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Released by Penguin Press, the book is available now as a 304-page hardcover. Newsom also narrates the audiobook version of “Young Man in a Hurry,” which you can listen to for free right now with a free trial to Audible here.
Newsom has made headlines in recent months both for squaring off with Donald Trump and for his grand plans to halt Hollywood’s so-called “filming exodus.” The Governor has pledged to return television and movie production to California, signing a bill last year that would double the state’s tax incentives for film and TV projects from $330 million to $750 million annually. Still, Newsom has faced his fair share of detractors — even from Hollywood insiders — on issues outside of the industry.
In October, Joseph Gordon Levitt said the Governor was “too scared” to veto legislation that would have banned companies from making AI chatbots available to people under the age of 18 (Newsom attributed his decision to the bill’s “broad restrictions,” though he did sign a law that requires platforms to remind users they are interacting with a chatbot and not a human, as well as prevent the promotion of self-harm content). Halle Berry, meantime, criticized Newsom in December for vetoing a menopause bill she backed, adding that, “That’s okay, because he’s not going to be governor forever, and the way he has overlooked women… he probably should not be our next president either.”
The new book was written too late to respond to the criticisms, but nevertheless seeks to position Newsom as an underdog, who took up baseball as a way to deal with his family dysfunction and his long time struggles with dyslexia. The running theme throughout Newsom’s memoir: This is just a guy who has lived his whole life trying to make his home state proud.
“Born in San Francisco, his parents divorced at a young age, and his childhood was spent being tugged between two worlds: his mother worked three jobs in order to care for her children while his father, a close friend of the Getty family, brought Newsom into San Francisco society, a world of wealth and connections,” reads a book description. “The dissonance was frustrating, and made all the more difficult because of undiagnosed dyslexia, but the vantage point was valuable: he inherited his mother’s perseverance and his father’s reverence of California, not only its wildness, but its opportunity.”
For what it’s worth, Newsom has never lived outside of California — something that has both endeared him to locals and left him open to critique from potential voters in the rest of the country. The 58-year-old also memorably saw off a GOP-led recall effort in 2021.
For Newsom, “the California Dream” is what keeps him going, the publishers’ notes say. “His great-great-grandfather, a cop, walked a beat in San Francisco, where almost 150 years later, Newsom would be elected as mayor, running on the values instilled in him by his family history: that California’s open arms must continue to extend to each new generation,” a description reads.
Of course the book chronicles Newsom’s entire political career, including his time as Mayor of San Francisco, where he issued marriage licenses to same-sex couples, more than ten years before the Supreme Court made same-sex unions legal. The book also lauds his “bold efforts” to “counter climate change, improve mental health care, and enhance gun safety.”
As the book description states, Newsom’s memoir is a “deeply resilient California story of identity, belonging, and the defining moments that inspired a life in politics.”
Paramount president Jeff Shell improperly disclosed specific details about the timing, cost and structure of the public company’s $7.7 billion media rights deal with the Ultimate Fighting Championship almost a month before its August 2025 announcement — that’s the allegation of leaked confidential data that an outside law firm is now investigating, The Hollywood Reporter has learned. The SEC is also now reviewing a related whistleblower complaint.
UFC parent TKO Group Holdings’ stock price surged 10 percent following news of the Paramount pact.
The reporting party is R.J. Cipriani, a high-stakes gambler with a documented history as a federal whistleblower. He’s been in settlement negotiations with Shell over a dispute involving consultation services. He declined to comment.
Both men have shared the same attorney: noted Hollywood power lawyer Patricia Glaser, who no longer reps Cipriani.
When asked for comment, Glaser said in a statement, “we were presented with a draft complaint riddled with clear errors of fact and law and the threat that it would be filed, but if he makes the mistake of going ahead with it, we will strongly respond.”
The Shell investigation surfaces at a sensitive time for Paramount, which on Feb. 23 sweetened its politically charged bid to purchase larger competitor Warner Bros. Discovery — and, in the process, elbow out Netflix. The streaming giant previously entered a $82.7 billion deal for WBD. Shell is said to have notified Paramount once he learned of the whistleblower’s draft complaint.
In 2023, Shell was terminated from his previous top job as NBC Universal’s CEO over allegations of inappropriate conduct involving a CNBC correspondent. Yet he found resurrection in Paramount owner David Ellison, who elevated Shell to his current post from an interim perch with private equity firm RedBird Capital Partners, which helped Ellison’s Skydance Media acquire the studio.
Cipriani is a colorful figure whose exploits as a high roller and government whistleblower have included battles with a Las Vegas casino behemoth as well as an international drug lord. He toldTHR in September 2025 that a Mark Wahlberg-produced Amazon Prime docuseries about the latter saga, Cocaine Quarterback, portrayed him in a false light. Cipriani has said he’s been in development on a scripted project about the risky business that is his life. The working title is Jackpot, which is the codename the FBI conferred on him.
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The newest member of the Tapestry Collection by Hilton, the hospitality brand’s portfolio of boutique properties, has a very specific audience in mind: concertgoers, sports fans and entertainment seekers.
Officially opened in February 2026, The Anthem Hotel is located in the heart of Los Angeles’ Stadium District, the city’s entertainment and sports hub. The 179-room property is a quick walk or Uber ride from some of L.A.’s biggest venues: Intuit Dome (0.1 miles), SoFi Stadium (0.9 miles), YouTube Theater (0.9 miles) and Kia Forum (1.1 miles). It’s also a 10 minute drive from LAX and 20 minutes to the beach.
On top of its proximity to the action, The Anthem will lean into its guests’ interests with a year-round lineup of programming and activations, including game-day celebrations, concert-night takeovers and exclusive experiences tied to global events. Local sports bar and restaurant Tom’s Watch Bar is connected to the property, overseeing The Anthem’s full food and beverage program, including its Soundwave Pool Bar.
To celebrate its opening, The Anthem is offering a limited-time launch promotion when customers book directly through this link. Use code P0 on The Anthem Hotel’s booking page to earn 10,000 Hilton Honors Points per night when booking the exclusive Private Rate.
“The Anthem isn’t just near the action, it’s part of it,” says Stephen Chavez, the property’s General Manager. “We’ve created a space that reflects the rhythm of the Los Angeles Stadium District: vibrant, connected, and full of possibility. Here, events start and end at The Anthem, where the crowd becomes the atmosphere itself: a sea of fans in jerseys, tie-dye, and festive glam. It’s an energy unlike what other places can offer.”
The Anthem Hotel, Tapestry Collection by Hilton is located at 3900 W Century Blvd., Inglewood, CA 90303. Book now via this link with code P0 to earn 10,000 Hilton Honors Points per night.
Management of the Writers Guild of America West met with the staff union on Sunday night as the two sides aimed to resolve the week-old staff strike.
But while there has been some movement on some issues, the staff union said that not enough progress has been made.
“Management is still not ready to meet the moment,” said Dylan Holmes, co-chair of the Writers Guild Staff Union bargaining committee, during picketing on Tuesday. “They do not want us to be on this picket line and are trying to figure out how to get us off of it. But they are still unwilling to bargain in good faith with us in order to get there.”
The WGSUwent on strike on Feb. 17, alleging that union leadership had failed to seriously address the staff’s concerns. The staff union — which includes about 100 guild employees — argues that wages are too low and that workers are subject to unfair promotion and discipline practices. Many WGAW employees make $50,000 to $80,000 a year, according to public data.
WGA management has denied the allegations of bad-faith bargaining and said it will continue to work with the staff to reach a resolution. The two sides met on Sunday night at the International Longshore and Warehouse Union hall in San Pedro, as WGAW management sought a “neutral” site.
Another meeting was expected as soon as Tuesday night.
If the strike persists much longer, it could impact the WGA Awards, which are scheduled for March 8 at the J.W. Marriott hotel in downtown Los Angeles. Staff members typically work at the event alongside an event production crew. If they are on strike, it might raise concerns among members about crossing a picket line.
A few dozen WGA members joined the staffers in picketing outside the union headquarters at Fairfax Avenue and 3rd Street on Tuesday morning.
“It’s very hypocritical and quite frankly embarrassing that a union that is always at the forefront of trying to get a good deal for its members won’t do the same for its own staff,” said writer Joe Russo, who was an assistant lot coordinator during the 2023 WGA strike. “I don’t think it’s a good look.”
The WGSU formed last April and is working to get its first contract. Last August, the union filed an unfair labor practices complaint accusing the WGA of firing a union staffer for union activity. At the picket on Tuesday, WGA workers and members carried signs holding Ellen Stutzman, the guild’s executive director, accountable for alleged ULPs.
“Come on y’all, this is embarrassing,” read one sign. Another: “Thought we were on the same team.”
The WGA is due to sit down with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers on March 16 to begin bargaining new contract on behalf of writers. The WGA has said that bargaining will go on even if the staff is on strike.
“I don’t love that we’d be basically negotiating on two fronts,” Russo said. “So it would be great to resolve this, get all our ducks in order, stop airing our dirty laundry and focus on a deal for members, because at the end of the day that will help staff too.”
The show is called Newlyweds, and in a life-imitating-art situation, its two lead actors are (almost) newlyweds as well.
Tim Daly has joined the NBC comedy pilot about a later-in-life marriage alongside his real-life wife, Tea Leoni (who was the first to join the cast earlier this month). The couple married in July 2025, though they have been together for more than a decade after meeting on CBS’ 2014-19 drama Madam Secretary.
Along with adding Daly to the cast, Newlyweds has also set Pam Fryman (How I Met Your Mother, Happy’s Place) to direct and executive produce the pilot.
Newlyweds, from creator Gail Lerner (Will & Grace, Black-ish), centers on a free-spirited woman (Leoni) and a buttoned-up professor (Daly) who get married after a whirlwind courtship. Daly’s Tony is a recently divorced man who runs into Jeanie (Leoni) at a valet stand and is so taken with her that they wind up having dinner, kicking off the aforementioned whirlwind. He soon realizes that life with Jeanie won’t be the quiet, low-key one he enjoys, but he’d rather change than live without her.
Daly is coming off a recurring part in Netflix’s sitcom Leanne. He starred in NBC’s 1990s comedy Wings and also counts Private Practice, Superman: The Animated Series and a guest role on The Sopranos, for which he earned an Emmy nomination, among his credits. He is repped by IAG, Gateway Management & Production and Behr Abramson.
Newlyweds is produced by Universal Television. Lerner executive produces with co-creator Jamie Lee Curtis, Eric Tannenbaum, Kim Tannenbaum, Scott Schwartz, Lionsgate Television and Fryman. Leoni is a producer.
John Davidson, the Scottish Tourette’s syndrome activist and real-life inspiration for “I Swear,” was thrust into the spotlight at the 79th BAFTA Awards when his involuntary vocal tics disrupted the ceremony, including an outburst of racial slurs that occurred as “Sinners” stars Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo presented an award. In an exclusive email interview with Variety, Davidson offers his perspective on what happened, including what precautions and guardrails he had expected the BBC and BAFTA to take before he attended the ceremony.
Since the fallout, Davidson’s team shares that he’s reached out to the studio handling “Sinners” in order to directly apologize to Jordan, Lindo and production designer Hannah Beacher.
Here he is, giving his account, in his own words.
LONDON, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 22: Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo present the Special Visual Effects Award on stage during the EE BAFTA Film Awards 2026 at The Royal Festival Hall on February 22, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Stuart Wilson/BAFTA/Getty Images for BAFTA)
Getty Images for BAFTA
Many people’s only frame of reference for Tourette’s syndrome comes from stereotypes, particularly the idea that it’s “just swearing” or saying slurs for shock value. How do you describe the condition to someone starting from that place?
Very often, the media focuses on my particular type of Tourette’s, which is called coprolalia — the involuntary use of obscene or offensive language. This symptom affects 10% to 30% of people with the condition and is not a criterion for diagnosis. However, it is one of the hardest tics to manage and can be very distressing for those living with it. Many individuals report discrimination and isolation as a result.
I have been physically beaten to within an inch of my life with an iron bar after ticking a comment to a young woman whose boyfriend and accomplice ambushed me one evening.
The real challenge isn’t the tics themselves, but the misconceptions surrounding them. Understanding the full range of Tourette’s helps reduce stigma and supports everyone living with the condition.
When socially unacceptable words come out, the guilt and shame on the part of the person with the condition is often unbearable and causes enormous distress. I can’t begin to explain how upset and distraught I have been as the impact from Sunday sinks in.
In the moment before a vocal tic, do you know what’s coming, or does it only become clear after the fact?
Depending on the severity of the condition, people either have an ability to suppress what they are saying for short periods of time, or they don’t. Suppressing can be compared to taking a full bottle of Coca-Cola and shaking it each time you feel the need to tic. Before long, the pressure is so intense it has to be released, and it bursts out — and on occasion, that can lead to a tic attack.
For me personally, my brain works so fast and the tics have always been so aggressive that I have no idea when they are coming or what they will be. I have almost no ability to suppress, and when the situation is stressful, I have absolutely no choice but to tic — it simply bursts out of me like a gunshot.
When a tic involves a slur or taboo phrase, what’s the single most important thing you want people to understand about the distinction between intent and involuntary neurological response?
I want people to know and understand that my tics have absolutely nothing to do with what I think, feel or believe. It’s an involuntary neurological misfire. My tics are not an intention, not a choice and not a reflection of my values.
Those who have seen “I Swear” will understand this. My tics have said and done things over the years that have caused huge pain and upset — punching Dottie [my second mother] in the face is a prime example. Dottie is someone I love dearly. I would never, ever want to hurt her. I have even punched her in the face when she was driving at speed, almost causing a head-on collision.
Tourette’s can make my body or voice do things I don’t mean, and sometimes those tics land on the worst possible words. I want to be really clear that the intent behind them is zero. What you’re hearing is a symptom — not my character, not my thought, not my belief.
Tourette’s can feel spiteful and searches out the most upsetting tic for me personally and for those around me. What you hear me shouting is literally the last thing in the world I believe; it is the opposite of what I believe. The most offensive word that I ticked at the ceremony, for example, is a word I would never use and would completely condemn if I did not have Tourette’s.
I am often triggered by what I see and/or what I hear, and this part of the condition is called echolalia. For example, when the chair of BAFTA started speaking on Sunday, I shouted, “Boring.” On Sunday, Alan Cumming joked about his own sexuality and, when referencing Paddington Bear, said, “Maybe you would like to come home with me, Paddington. It wouldn’t be the first time I have taken a hairy Peruvian bear home with me.” This resulted in homophobic tics from me and led to a shout of “pedophile” that was likely triggered because Paddington Bear is a children’s character.
I would appreciate reports of the event explaining that I ticked perhaps 10 different offensive words on the night of the awards. The N-word was one of these, and I completely understand its significance in history and in the modern world, but most articles are giving the impression I shouted one single slur on Sunday.
What went into the decision to attend in person, and what conversations, if any, did you have with BAFTA or the BBC in advance about how to support you and other guests?
This was an awards ceremony that featured six nominations connected to a film that told the story of my life living with Tourette’s. This has been a three-year project for me, working with the writer, director, production and cast. I am also an active executive producer on the film. I had as much right to attend as anyone.
I also knew that as voting members, most people in the audience would have seen “I Swear” and would be well prepared, well educated and well informed about my condition.
After living with Tourette’s for almost 40 years, I was aware of how physically and mentally difficult it would be for me to attend. I also had a serious heart operation only five weeks ago. I put every ounce of energy and concentration into being able to attend.
I was thrilled to see that on the night, everyone — including some of the most well-respected and famous people from the film world — cheered at my name and applauded. I stood and waved to show my appreciation and acknowledged that this was a significant moment in my life, finally being accepted. It started as one of the most memorable experiences of my life.
StudioCanal were working closely with BAFTA, and BAFTA had made us all aware that any swearing would be edited out of the broadcast. I have made four documentaries with the BBC in the past, and feel that they should have been aware of what to expect from Tourette’s and worked harder to prevent anything that I said — which, after all, was some 40 rows back from the stage — from being included in the broadcast.
