Interview: Mayfair Witches’ Tongayi Chirisa, Jack Huston, & Harry Hamlin on the Season Finale

***The following contains major spoilers for 1.08***

Mayfair WitchesTonight, AMC aired the season one finale of Mayfair Witches. In the episode, Rowan (Alexandra Daddario) finally uncovers her role in the family prophecy as it comes to fruition. 

Tongayi Chirisa, who plays Ciprien Grieve, was surprised about where his character ended up. “I think that's the great thing about the writing is that a lot of things that you thought were supposed to go one way don't,” he told SciFi Vision during a recent round table. “It just opens up a can of so many other endless opportunities and questions that need to be asked, because there's a lot that's under the rug that needs to be exposed. So yeah, it left me gobsmacked, for sure.”

Jack Huston, who plays Lasher, was also surprised, and loved the outcome. “It's very sort of apropos to Anne Rice and her legacy by that sort of season finale,” said the actor. “We were like, ‘Oh, now we're really getting to the Anne Rice.’ That lady had one hell of an imagination, and our writers did a phenomenal job, sort of taking that from the page to the screen. I just really, I can't commend them greater for it.” 

Mayfair Witches“I was totally surprised that I was the father of Rowan,” added Harry Hamlin, who plays her uncle, Cortland Mayfair. “That was a curveball, for sure.” 

During the interview, Chirisa told SciFi Vision that he’s learned a lot by his characters actions this season. “I think, for me, I feel like it's a dangerous thing to keep people at a distance,” he told the site. “There's a saying, ‘Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer,’ and for good reasons. I think with that it's always good to know people's intentions, whether they're good or bad…I think that's something Cip has always been very distant about, because his powers allows him to tap into people's minds and memories, but he's never one that you can easily approach. So, that, for me, was just a good reminder to be intentional about knowing people.”

“It was quite hard to sort of say what my character taught me; probably ‘don't be the devil,’” joked Huston. I was learning maybe not to sort of manipulate and deceive and be all together a little evil, but they were lessons I already knew.”

For more, read the full transcript below, and be sure to check out the season finale, now available to stream on AMC and AMC+, and stay tuned for season two.

***The following contains major spoilers for 1.08. Edited for length and clarity.***

SCIFI VISION:
   How far off from where you expected your character did they end up? How surprised were you once you read the last script? For all three of you. 

HARRY HAMLIN:   I was totally surprised that I was the father of Rowan. That was a curveball, for sure. 

JACK HUSTON:   I was surprised, and I'm still surprised. 

TONGAYI CHIRISA:   Yeah, I think for everybody, I think that's the great thing about the writing is that a lot of things that you thought were supposed to go one way don't. It just opens up a can of so many other endless opportunities and questions that need to be asked, because there's a lot that's under the rug that needs to be exposed. So yeah, it left me gobsmacked, for sure. 

JACK HUSTON:   Yeah, it's very sort of apropos to Anne Rice and her legacy by that sort of season finale. We were like, “Oh, now we're really getting to the Anne Rice.” [laughs] That lady had one hell of an imagination, and our writers did a phenomenal job, sort of taking that from the page to the screen. I just really, I can't commend them greater for it. 

QUESTION:   Back when you guys signed up for your roles, was there anything from your previous roles or external inspirations that got you into the headspace as your characters? 

HARRY HAMLIN:   My answer for that is, I don't usually take anything from anything I've done before and bring it into some new character. They're all new to me. There you go. 

TONGAYI CHIRISA:   I think, for me, it was just the excitement of getting into this gothic type of franchise that delves into the fantasy of mythology and all that good stuff. I've always been a geek about that stuff. So, it was really nice to kind of get into this and really explore this character in this world that Anne Rice has given us. So, that was my initial jump to it. I was like, “Oh, yes! I can finally get into this this genre of television making.” 

JACK HUSTON:   I think shooting in New Orleans was an absolute gift for everybody as well, because it just lends itself so well to this world. Obviously, it's where Anne Rice lived and wrote and everything was set. So, I was excited. 

QUESTION:   For each of you, what was your favorite scene to shoot this season? 

HARRY HAMLIN:   For me, the favorite thing was they wrote my introduction in the piece after they saw what I was doing with the character. So, toward the very end of shooting, they had me audition an alligator and a snake for my eye opening scene in my trailer, and the alligator was terrible. I had to eighty-six the alligator, but the snake was great. So, we had a ten foot python that I got to play around with while I was having my toes massaged. For me, it doesn't get any better than that. [laughs] 

TONGAYI CHIRISA:   [laughs] I think, for me, it [would] definitely be episode five and six, where Ciprien is just progressively getting worse in the house, and they're unaware that he's got a stab wound, and they don't know how long they've been in the house for. So, I think just having that play out in a linear way was really nice, because it kind of allowed me as an actor to just really get into the emotional space every day, to match the energy that was needed. So, that was really fun. 

Mayfair WitchesJACK HUSTON:   Yeah, and I loved going back to Scotland. I thought that was one of the great ones apart from we almost lost Tongayi when we burned the village, lying on the road, and it was it was such a spectacle. It’s amazing what they done. That was kind of fun. I thought that was an exciting, if not very long night, but it's always cool when you sort of get to jump around in different periods and play with different actors. It was great. 

QUESTION:   Harry, in a family where magic is passed down through the [matriarchal] line, Cortland Mayfair has been kind of skipped a [spectacular] way, let's just say, and it kind of turned him into a monster. How did you keep the fun uncle separate from your approach when we meet the the kind of murderous, selfish uncle at the end? Because who we met in the beginning, this kind of party fun guy, is definitely not the guy we met at the end. So, how did you kind of approach that; how do you keep those two people separate? 

HARRY HAMLIN:   In my mind, they're not separate. What happened to Cortland is he got ALS. So, when you're diagnosed with ALS, however fun loving you are, you're told that you're going to die, because ALS is a death sentence. So, what I had to do is try and figure out how Cortland was going to deal with that, and clearly he made a deal with the devil. We don't know the ultimate outcome of that deal, what's going to happen. We do know that, for the time being, Medusa-like, I have been turned to stone. So, how that's resolved, I don't know yet, but now that he's “cured,” I think he can allow a lot more of what we saw of Cortland at the beginning to be reinjected into his character next season. 

QUESTION:  What do you think, [and] what do you hope will happen with your character in season two? I guess, Mr. Hamlin already addressed this. In any other show, I mean, being turned into stone would be the end of your character, but not in a world with witches, I'm guessing. So, what do you hope happens with your character going forward? This question is for everybody. 

HARRY HAMLIN:   I just don't want to be turned into stone for the rest of my life. So, I just want them to find a way to get me back. 

TONGAYI CHIRISA:   I think, for Ciprien, we started to see him kind of unfold into who he truly is. I think the one takeaway is that how Rowan was able to kind of embrace these new powers. That's something that Ciprien hasn't really done, henceforth the gloves. So, it will be interesting to see what happens when he chooses to fully embrace the capacity of what he's capable of doing and what that might look like for his personal journey as well as everybody that he loves and cares for. So, I'm very excited to see how that's going to be unpacked in the coming season. 

SCIFI VISION:   For all three of you, what has your own character taught you about yourself from playing them? 

TONGAYI CHIRISA:   I think, for me, I feel like it's a dangerous thing to keep people at a distance. There's a saying, “Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer,” and for good reasons. I think with that it's always good to know people's intentions, whether they're good or bad, but it's always good to have an idea of individuals. I think that's something Cip has always been very distant about, because his powers allows him to tap into people's minds and memories, but he's never one that you can easily approach. So, that, for me, was just a good reminder to be intentional about knowing people. 

JACK HUSTON:   I mean, it was quite hard to sort of say what my character taught me; probably “don't be the devil.” [laughs] I was learning maybe not to sort of manipulate and deceive and be all together a little evil, but they were lessons I already knew.

HARRY HAMLIN:   For me, it taught me nothing about myself. That’s the truth. [laughs] 

QUESTION:   Playing in the Anne Rice universe, has that allowed you to do anything as actors that you found yourself not being able to do playing in that sandbox? 

TONGAYI CHIRISA:   I think that's the beauty about this genre, that you get to tap into all kinds of acting styles and the different genres that are out there. I think, for me, personally, there's much more to tap into. I do love the end scene where after Lasher disappears from the the memory, there's a moment of insanity that takes place. So, it's good to kind of really explore how far you can take the emotional journeys of these characters unhinged. So, I'm looking forward to more of that the following season. So, we'll see what adventures that Cip has to go through now that Lasher is going to be in the picture in real time. 

Mayfair WitchesHARRY HAMLIN:   For me, it was kind of a split personality for Cortland, because at the beginning, he's very fun loving, and after he's diagnosed with ALS, he, of course, is facing a death sentence. So, his personality changes a lot. But what I love about working in this universe is that I'm just having a blast doing it, because they're letting me kind of out of my cage and allowing me to create a character that I'm not sure was on the page when I first read it. I'm just having a really good time. For the first time in many, many years, I've been able to actually do character work like this and take it where I want to take it. A lot of times the director will say “Stop it; don't go down there,” because Cortland, there is a side of him that’s quite performative, and that's when he's in his happy-go-lucky moments, and I'm hoping that that will come back in next season. 

JACK HUSTON:   Yeah, I mean, I'm just really excited about the next season, as much as the discovery of where they're going to take it, because this whole first season was a discovery for all of us. It's where you're sort of finding your footing, your understanding, getting into the characters, and sort of discovering who these characters are and what they can do and what they're capable of. Now, it's like everything's just been turned on its head, and it's going to be an entirely new fun season where we're probably going to be - it's almost back to, I mean, square one with Lasher, because it's an entirely new form, I guess, that's taken on, but I'm excited to see where they take it. 

QUESTION:   The Immortal universe obviously has a very strong fan base, especially on social media. Have you as actors engaged with that and looked at the reaction or do you try to kind of keep that separate? 

HARRY HAMLIN:   I mean, I don't do social media. So, I can’t answer that. 

JACK HUSTON:   I’m very bad. 

TONGAYI CHIRISA:   Yeah, you try to keep your sanity about you, because it can be gnarly out there sometimes. So, it's better to not know what's being said and just get the drips and drabs from the teams. 

HARRY HAMLIN:   There’s an old saying, “what the eye does not see, the heart does not grieve over.” 

QUESTION:   My question is for Tongayi. In the finale, Albrecht (Dennis Boutsikaris) [wiped] Odette (Keyara Milliner), Ciprien’s sister’s memory. What would you like Ciprien to do in response to that in season two? 

TONGAYI CHIRISA:   Wipe his memory back, then I'll just take take him out. I don't know. It'll be interesting. I think Albrecht has answers to questions that I probably will have, but I don't know what those questions are, because he's obviously done something to me. So, I think that discovery of trying to figure out what he knows and still play off as though I'm still one of his subjects is one that I've been really looking forward to and seeing how I can outsmart the man that taught me everything about the Talamasca. 

QUESTION:  Jack, what would you say Lasher’s ultimate game plan is after being born into the world? 

JACK HUSTON:   World domination. I have no idea. I'm sorry. [laughs] I'm really interested to find out. I think he's waited [for] thirteen witches to be born, and the world is his oyster. Your guess is as good as mine. I can't wait to see what the writers are cooking up for us though, because I think whatever it is, is going to be pretty wild, as the last two episodes might have shown you more. It was pretty out there.

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