To sum it all up and say, “I put my name on it and I’m going to do it for 23 minutes and there’s going to be flying, vampires, fucking and all kinds of shit.” That takes skill, commitment and lineage. You have to have the right people in the right room at the right time, with the right people behind them. FX’s mantra is “fearless” for a reason. Even if it remains fearless for so long, that’s what we’re all here for. That’s the threat, isn’t it? When do they need to change it to “less fear”? The next one could be FX FL.