As I reflect on the auditorium, I remember there was a microphone just in front of me, and with hindsight I have to question whether this was wise, so close to where I was seated, knowing I would tic.
What was going through your mind in the moment you realized the room could clearly hear your tics?
Initially, my tics were noises and movements, but the more nervous I got, the more my tics ramped up. When my coprolalia tics came out, my stomach just dropped. As always, I felt a wave of shame and embarrassment hit me all at once. You want the floor to swallow you up. I wanted to disappear. I wanted to hide — just get away from all the eyes.
I was hoping people would understand. My mind was saying: These people have seen the film. They will know I can’t help this. They will know it’s not me. This is exactly why we are here. I was saying in my head, “Please don’t judge me. Please understand this isn’t who I am.”
I was trying to calm myself down, to breathe, but ultimately, I made the decision to leave to not cause any more upset. BAFTA found a private room with a monitor where I watched the rest of the awards.
The awards were, in all honesty, just a heightened version of my everyday life and are the reason why, for many periods in my life, I have been fearful of leaving the house — because I am so anxious and nervous about what I might tic and what people’s reaction might be.
You’ve spent years educating and campaigning around Tourette syndrome. Where have you seen real progress — and where does misunderstanding persist most stubbornly?
Sometimes you feel like you are making real progress in educating people on the condition, but there is so much more needed. Comments following the BAFTAs where people have said things like, “I need to stay inside,” “I wouldn’t say these things unless I thought them,” and “I am racist deep down” are deeply upsetting for me, and show there is still so much to do.
The negative responses only go to show the importance of people seeing the film and understanding more about an incredibly complex neurological condition. I had an expectation that the BBC would physically control the sound at the awards on Sunday. I was so far from the stage. From the lack of response from the early presenters to my tics, and with no one turning around to look at me, I assumed, like everyone else, that I could not be heard on the stage.
The only time I became aware that my tic had reached the stage was when Delroy and Michael B. Jordan appeared to look up from their role as presenters, and soon after that I decided to leave the auditorium.
Finally, is there any language you’d ask us to avoid — words like “outburst” or “uncontrollable” — in favor of something more accurate?
It’s important not to use the word “disability.” This is considered a “condition” by the Tourette’s community. I would prefer phrasing such as: “I have lived with the condition …”
PlayStation’s highly anticipated “Wolverine” video game will launch on Sept. 15.
The titular character, Logan/Wolverine, will be played by Liam McIntyre. Per the studio, the game “intends to deliver the ultimate Wolverine fantasy, with fast, fluid, and ferocious combat; exhilarating, action-packed set pieces, and a gripping story that taps into the core tenets of one of the most compelling comic book characters of all-time.”
“Wolverine” was developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment’s Insomniac Games in partnership with Marvel Games and released its first trailer during PlayStation’s “State of Play” presentation in September 2025.
“We aim to deliver the ultimate Wolverine fantasy built on Insomniac staples like fast, fluid, and ferocious combat; exhilarating, action-packed set pieces; robust accessibility features; and a gripping story that taps into the core tenets of one of the most compelling comic book characters of all-time,” Insomniac Games senior community manager Aaron Jason Espinoza said in a PlayStation blog post first announcing the game. “We’re breaking new ground with Wolverine, yes, but our penchant for telling stories about heroes overcoming colossal odds is as strong as ever. We’re eager to explore Logan’s story with you and tap into his signature spin on heroism, which is much darker and more brutal than you might expect from Insomniac.”
AMC Theatres CEO Adam Aron on Tuesday gave an update to investors on his recovery from a minor stroke on Nov. 17 of last year during a visit to London.
“Just before Thanksgiving, during a business trip to London, I suffered a minor stroke. Fortunately for me, I got immediate care at a superb London hospital run by the United Kingdom’s National Health Service,” Aron told analysts on a conference call about his stay at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurological Sciences, a public hospital in London known for its stroke care.
