Haven’s Eric Balfour Talks Season Four, Part 2 [INTERVIEW] 

Now that you’ve survived “Fallout,” Eric Balfour’s responses in part one of our interview make a little more sense, right? In part two of our discussion, Balfour gets to talk a bit about what lies ahead for Duke and the continuing love affair among the cast.

“I think for the fans of Duke, this season is going to be…one of their favorites [because he] goes through so much. [We’ve] obviously seen him go through a lot and struggle with his abilities and with his place in this world, but now there’s a whole new emotional context to what he’s going through. I think it’s just going to be awesome,” he says. “[He] is going to be pushed harder than ever toward a decision. And he is going to be forced to choose sides in a battle that is almost Shakespearean in nature…they’re impossible choices to make.”

He couldn’t go into specific details for us, but he did say that the arc will leave fans really happy or really frustrated. “Duke is going to have to completely redefine himself in many ways. And that rebooting of sorts, or redefining of his entire life, is really going to affect who he is. I think we know who Duke is now. I think we understand who Duke is in his heart. But it is going to change his place in this world and his choices in his life,” he adds.

He says Duke’s journey and choices dovetail back into the larger arc of Duke, Nathan, and Audrey and each of them having to make decisions based on the greater good. “[They’re] constantly battling their own desires with that of…this family, as it were…It’s so not simple. And I think that’s what makes the show fascinating [and] compelling.”

Duke has never been a black hat or white hat character and Balfour has enjoyed the dichotomy of that. “I love playing [him], because he is completely human and…fallible. And in that human quality, it’s very difficult to simply say, ‘He is good,’ or ‘He is bad,’ or ‘He has…decided to be good.’ [In] some ways, [he is] the most honest character on the show…because it’s never that simple for him,” he says. “[His] choices are always veiled with…his own, at times, selfish desires [and] with his…inherent nature to do the right thing.” He adds that the desire to be more earnest will be harder to follow through on because of the challenges he encounters this season.

Balfour was asked about the continuing camaraderie among the cast and he says chemistry is a magical thing and he feels blessed to be doing the show with this group four years later. He mentioned that one of their recent guest stars was amazed they all still get along so well, when by season four on some shows, cast mates don’t speak to each other or are dealing with having dated and broken up.

Balfour says they’re closer knit now than they were when they started. “The trials and tribulations of shooting this show on the schedule…and the amount of energy that it takes, and stamina, and toll it takes on…us physically and emotionally [is] really challenging. And what we’ve all managed to do is to learn to lean on each other,” he says. “And we all have our own families and our own relationships, but honestly I can’t tell you how much I love Lucas and Emily, and how proud of them I am. And just to see how they’ve grown, and how we’ve all grown together, it’s pretty amazing.”

He recounted dropping into the local café for breakfast on a recent weekend to find Emily Rose and her family and Lucas Bryant and Emma Lahana already at a table, and he felt slighted not to have been invited. Then they realized nobody was invited—they all just happened to show up and assumed he’d eventually wander in, too [and he did]. “[These people] are, in some ways, all I have up here. And it’s not easy all the time. So I’m really grateful that we get to lean on each other. And I think that has come across onscreen.”

Balfour also seconds Lucas Bryant’s assertion that they are goofy mad for each other. “I love that guy. There is…an epic bromance going on between me and Lucas,” he says. “I love him to death. He is one of the kindest, most sincere people you will ever meet…I honestly, couldn’t be happier to get to work with him every day. I’m in love with the dude.”

Onscreen, Balfour is looking forward to exploring more of the Audrey and Duke bond now that Audrey isn’t necessarily Audrey. “I think one of the things that the audience is going to get to see this year, and understand, is how deep the connection and bond is between Duke and Audrey,” he says. “[If] the audience is paying attention this year, you’re going to see some things that really start to indicate how well Duke really does know Audrey. And that’s going to have an effect on Audrey…it’s actually one of the more exciting things that’s going to start to reveal itself over the course of the season.”

We’re so glad they’re back! Haven airs tonight on Syfy at 10/9c.