Disclaimer: This FROM interview has been edited for clarity.
In the lead-up to the FROM season 2 finale, Scott McCord sat down to speak about the many layers of Victor’s material and arc in these 10 episodes. He also gives an insight into his hopes for Victor’s story in a potential season 3.
LadyJenevia: I’m gonna try to cram in as many questions as I can.
McCord: I got it, I’m here I’m here for you.
LadyJenevia: We got this huge revelation that Victor has a sister named Eloise that he’s forgotten. How did this revelation affect your understanding of who Victor is and your approach to portraying him?
McCord: Thank you for that question, wow. As we were shooting the season, it’s funny, I actually thought something else was going to happen. I actually was convinced that it was going in another direction. Can you imagine when I got that script and… you know, you’ve seen that. When I opened it up, my jaw dropped to the floor.
A lot of this season is about Victor’s connections with people. Tabitha, Jade, as we’ve seen, also the way he’s been dealing with Ethan all season. It’s been hard but it’s been about him protecting him. I think what it did is it just fuelled me as soon as I found that out in the ways that I was dealing with those specific characters. Particularly Tabitha because she’s a mother character in my life. I think just gave me, not necessarily a new direction but just maybe more to go with when I went in to play those scenes with her because I think it I think that it made me realise or illuminated this idea that Victor is trying to… even with Tabitha, really trying to connect with her and with his mother, that’s the closest thing I’ve got.
LadyJenevia: It’s interesting because Tabitha tells Victor, “I need you to be brave,” and Victor says that that’s what his mother used to tell him. There’s a fan theory floating around that the townsfolk are trapped in a time loop so when you were working on this scene, did you ever ponder the possibility that this cyclical dialogue could be a clue to indicate that they’re trapped in a time loop?
McCord: Oh boy, what’s what’s the easiest answer to that? No, I didn’t necessarily think that although I get the idea of there being some sort of recycling effect that’s going on in the town. The way I was approaching it as Victor, it was just more like having my mother there in that particular moment when we were when we were shooting it. I think there are, you’ve seen them and heard them too, there’s all kinds of little lines or things that pop out as Easter eggs throughout the season that again, we as the cast, we don’t know where that’s all going. That was one I will say that did resonate obviously in a way that I thought, “Oh yeah, this definitely, this whole relationship with Tabitha, that ties into the whole history of this place.” The very fact that my mother never made it through the tree, and then Tabitha, we have this thing now in [the season 2 finale] where I take her to the tree. Yeah, there’s some sort of continuum anyway, isn’t there? Something’s happening.
LadyJenevia: We see Victor confronted with this idea of getting to leave the town but his response is that the town is his home. Have you ever envisioned Victor back in the real world and what do you believe that would look like?
McCord: I don’t, actually. I made a very conscious choice, just as an actor, to not think about that outside world in terms of Victor’s thinking because I don’t think he does. The other thing that Victor says in the season too is, ‘I don’t think there is a way out.’ That is his world. That is his universe that he has adopted or is continuing to you know adapt to.
LadyJenevia: Obviously, Victor’s story is very tragic but you do get some really funny lines at various points, the standout being Victor telling Ethan that the orange marker was dry. To what extent if at all do you alter your approach to delivering these more comedic lines compared to a lot of your other lines which are very tragic and dramatic?
McCord: Sure, yeah, thank you for that question. That’s the beauty of John Griffin’s writing. I love all that stuff, that’s so great. I was watching that episode with my wife and she she burst out laughing and then she snapped her head towards me, [and says] “That was mean!” (laughs)
I think the best way to approach that, and I do my best to do it this way, is just to approach it from a real emotional place. That particular line was clearly being used to just reconnect with him. I didn’t want him to walk away. I know it’s sort of a funny way to do it but it’s beautiful that John put that in there because it’s very childlike. Like, ‘Oh yeah, those markers you bought me, they suck.’ It’s just that way to get to get his attention and to let him know that I care. That’s just a beautiful aspect of not only John’s writing but the character.
LadyJenevia: If the powers that be in the industry do the right thing and renegotiate fair terms for the WGA and then we can get to see a season three for the FROM universe and all these characters, what would you like to see explored or developed for Victor?
McCord: Interesting!
LadyJenevia: It’s not you spoiling anything, it’s more so just your imagination as an actor for the character.
McCord: What would I like to see?
LadyJenevia: Yeah.
McCord: Again, that’s something that I haven’t given a lot of thought to but I think what I would definitely like to see is… because the way that the stories are set up which is that divisiveness that’s happening between Colony, although it’s starting to come together, right? Boyd and Donna spend a lot of time together and they’re trying to just figure this thing out.
I think this is going to sound very optimistic of course but just in this world and in this life, it’d be great to see everybody come in and collaborate, share those stories, and those things, not keep anything from each other, to really try and get to the crux of this whole thing so they can get out.
LadyJenevia: I think it’d be fun for you to get more scenes with Harold. I mean, I’m a little biased because I really like Harold but that would be really cool to see more scenes between you two.
McCord: Interesting! Yeah, you know what, I didn’t really notice it until the season was closing and I thought, ‘Oh yeah, Harold and I really only had this one little moment in the peach truck together.’ I mean, I would die to work with Harold, the king.
LadyJenevia: Oh yeah, definitely. I mean he’s the reason I started watching the show. Oh, Mercutio is in here? I will be seated!
McCord: Yeah, totally.
LadyJenevia: Well thank you so much for your time, Scott. I really appreciate it. it’s always interesting to probe your mind and your process as an actor.
McCord: Thank you! Great questions, thank you.
Watch my FROM interview with Scott McCord and Elizabeth Saunders here:
Watch my FROM interview with A.J. Simmons here:
Watch my interview with FROM cast members Chloe Van Landschoot and Pegah Ghafoori here:
Watch my interview with FROM cast members Ricky He and Avery Konrad here:
Watch my interview with FROM cast member Nathan D. Simmons here:
Watch my interview with Harold Perrineau and other FROM cast members here: