***The following contains major spoilers for 410***

In the newest episode of Evil, which premieres today on Paramount+, while Kristen (Katja Herbers) and the others deal with the looming hurricane, Sheryl (Christine Lahti) has her own problems to deal with as she goes to DF and continues on her quest to try to take down Leland (Michael Emerson) even as she fears what he will do to her. It all ends with a shock no one saw coming.

When Lahti recently spoke with SciFi Vision, she talked about how Sheryl’s lust for power became her character’s downfall. “I think that her quest for power was rabid in a way,” the actress told the site. “It was her need for power, her need to to dominate, after feeling so subjected and so like, squished by men for so long. I think it just turned her. It’s like, power at any cost.

“Then, once she saw the ramifications, like [how] Leland's trying to kill her granddaughter, that was the the bridge that was too far to cross, and that turned things around for her.”

It was always about taking down Leland at that point.

Unfortunately it lead to Sheryl’s death in this week’s episode. The actress didn’t want to go. “I was sad when I got the call from from Michelle King,” said Lahti. “…She said, ‘Unfortunately, I wanted to give you a heads up that Sheryl's going to be killed in this episode.’ I was really shocked.”

Lahti, however, did understand the decision. “[Michelle] said, ‘Look, this just feels organic. It feels like the right thing to do in our story,’” the actress explained. “I totally understand and respect their wisdom about this. When I thought about it, in a show called Evil, if it's a showdown between Sheryl and Leland, Leland's going to prevail, right?”

In the end, she does feel like her character was ultimately redeemed. “I think she really tried to do the right thing, and she really did try to protect her granddaughters and her daughter.”

For more from the actress, including what it was like filming the fight scene with Emerson, why she thinks Sheryl was able to see demons’ true form, what she wanted to accomplish at DF, and much more, read the full transcript below. Evil streams Thursdays on Paramount+.
 
SCIFI VISION:   When I spoke with you last, we had talked about how a lot of what Sheryl did was for revenge and empowerment, which I really like, but what I want to know is, at what that point do you think it was that ultimately led her down her dark path that she was willing to go so far with a lot of the stuff?

CHRISTINE LAHTI:   I think that her quest for power was rabid in a way. It was her need for power, her need to to dominate, after feeling so subjected and so like, squished by men for so long. I think it just turned her. It’s like, power at any cost. Then, once saw the ramifications, like now Leland's trying to kill her granddaughter, that was the the bridge that was too far to cross, and that turned things around for her. But I do think that the she’d always had in the back of her mind, once she got this power by any means, she was going to bring down Leland, because if you remember the way he rejected her, and remember they were going to get married, and he just was so ugly and demeaning and horrifying. I think at that moment, something clicked in her, like, “I will bring you down, motherfucker, watch me.” So, I think she's been driven by this kind of lust for power, but also a lust to bring, specifically, Leland down.

I tend to forget that they were together, because they hate each other so much. [laughs] It seems like such a long time ago; I almost forgot about that. So, let me ask you, the one thing I was kind of curious about is when she got to the point that she did make a choice to go to David (Mike Colter) about Timothy and everything and was wanting to get him baptized, she even said at the church, you know, she was renouncing the evil and everything, and she was done with it. I know that she was still after Leland, but it seemed she was still okay with working with the demon manager. Was she intending after to leave, or was she still kind of not willing to, I guess, let go of some of that power, even at that point? Just your own thoughts.

I think that she had big plans for the women in that company, and working within the system was the way to go, and certainly to get Leland out was number one. If I can get in good graces with the manager, you know, show him the baptism picture, get him to fire Leland, then my rise to power and the other women in the company was more likely. Then, once I got more power, I think it was maybe I could make the company less evil. But, to me, it was, whoa, join this company. I'm getting power like I've never had before. I realized, oh, this company really is evil, and we're trying to, like, fuck up the world and put more misinformation into the world. Well, that's not great, but I want power more than I care about what I'm doing, right? So, I think things just started to shift once I needed to bring down Leland, and I would do that at any cost.

That makes sense. Why do you think that she can see demons true form, because obviously most of them cannot. Why do you think she can? Is that just because she's sort of higher up now? Or was there more to it that they ever told you about that?

Well, there was a lot of worshiping of Eddie. Remember that doll?

Yeah.

There was a lot of meditation. There was a lot of really trying to inform myself about this satanic world and the darkest side of that world. I think just kind of to me, it was like somebody doing a lot of spiritual work and being able to see maybe people's auras. I don't know if you’ve had people that you know who claim they can see auras, but that's what it was to me. It's like that, that she's able to, because she's so now familiar with the dark side of people, including the darkness in herself, that she's able to see it in other people, and she sees him, the Manager, as the monster that he really is.

Fair enough. Talk about the actual physical fight with Leland from the recent episode, when you're both stabbing each other and all that, talk about filming that.

Well, first of all, of course, it was choreographed really carefully. It was really fun. I mean, I don't really get a chance to have knife fights with men very often in my career. So, that was fun in a kind of dark way. And Michael Emerson is just a dream to work with. He's the opposite of Leland. He's actually just the most gentlemanly, kind, considerate person, and always game to improvise and play. So, that made it even more fun.

You got to do a good amount of makeup and blood effects too this season.

Yeah.

Is that something that you enjoy getting to do? It probably wasn't really comfortable though.

I'm not a big fan of blood, to be honest. It makes me - I just can't look when I see blood on screen and in life. I just get a little bit queasy. So, no, I'm not a big fan of all the blood. Yeah, that's how I feel about blood. Just, nah, not a fan.

Were you satisfied with the end of her storyline? I mean, obviously she dies, but were you happy with the way it went?

No, no, I was sad when I got the call from from Michelle King, I think, the night before the tenth episode. She said, “Unfortunately, I wanted to give you a heads up that Sheryl's going to be killed in this episode.” I was really shocked, because I thought, “What?!”

I was too.

You were shocked too?

Yeah.

I think a lot of people are going to be and, you know, she said, “Look, this just feels organic. It feels like the right thing to do in our story.” I totally understand and respect their wisdom about this. When I thought about it, in a show called Evil, if it's a showdown between Sheryl and Leland, Leland's going to prevail, right?

Yeah, true. She got him after the fact at least.

She did. And I think giving those tapes, making sure that Kristen and Andy (Patrick Brammall) got those tapes was an assurance that Leland's going to go to jail, if not be killed. So, I think, she went out to me in a blaze of glory and with some redemption and a little bit heroically to me.

Yeah, definitely. Let me ask you, because you mentioned it, is the video she sent Andy then the same thing? Because I was curious if we were going to get to see that, or if it was just the same [as Kristen’s].

I actually did some ADR, some recording of what Andy's was specifically, and I think his had more to do with what his circumstances were like. “You were put on the shelf, and your brain fluids were drained,” and, you know, whatever. I can't remember exactly, but I think it was more in detail about what specifically happened to Andy.

Well, maybe we'll get to see it. I hope.

Yeah, I think you do in the last four episodes. I think you will.

Awesome. So, was there anything that you were given or took from the set to remind you of your time there?

Gosh, no, I don't think I took anything from the set, because they were going to do four more episodes, so I couldn't really jack anything that [laughs] they were going to use in the shooting. I'm just trying to think…

She has such great clothes, though.

I did get clothes. I definitely got clothes, and they're actually too hip for me. I wear them, and my husband just laughs. [laughs] There's a lot of leather, and, you know, I have like one leather jacket that I've had for ten years, and it's the only one I have. But I've got, like, I think, four of them from Sheryl's wardrobe, and they have the studs on them, and [laughs] they're cropped and different colors, and yeah, someday maybe I'll give them to my daughter.

We’re about out of time, but let me just ask you, really quickly, do you think that she redeemed herself? I mean, do you think that she did what she needed to do in the end?

Yeah, I do. I think she tried. I mean, she doesn't really believe in God and Heaven, so I don't know where she's going to end up after death, because I don't really believe in any of that either, but I do think that she did. I think she really tried to do the right thing, and she really did try to protect her granddaughters and her daughter.

Okay, great. Well, thank you. I appreciate it. We're out of time, but I love the show. I was really sad to see her go, but I'm glad she at least got her last dig in.

Yeah, by the way, it means a lot to me that you were sad that she died, because she was a pretty badass, evil character.

She's awesome. She was bad, but she was fun bad.

Exactly.