Sterling K. Brown Calls ‘Paradise’ a ‘This Is Us’ ‘Family Reunion’

It’s time for one this is us Reunion: Creators Dan Fogelman and Sterling K. Brown team up for a new series. Paradise, comes to Hulu on January 28th.

In true Fogelman style, any further details on that paradise are kept top secret, as are the details of Jack’s (Milo Ventimiglia) death. So we can’t tell you much about the show (otherwise Brown’s Secret Service agent Xavier Collins might have to kill you). Suffice it to say, it’s a big departure for both Fogelman and Brown, who captured audiences’ hearts playing concerned but loving father Randall Pearson across six seasons of Fogelman’s NBC series.

Brown plays Xavier Collins, a secret service agent for former United States President Cal Bradford (James Marsden), who becomes embroiled in a quagmire of intrigue when he is accused of killing his protégé. Julianne Nicholson and Sarah Shahi, among others, round out the cast.

Fogelman came up with the idea first paradise over a decade ago, long before he met Brown. It came in the years after 9/11 and the inherent nervousness that plagued so many Americans in the first decade after the terrorist attack. “I was in a meeting with a very well-known businessman,” Fogelman says Weekly entertainment. “And as I sat in the meeting – I must have been 26, 27 years old – I thought to myself, ‘This is the richest, most powerful person I’ve ever been in a room with.’

“As I was leaving the meeting, a crane dropped something nearby and it made a huge bang,” he continues. “It was still close enough to 9/11 to jolt you beyond just ‘What’s going on?’ went out. It made me think, “God, I just left this meeting with the most powerful person I’ve perhaps ever been in the room with, and if all hell breaks loose, we’ll all be in the same boat.” I wonder how long the loyalty to the people who care for him will last.”

Years passed and the show remained in the back of Fogelman’s mind even as he moved on to other projects. “I grew up with these great, driving action films that are about dynamics but have a heavy plot,” he explains the story’s fascination for him. “The driving factor for me was the relationship between those who hold ultimate power and the people responsible for protecting them. I thought it was best captured by the idea of ​​a Secret Service agent tasked with taking a bullet for a president and the complexities of that relationship.”

Flash forward to Fogelman’s life after-this is us and after a well-deserved break, Fogelman began to think that it might finally be time to write this story. He just didn’t realize he was writing it as a vehicle for Brown.

“I wrote the pilot script,” he says. “And when I inevitably gave it to people to read, people asked me, ‘How long has Sterling been involved in this?’ And I realized: “In my mind’s eye, me have “I’ve imagined Sterling, but I’ve never spoken to him about it.” I had already prepared the show. So I thought, ‘Suddenly I can’t stop thinking about it, and Sterling will probably get busy or say no, and then what should I do?'”

Luckily, Brown fell in love with the script (and already had a deep affection for Fogelman). “After six years of no bad scripts, Dan Fogleman has a certain sympathy for your boy,” enthuses Brown. “He supported us so much. He was one of the first people he raved about Waves. He has seen me do a number of different things and not only has he enabled me to do those things in the midst of (this is us) production. Black panther wouldn’t have happened; Waves That wouldn’t have happened if Dan hadn’t said, “Yo, do your thing.”

“For that reason,” Brown continues, “he knew that variety was one of the things I was looking for. I was pleased that he didn’t pay lip service to the idea that he thought I could do other things. Anytime.” You start a creative relationship feeling like the person you’re working with believes in you. That makes it a lot easier.”

Fogelman added, “There’s nothing I don’t think Sterling can do.”

With their mutual adoration secured, Brown signed what he describes as a form of “…” this is us Reunion – pilot directors Glenn Ficarra and John Requa returned to direct the first episode of paradise and much of the filming took place in the same recording studios at Paramount, where this is us filmed with many of the same crew. “It was like a family reunion and that made it even more special,” Brown said.

But these behind-the-scenes connections pretty much end where the parallels end. “It’s a political thriller,” explains Fogelman. “It is an exciting film with a lot of plot and twists. To This is us, The plot was determined by a series of conversations and feelings. This one has a lot more plot. Where there are similarities, the series delves into a lot of backstory and relationships. Ultimately, it’s about families and the lengths we go to to care for one another. But they are very different shows, with Sterling and I being a bit of connective tissue.”

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Brown agrees, noting that while Xavier Collins and Randall Pearson are both family men, they are very different types. “Xavier is a much more reserved person,” Brown explains. “Randall is a little more sociable. Xavier plays his cards much closer to his chest. He’s not as big a personality as Randall Pearson. After six years with Randall, who just shares all his feelings as readily as he can, Xavier is often still trying to figure out what his own feelings are for himself.”

“It’s a really powerful role for Sterling,” says Fogelman. “The team has been talking a lot about the old Tony Scott films – and Sterling really brings something to the table.”

Brown’s preparation for the role was tailored to what might be required to play an action hero of this type. He did a lot of weapons training to make him look like a trained officer. However, he also made sure to go straight to the source. “I would actually see security,” he explains, “and being the weird guy that I am, I walked up to them and said, ‘Can I ask you a question?’ And then just start talking to them about on-call positions – what are they looking for? Does the scan ever stop? What do you pay particular attention to? How do they know when a threat has been neutralized?”

Another thing that has changed since then This is us? Fogelman has come to terms with being known as the “Twist Guy.” Directors Requa and Ficarra have long referred to the author as “M. Night Fogelman” and the curveballs in paradise definitely do justice to this title.

“I’m older now,” Fogelman sighs, explaining his initial reluctance to accept the nickname. “I was so nervous that people were going to spoil anything (when this is us started). It was a different age of the Internet. It was a bit like the Wild West eight years ago, and I was newer and so sensitive to the experience potentially ruining it for anyone.

“I like television that grabs attention and surprises you,” he continues. “I’m at a point in my life – and I’m not saying, ‘I want there to be a twist or not.’ I want there to be a twist – where I like to engage the audience on one level and then ask them to reframe the conversation they’ve hopefully had in their head. It’s such a fun way to experience television that it can take up part of a room doesn’t really exist anymore – that water cooler thing.”

Lots of the twists paradise will emerge about the murky relationship between Brown’s Secret Service agent and Marsden’s president – one so convoluted that it leaves audiences wondering whether Xavier is actually guilty of murder. “His relationship with the president was layered and complex,” Brown teases. “It wasn’t always the happiest of relationships. There is a deep betrayal between my character and the president. They’re a little at odds at the start of the show, and then you go back in time to see how they got to where they are at the start of the show.”

Brown and Fogelman won’t tell us much else – except that they’ll pay attention to the title and its possible double meanings for clues. “Everyone thinks their life would be a lot better if they lived in this different place or had a little more money or power,” Fogelman muses. “‘What is a man’s paradise?’ was an interesting idea for me. One man’s paradise is another man’s hell.”