Showrunner Bruno Heller, along with stars Simon Baker and Robin Tunney, talk to THR about the final two episodes and address the season-ending dilemma facing Lisbon and Jane.
Will Lisbon and Jane finally take the plunge?
Renewed at the 11th hour by CBS, veteran procedural The Mentalist marches toward its May 18 finale with a season-ending question still unanswered: Will Lisbon make the move to Washington, D.C. and end her partnership with Jane? After the Red John wrap-up earlier in the season, exploring the personal dynamics between Jane and Lisbon was the logical next step.
"The pleasures of the show rests in the by-play between Robin [Tunney] and Simon [Baker]. Getting rid of Red John allowed us to focus on that human aspect of the show," executive producer Bruno Heller tells The Hollywood Reporter. "Red John, as it turns out, was a convenience for Jane because it meant he didn't have to confront the rest of his life and what he's doing."
Now that the Red John chapter is over (for the most part), there was no longer a physical obstacle in the way of Jane addressing the Lisbon situation -- just mental ones. "After [Red John] goes, for both Lisbon and Jane, there is a palpable sense of 'What now? Do I really want to continue doing the same thing?' " Heller says. "It left the two of them without an excuse to decide where that relationship was going. They had always been able to keep it separate. Those questions start bubbling up and the rest of the season was the resolution of those questions."
The show's primary focus had always been "the hunt for Red John, the idea of Jane seeking revenge," Baker tells THR, but when that went away and his partnership with Lisbon temporarily ceased, it was time for Jane to figure things out. "You look around and the person standing next to you for five-and-half-years is nowhere to be seen, there's an emptiness and a hollowness," Baker says. Last week's episode was the most recent indicator of the pair's tense (and complicated) relationship, wherein Jane tentatively lets Lisbon go at her doorstep. "it was an obvious progression to get to the idea of longing and missing that person who, when the dust settles, has always been there and [now] she's not there," Baker says.
It's been choppy waters for Jane to get to a place where he can comfortably jump into a romantic affair. "It is not something you can automatically pick up when you're as broken as Jane is," Baker admits. "Just as you get comfortable with any patterns in life, it's going to twist you to change or grow or stretch."
Being one-half of The Mentalist's main couple has been an "interesting" journey to say the least, Tunney tells THR. Though the show has always been billed as a crime procedural, interest in Jane and Lisbon's endgame has been present from the start. Tunney recalls fielding numerous questions over the years about Lisbon and Jane's romantic future, admitting that she'd always answer the same way: a simple "I don't know." "It's always more interesting when the writers and the actors don't know because I don't think you always know in life and also, it becomes less obvious," Tunney explains.
From her perspective, being in such close proximity to Jane during the Red John saga was a factor in turning the tide for Lisbon. "Lisbon did stand by Jane and was really there for him in the hunt for Red John. They're both lonely people and they had this thing in common. Once that was gone, Lisbon really missed him," Tunney says. "She realized that it wasn't just about catching the bad guy: 'I love being around this person and what does this mean?' The last [few] episodes, [Lisbon's wondering,] 'Is he going to declare himself? Is he going to put himself out there? What are we going to do now?' It's going to come to a head."
There is one thing Tunney was OK with in regards to Jane and Lisbon's prolonged courtship: the timing. "It would've been really inappropriate during all the Red John stuff," she says with a laugh. Baker echoed her sentiment: "There also wasn't any room in the show to do it properly."
"The transition to the FBI has been able to give us room structurally in the story to explore the potential for a relationship between Jane and Lisbon," Baker adds. "The threat of [Lisbon] parting in a way has been able to give it its due and be able to play it out properly, as opposed to just a sprinkle here and there."
As The Mentalist readies for the final two hours of season six, the gang promises that a finite resolution will be on tap. "People can expect closure," Tunney says of the remaining episodes. Adds Heller: "We wanted to make sure that the last episode was as fun and humorous and as light-hearted as a crime procedural can be and I think we delivered that." (For the record, Baker jokingly compared the final run to Grease.)
Will fans be satisfied? "I would say yes," Heller says. "This is a popular show. It's meant for the people. We have tried to make a finale to the season that will please and engage and fill our core audience." Adds Baker: "It will by and large give the audience closure, but I suspect it will leave them craving more."
There are already "plans and a blueprint" for the new season, Heller says, adding that the show's seventh year "is like an encore." "The purpose of an encore is to get people leaving the theater happy and giving them what they want and hitting your marks as strong as possible, so that will be the intention," he promises.
The Mentalist airs Sundays at 10 p.m. on CBS.
Email: Philiana.Ng@THR.com
Twitter: @insidethetube
SRC: www.hollywoodreporter.com/
Showing posts with label baker. Show all posts
Showing posts with label baker. Show all posts
May 11, 2014
May 10, 2014
The Mentalist Creator and Stars Discuss the Jane/ Lisbon Dilemma, Boast of a Love-or-Hate Finale
Three may be a crowd on The Mentalist (Sunday, 10/9c), but four was company when the CBS series’ creator, Bruno Heller, along with leads Simon Baker and Robin Tunney, spoke with TVLine to survey the season-ending arc centered on Lisbon’s D.C. debate and how it’s stirring something in Jane. Read on for their thoughts about navigating that sticky wicket and how the May 18 (series?) finale will split the audience 50-50.
TVLINE | Bruno, I understand that it was always the show’s intent to get to this place with Jane and Lisbon at the end of this season, even dating back to last summer?
BRUNO HELLER | We were certainly thinking about it. When the show started, for me there was not a thought of that at all. But one of the things about TV over the years is the characters develop their own dynamic and direction as truth is revealed, and it seemed to us – and [the actors] can contradict me if they like – that love blossoms. There is a genuine feeling there between the two characters that had to be honored, one that was just natural and organic.
TVLINE | Simon, were you interested to explore this side of….
SIMON BAKER | [Interrupts] From the moment I met Robin Tunney. [Tunney and Heller laugh] I looked at her and I said, “You will be mine.” No, you know, it’s one of those things where…. It’s the whole Moonlighting theory that comes into play with long-form TV. It goes on, and sometimes on and on, and do you give the audience what they want, or do you keep the flirtation and tease going? Is that really what they want, is that what they like — to want something? Because as soon as you seal any sort of a deal with anything, it’s like, “Well, that’s that, and from there where do we go?” There are plenty of places always to go, but it’s a risk and a challenge.
TVLINE | But on a character level, were you and Robin interested to ask the question, “What do these two people really mean to each other after all these years?”
BAKER | Yes — and that became really evident, I thought, after we closed the Red John story and we did the episode that took place two years later. It was about laying the foundation for the rest of the season, in the sense of it was an episode about longing and missing each other, missing that relationship as it stood.
ROBIN TUNNEY | I also think the show has always been something more than just a straight procedural. And once the Red John storyline cleared up, it was like, “OK, these people are left with each other. So how do you create stakes?” There was a history, but there was this idea of “What’s next?” How do they feel about each other? It created sort of an arc where there was a lot at stake, people’s hearts and all that stuff, without, “Oh, we can throw another serial killer into the mix.” It was something that was fitting to the show and it created drama.
TVLINE | Robin, in the closing scene of last week’s episode, what is going on in Teresa’s mind as she stands at the doorstep, wiping tears off her face?
TUNNEY | I think she’s just dying for [Jane] to declare himself — and she’s really worried that he won’t. This opportunity with somebody else [Agent Marcus Pike, played by Pedro Pascal] has come up and it’s like, “OK, am I crazy? Should I do this? Am I missing out on something because I’m hanging out waiting for somebody else?” That’s something that’s really scary to her. This guy comes along who’s crazy about her and it’s like, “Am I going to pass up on something that’s real, to hang out and see what happens?” She’s just dying for Jane to declare himself. She’s not sure what else she can do, like, “So, this other guy has asked me to move with him….”
TVLINE | What is it that’s keeping Jane from being more forthright with Lisbon? Is he perhaps not confident in his ability to make her happy, or…?
HELLER | Simon can probably answer that better than me, but for me, if you spent so much of your life self-protectively concealing your feelings, for very good reasons, and feel that it was your love that essentially killed other people in your life, that connection to you has been a bad thing, there are all kinds of fears deep down that would stop you from speaking honestly. Men in general have difficulty declaring their emotions, and in this case [Jane and Lisbon] had a long and close, brother-sister relationship, so to suddenly declare a different kind of love is extremely difficult.
BAKER | Everything seems to be good, and then suddenly the girl that I like to stand next to has these “demands” upon my character to give more of himself…. That’s a part of it. It’s also that Jane is a broken toy. He looks like he’s gotten to be OK, but really, he’s not functioning completely. I guess Lisbon’s wondering and hoping whether or not he ever will function again, and he’s looking at her, thinking, “She’s going to walk away, and I can’t fix myself. I’ve forgotten how to give of myself and surrender.” So it’s a challenge. You could interpret it a lot of different ways, but I knew what I was playing. I didn’t necessarily choose to articulate it, because I think the nature of someone not being able to surrender to someone else or give themselves up is incredibly private. And I think it has to feel like it’s authentically private for it to be legitimate.
TVLINE | Robin, has this last run of episodes been entertaining for you, to be “the prettiest girl at the dance” with two not-unattractive men fighting over you?
TUNNEY | Uh, yeah – after wearing sensible clothes and shoes for five years, it’s been pretty nice.
HELLER | That’s Robin’s real life anyway, men fighting for her….
TUNNEY | [Laughs] It’s interesting, the storyline between Jane and Lisbon. From the very beginning, I remember the TCA [press tour] and PaleyFest [panel during] the first season, it was like, “Will they or wont they?” And my answer – “I have no idea” — was an honest one. And then throughout the years… [Simon and I] could have grown angry at each other or hated each other, but I grew so fond of him as a human being that the idea of where that was going was so easy to play, because I really enjoyed going to work with him. I feel like it’s a progression of how people bond. That’s the great thing about television, is you have the chance to experience things in real time, over six years.
TVLINE | Bruno, are you willing to rule out Pike as the mastermind behind the season-ending kidnapping mystery? That there won’t be that easy out?
HELLER | I’m willing to rule that out, yes. Pike is not the bad guy.
TUNNEY | It all seemed too good to be true!
HELLER | Sometimes I think I’m way too dumb for this audience, to come up with clever solutions like that. [Laughs] Life is not that complicated or dark – though I wish I had come up with that before.
TVLINE | How satisfying will the finale be if it turns out to be the series’ very final episode?
HELLER | You go first, Baker.
BAKER | [Thinks] On a scale of 1 to 10….
HELLER | Oh, I’ll go first then – “11.” Listen, this last one was written and designed to be a suitable big, happy romantic send-off for the series if that what happens — but it also opens a new chapter if that is not the case. I think we hit the mark well enough. I’m very happy with it. Baker is a perfectionist, so he’s not going to be happy until I’ve created a cross between Gone With the Wind and Psycho or something.
BAKER | Oh, Jesus. Can we readdress those references?
HELLER | OK, maybe not those two. But one of the reasons the show has gone as long as it has is precisely because these two, especially Simon, are never satisfied. They’re always pushing for more and better, more interesting and fresh and original. We may not have always succeeded, but that is the bar we’ve been trying to get over. I think we’ve done our best and it’s up to the audience to decide how well it’s done.
BAKER | We’re in the popularist business with The Mentalist. It’s not Breaking Bad, it’s a show that has had a very consistent audience for six years, and it’s all about pulling our audience in directions where we challenge them a bit. You can’t always give everyone what they want, and sometimes people want to be protected from what they want. I think the best result could be to divide the audience 50-50.
TUNNEY | I think it’s going to make a lot of people really happy, and I think it’s going to make some people angry — and that’s the most you can hope for. Because everybody’s emotionally invested in the show in a different way. And that’s good, because they’re genuine reactions. I don’t think anyone will feel in the middle of the road about it.
SRC: tvline.com/
TVLINE | Bruno, I understand that it was always the show’s intent to get to this place with Jane and Lisbon at the end of this season, even dating back to last summer?
BRUNO HELLER | We were certainly thinking about it. When the show started, for me there was not a thought of that at all. But one of the things about TV over the years is the characters develop their own dynamic and direction as truth is revealed, and it seemed to us – and [the actors] can contradict me if they like – that love blossoms. There is a genuine feeling there between the two characters that had to be honored, one that was just natural and organic.
TVLINE | Simon, were you interested to explore this side of….
SIMON BAKER | [Interrupts] From the moment I met Robin Tunney. [Tunney and Heller laugh] I looked at her and I said, “You will be mine.” No, you know, it’s one of those things where…. It’s the whole Moonlighting theory that comes into play with long-form TV. It goes on, and sometimes on and on, and do you give the audience what they want, or do you keep the flirtation and tease going? Is that really what they want, is that what they like — to want something? Because as soon as you seal any sort of a deal with anything, it’s like, “Well, that’s that, and from there where do we go?” There are plenty of places always to go, but it’s a risk and a challenge.
TVLINE | But on a character level, were you and Robin interested to ask the question, “What do these two people really mean to each other after all these years?”
BAKER | Yes — and that became really evident, I thought, after we closed the Red John story and we did the episode that took place two years later. It was about laying the foundation for the rest of the season, in the sense of it was an episode about longing and missing each other, missing that relationship as it stood.
ROBIN TUNNEY | I also think the show has always been something more than just a straight procedural. And once the Red John storyline cleared up, it was like, “OK, these people are left with each other. So how do you create stakes?” There was a history, but there was this idea of “What’s next?” How do they feel about each other? It created sort of an arc where there was a lot at stake, people’s hearts and all that stuff, without, “Oh, we can throw another serial killer into the mix.” It was something that was fitting to the show and it created drama.
TVLINE | Robin, in the closing scene of last week’s episode, what is going on in Teresa’s mind as she stands at the doorstep, wiping tears off her face?TUNNEY | I think she’s just dying for [Jane] to declare himself — and she’s really worried that he won’t. This opportunity with somebody else [Agent Marcus Pike, played by Pedro Pascal] has come up and it’s like, “OK, am I crazy? Should I do this? Am I missing out on something because I’m hanging out waiting for somebody else?” That’s something that’s really scary to her. This guy comes along who’s crazy about her and it’s like, “Am I going to pass up on something that’s real, to hang out and see what happens?” She’s just dying for Jane to declare himself. She’s not sure what else she can do, like, “So, this other guy has asked me to move with him….”
TVLINE | What is it that’s keeping Jane from being more forthright with Lisbon? Is he perhaps not confident in his ability to make her happy, or…?
HELLER | Simon can probably answer that better than me, but for me, if you spent so much of your life self-protectively concealing your feelings, for very good reasons, and feel that it was your love that essentially killed other people in your life, that connection to you has been a bad thing, there are all kinds of fears deep down that would stop you from speaking honestly. Men in general have difficulty declaring their emotions, and in this case [Jane and Lisbon] had a long and close, brother-sister relationship, so to suddenly declare a different kind of love is extremely difficult.
BAKER | Everything seems to be good, and then suddenly the girl that I like to stand next to has these “demands” upon my character to give more of himself…. That’s a part of it. It’s also that Jane is a broken toy. He looks like he’s gotten to be OK, but really, he’s not functioning completely. I guess Lisbon’s wondering and hoping whether or not he ever will function again, and he’s looking at her, thinking, “She’s going to walk away, and I can’t fix myself. I’ve forgotten how to give of myself and surrender.” So it’s a challenge. You could interpret it a lot of different ways, but I knew what I was playing. I didn’t necessarily choose to articulate it, because I think the nature of someone not being able to surrender to someone else or give themselves up is incredibly private. And I think it has to feel like it’s authentically private for it to be legitimate.
TVLINE | Robin, has this last run of episodes been entertaining for you, to be “the prettiest girl at the dance” with two not-unattractive men fighting over you?TUNNEY | Uh, yeah – after wearing sensible clothes and shoes for five years, it’s been pretty nice.
HELLER | That’s Robin’s real life anyway, men fighting for her….
TUNNEY | [Laughs] It’s interesting, the storyline between Jane and Lisbon. From the very beginning, I remember the TCA [press tour] and PaleyFest [panel during] the first season, it was like, “Will they or wont they?” And my answer – “I have no idea” — was an honest one. And then throughout the years… [Simon and I] could have grown angry at each other or hated each other, but I grew so fond of him as a human being that the idea of where that was going was so easy to play, because I really enjoyed going to work with him. I feel like it’s a progression of how people bond. That’s the great thing about television, is you have the chance to experience things in real time, over six years.
TVLINE | Bruno, are you willing to rule out Pike as the mastermind behind the season-ending kidnapping mystery? That there won’t be that easy out?
HELLER | I’m willing to rule that out, yes. Pike is not the bad guy.
TUNNEY | It all seemed too good to be true!
HELLER | Sometimes I think I’m way too dumb for this audience, to come up with clever solutions like that. [Laughs] Life is not that complicated or dark – though I wish I had come up with that before.
TVLINE | How satisfying will the finale be if it turns out to be the series’ very final episode?
HELLER | You go first, Baker.
BAKER | [Thinks] On a scale of 1 to 10….
HELLER | Oh, I’ll go first then – “11.” Listen, this last one was written and designed to be a suitable big, happy romantic send-off for the series if that what happens — but it also opens a new chapter if that is not the case. I think we hit the mark well enough. I’m very happy with it. Baker is a perfectionist, so he’s not going to be happy until I’ve created a cross between Gone With the Wind and Psycho or something.
BAKER | Oh, Jesus. Can we readdress those references?
HELLER | OK, maybe not those two. But one of the reasons the show has gone as long as it has is precisely because these two, especially Simon, are never satisfied. They’re always pushing for more and better, more interesting and fresh and original. We may not have always succeeded, but that is the bar we’ve been trying to get over. I think we’ve done our best and it’s up to the audience to decide how well it’s done.
BAKER | We’re in the popularist business with The Mentalist. It’s not Breaking Bad, it’s a show that has had a very consistent audience for six years, and it’s all about pulling our audience in directions where we challenge them a bit. You can’t always give everyone what they want, and sometimes people want to be protected from what they want. I think the best result could be to divide the audience 50-50.
TUNNEY | I think it’s going to make a lot of people really happy, and I think it’s going to make some people angry — and that’s the most you can hope for. Because everybody’s emotionally invested in the show in a different way. And that’s good, because they’re genuine reactions. I don’t think anyone will feel in the middle of the road about it.
SRC: tvline.com/
Dec 16, 2013
Dec 10, 2013
Actor Simon Baker keeps his cool as The Mentalist explores new territory
Reports suggest Baker has a deal with producers of The Mentalist that will net him a staggering $30 million, but he's so amiable it's hard to believe he's a big TV power player.
There's no better measure of the regard in which he's held than his workmates Robin Tunney and Owain Yeoman.