“It was envisioned that I would have a speedy and full recovery,” Aron added in prepared remarks on the call following the release on Monday of the company’s fourth quarter and full-year 2025 financial results. “There was no cognition problem at the time of the stroke, no issue with reasoning or logic or decision making or memory.”
Aron said he lost his ability to speak for a “day or so,” and that was followed by speech therapy. “That was 14 weeks ago. You can hear for yourselves my voice today. My voice is back. I am delighted to report to you all that I am in fighting shape and fully ready to do battle,” he added as he continues to serve as chairman, CEO and president of AMC.
At the time of his minor stroke, AMC in a statement said: “Fortunately, there are no indications of loss of cognitive brain function related to Mr. Aron’s ability to process complex information, his memory or his written communications, which are all normal and undiminished. His only meaningful limitation was an initial slurring of his speech. He immediately commenced speech therapy, and has already seen a remarkable recovery in the quality and tenor of his voice. He expects to make a speedy and full recovery.”
A release date hasn’t been set but SPC is eyeing a theatrical debut in the fall.
Written and directed by Noah Segan, “Pickpocket” follows Harry (Turturro), a veteran of the craft who struggles to keep up with the changing times — phones are trackable, wallets rarely have cash and guns are hiding in plain sight. When a theft goes awry, Harry embarks on a high-stakes race against time through the Big Apple. Giancarlo Esposito, Tatiana Maslany, Steve Buscemi, Karina Arroyave, Victoria Moroles, Will Price and Jamie Lee Curtis round out the cast.
“Noah Segan’s ‘The Only Living Pickpocket’ is one of the great New York movies ever featuring John Turturro in the finest performance of his career, and it’s a glorious entertainment,” Sony Pictures Classics said in a statement. “It will be a big hit this fall with audiences everywhere.”
In Variety’s review, critic Tomris Laffly shared a similar sentiment and praised “The Only Living Pickpocket in New York” as an “unapologetically local love letter to the Big Apple and its less-illustrious denizens that New York deserves.” She added that “Pickpocket’ feels like a new, minor-key New York classic.”
This is Sony Pictures Classics’ third acquisition out of this year’s Sundance following the crowd-pleasing love story “Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty” and drama “Bedford Park.”
Segan is best known for working with Rian Johnson on such films as “Looper,” “Brick” and the “Knives Out” trilogy. His last directorial effort was 2022’s “Blood Relatives,” a horror comedy about Jewish vampires. “Pickpocket” was produced by Johnson’s T-Street Productions, which backed a prior Sundance darling in Chloe Domont’s psychological thriller “Fair Play,” which sold to Netflix for a staggering $20 million in 2023.
Segan called Sony Pictures Classics co-presidents Michael Barker and Tom Bernard “legends in their own right” and thanked them for “iconically supporting the sort of sincerity and care we’ve put into the film.”
“As a multi-generational New Yorker, capturing the soul and energy of our city was a requirement for ‘The Only Living Pickpocket in New York.’ No one embodies that vibe more than John Turturro,” Segan said in a statement. “Working alongside his legendary friends and colleagues like Steve Buscemi and Giancarlo Esposito, actors who have defined New York Cinema throughout their careers, gave us the authenticity that New York demands. Alongside our crew, we managed to make discoveries in our own backyard, through fellowship and shared history. It is a great honor to partner with Sony Pictures Classics in bringing the movie to audiences.”
[This story contains spoilers from the three-episode premiere of Paradise season two.]
If the first season of Paradise was a post-apocalyptic survival drama — albeit, a twisty one — the second season of Dan Fogelman‘s hit Hulu series starring Sterling K. Brown is about something even bigger — and less tangible.
“This season is about: Do you believe that things happen for a reason, or is it chance? It’s a big, emotional question. It’s almost a religious question; a philosophical question. What do you believe?” executive producer and writer John Hoberg tells The Hollywood Reporter about the newly released second season of Paradise.
Fogelman, who famously created This Is Us, set out to make Paradise with a clear three-season vision, one that had a beginning, middle and an end. Hoberg, who has previously detailed the end-of-the-world research that went into Paradise, says they stuck to that vision. Now that the second season has released its first three episodes, viewers see that the series has traveled outside of the survival city bunker called Paradise that was the main backdrop of season one and is exploring the remnants of the world above after a nuclear fallout — not only to follow protagonist Xavier (Brown) in his search for the wife who he thought had died, but also to introduce new characters, played by Shailene Woodley and Thomas Doherty, and show how everyone else outside of the bunker has been surviving.
Below, Hoberg details to The Hollywood Reporter what Fogelman and team are setting out to do with season two, while hinting at some big looming questions that will be raised ahead and revealing that they have already plotted out almost all of season three (while they await for an official renewal) that will close out this story. They also promise to answer the biggest question already raised: Who is Alex?
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Creator Dan Fogelman said he had a very clear three-season vision for this show from the start. So when you all returned to the writers room for season two, how much was laid out for you, and what was trickiest to figure out?
I was one of the people who was in [on the show] really early. It was me and [writer/co-executive producer] Scott Weinger with Dan [Fogelman] and Jess [Rosenthal, executive producer]. This was before we even gathered the [writers] room and Dan was trying to decide where it was going to go. That’s where we formulated the three-season idea and what those seasons would be. We knew we were in the bunker season one, and we knew we were going out and Xavier [Sterling K. Brown] was going to look for his wife [in season two]. We also knew that we were headed for a collision of two different worlds. So when you have that beginning and you know where you’re swimming to, you know the high points. We probably knew what the midpoint of season [two] was and the final thing [of the season]. There was a lot of debate over, “When will Xavier get to Atlanta [where wife Terri is believed to be]? What’s going to happen along the way? How long do we want to be on the road?” Those are the things we really started to figure out.
You knew you would release three episodes with launch. Why did you want to structure the first three episodes this way, and kick off season two by introducing new characters Annie (Woodley) and Link (Doherty) before catching back up with Xavier and returning to the bunker?
The big debate was, “Do we do what we felt was the right, but more gutsy, move of starting with the Shailene episode, where you don’t see Xavier until the last second?” That was the big discussion. We knew we wanted that episode. We knew we wanted to give the audience a chance to experience what the last day out in the world was like — not with the president and all the protected people [as was shown in season one], but what it was like for an everyday person when the world ended.
Everything except for that episode is through Xavier’s emotional experience. He’s driving the entire show. So we knew we needed to put him through it when he finds those kids [in season two] to say, Here’s the new world you’re in. This is a different reality than he had experienced before [in the bunker]. The rules are different. We knew we wanted that, and we also knew we wanted to check in on the bunker.
There was discussion of, “Do we flip [episodes] one and two? Do we flip episodes two and three?” Because they could flip. Ultimately we landed on this format, and decided that it was the best path to invest you in the world you’re about to get into and then be like, “Oh, that’s right. Xavier’s there.”
Newcomers Shailene Woodley as Annie with Thomas Doherty as Link in season two.
Disney/Ser Baffo
There are mysterious nose bleeds and what I’m referring to as memory flashes in these first episodes. What did you call these unexplainable acts in the room?
We call them flashbacks. I’ve become a believer that we all walk around and our memories give us this ability to transport us to a different time. That’s what our characters are doing. Xavier, when he’s in and out after what’s happened to him when he’s in the plane crash, is flashing to Terry [Enuka Okuma]. In his experience, he’s with Terry. So what we try to do is find these flashbacks that are informing you about the character, but also taking you back and forth through time in the character’s experience.
Already this season seems to be moving from a post-apocalyptic survival drama into a sci-fi story that will raise even bigger questions about what we believe. What were some of the conversations you had in the room about these questions you wanted to pose, and how you would gradually raise them throughout the season?
This season is about: Do you believe that things happen for a reason, or is it chance? It’s a big, emotional question. It’s almost a religious question; a philosophical question. What do you believe? We want the audience to think about, What do these nosebleeds mean? Is that a coincidence? Is it not? That’s really important for us, especially in these first three episodes. Where do you land on what’s going on? Is your Spidey sense going up a little bit? It might not. You might be right for it not to, and you might be right for it going up.
Do you feel like the genre of the show changes this season?
The weird thing is that the genre I have in my head for this show is a Western. Xavier is a Western hero. He is that person with an uncompromising goal. He has a set of values he won’t compromise. So even if the genre is shifting one way or another, the anchor to the entire show is him. We’re testing him. Every episode, we’re going to test him on his moral and personal codes to see if he is going to crack. So even if it the show blends into different things, he holds it together.
We meet Shailene Woodley’s new character Annie at Graceland. We got her survival backstory there, and that’s where she takes Xavier in. I know you all do a ton of research, so why did you chose Graceland as a key location for season two?
A big thing we read up on was really depressing. There are people who I call disastereologists. People who focus on: “What will human beings do in the event of something like this?” One of the things we discovered is what most apocalyptic shows show: the mean-men-with-guns thing. That’s very real. There’s this thing they call “the killing years.” It’s two years when it is ugly and people are fighting for resources, and things are what we have seen in a lot of these shows. But then there is this thought that, at year three, the people who survive are the ones who work together, and gather resources together and can kind of figure things out.
So we started researching that. “What’s a place you might be able to wait out those dangerous two years? Where could this woman be? A bank vault, or another type of shelter?” And then we really let the character lead, and we got into this idea of a woman fighting agoraphobia. Someone [in the room] brought up that they had a friend who was fighting agoraphobia who ended up becoming a tour guide at the Getty Museum, and it was this release because there was a script. We started building with that, and Dan suggested Graceland as being an incredible way to show the end of the world. Throughout the whole season, you’re going to find Americana left behind or repurposed. Gracelan set that theme of how we used to use things versus how people might use them in this kind of world.
The big question viewers are asking after these first three episodes is, who the hell is Alex?
Good! I want people to ask, who the hell is Alex? The one thing with this show is that we answer questions. That’s really important. That was important to Dan from the beginning. We’ll pose questions and we will answer them, and bring up new questions. So if you’re wondering if you will find out who Alex is, you will find out who Alex is.
SInatra (Julianne Nicholson, left) survived the season one finale attack on her life by Jane (Nicole Brydon Bloom).
Disney/Gilles Mingasson
Dan had confirmed Sinatra [Julianne Nicholson] would come back in season two alive, but that it would be different for her. When she wakes up, she’s knocked down a peg. She has to fight to get back in charge, and we see her addressing her own humanity. What story are you telling with Sinatra this season?
Sinatra is up to something much bigger. Is it nefarious? Is it good? Who knows? But she is driven and. Hopefully it makes you question like all the extremes she’s gone to in trying to protect the bunker. But it seems like she’s trying to protect something bigger than the bunker. And that’s what her goal is — her life’s goal is something other than just the bunker. That’s what we’re going to learn about her.
You brought back James Marsden’s President Cal and John Beavers’ Billy through flashbacks. Was that important to keep them among the cast, and will you find a way to do that again if you come back for season three?
Yes. The great thing if you’re an actor on a Dan Fogelman show is you kind of never disappear. You may die, but that doesn’t matter, because there are so many flashbacks. The story is informed in the past, and this collection of people have roles they have to play. They’re very interconnected, and that’s something that will continue — the interconnectedness of life.
Each season two episode is focused on a character’s backstory. Was that something you set out to do more of this season? Did you debate who would get that treatment, and were there people left out?
Yes, there are people left out from getting their flashbacks. In season three, which we’re already breaking — we’re breaking episode seven right now and we know where it ends [with eight]; we know what episode eight is. Everybody gets their due. I will say that. But there’s only so much real estate and the story really dictates. I personally want to know more about Robinson’s [Krys Marshall] backstory, and we’ll get that, along with other characters. Everyone will have a moment, but it’s when they come to significance in the grander story when we made those decisions.
Since you are breaking season three and you know how it ends, does that mean you remain set on three seasons and there won’t be a fourth season of Paradise? The ending is plotted out?
We know what the end is, and it’s an end that would make it very difficult to make a season four come afterward.
What would you say the second season is building to, and how would you say it sets up your vision for season three?
It is setting up that there’s a lot of things going on in two different places. And if I were a viewer, I would wonder if those two different things might come together at some point.
