Disclaimer: This FROM interview has been edited for clarity.
FROM season 2 started off with a bang, as a bus full of newcomers rolled into town. With so many new mouths to feed and varying personalities and temperaments, tensions escalate exponentially for all of the trapped residents.
One passenger, Elgin, is particularly intriguing. Fan theories have been swirling ever since his arrival that there is more to him than meets the eye. Perhaps he has been in the town before…
Actor Nathan D. Simmons spoke to us about his work on the show, which starts off with a memorable (and disgusting) introduction.
LadyJenevia: Elgin has a memorable introduction on the show; he throws up on another passenger on the bus. On a technical level, how is that sequence filmed and put together? Since you’re facing away from the camera, maybe there’s a tube running up your front or something like that?
Simmons: [jokingly] Oh no no, I stick my finger down my mouth. I’m playing.
No, they gave me like some pea soup, actually. It was disgusting. It tasted, smelled, and felt like throw-up. AJ was a trooper because I kept telling him, “Man listen, I may throw up on your for real.” He was like, [in a British accent] “It’s all good, bro. Man, don’t worry about it man, don’t worry about it,” but yeah.
LadyJenevia: Oh is that his real accent?
Simmons: That’s his real accent. He’s gonna hate that I did that.
LadyJenevia: In episode two, Elgin is running away from monsters and he ends up in a container of sorts with Boyd. Harold Perrineau is the reason I started watching the show, because Baz Luhrmann is everything.
Simmons: Oh my god, yes!
LadyJenevia: What was the experience like of working with [Harold] and did you get to learn anything as an actor from getting to be in scenes with him?
Simmons: Getting to work with Harold, still sends chills down your spine. Working with him is great. I learned a lot about like… I was taught this but you could really see it in practice, just being present and working with your scene partner and just going on that journey. He’s incredible and you’ll see as the season goes on, his performance in this, oh my god, it’s incredible. He’s insane.
LadyJenevia: I was just watching episode six this morning and the way that ends I was going, “Oh! There he goes! They let him loose!”
There have been a lot of theories about Elgin, and everything about the way you’re playing him indicates that there’s a lot more to him than the larger audience knows yet. Were you informed in advance more information about him so that you would be able to play his truth and perspective even when not everything has been revealed yet on the show?
Simmons: No, not necessarily but there was a there was a lot in the pages and how other characters have reacted I got to use off of. Also John and Jack were very poignant on how to perceive certain scenes. A lot of it really was just being in the moment and for me it was the things that I say, that the things that Elgin doesn’t say are just as if not more important than the things that I do. That’s something that I realised because he does a lot like he’s going to share something or he’s going to feel, somebody decides he’s not going to and that was very interesting for me even as I was preparing for certain scenes.
LadyJenevia: Have you seen any of the theories or speculation about the truth about Elgin? A lot of people think that he’s been in the town before.
Simmons: Yes, they do. Yeah, I’ve see one that, they thought that I was… I think that I was related to Boyd, which I thought was was very interesting. There’s some actually that I thought, ‘That’s exactly what I thought, too, on the first day, like exactly what I thought too,’ and it may not be far off. I won’t say what it was and what I read but yeah, I like the theories. I like the theories because they’re even making me think too because I’m like, ‘Ah that’s not how I thought about it, but maybe I’ll put that in my pocket because who knows what’s gonna happen.’ Hopefully if people keep watching, we get a third season and with support to the writers right now, we can get a third season and more questions getting answered.
LadyJenevia: Yeah because I think there’s a point where he’s asked, ‘Do you know where you are?’ and he goes, ‘Do you know where we are?’ and I’m going, ‘Oh no. He knows. He knows something.’
Simmons: I know. I do know, yeah.
LadyJenevia: Yeah, you’re not gonna convince me otherwise; you know something.
Simmons: That’s very true. That is very true.
LadyJenevia: You have to pay attention when you’re gonna do interviews like these. He’s up to something. He knows something.
Simmons: There is something there. John and Jack and Jeff, they don’t put these together randomly. There’s no fluff in a lot of the scripts. A lot of it is important so a lot of people are on the right path. Maybe I could say, some should think a little harder.
LadyJenevia: What can you tease to the FROM audience and the fans about the back half of the season? Even I haven’t seen it. The last thing I’ve seen is episode six so I’m a little ahead but I haven’t seen everything.
Simmons: This season is is wild, a lot of ups and downs, and there’s a lot that even when we got the scripts I was like, ‘What? What is happening right now? Being honest, I think some people are going to be frustrated by some things but a lot of people are going to be even more excited because there’s a lot of questions that get answered. There’s also a lot that expands. There’s a lot of expansion and things that happen.
LadyJenevia: Have you seen all of the episodes yet?
Simmons: I haven’t seen all of them yet but I’ve seen quite a few of them and it’s really cool. This season’s really nice. I’m a fan of the show too from season one and this season is special.
LadyJenevia: What was your reaction when watching episode six for the first time, if you’ve seen it, because that’s also a big episode for Elgin…
Simmons: I thought it was nice. It was really nicely put together. It’s one of my favourites of the series, honestly. I’m trying to not spoil but yeah, it’s an exciting episode, a lot going on. There’s certain parts I was like, ‘Oh my God!’ but yeah, it’s a really good episode.
FROM season 2 is available to stream on MGM+.
Watch my interview with Nathan D. Simmons here:
Watch my interview with Harold Perrineau and other FROM cast members here: