
We’re very fond of Aaron Stanford around here, first for Nikita‘s Nerd and now for Cole on 12 Monkeys. I had the chance to chat one-on-one with him this week about the first season of 12 Monkeys, the terrific news about the renewal, and what’s next.
Stanford has had a few months to catch his breath since wrapping production in December, and he’s seeing the episodes for the first time on Friday nights when he and some of the cast and crew live Tweet with the fans. “I’ve been watching along with everyone else. While we were shooting, I didn’t watch any rough cuts. Everything was perceived in front of the camera. I’m on the edge of my seat along with everyone else,” he says. “It’s fun. One of the drawbacks of live Tweeting is part of me is worried that they should be watching the show, or I should be watching the show.”
“I’ve never done this before. I’m learning how it should be done more and more. Hearing the fan feedback and being able to interact with them is really cool, and is a really fun, new thing that just wasn’t accessible until a couple of years ago, It’s pretty interesting.” Like us, he’s very happy about the renewal. “We’re over the moon about it,” he says. “I’m really thrilled we’re going to continue the story because I want to know what happens, too.”

While it was great to have his Nikita co-star, Xander Berkeley, come play for two episodes (“Yesterday” and “Tomorrow“), he didn’t have the luxury of standing in the wings and watching him tango with Barbara Sukowa. “I had about 15 minutes of spare time the entire four months of the shoot. Mostly likely while they were shooting their scenes, I was off with a second unit shooting other scenes,” he explains. “They’re killer. They’re both such heavyweights. Getting to watch their scenes for the first at home was fantastic.”
He’s happy with the 13-episode order for the second season (which the first season had, too), and says it makes for tighter storytelling. “I think everything is better suited to 13 episodes, to be honest. Almost anytime you see a show stretched out to 22 episodes, you’ll see spots where things get really thin because they’re really, really stretching. Nikita was a 22-episode show and it was tough,” he says. “It was hard to sustain. It’s hard to tell a concise and complete story when you have to stretch it out over that long a period of time.”

“I feel it’s better in installments. You do your tightly conceived and written 13-episode season. You complete it, finish it, get it in the can, and you take a break and then you’re recharged and refueled to do the next 13. There’s so much work involved and these writers are grinding out stories at such a frenetic pace that do more than that seems crazy.”
The pilot was the most challenging episode of the season, both for newness and location. “It’s always harder in the beginning. You’re figuring each other out and learning how to work with each other,” he says. “We shot it in Detroit in the middle of December. Almost everything was nighttime exteriors and it was sub-zero all night, every night.”
Once production kicked in on the first season, the show moved to Toronto, Stanford’s stomping grounds for Nikita‘s four seasons. “I’ve esesntially been working in Toronto for five years. I know the city very well. I love the city,” he shares. “I know the areas and neighborhoods I like best. I knew right where to go. I already had my favorite restaurants. It was great to go back.”
With some downtime, he’s been catching up on other shows, including working his way through all of the seasons of Game of Thrones again in anticipation of season 5. When he says he just rewatched “The Red Wedding,” I mention that one of the Twitter fans made a comparison between “Tomorrow” and that episode of GoT.
As flattering as that is, he says GoT stands on its own. “I don’t think anything compares to ‘The Red Wedding.’ I’ve never seen anything like that in my life. I literally couldn’t get off the couch for two hours afterward,” he says. “I’m [also] anxious to see the final installments of Mad Men. One of my favorite shows of the last couple of years was Enlightened, which was shamefully underwatched. It’s one of the most brilliant things I’ve seen on television in years. There’s so much out there [now].”
Despite the ability to binge-watch shows these days, Stanford points out that for shows like 12 Monkeys, real-time eyeballs are best. “We always want live viewers. That’s the name of the game. If you really like the show, and you want to support it and you want it to continue on, do your absolute best to watch it live,” he says. “That’s the best way to ensure that it will continue and have subsequent seasons.”
Next up, Stanford is beginning work on an indie film, which he’ll shoot before beginning season two of 12 Monkeys later this year. He explains that it’s a familiar tale. “There’s an element of the apocalyptic survivor in it,” he laughs. “It just doesn’t seem to be something I’m able to get away from.”
12 Monkeys airs Fridays at 9/8c on Syfy. We’ll have part two of our interview on April 10th, following the season finale.
