The cast of CBS’s Evil united (virtually) for the show’s New York Comic Con panel on October 10, 2020. The half-hour discussion included a look back at the events of season one as well as a sneak peek at what’s in store for the series’ second season.
Katja Herbers, Mike Colter, Aasif Mandvi, Michael Emerson, Christine Lahti, and Kurt Fuller joined series creators Michelle King and Robert King to share a special trailer for the upcoming season – a season that hasn’t actually begun shooting yet. Mandvi handled the scary sound effects as his co-stars recited lines from the safety of their homes.
During the panel, Mike Colter was asked what it was that grabbed the audience during the show’s first season. “I think one of the things that the audience latched ahold of, and I think I did as well, is the similarities of the show and real life. And what I mean by that, I think there’s so many things that parallel real life that are only happening in the heads of the characters. There’s so many people that reached out – fans, that is – via social media and people I would bump into in the streets that would say there’s so many things that they connect with. There’s so many things that they relate to,” said Colter.
“They would go so deep and so fast, and a conversation that would last 30 seconds would tell me things about the show that I didn’t notice because it happened to them. People who had night terrors…people who were seminarians…people who had tried to go to Catholic school and went a certain way and then changed their minds, because this show really does encapsulate a lot of what people do experience in life but don’t talk about it out in the open,” explained Colter.
Katja Herbers said it was the brilliant writing that drew her in. “I think, unfortunately, we live in a time where you don’t have to look very far to find evil. And for me, at least, it’s very helpful to be able to process what’s happening in the world while playing Kristen. And I think it might also be really nice to watch this show and be able to process some of the things that are happening and have a good scare, but also have a good laugh.”
Herbers also addressed the key events of the season one finale. Did Kristen actually murder someone? “I think we don’t know, first of all, if she did kill someone – if she did kill LaRue. I think we’re meant to think that she did and we will find out if she did but we don’t officially know that,” teased Herbers.
Asked if the current pandemic will work its way into season two scripts, Robert King replied, “The show has a natural inclination to go to plague because of Revelation and because this season has like an avenging angel character that is supposedly good but talks in terms of evil, killing millions of people and so on. So, in many ways, it’s there. I wouldn’t say we lead with that because we’re afraid of seeming like we’re following the herd.”
Discussing his character’s involvement in Kristen’s season two cases, Kurt Fuller said, “Boggs, he’s an empiricist. He wants to believe what can be proven and seen, but he’s also human. And in season one he witnessed some things that can sort of be explained. Kristen is getting worse and worse, and as season two starts she’s even worse. Whatever I’ve been doing with her hasn’t been working. And I’ve always been suspicious of this group of losers that she’s working with, you know. I am the only person that she’s completely honest with. She seems to be honest with the others but believe me she tells me things that she has not told anybody else. I don’t know how I’m gonna pull her out of this. She’s in bad shape and it’s getting worse. So, yeah, I think I’m going to be much more involved.”
Evil Series Description, Courtesy of CBS:
The series focuses on a skeptical female psychologist who joins a priest-in-training and contractor as they investigate the Church’s backlog of unexplained mysteries, including supposed miracles, demonic possessions and hauntings. Their job is to assess if there’s a logical explanation or if something truly supernatural is at work.