Tunney, who plays detective Teresa Lisbon opposite Baker's Patrick Jane, says, "When they published how much money he's making, I sent him a text asking if I could borrow $3000.
"Let's face it, most actors aren't rocket scientists and are really fragile. The idea that I'm working with somebody who makes my day so much shorter ... he just makes me better."
Yeoman (agent Wayne Rigsby) adds: "Simon is such a down-to-earth guy. He was joking the other day and said, 'I've bought a Lamborghini'. He's not at all flashy. It turns out he bought a Lamborghini tractor for his farm."
Baker, 44, was born in Launceston. His local profile was boosted when, as star of E Street, he won the 1992 Logie for most popular new talent.
He relocated to Los Angeles with wife Rebecca Rigg, making an impression alongside Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce and Kim Basinger in the acclaimed 1997 movie L.A. Confidential.
His only real stumble came after filming The Devil Wears Prada, when he signed on for TV series Smith, which co-starred Ray Liotta and was canned after just three episodes.
Baker is now approaching the most critical point in the six-season history of The Mentalist.
For 10 years, Patrick Jane has been traumatised by the murder of his wife and daughter and unable to nail the killer, known as Red John. CBS made it known early this year that season six would reveal the identity of Red John.
The million-dollar question is will bringing the mystery to a close kill viewer interest in the show?
The show's creator and producer Bruno Heller says, "It's gonna be a great show after Red John. It's up to the audience to decide if they like it. I'm not really concerned. It felt to all of us that chapter was done.
"Frankly, I think the great value of the show is in Baker's head and what he does. In terms of moment by moment pleasures of the show, those are delivered by Simon Baker and his people, not by Red John".
Baker confesses, "I did feel a sense of pressure, because we've been working toward this for so many years and it was something that had pushed the character from the very beginning. Somehow I had to live up to that in that one moment - the one moment in the life of the character where he's stepping into the unknown.
"Just the challenge of trying to keep it interesting for myself is the goal. I've got a really good relationship with the crew and the other cast, we're kind of a little family now. It cooks along.
"We have a pretty open dialogue about the direction it goes in. It'll get infinitely more interesting for me when we have an end date; when we know, OK, it's only going to be one more year so we ought to close up all the stories.
"The other thing that keeps it interesting for me is directing episodes. It's exhausting, but it keeps me stimulated. I will do more of it (directing) eventually. I'm just using this now as an opportunity to fail, practise, make mistakes."
As yet, there has been no confirmation of a seventh season of The Mentalist. But Baker confirms there is a plan to wrap up the show: "There is an end in sight, but I'm not allowed to reveal it."
Another great challenge for Baker is maintaining balance in life.
While he slaved away for years in Hollywood before his big break with The Guardian, his wife Rebecca Rigg gave up her career to play housewife and supporter. Asked how he manages long hours on the set of The Mentalist and his role as a dad to Stella, Claude and Harry, Baker offers a simple response.
"She's been amazing,'' Baker says of Rigg. "If it weren't for her, I probably wouldn't be able to be in this situation.
"The idea of happiness is a lot simpler to me now than what it ever was when I was younger, before I had a family.''
Baker continues to look for projects to stretch his wings outside of The Mentalist and was seen earlier this year in UK movie comedy I Give it a Year.
"The success of the show worldwide has given me more opportunities. I have a limited amount of time and I'm also always looking to do something that feels a bit different so that I get a bit of a break," he says.
"I also look for something that's not going to take up my whole time off, because I do like to have a bit of a play and a rest.
"The Killer Inside Me was a Michael Winterbottom thing, a real departure and a supporting role so I didn't have to work the whole run. Margin Call, it was a very different character again.
"I've got opportunities, it's really just how badly I wanna do it. I'm not a snob, I don't mind commercial films, but I like it when they have a new take."
The Mentalist, Channel 9, Sunday, 9pm
There's no better measure of the regard in which he's held than his workmates Robin Tunney and Owain Yeoman.
Tunney, who plays detective Teresa Lisbon opposite Baker's Patrick Jane, says, "When they published how much money he's making, I sent him a text asking if I could borrow $3000.
"Let's face it, most actors aren't rocket scientists and are really fragile. The idea that I'm working with somebody who makes my day so much shorter ... he just makes me better."
Yeoman (agent Wayne Rigsby) adds: "Simon is such a down-to-earth guy. He was joking the other day and said, 'I've bought a Lamborghini'. He's not at all flashy. It turns out he bought a Lamborghini tractor for his farm."
Baker, 44, was born in Launceston. His local profile was boosted when, as star of E Street, he won the 1992 Logie for most popular new talent.
He relocated to Los Angeles with wife Rebecca Rigg, making an impression alongside Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce and Kim Basinger in the acclaimed 1997 movie L.A. Confidential.
His only real stumble came after filming The Devil Wears Prada, when he signed on for TV series Smith, which co-starred Ray Liotta and was canned after just three episodes.
Baker is now approaching the most critical point in the six-season history of The Mentalist.
For 10 years, Patrick Jane has been traumatised by the murder of his wife and daughter and unable to nail the killer, known as Red John. CBS made it known early this year that season six would reveal the identity of Red John.
The million-dollar question is will bringing the mystery to a close kill viewer interest in the show?
The show's creator and producer Bruno Heller says, "It's gonna be a great show after Red John. It's up to the audience to decide if they like it. I'm not really concerned. It felt to all of us that chapter was done.
"Frankly, I think the great value of the show is in Baker's head and what he does. In terms of moment by moment pleasures of the show, those are delivered by Simon Baker and his people, not by Red John".
Baker confesses, "I did feel a sense of pressure, because we've been working toward this for so many years and it was something that had pushed the character from the very beginning. Somehow I had to live up to that in that one moment - the one moment in the life of the character where he's stepping into the unknown.
"Just the challenge of trying to keep it interesting for myself is the goal. I've got a really good relationship with the crew and the other cast, we're kind of a little family now. It cooks along.
"We have a pretty open dialogue about the direction it goes in. It'll get infinitely more interesting for me when we have an end date; when we know, OK, it's only going to be one more year so we ought to close up all the stories.
"The other thing that keeps it interesting for me is directing episodes. It's exhausting, but it keeps me stimulated. I will do more of it (directing) eventually. I'm just using this now as an opportunity to fail, practise, make mistakes."
As yet, there has been no confirmation of a seventh season of The Mentalist. But Baker confirms there is a plan to wrap up the show: "There is an end in sight, but I'm not allowed to reveal it."
Another great challenge for Baker is maintaining balance in life.
While he slaved away for years in Hollywood before his big break with The Guardian, his wife Rebecca Rigg gave up her career to play housewife and supporter. Asked how he manages long hours on the set of The Mentalist and his role as a dad to Stella, Claude and Harry, Baker offers a simple response.
"She's been amazing,'' Baker says of Rigg. "If it weren't for her, I probably wouldn't be able to be in this situation.
"The idea of happiness is a lot simpler to me now than what it ever was when I was younger, before I had a family.''
Baker continues to look for projects to stretch his wings outside of The Mentalist and was seen earlier this year in UK movie comedy I Give it a Year.
"The success of the show worldwide has given me more opportunities. I have a limited amount of time and I'm also always looking to do something that feels a bit different so that I get a bit of a break," he says.
"I also look for something that's not going to take up my whole time off, because I do like to have a bit of a play and a rest.
"The Killer Inside Me was a Michael Winterbottom thing, a real departure and a supporting role so I didn't have to work the whole run. Margin Call, it was a very different character again.
"I've got opportunities, it's really just how badly I wanna do it. I'm not a snob, I don't mind commercial films, but I like it when they have a new take."
The Mentalist, Channel 9, Sunday, 9pm
Nov 27, 2013
Simon Baker: All those times we heard the voice of Red John? That was me.
All those times we heard the voice of Red John? That was me.
TV Guide Magazine: Seriously?
Baker: Yes! In the Season 2 finale, when Jane was captured and Red John did that "Tyger, Tyger" thing with the mask on? That was me. I played both characters in that scene.
TV Guide Magazine: Wow. That's especially trippy considering there was a major theory going around that Jane was Red John. So in a way that turned out to be true!
Baker: That was the reason I did that. There was a point where Bruno was saying, "We don't know who we're going to cast to play [the masked Red John]." I said, "Don't cast anyone! I'll do it." Bruno was, like, "I love it! I love it!" So I put on a mask and did that funny, wispy little voice. And for seasons after, whenever Red John spoke, I had to go record the voice.
More here
TV Guide Magazine: Seriously?
Baker: Yes! In the Season 2 finale, when Jane was captured and Red John did that "Tyger, Tyger" thing with the mask on? That was me. I played both characters in that scene.
TV Guide Magazine: Wow. That's especially trippy considering there was a major theory going around that Jane was Red John. So in a way that turned out to be true!
Baker: That was the reason I did that. There was a point where Bruno was saying, "We don't know who we're going to cast to play [the masked Red John]." I said, "Don't cast anyone! I'll do it." Bruno was, like, "I love it! I love it!" So I put on a mask and did that funny, wispy little voice. And for seasons after, whenever Red John spoke, I had to go record the voice.
More here
Nov 26, 2013
Simon Baker Breaks Down the End of Red John and The Mentalist's Future
[Warning: The following story contains major spoilers from Sunday's episode of The Mentalist. Read at your own risk.]
Be careful what you wish for. The Mentalist's Patrick Jane finally got his revenge on the man who slaughtered his wife and daughter - the sardonic, William Blake spouting serial killer Red John. But now what? TV Guide Magazine had a chat with Simon Baker, who plays the crime-busting Jane, about where the show and his character will go from here. Will Red John's death really help Jane deal with his grief? Can he move on with his life and maybe even find love again?
Be careful what you wish for. The Mentalist's Patrick Jane finally got his revenge on the man who slaughtered his wife and daughter - the sardonic, William Blake spouting serial killer Red John. But now what? TV Guide Magazine had a chat with Simon Baker, who plays the crime-busting Jane, about where the show and his character will go from here. Will Red John's death really help Jane deal with his grief? Can he move on with his life and maybe even find love again?
TV Guide Magazine: This feels like the end of an era! Was the audience ready for closure on the Red John saga? Baker: The end of Red John is a moment the fans wanted to see, but for many different reasons. Some just want it to be over. They're, like, "Enough, already!" Some really want to see Patrick heal and get on with things. And some just like it a lot more when The Mentalist does crime-of-the-week. What's great is that we're able to make this choice for the right reasons - not out of desperation or some last-ditch effort to avoid cancellation. A lot of times you get that call from the network saying, "We're pulling the pin," and then it's a scramble to wrap things up. Here we can give the audience that has been with us for so long some real gratification and then move the show in a cool new direction. We're not letting go of that part of the franchise where Jane solves crimes. We'll just be doing it differently.
TV Guide Magazine: So no qualms about this? After all, the hunt for Red John has been the main focus of the series. It's what put the fire in Patrick's belly. Baker: You feel an incredible intensity when, in one fell swoop, you're killing the arch nemesis of your series and, in a way, the series itself. In order to reboot this show, we have to kill off its most important element - Patrick Jane's very reason for being - and that's risky. The adrenalin was strange. After we shot Red John's death, we all took a collective moment, had a glass of champagne and marked it, because the event was so huge.
TV Guide Magazine: His death came in such a low-key way - no spectacle, no sirens, no hovering helicopters, no CBI team. Just Jane and Red John. Talk about that choice.Baker: It just had to be the two of them. It was almost like a love scene, as perverse as that sounds. The end of Red John was originally planned to take place at night on the street with people watching, but I pushed to do it in a quiet, beautiful place where they could be alone. There is no human act more intimate - not even sex - than killing another human being with your bare hands and watching him die. It is really subversive for a network series. The risk is huge.
TV Guide Magazine: Before the script came in, did you think Jane had the stomach for this? Baker: I don't think even he thought he had the stomach for it but there was just so much momentum built up that he had to go through with it and choke the guy to death. It was a hard thing for Jane to do but there was also some weird sort of release in it. I didn't know how that scene was going to go until I actually shot it. It was really full on.
TV Guide Magazine: Did Red John have a death wish? Did he realize he just couldn't beat Jane? |Baker: No, I don't think so. It was more like delusions of grandeur. It was not enough for Red John to kill Jane's family. He desperately wanted a relationship with Jane - to the point where he exposed himself and put himself in jeopardy.
TV Guide Magazine: What does this gruesome triumph do for Jane? Often when we get what we want, we find out it's not what we wanted at all.Baker: "Protect me from what I want!" My wife has that saying on a little plaque in our kitchen. That's the catchphrase I took to [series creator] Bruno Heller and said, "This is what we have to do as the show moves forward. We have to deal with the comedown, the disappointment, the loss of focus." It's that meandering feeling you get after you've achieved the very thing that's driven you for years. Okay, you got what you wanted. What now?
TV Guide Magazine: You directed the next episode, where the show leaps ahead two years. What can you tell us about it?Baker: It's almost like a pilot for a new show. When we come back after Red John's death, Jane is somewhere in paradise. A large portion of the episode is in Spanish. Cho is now with the FBI. Rigsby and Van Pelt have their own little detective business. And Lisbon is in Washington state working as a chief of police in a podunk kind of town. The episode opens with her talking to grade-school kids about what the police do. I had so much fun with the episode. It was such a reprieve from all the tension this season.TV Guide Magazine: Any chance of a Jane-Lisbon romance? A lot of fans are dying to see that happen!Baker: You will see that he really misses Lisbon and is a sad, floundering shadow of a man. He's afraid and just going around and around in circles. He's completely lost his mojo and he's asking himself, "Is this what you want to be? Is this the way you see the rest of your life?" He's offered a chance to go back to work for the F.B.I. and declines because he's trying to move on from that life. The episode has an interesting kind of noir-ish feel to it. Jane had been filled with this deep desire for revenge, which is generated out of self-loathing, right? Take that revenge out of the equation and he's just this guy who is empty. But the episode is also really romantic in a way, because you see how much Jane longs for companionship. You want to know something I've never talked about?
TV Guide Magazine: Hell, yeah!Baker: All those times we heard the voice of Red John? That was me.
TV Guide Magazine: Seriously?Baker: Yes! In the Season 2 finale, when Jane was captured and Red John did that "Tyger, Tyger" thing with the mask on? That was me. I played both characters in that scene.
TV Guide Magazine: Wow. That's especially trippy considering there was a major theory going around that Jane was Red John. So in a way that turned out to be true!Baker: That was the reason I did that. There was a point where Bruno was saying, "We don't know who we're going to cast to play [the masked Red John]." I said, "Don't cast anyone! I'll do it." Bruno was, like, "I love it! I love it!" So I put on a mask and did that funny, wispy little voice. And for seasons after, whenever Red John spoke, I had to go record the voice.
TV Guide Magazine: Love it! So you're feeling good about the future?Baker: I am! We're going to have some fun putting Jane into an entirely different work environment. He'll not only find his spark again - he'll have a whole lot of new people to rub the wrong way! I think we have a lot more miles to go. But you know what? We've had great times. I've invested so much of myself in this show and developed relationships with people I've genuinely come to love. It's been really, really fantastic - so much so that, if the thing finished tomorrow, I would walk away happy. I would walk away proud.
After 'Red John,' then what? Simon Baker, creator Bruno Heller tease Jane's future
The final shot of Sunday's (Nov. 24) episode of "The Mentalist" featured Patrick Jane running. But is he running away or toward something?
Maybe both, say series creator Bruno Heller and star Simon Baker, who plays Jane. After years of searching for Red John, the serial killer who murdered his family, Jane finally discovered his identity -- Napa Sheriff Thomas McAllister (Xander Berkeley) -- and made good on his promise to kill Red John.
So what comes next? Read on as Baker and Heller discuss the fallout for Jane and the CBI.
How will killing Red John affect Jane psychologically?Heller: Jane is this tragic figure who has gotten his heart's desire, has found the sort of evil grail he's been chasing all these years. Now it's very much a question of what does that do to him as a person, can he begin a new life and what kind of life does he want for himself? How will he define himself now that part of his life is over?
Baker: The character made the decision to kill Red John from the first time we ever saw him. In his head, that was going to happen. What we didn't know is how he would react and whether he would go through with it, and in what fashion. To me that was just jumping off a cliff. ... [The death scene] is interesting because he's got Red John within his grasp, literally -- he doesn't take a moment to hesitate. ... When he's on top of him, the idea of just shutting him up in that time is less about network television always wanting to explain everything, and Jane just wanting to get on with the job. ...
Going forward from there [it's about] when you achieve your objective, then what happens? ... My favorite part of that is the transition out of it. That's done, now what do I have to live for, and where do I go from here? Was it that gratifying for Jane? There's all of those questions -- we sort of deal with that in a lot of ways in the next episode.
Will there be any legal consequences for Jane?Heller: You can't go around killing people willy-nilly without some kind of ramification. Very much so.
Will Jane continue to work in law enforcement?Baker: I don't think, not immediately.
Heller: I can tell you he's going to be placed in a position where his personal desires on that level are not to the point. He's done something highly illegal -- what he does in the future isn't necessarily going to be entirely up to himself.
Even though Red John is dead, his disciples and the Blake Association are still out there. Will we hear from them again?Heller: I never say never, but I would say I think the audience and the story demands that we step away from that trope for a while. The trouble with these sorts of stories where you're playing tricks on the audience, with who-is-it mysteries, is you can get way too mysterious. There are people who said all the way along that Patrick Jane is Red John. When you've got that kind of elaborate thinking out there, it's dangerous to come back to that story unless you're coming back full force, because then maybe will start thinking, "Oh, maybe Red John's not dead." Red John is dead.
SRC: blog.zap2it.com/
Maybe both, say series creator Bruno Heller and star Simon Baker, who plays Jane. After years of searching for Red John, the serial killer who murdered his family, Jane finally discovered his identity -- Napa Sheriff Thomas McAllister (Xander Berkeley) -- and made good on his promise to kill Red John.
So what comes next? Read on as Baker and Heller discuss the fallout for Jane and the CBI.
How will killing Red John affect Jane psychologically?Heller: Jane is this tragic figure who has gotten his heart's desire, has found the sort of evil grail he's been chasing all these years. Now it's very much a question of what does that do to him as a person, can he begin a new life and what kind of life does he want for himself? How will he define himself now that part of his life is over?
Baker: The character made the decision to kill Red John from the first time we ever saw him. In his head, that was going to happen. What we didn't know is how he would react and whether he would go through with it, and in what fashion. To me that was just jumping off a cliff. ... [The death scene] is interesting because he's got Red John within his grasp, literally -- he doesn't take a moment to hesitate. ... When he's on top of him, the idea of just shutting him up in that time is less about network television always wanting to explain everything, and Jane just wanting to get on with the job. ...
Going forward from there [it's about] when you achieve your objective, then what happens? ... My favorite part of that is the transition out of it. That's done, now what do I have to live for, and where do I go from here? Was it that gratifying for Jane? There's all of those questions -- we sort of deal with that in a lot of ways in the next episode.
Will there be any legal consequences for Jane?Heller: You can't go around killing people willy-nilly without some kind of ramification. Very much so.
Will Jane continue to work in law enforcement?Baker: I don't think, not immediately.
Heller: I can tell you he's going to be placed in a position where his personal desires on that level are not to the point. He's done something highly illegal -- what he does in the future isn't necessarily going to be entirely up to himself.
Even though Red John is dead, his disciples and the Blake Association are still out there. Will we hear from them again?Heller: I never say never, but I would say I think the audience and the story demands that we step away from that trope for a while. The trouble with these sorts of stories where you're playing tricks on the audience, with who-is-it mysteries, is you can get way too mysterious. There are people who said all the way along that Patrick Jane is Red John. When you've got that kind of elaborate thinking out there, it's dangerous to come back to that story unless you're coming back full force, because then maybe will start thinking, "Oh, maybe Red John's not dead." Red John is dead.
SRC: blog.zap2it.com/
Nov 24, 2013
'Mentalist' Boss, Simon Baker on the Red John Reveal, Jane's Future and New Conflicts
"When you achieve your objective, then what happens?," Baker says of the aftermath. "Now what do I have to live for and where do I go from here? Was it that gratifying for Jane? There's all of those questions. We deal with that in a lot of ways in the next episode afterwards."
The Mentalist's Red John case is now closed.
After putting the Red John spotlight on California Bureau of Investigation Director Gale Bertram (Michael Gaston), he turned out not to be the madman Patrick Jane (Simon Baker) had been searching for the past several years. Who was Red John? Sheriff Tom McAllister (Xander Berkeley), who had been one of the three who presumably died in the blast during "Fire and Brimstone."
It was a cat and mouse game after the reveal -- in the same cathedral Jane was seen in at the end of "The Great Red Dragon" -- but Jane and McAllister would meet again, this time at a local park. With McAllister pinned down to the ground after being weakened by a gunshot wound in the abdomen, he pleaded with Jane to spare his life. But for Jane, his sole mission in life was to end Red John for good. And so he put his hand on McAllister's neck and suffocated him until he was dead.
It was important to "give a real emotional, pleasing end to that story," creator/showrunner Bruno Heller told reporters, admitting that the ultimate Red John identity slowly "emerged" over the last few seasons. "For me it was about giving Patrick Jane exactly what he's wanted for all these years. He wanted revenge and he got it. I think that's what the audience wanted so that's what we gave them."
"I did feel a sense of pressure because we've been working towards this for so many years and it was something that had pushed the character from the very beginning [since] 2008. Somehow I had to live up to that in that one moment -- the one moment in the life of the character where he's stepping out into the unknown," Baker acknowledged. "The way we did it was important because I felt like to pull the trigger is just pulling a trigger but to actually wrestle with someone is far more kismet."
With the Red John mystery behind them (and the show making a big two-year time jump next week), Heller and Baker discussed the repercussions of Jane's actions, where this leaves the rest of the former CBI members and the new conflicts that will arise in the post-Red John era.
On Jane's future now that he's gotten what's he's wanted
Bruno Heller: Jane is this tragic figure who has gotten his heart's desires and found the grail -- this evil grail he's been chasing all these years. It's very much a question of what does that do him as a person. Can he begin a new life? What kind of life does he want for himself and how will he define himself now that part of his life is over.
Simon Baker: When you achieve your objective, then what happens? A lot of the time you focus all your energy on trying to achieve your objective but you don't consider how it leaves you standing afterwards. My favorite part of that is the transition out of it. Now what do I have to live for and where do I go from here? Was it that gratifying for Jane? There's all of those questions. We deal with that in a lot of ways in the next episode afterwards.
On Jane killing Red John
Baker: The character has made a decision that he was going to kill Red John from the first time we ever saw him. He made that decision and then he said that was going to happen. What we didn't know was how he was going to react and whether or not he could go through with it and in what fashion. To me that was just jumping off a cliff, really, and jumping off a cliff so it's like -- he's got what he wants and what he's wanted for so long. The idea of what drama is sets out to achieve an objective but doesn't quite achieve it and they'd have to change tactics and approach. This is interesting because he's got Red John within his grasp, he doesn't take a moment to hesitate and I think there was a line in there where he said "I'm not hesitating, I'm just going to stay in the moment" in the church. When he's on top of him, it's the idea of shutting him up. Jane just wants to get on with the job and from that moment on, you gotta try to be there and be alive in the moment.
On how Jane is affected by Red John's death
Baker: When Red John dies a part of Jane dies in that moment as well. It takes a while for him to get back on his feet and if you look at it, he doesn't have a wife and kid, he doesn't have any relationships other than the people he's been at work with at the CBI and his perverse obsession/relationship with Red John. He doesn't have a lot other than the CBI people.
On the option of Jane not killing Red John
Heller: Certainly I never considered any other ending. I always hated those heist movies where they didn't get away with the heist or revenge movies where they didn't reap their revenge. It would've been almost dishonest not to take that as the conclusion of that particular chapter.
On Jane's potential legal ramifications
Heller: Yes [there will be legal ramifications for killing Red John]. You can't go around killing people willy nilly without some ramifications. Very much so.
On the likelihood of Jane's return to law enforcement
Baker: Not immediately.
Heller: He's going to be placed in a position where his personal desires on that level are not point. He's done something highly illegal. What he does in the future won't be entirely up to him. ... His life as he knows it is over, but it's the beginning of a new life.
Baker: Once the dust settles you start to see who's important to who and how each person sees themselves and who they care about.
On Jane and Lisbon's bond
Baker: I think absolutely. I think even stronger.
Heller: Now Jane and Lisbon have a chance to take a breath and think about each other in a way they haven't before.
On how the Red John wrap-up affects Lisbon and the others
Heller: For the other characters, it's a little like children of divorce. They've been involved with somebody else's mission and now that mission is gone. They were in a world they didn't choose and now they're in a world that's changing around them -- again, not of their own volition. What this is going to be for these characters growing up and leaving home; Jane has big questions about what he's going to do with himself and Lisbon, Van Pelt, Cho and Rigsby also have to make those choices.
On whether Red John's disciplines will take action
Heller: Never say never but I would say the audience and the story demands that we step away from that trope for a while. The trouble with these stories where you're playing tricks on the audience with "Who is it?" mysteries is that you can get way too get way too mysterious and there were a lot of people who said all the way along that Patrick Jane was Red John. When you've got that kind of elaborate thinking out there, it's dangerous to come back to stories unless you're coming back to that story with full force because people will start thinking "Red John is not dead!" Red John is dead.
On if Red John will still be part of the fabric of the show's future episodes
Heller: We won't be going back. One of the things you discover when one of these figures of great evil are unmasked ... once the curtain is drawn back from these evil Wizard of Oz characters they tend to not be very interesting companions.
On whether The Mentalist will go back to cases of the week
Heller: What this fresh version of the show is about is what happens afterwards. In a very real sense, Jane is a happier person. A weight has been taken off his shoulders and to that degree, a weight has been taken off the show. Jane has more freedom and more a sense of possibility and liberty. ... We'll return to crime-solving.
On worries about The Mentalist losing steam without Red John
Heller: [I'm] not really concerned. If it can't, then that's what happens. it felt to all of us that that chapter of the story was done. Frankly I think the great asset and value of the show is in Baker's head and what he does. Red John never even appears in as a character physically in the last episode. It was a feeling in the show and a sort of objective but in terms of moment by moment pleasures of the show, those are delivered by Simon Baker and his people, not by Red John. Frankly I don't know but I don't mind, but I think it's going to be a great show after Red John. Then it's up to the audience to decide if they like it or not.
SRC: hollywoodreporter.com/
The Mentalist's Red John case is now closed.
After putting the Red John spotlight on California Bureau of Investigation Director Gale Bertram (Michael Gaston), he turned out not to be the madman Patrick Jane (Simon Baker) had been searching for the past several years. Who was Red John? Sheriff Tom McAllister (Xander Berkeley), who had been one of the three who presumably died in the blast during "Fire and Brimstone."
It was a cat and mouse game after the reveal -- in the same cathedral Jane was seen in at the end of "The Great Red Dragon" -- but Jane and McAllister would meet again, this time at a local park. With McAllister pinned down to the ground after being weakened by a gunshot wound in the abdomen, he pleaded with Jane to spare his life. But for Jane, his sole mission in life was to end Red John for good. And so he put his hand on McAllister's neck and suffocated him until he was dead.
It was important to "give a real emotional, pleasing end to that story," creator/showrunner Bruno Heller told reporters, admitting that the ultimate Red John identity slowly "emerged" over the last few seasons. "For me it was about giving Patrick Jane exactly what he's wanted for all these years. He wanted revenge and he got it. I think that's what the audience wanted so that's what we gave them."
"I did feel a sense of pressure because we've been working towards this for so many years and it was something that had pushed the character from the very beginning [since] 2008. Somehow I had to live up to that in that one moment -- the one moment in the life of the character where he's stepping out into the unknown," Baker acknowledged. "The way we did it was important because I felt like to pull the trigger is just pulling a trigger but to actually wrestle with someone is far more kismet."
With the Red John mystery behind them (and the show making a big two-year time jump next week), Heller and Baker discussed the repercussions of Jane's actions, where this leaves the rest of the former CBI members and the new conflicts that will arise in the post-Red John era.
On Jane's future now that he's gotten what's he's wanted
Bruno Heller: Jane is this tragic figure who has gotten his heart's desires and found the grail -- this evil grail he's been chasing all these years. It's very much a question of what does that do him as a person. Can he begin a new life? What kind of life does he want for himself and how will he define himself now that part of his life is over.
Simon Baker: When you achieve your objective, then what happens? A lot of the time you focus all your energy on trying to achieve your objective but you don't consider how it leaves you standing afterwards. My favorite part of that is the transition out of it. Now what do I have to live for and where do I go from here? Was it that gratifying for Jane? There's all of those questions. We deal with that in a lot of ways in the next episode afterwards.
On Jane killing Red John
Baker: The character has made a decision that he was going to kill Red John from the first time we ever saw him. He made that decision and then he said that was going to happen. What we didn't know was how he was going to react and whether or not he could go through with it and in what fashion. To me that was just jumping off a cliff, really, and jumping off a cliff so it's like -- he's got what he wants and what he's wanted for so long. The idea of what drama is sets out to achieve an objective but doesn't quite achieve it and they'd have to change tactics and approach. This is interesting because he's got Red John within his grasp, he doesn't take a moment to hesitate and I think there was a line in there where he said "I'm not hesitating, I'm just going to stay in the moment" in the church. When he's on top of him, it's the idea of shutting him up. Jane just wants to get on with the job and from that moment on, you gotta try to be there and be alive in the moment.
On how Jane is affected by Red John's death
Baker: When Red John dies a part of Jane dies in that moment as well. It takes a while for him to get back on his feet and if you look at it, he doesn't have a wife and kid, he doesn't have any relationships other than the people he's been at work with at the CBI and his perverse obsession/relationship with Red John. He doesn't have a lot other than the CBI people.
On the option of Jane not killing Red John
Heller: Certainly I never considered any other ending. I always hated those heist movies where they didn't get away with the heist or revenge movies where they didn't reap their revenge. It would've been almost dishonest not to take that as the conclusion of that particular chapter.
On Jane's potential legal ramifications
Heller: Yes [there will be legal ramifications for killing Red John]. You can't go around killing people willy nilly without some ramifications. Very much so.
On the likelihood of Jane's return to law enforcement
Baker: Not immediately.
Heller: He's going to be placed in a position where his personal desires on that level are not point. He's done something highly illegal. What he does in the future won't be entirely up to him. ... His life as he knows it is over, but it's the beginning of a new life.
Baker: Once the dust settles you start to see who's important to who and how each person sees themselves and who they care about.
On Jane and Lisbon's bond
Baker: I think absolutely. I think even stronger.
Heller: Now Jane and Lisbon have a chance to take a breath and think about each other in a way they haven't before.
On how the Red John wrap-up affects Lisbon and the others
Heller: For the other characters, it's a little like children of divorce. They've been involved with somebody else's mission and now that mission is gone. They were in a world they didn't choose and now they're in a world that's changing around them -- again, not of their own volition. What this is going to be for these characters growing up and leaving home; Jane has big questions about what he's going to do with himself and Lisbon, Van Pelt, Cho and Rigsby also have to make those choices.
On whether Red John's disciplines will take action
Heller: Never say never but I would say the audience and the story demands that we step away from that trope for a while. The trouble with these stories where you're playing tricks on the audience with "Who is it?" mysteries is that you can get way too get way too mysterious and there were a lot of people who said all the way along that Patrick Jane was Red John. When you've got that kind of elaborate thinking out there, it's dangerous to come back to stories unless you're coming back to that story with full force because people will start thinking "Red John is not dead!" Red John is dead.
On if Red John will still be part of the fabric of the show's future episodes
Heller: We won't be going back. One of the things you discover when one of these figures of great evil are unmasked ... once the curtain is drawn back from these evil Wizard of Oz characters they tend to not be very interesting companions.
On whether The Mentalist will go back to cases of the week
Heller: What this fresh version of the show is about is what happens afterwards. In a very real sense, Jane is a happier person. A weight has been taken off his shoulders and to that degree, a weight has been taken off the show. Jane has more freedom and more a sense of possibility and liberty. ... We'll return to crime-solving.
On worries about The Mentalist losing steam without Red John
Heller: [I'm] not really concerned. If it can't, then that's what happens. it felt to all of us that that chapter of the story was done. Frankly I think the great asset and value of the show is in Baker's head and what he does. Red John never even appears in as a character physically in the last episode. It was a feeling in the show and a sort of objective but in terms of moment by moment pleasures of the show, those are delivered by Simon Baker and his people, not by Red John. Frankly I don't know but I don't mind, but I think it's going to be a great show after Red John. Then it's up to the audience to decide if they like it or not.
SRC: hollywoodreporter.com/
Creator, star answer 20 burning questions (Interview)
MAJOR-MAJOR SPOILERS: You have questions, yes? CBS’ The Mentalist team has answers — 20 answers for 20 burning questions following Sunday’s huge “Red John” episode. Reporters were given a sneak peak of the hour, then interviewed creator Bruno Heller and star Simon Baker during a nearly hour-long conference call.
As you now presumably know, tonight Patrick Jane (Baker) discovered Red John was a not-dead-after-all Sheriff Thomas McAllister (Xander Berkeley), then shot him and throttled him to death. Below the team talk about the big moment and what’s to come (transcript edited for length and coherence; questions paraphrased):
When did Heller decide Red John’s identity?
Bruno Heller: I’m not sure. It kind of just emerged over the last couple years. There was always three or four possibilities. And it just happened, really. It seemed like the natural correct choice.
Was now the best time to solve the Red John case?
Simon Baker: There’s a lot of different ways they could have gone. I always thought there was legs in the Red John story, as a show that wasn’t procedural. You could have milked that whole Red John thing out, but it would have been in the style of 24 where you’re picking up exactly where you left off [each week]. It would have been really interesting to explore that. But we’re on CBS and they love a procedural TV show and they know how to market those. So we did this little dance of doing a crime-of-the-week and then bouncing back to this Red John story … That was a difficult dance to balance those two things. I guess it got to a point where some people were like, “We love the Red John episodes, and we love the stand-alone episodes as well, is there a way to deal with one completely and move forward from there?” To be honest with you, those decisions are not for me to make. I’m always for going for it, pushing it a bit more. These last five months working on the show has been really exciting for me. I’ve had this sort of enthusiasm I had in the first season because it’s new and fresh from week to week and it’s going somewhere. Sometimes the frustration for me as an actor is we’re not going anywhere, we’re not moving forward, and this is definitely going somewhere and it gives me something to do.
Was Baker satisfied with Red John’s identity?
Baker: I was eventually satisfied with the way I killed him — how about that? I always felt the scariest [thing was] it could be the guy you see every day on the way to work who’s watering his lawn two blocks away, the everyday guy … so when we found out who it was, that fulfilled that category… Ultimately with anything like this there’s a level of disappointment because like anything when there’s mystery you paint a picture in your head of what it’s going to be, particular when it’s a mystery that holds you underwater so long, the mystery of who it is is mythical.
Heller: Ideally you want it to be Sean Connery with horns and a tail in a cave, but that guy doesn’t exist.
Why did Jane kill Red John? And what was most important to you in creating this episode?
Heller: It was about giving Patrick Jane exactly what he has hunted for all these years. I don’t think it was a moment for cleverness or moral ambivalence. He wanted revenge and he got it. And I think that’s what the audience wanted and that’s what we gave him. … I always hated heist movies where they don’t get away with the heist, or revenge movies where they don’t actually wreck their revenge. That always seemed like a cheat. The show started with [Jane] having a very good reason to catch and kill this guy and it would have been almost dishonest not to have that as the conclusion to this chapter.
Baker: You can look at any plot and analyze it and pull it apart until the cows come home, but I did feel a sense of pressure since we’ve been working toward this for so many years … I thought it’s gotta live up to that in that one moment. It’s also the one moment in the life of the character where he’s stepping out into the unknown and he’s been talking about it and made a commitment to do that. Also the way we do it was important. I felt like to pull the trigger [of a gun], it’s just puling the trigger and the gun does the killing. To grapple with somebody and kill them with your hands is far more intimate–
Heller: — and real and honest and visceral … with all that pressure and all that story that’s gone by and all the baggage, he did a really beautiful intimate killing there. It’s hard but good to watch.
Baker: Whatever happens in the course of the series, there’s reasons and things you sign on, and there’s very important elements to the character that you make a connection with immediately. A lot of those things were laid to rest in this episode. If felt incredibly personal to me. I’ve always been very invested in what my character does and how he reacts to his personal story — which is the Red John story. Not so much what’s thrown at him, but how he reacts and how he deals with it. What can best serve the story that feels [realistic] as opposed to the character behaving a certain way to drive the plot forward. The challenge and most difficult part of working on this show is playing a tragic character that has a very raw and unprotected emotional side to him but has this sort of whimsical tap-dancery thing going on with a sense of humor as bravado — to dance between the two tones of the show has always been very challenging. I get very protective of the personal stuff with that character — so things like the tea cup and obviously how we kill him, Bruno knows that I’m going to be waiting outside his door to weigh in on all that stuff.
But is Red John really dead?
Heller: Red John is dead. It’s passed that point.
How long was The Blake Association part of the show’s master plan?
Heller: The Blake Association was there from quite early on, though hidden. Frankly, it gives you a logical, coherent reason for Red John’s immense power that is not down to him being supernatural being. That notion of a villainous Freemasonry inside law enforcement seemed like a realistic idea because it’s happened in other places and a deeply creepy idea.
Red John said he was psychic. Is that to be believed?
Heller: I would leave that thread dangling … Jane feels very strongly, as I do, that psychics don’t exist. But you can’t tell that to the many millions of people who go to psychics every week and get genuine comfort and solace and understanding from what those psychics say. So that’s very deliberately a way of not being doctrinaire about that issue and leaving it to the audience. All answers to that question are correct and it depends on your point of view.
Can Baker mentally stitch together the whole Jane story now?
Baker: I don’t think I could put the pieces together in my mind. Far too many pieces. But there’s definitely there’s kind of key scenes in the journey of the character that he was going to exact revenge and it was going to be personal showtime and then possible an existential crisis afterward.
At what point did Xander Berkeley (McAllister) learn he was Red John and how did he react?
Heller: At the very last moment and he was thrilled.
Wouldn’t it might have been better for Red John to be captured so his other victims’ families could get some closure too?
Baker: I like it. I like that idea. We’re going to steal that.
Heller: There you go. That’s where me and Baker disagree. I was like, “No, kill the guy.”
Baker: Not the only thing we disagree on.
Heller: Not the first, won’t be the last.
Baker: I think if you really looked at it, if there’s any kind of sense of regret ever about that thing, that would totally be it.
Heller: That’s the difference between me and Baker. I thought the only regret would be not to take longer killing him … it’s a good question, tough to play if that were [to happen]. My sense [it] either destroys you with guilt or you get a certain amount of strength from it. And I think Jane gets a certain amount of strength. This is not the first time he’s killed somebody. And like primitive men used to think, when you kill somebody, you take a certain amount of strength with them.
How will murdering Red John change Jane?
Heller: Jane is this tragic figure who has gotten his heart’s desire. He’s found the sort of evil Grail he’s been chasing all these years, but what does that do to him as a person? Can he begin a new life? And what kind of life does he want for himself, and how will he define himself, now that that part of his life is over? … this fresh version of the show is about is what happens afterwards. In a very real sense, he’s a happier person, a weight has been taken off his shoulders. In that way, a weight has been taken off the show. So it’s going to be the same show, to some degree, but a show with less darkness at the edges, and more freedom to roam. Jane has more freedom and a sense of possibility and liberty.
Might Jane finally have a love life?
Heller: Might.
Will Jane and Lisbon (Robin Tunney) get closer now?
Baker: Yeah, I think, absolutely.
Heller: They’ve been so engrossed in this massive task they haven’t really looked around at the people around them and think about who those people are what they really mean to them. Now Jane and Lisbon have a chance to take a breath and think about each other in a way that they haven’t before.
Is Jane going to face legal ramifications for killing Red John?
Heller: Yes, he is. You can’t go around killing people willy-nilly without some kind of ramifications. Very much so.
Will Jane continue to want to work in law enforcement?
Heller: Not immediately. I can tell you he’s going to be placed in a position where his personal desires are not the point. What he does in the future is not going to be entirely up to himself.
Will the show return to being a weekly crime procedural?
Heller: Yes, we’ll be returning to crime solving. Not necessarily the same kind of crime solving.
Will The Mentalist succeed without Red John?
Heller: Not really concerned … It felt to all of us like that chapter of the story was done. I think, frankly, the great asset of value of the show is in Baker’s head and what he does. Red John never even appears as a character until this last episode. He was a feeling in the show and an objective, but in terms of moment-by-moment pleasures of the show, those are delivered by Simon Baker and [the rest of the cast], not by Red John. I think it’s going to be a great show after Red John. Then it’s up to the audience to decide if they like it or not.
What does this mean for the other characters?
Heller: I hadn’t really thought of it in those terms. It’s a little like the children of divorce. What’s next? They’ve been enthralled in somebody else’s mission and now that mission is gone. They were in a world they didn’t choose and now that world is changing around them again.
Will we get more information about Red John?
Heller: We won’t be going back. … Once the curtain is drawn back from these evil Wizard of Oz characters they tend not to be very interesting dinner companions. They tend to be ego-maniacal one-track minds … There is a great deal of [backstory], if anyone waned to ask those questions, I’d be happy to answer. There’s a lot of questions about motivations and what [Red John] was doing and when and how… It makes for great Internet fodder, but it’s not very entertaining for a weekly TV audience.
Baker: When Red John dies there’s a part of Jane that dies in that moment as well. It’s kind of what he’s been about since we met him. It takes a little time to get back on his feet again. He doesn’t have a wife and kid, he doesn’t have a relationship with anyone other than those he worked with at the CBI and this perverse relationship/obsession with Red John, which is now over … In the very next episode there was a line that referenced Red John and I was pretty adamant about losing it. Because we’ve said “Red John” about 4 million times and 3 million in the last 7 episodes … It’s nice to have to have a good clean cut and not have Jane speak of him … Even if he speaks [of killing him], he doesn’t mention “Red” or “John” in same sentence.
Does this mean episode titles will no longer have variations on “red” in them?
Heller: Oh yes … very happy about that.
SRC: insidetv.ew.com/
As you now presumably know, tonight Patrick Jane (Baker) discovered Red John was a not-dead-after-all Sheriff Thomas McAllister (Xander Berkeley), then shot him and throttled him to death. Below the team talk about the big moment and what’s to come (transcript edited for length and coherence; questions paraphrased):
When did Heller decide Red John’s identity?
Bruno Heller: I’m not sure. It kind of just emerged over the last couple years. There was always three or four possibilities. And it just happened, really. It seemed like the natural correct choice.
Was now the best time to solve the Red John case?
Simon Baker: There’s a lot of different ways they could have gone. I always thought there was legs in the Red John story, as a show that wasn’t procedural. You could have milked that whole Red John thing out, but it would have been in the style of 24 where you’re picking up exactly where you left off [each week]. It would have been really interesting to explore that. But we’re on CBS and they love a procedural TV show and they know how to market those. So we did this little dance of doing a crime-of-the-week and then bouncing back to this Red John story … That was a difficult dance to balance those two things. I guess it got to a point where some people were like, “We love the Red John episodes, and we love the stand-alone episodes as well, is there a way to deal with one completely and move forward from there?” To be honest with you, those decisions are not for me to make. I’m always for going for it, pushing it a bit more. These last five months working on the show has been really exciting for me. I’ve had this sort of enthusiasm I had in the first season because it’s new and fresh from week to week and it’s going somewhere. Sometimes the frustration for me as an actor is we’re not going anywhere, we’re not moving forward, and this is definitely going somewhere and it gives me something to do.
Was Baker satisfied with Red John’s identity?
Baker: I was eventually satisfied with the way I killed him — how about that? I always felt the scariest [thing was] it could be the guy you see every day on the way to work who’s watering his lawn two blocks away, the everyday guy … so when we found out who it was, that fulfilled that category… Ultimately with anything like this there’s a level of disappointment because like anything when there’s mystery you paint a picture in your head of what it’s going to be, particular when it’s a mystery that holds you underwater so long, the mystery of who it is is mythical.
Heller: Ideally you want it to be Sean Connery with horns and a tail in a cave, but that guy doesn’t exist.
Why did Jane kill Red John? And what was most important to you in creating this episode?
Heller: It was about giving Patrick Jane exactly what he has hunted for all these years. I don’t think it was a moment for cleverness or moral ambivalence. He wanted revenge and he got it. And I think that’s what the audience wanted and that’s what we gave him. … I always hated heist movies where they don’t get away with the heist, or revenge movies where they don’t actually wreck their revenge. That always seemed like a cheat. The show started with [Jane] having a very good reason to catch and kill this guy and it would have been almost dishonest not to have that as the conclusion to this chapter.
Baker: You can look at any plot and analyze it and pull it apart until the cows come home, but I did feel a sense of pressure since we’ve been working toward this for so many years … I thought it’s gotta live up to that in that one moment. It’s also the one moment in the life of the character where he’s stepping out into the unknown and he’s been talking about it and made a commitment to do that. Also the way we do it was important. I felt like to pull the trigger [of a gun], it’s just puling the trigger and the gun does the killing. To grapple with somebody and kill them with your hands is far more intimate–
Heller: — and real and honest and visceral … with all that pressure and all that story that’s gone by and all the baggage, he did a really beautiful intimate killing there. It’s hard but good to watch.
Baker: Whatever happens in the course of the series, there’s reasons and things you sign on, and there’s very important elements to the character that you make a connection with immediately. A lot of those things were laid to rest in this episode. If felt incredibly personal to me. I’ve always been very invested in what my character does and how he reacts to his personal story — which is the Red John story. Not so much what’s thrown at him, but how he reacts and how he deals with it. What can best serve the story that feels [realistic] as opposed to the character behaving a certain way to drive the plot forward. The challenge and most difficult part of working on this show is playing a tragic character that has a very raw and unprotected emotional side to him but has this sort of whimsical tap-dancery thing going on with a sense of humor as bravado — to dance between the two tones of the show has always been very challenging. I get very protective of the personal stuff with that character — so things like the tea cup and obviously how we kill him, Bruno knows that I’m going to be waiting outside his door to weigh in on all that stuff.
But is Red John really dead?
Heller: Red John is dead. It’s passed that point.
How long was The Blake Association part of the show’s master plan?
