Synergy: Thy Name is KILLJOYS
You know, it’s every fanboy’s greatest desire to be sequestered with the cast of a dynamite sci-fi action series and — sure enough — I got that chance. I was fortunate enough to steal a few minutes and hang out with the cast of Space Channel’s newest show: Killjoys!
The Killjoys – Ready for Action! (Courtesy: Space Channel/SyFy Channel)
After watching the first four episodes of this amazing new production, I’m hooked. It’s got world-building, great characters and a completely exciting premise that allows for a myriad of incredible adventures. Plus, as a production of Temple Street Productions – the creators of another incredible show on Space Channel, Orphan Black — you know that it’s got the pedigree and all the right elements for success.
The show is set in a far-off four-planet star system known as the Quad. Governed by a quasi-political corporate entity known only as The Company, the society of these four planets is extremely polarized by a disproportionate amount of haves and have-nots. Crime, black markets, smuggling and all sorts of nefarious activities run rampant throughout the system and occasionally, law enforcement needs help from the RAC, or the Reclamation Apprehension Coalition. This is a group of agents who are licensed across the system to track down fugitives from the law, transport convicts or reclaim stolen property. Essentially – bounty hunters in space.
But let’s face it: it’s the energy the characters bring to the show that are going to make it a winner.
… and this trio has it in droves.
The Killjoys L to R: Aaron Ashmore (Johnny), Hannah John-Kamen (Dutch) and Luke Macfarlane (D’avin) Photo Credit: John K. Kirk
The roles of Dutch, Johnny and D’avin are respectively played by Hannah John-Kamen, Aaron Ashmore and Luke Macfarlane. The synergy among these high-energy players is immediately felt in the room; their positivism, welcoming nature and their genuine excitement to meet you gives you a sense of the chemistry that must be present on set.
There was very little hesitation in answering the questions – almost like they had their characters’ responses channeled, prepped and ready.
Geekpr0n: Let’s get right into it and get sci-fi. Do any of you have favourite sci-fi influences? What do you see in them that prepared you for Killjoys?
Aaron Ashmore: Star Trek: The Next Generation – it was a show that I grew up with and really, really liked.
Luke Macfarlane: Yeah – me too. That was the one TV show we were allowed to watch as a family at the dinner table.
Geekpr0n: You had a good family.
(LAUGHTER)
Geekpr0n: Do you bring any of that into the show or the role that you’re playing?
AA: Well, I mean there’s a real respect and enjoyment of the genre, because I really like it … but it’s the tone that’s really different.
LM: The Federation, I think, their world is a little more … cleaner than our world. They’re a little more polished. Things haven’t gone quite as well for humanity!
(LAUGHTER)
Geekpr0n: Well, that’s the thing, isn’t it? You’ve got this great backstory in the show that you can draw on. So what drew you to Killjoys?
Hannah John-Kamen: Well, for me, it’s character-based – it wasn’t the kind of kind of genre that we’re used to … I’m a sci-fi fan – grew up on Star Wars and … but, for me, it was character that drew me to Killjoys. Dutch is such an amazing, complex and layered character that is so – as an actress, THAT’s the kind of role you want to play. I mean: YES! Finally, a character that draws you into such an amazing fantasy world … and you get to create your own world with that.
There’s an instant synergy amongst the characters that strikes you as soon as you meet this team; you experience the same effect when you watch the show. The first thing that Johnny does in the show is go out to rescue his long-lost brother when he discovers that he’s in danger. When you meet these actors in person, you get that same sense of team. They are high-charged, socially kinetic people who are ready to add something extra to another’s answers or who are quick to point out how talented or accomplished their castmates are.
Geekpr0n: We need cool audition stories! Got any?
LM: (Groan) Auditioning is not cool.
(LAUGHTER)
AA: We did get to do some cool stuff, like mix-and-match stuff at the testing phase. I remember … umm, I didn’t get to read with Hannah but reading with Luke – that’s D’avin – that guy’s getting hired. I knew that he was the guy for the part. I heard him and like, I knew that he was going to get it. I heard his read and I was able to envision the character as him.
LM: I knew the same thing about you.
AA: Awwww…
(LAUGHTER)
Geekpr0n: The chemistry among the Killjoys has to be perfect – it’s a matter of survival in the Quad. On the show, do you have any stories about working on set together?
LM: Oh yeah!
AA: I think we got along really well right away.
HJK: Oh, so well.
AA: We had to do all this fight-training and military stuff together right off the bat. I think that that … I was just thinking about this earlier today – that kind of bonded us together, ‘cause we were all thrown into this really new experience – very physical stuff and we don’t know each other …
LM: Not a lot of time.
AA: … And not a lot of time, yeah, and just thrown into it and having to make it work. That automatically bonds you together.
HJK: And we’ve got a crazy sense of humour as well. Like one of us would say something weird and that would be the green light for the other to say something weirder. Then there would be like this contest back and forth – “I’m the weirdest!” Then we’ll all have a laugh and then realize that we’re all weird!
(LAUGHTER)
LM: Yeah … I haven’t seen these guys in like two months – and we’re laughing! I had to ask them: you guys didn’t laugh like this on other sets, right? They’re like “no …”, and I’m like, “Good! So it WAS special!”
It was an enjoyable experience to let these guys simply have fun and just let them talk. There was a feeling of genuine camaraderie in the room. This three had been answering questions all day and at the end of it, they were still answering questions, but they were enjoying working together to come up with answers as a team. It was almost as if Dutch, Johnny and D’avin were out for a night on the town, telling stories to some hick yokel new to the bar.
That would be me.
The Killjoys entertain some company (Photo: John K. Kirk)
There’s also a tremendous amount of inferred backstory in their characters on Killjoys. The Quad is a separate system displaced by an unknown amount of years in the future and light-years out in space. You have to imagine how this place was settled and who controls the corporation simply known as “the Company” that governs this section of space. In the middle of it are these dark but loyal characters who work hard, play hard and watch each other’s’ backs. Life is grim in the Quad, but to redeem it are these diverse and dependable heroes who watch out for each other to get their jobs done.
This is world-building at its finest. A creation of Michelle Lovretta (Orphan Black), you are drawn to puzzle things out along with these adventurers who seem to know their way around the universe, but not their companions’ secretive and mysterious pasts. Not only do we grow to understand the world that Lovretto has built through their eyes, but we also grow to understand them more. I couldn’t have imagined a more apt team of characters to go out there and restore order to the Quad. Meeting them in person certainly gave me greater insight into the make-up and nature of the show.
Hell, I want to be a Killjoy now.
Killjoys premieres this week on Friday, June 19th at 9 PM ET simultaneously on the SPACE Channel in Canada and SyFy Channel in the US. Make sure you watch it and see what I mean.
