‘Twisted Metal’ Stars Talk Season 2’s Love Story, Their Explosive Chemistry & More (VIDEO)
The world of Twisted Metal has been gracing screens since 1995, when it debuted as a high-velocity, ultra-violent crash-’em, bash-’em-up game from Sony. Since then, it has seen nearly a dozen iterations, but bringing it to television as a comedy series may be its most ambitious leap yet.
In this adaptation, the story follows “milkman” John Doe (Anthony Mackie) and his gal pal Quiet (Stephanie Beatriz) as he is recruited for a demolition derby tournament known as Twisted Metal. Led by an enigmatic figure known as Calypso (Anthony Carrigan), the competition has attracted malevolent misfits from all walks of life as they compete for the grand prize: A single wish that will grant their deepest desires.
As the second season revs up to debut on July 31, showrunner and writer Michael Jonathan Smith along with stars Carrigan and Joe Seanoa, who plays Sweet Tooth, came by TV Insider and TV Guide Magazine’s studio to chat the upcoming season, their roles in the series, and the total bedlam that is Twisted Metal.
Off the bat, Carrigan informed audiences that there will be a slight time jump at the start of the season, leaving John and Quiet to carry on with their separate journeys after their split in Season 1.
“We come back seven months later, and I feel like so much of Season 2 is sort of like that moment after college, where you have broken up with your partner and you come back in, and things have changed,” said the showrunner. “Maybe one person is coming back in love-struck, ‘We’re gonna pick things back up!’ And the other one is like, ‘We’ve been away for a couple of months. I’ve kinda moved on a little bit.’ It’s about getting back into the swing of things and seeing how much you’ve grown and how much things have changed, and finding yourself back in the middle of things. And how much two people want two different things.”
“Some much of the show is about their love story, and about them falling back in love. We have an episode called ‘The Horny Heist,’ that really quite exciting. I really just love the two of them together,” said Smith.
Fans of the game will not doubt rejoice at the chance to see more of their favorite characters come to life as the second season delves into the extensive lore of the game to snag players for Calypso’s tournament, including Mr. Grimm, Dollface, and Axel, just to name a few.
“It’s such a great opportunity to bring in all these old characters from Season 1. We have John Doe with Anthony Mackie, and Quiet with Stephanie Beatriz, you have Joe! Sweet Tooth! And then you have new characters. You have Dollface by Tiana Okoye, Mayhem with Saylor Curda [Bell]…it just feels like this great mash-up of old and new,” said the scribe. “It just feels like our great cinematic universe kind of moment.”
“It just feels bigger. More explosions. More cars. More characters!,” exclaimed Smith. “Missiles! Bombs! Explosions! But then it still has the relationships, the heart. Every character is coming into this with a wish, with that drive.”
“It’s so much fun to have these interactions and see what makes them tick, and throwing them into one big boiling pot led by this dude,” said Smith as he gestured to Carrigan.
Stepping into the role of the Twisted Metal ringmaster is not an easy feat, but it does look like one of unrestrained delight, thanks to Carrigan’s enthusiasm.
“It’s just pure joy. Unbridled glee, and kind of maniacal as well,” said Carrigan about playing the sinister mastermind behind the Twisted Metal tournament. “He’s such a distinct character. You’ve seen the video games, and he’s just a force of evil. But I also wanted to put my own spin on it. I kind of took a lot of liberties to bring this guy to life. It’s all for the fun of television.”
Luckily, playing deranged lunatics is directly within Carrigan’s wheelhouse, so to speak.
“I can’t let them be,” he joked.
But perhaps the franchise’s most iconic character is that of its psychotic clown, Sweet Tooth. To bring the unhinged harlequin to life, it was a two-man job. In this case, Seanoa provides the physical performance, and Will Arnett provides the voice.
“Me and Will got together even before production even started, before the scene even starts, and we go over what we want and what we expect out of the character,” said Seanoa. “It’s me doing my best to give the good dialogue to my costars here and give Will enough room to lay down his track and do what he does best. It’s a fun combination. It’s fun to create the character with him. And I think most people have enjoyed it so far.”
“MJ has written such amazing scripts and it is such a wonderful blueprint, that you really just need to follow it. and enjoy the dynamic,” said Carrigan. “Enjoy the moment. Enjoy what’s been set up. It’s so much fun and so dynamic.”
Twisted Metal, Season 2 premiere July 31, Peacock
— Additional reporting by Emily Aslanian