Heller: The Blake Association was there from quite early on, though hidden. Frankly, it gives you a logical, coherent reason for Red John’s immense power that is not down to him being supernatural being. That notion of a villainous Freemasonry inside law enforcement seemed like a realistic idea because it’s happened in other places and a deeply creepy idea.
Red John said he was psychic. Is that to be believed?
Heller: I would leave that thread dangling … Jane feels very strongly, as I do, that psychics don’t exist. But you can’t tell that to the many millions of people who go to psychics every week and get genuine comfort and solace and understanding from what those psychics say. So that’s very deliberately a way of not being doctrinaire about that issue and leaving it to the audience. All answers to that question are correct and it depends on your point of view.
Can Baker mentally stitch together the whole Jane story now?
Baker: I don’t think I could put the pieces together in my mind. Far too many pieces. But there’s definitely there’s kind of key scenes in the journey of the character that he was going to exact revenge and it was going to be personal showtime and then possible an existential crisis afterward.
At what point did Xander Berkeley (McAllister) learn he was Red John and how did he react?
Heller: At the very last moment and he was thrilled.
Wouldn’t it might have been better for Red John to be captured so his other victims’ families could get some closure too?
Baker: I like it. I like that idea. We’re going to steal that.
Heller: There you go. That’s where me and Baker disagree. I was like, “No, kill the guy.”
Baker: Not the only thing we disagree on.
Heller: Not the first, won’t be the last.
Baker: I think if you really looked at it, if there’s any kind of sense of regret ever about that thing, that would totally be it.
Heller: That’s the difference between me and Baker. I thought the only regret would be not to take longer killing him … it’s a good question, tough to play if that were [to happen]. My sense [it] either destroys you with guilt or you get a certain amount of strength from it. And I think Jane gets a certain amount of strength. This is not the first time he’s killed somebody. And like primitive men used to think, when you kill somebody, you take a certain amount of strength with them.
How will murdering Red John change Jane?
Heller: Jane is this tragic figure who has gotten his heart’s desire. He’s found the sort of evil Grail he’s been chasing all these years, but what does that do to him as a person? Can he begin a new life? And what kind of life does he want for himself, and how will he define himself, now that that part of his life is over? … this fresh version of the show is about is what happens afterwards. In a very real sense, he’s a happier person, a weight has been taken off his shoulders. In that way, a weight has been taken off the show. So it’s going to be the same show, to some degree, but a show with less darkness at the edges, and more freedom to roam. Jane has more freedom and a sense of possibility and liberty.
Might Jane finally have a love life?
Heller: Might.
Will Jane and Lisbon (Robin Tunney) get closer now?
Baker: Yeah, I think, absolutely.
Heller: They’ve been so engrossed in this massive task they haven’t really looked around at the people around them and think about who those people are what they really mean to them. Now Jane and Lisbon have a chance to take a breath and think about each other in a way that they haven’t before.
Is Jane going to face legal ramifications for killing Red John?
Heller: Yes, he is. You can’t go around killing people willy-nilly without some kind of ramifications. Very much so.
Will Jane continue to want to work in law enforcement?
Heller: Not immediately. I can tell you he’s going to be placed in a position where his personal desires are not the point. What he does in the future is not going to be entirely up to himself.
Will the show return to being a weekly crime procedural?
Heller: Yes, we’ll be returning to crime solving. Not necessarily the same kind of crime solving.
Will The Mentalist succeed without Red John?
Heller: Not really concerned … It felt to all of us like that chapter of the story was done. I think, frankly, the great asset of value of the show is in Baker’s head and what he does. Red John never even appears as a character until this last episode. He was a feeling in the show and an objective, but in terms of moment-by-moment pleasures of the show, those are delivered by Simon Baker and [the rest of the cast], not by Red John. I think it’s going to be a great show after Red John. Then it’s up to the audience to decide if they like it or not.
What does this mean for the other characters?
Heller: I hadn’t really thought of it in those terms. It’s a little like the children of divorce. What’s next? They’ve been enthralled in somebody else’s mission and now that mission is gone. They were in a world they didn’t choose and now that world is changing around them again.
Will we get more information about Red John?
Heller: We won’t be going back. … Once the curtain is drawn back from these evil Wizard of Oz characters they tend not to be very interesting dinner companions. They tend to be ego-maniacal one-track minds … There is a great deal of [backstory], if anyone waned to ask those questions, I’d be happy to answer. There’s a lot of questions about motivations and what [Red John] was doing and when and how… It makes for great Internet fodder, but it’s not very entertaining for a weekly TV audience.
Baker: When Red John dies there’s a part of Jane that dies in that moment as well. It’s kind of what he’s been about since we met him. It takes a little time to get back on his feet again. He doesn’t have a wife and kid, he doesn’t have a relationship with anyone other than those he worked with at the CBI and this perverse relationship/obsession with Red John, which is now over … In the very next episode there was a line that referenced Red John and I was pretty adamant about losing it. Because we’ve said “Red John” about 4 million times and 3 million in the last 7 episodes … It’s nice to have to have a good clean cut and not have Jane speak of him … Even if he speaks [of killing him], he doesn’t mention “Red” or “John” in same sentence.
Does this mean episode titles will no longer have variations on “red” in them?
Heller: Oh yes … very happy about that.
SRC: insidetv.ew.com/
Nov 23, 2013
Interview with Robin Tunney and Simon Baker about The Mentalist 6x08
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Nov 22, 2013
Nov 21, 2013
'Mentalist' EP Bruno Heller, Simon Baker Preview the End of the Red John Era
Before the Red John arc -- introduced when the show debuted in 2008 -- comes to an end Sunday, the series creator and star discuss the long road to get to this point.
The Red John arc is wrapping up on The Mentalist.
By the end of last week's episode, Patrick Jane's list of seven Red John suspects had been whittled down to one name: California Bureau of Investigation Director Gale Bertram. After Jane publicly announced at a press conference that the CBI head was a killer, the FBI -- led by Special Agent Dennis Abbott -- shut down the CBI as a result. If the head of CBI was corrupt, who's to say there aren't more moles? More important, is Bertram Red John?
Sunday's episode, simply titled "Red John," marks the culmination of a series-long journey for Jane, as he comes face to face with the serial killer who murdered his wife and child. For creator/executive producer Bruno Heller, having the Red John case wrap up midseason was a conscious choice.
Instead, Heller compared the decision to close the Red John chapter to "a marriage or any kind of partnership."
Star Simon Baker admitted that the journey for him the past five-and-a-half seasons has been "strange."
There have been many surprises throughout the years, and there may be a few more on Sunday.
As for what The Mentalist may look like following Sunday's episode, Heller assured that though things are changing for Jane, Lisbon and company, there will still be aspects of the show that will remain the same. (He told the USA Today in a piece published Wednesday that the Dec. 1 episode, directed by Baker, picks up two years later.)
SRC: hollywoodreporter.com/
The Red John arc is wrapping up on The Mentalist.
By the end of last week's episode, Patrick Jane's list of seven Red John suspects had been whittled down to one name: California Bureau of Investigation Director Gale Bertram. After Jane publicly announced at a press conference that the CBI head was a killer, the FBI -- led by Special Agent Dennis Abbott -- shut down the CBI as a result. If the head of CBI was corrupt, who's to say there aren't more moles? More important, is Bertram Red John?
Sunday's episode, simply titled "Red John," marks the culmination of a series-long journey for Jane, as he comes face to face with the serial killer who murdered his wife and child. For creator/executive producer Bruno Heller, having the Red John case wrap up midseason was a conscious choice.
"Very early on, there were people who were saying in the first season, 'Are you going to find Red John at the end of the first year? Or the second year?' It's a question people have been asking and one we've been asking in the writers' room from very early on," Heller told reporters on a conference call earlier this week. "There was no functional, formal protocol moment where we said, 'OK, when this happens, we will set about closing off that chapter.' "
Instead, Heller compared the decision to close the Red John chapter to "a marriage or any kind of partnership."
"How long is Red John driving the story forward and at what point does it become an anchor?" he elaborated. "It just seems like this was the right time. Ultimately that's a subjective choice. It just seemed like, from a storytelling point of view and from the audience's point of view, it was time to move the story forward. The best way to move the story forward in a way that is exciting to the audience is to move it forward much faster than they think it's going to move."
Heller noted that "there were always three or four possibilities" for Red John, saying that there wasn't an "aha" moment when he and the writers honed in on the ultimate Red John identity. "It seems like the natural correct choice," he added, revealing the actor was notified about his character's Red John identity "at the very last moment and he was thrilled."
Star Simon Baker admitted that the journey for him the past five-and-a-half seasons has been "strange."
"There's reasons and things you sign on for on that show and there's very important elements to the character that you make a connection with immediately. A lot of those things were laid to rest in this episode," Baker said on the conference call. "It did feel incredibly personal to me. I've always been very invested in what my character does and how he reacts to his personal story, which is the Red John story...."
There have been many surprises throughout the years, and there may be a few more on Sunday.
"If you think you know what's happening and you think you know where it's going, you may be wrong," Heller hinted.
As for what The Mentalist may look like following Sunday's episode, Heller assured that though things are changing for Jane, Lisbon and company, there will still be aspects of the show that will remain the same. (He told the USA Today in a piece published Wednesday that the Dec. 1 episode, directed by Baker, picks up two years later.)
"It's going to be the same show to some degree," Heller promised, "but it's going to be a show with less darkness at the edges and more freedom to roam."
SRC: hollywoodreporter.com/
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