Heather M
Related posts
2 Comments
Leave a Reply Cancel reply
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Classics
John Griffin and Harold Perrineau Talk From on EPIX Season 1 Finale
[Warning: General spoilers ahead.] How are we doing, #FROMily? In case you missed it this morning, the very good news is that that cliffhanger will be followed by a second season, which was gifted this morning ahead of the linear broadcast of the finale. I always legitimately appreciate when we…
Elizabeth Saunders Talks EPIX’s From
[Warning: General spoilers ahead.] One of the things that makes EPIX’s From such a fun ride is the abundance of Canadian cast members. Elizabeth Saunders, who plays Donna, is a favorite from her turn on the third season of Mary Kills People [streaming on Global TV in Canada and Roku…
Corteon Moore Talks From “Broken Windows, Open Doors”
[Warning: Spoilers for tonight’s episode.] Tonight’s episode of From had us all in our feels as we learned through flashbacks about the Sophie’s Choice Boyd had to make to save his son, and back in the present as Boyd said his piece with Ellis before heading into the woods with…
Pegah Ghafoori Talks From “All Good Things…”
[Warning: Spoilers for tonight’s episode] Tonight on From, Fatima’s anniversary celebration turned into a Colony House of horrors when a misguided Kevin let his monster bae in and she promptly killed him and left the window open for her crew. While the party devolved into terror and sent everyone running,…
Shaun Majumder Talks From “Book 74”
[Warning: Spoilers for tonight’s episode.] Tonight on EPIX’s From, Father Khatri made a bold move, kidnapping Sara instead of turning her in, and then recognizing her as a vessel for some big messages. That startling realization speaks to him on multiple levels–as a man of faith, a man trapped in…
Avery Konrad Talks About Sara’s Struggle in From “Silhouettes”
[Warning: Spoilers for tonight’s episode.] Over the course of the season so far on From, we’ve witnessed Sara’s battle against the voices telling her to to do terrible things, and tonight we saw her unravel further, threatening the Matthews and lashing out in a moment of terror with horrifying results….
Hannah Cheramy Talks From “Choosing Day”
[Warning: Spoilers for tonight’s episode.] Tonight, on EPIX’s From, the Matthews participate in the show’s version of the sorting hat, choosing where to call home–the town or Colony House. At the end of the episode, Julie makes the decision to split from her family and instead settle in with Fatima…
Ricky He Talks From “The Way Things Are Now”
[Warning: Spoilers for episode 102 of EPIX’s From.] Epix’s new series From is two episodes in and it’s already laying the groundwork for a seriously spooky season. Tonight’s episode demonstrated the careful balance of relief and horror that the show hits, with our characters’ worst fears realized, just not when…
Catching Up with Ted Lasso and Previewing Season 2
[Warning: General spoilers ahead.] The not so dirty little secret about how I approach a new series is that I sometimes make a call based on the headspace I’m in at the time. It’s been a minute since I’ve picked up a show after the first season and then binge…
Interview: Henri Esteve on Grown-ish Season 3
An interview with Henri Esteve, who plays Javi on Freeform’s Grown-ish. He talks about his season three experience.
What They Said: Three Revealing Conversations from Survivor’s Remorse “Closure”
WARNING: Spoilers for Survivor’s Remorse “Closure” The latest episode of Starz’s Survivor’s Remorse featured conversations that showed characters really digging deep into their thoughts, emotions and motivations.
Two Takes: The Catch “The Knock-Off”
Who can you trust? If this episode of The Catch was any indication, the answer is just about nobody. Betrayal was running rampant as Felicity (Shivani Ghai) arose from the dead to seduce-con Margot, Gretchen (Maria Thayer, Gotham, The Mindy Project) played gold-hearted Alice 2.0 before swindling Ethan, Tessa jumped…
What They Said: Top 3 Quotable Moments from Preacher “El Valero”
Both Quincannon and Jesse refuse to give up on what they each think is rightfully theirs. While Jesse is struggling to face the consequences of his actions, Quincannon has laid his past demons to rest and is hellbent on moving forward and putting Annville on the map again. Despite a…
What They Said: Favorite Quotes from Supergirl “Worlds Finest”
Oh, Supergirl. That ending was cold. But I can’t hate on you because the latest episode has quickly become one of my favorites.
What They Said: Top 4 Quotable Moments from Black Sails “XXIII”
The dialogue in “XXIII” is phenomenal. It’s always a fun ride when Black Sails carries its viewers along without giving them the chance to catch their breath. When an episode moves at this unforgiving pace, there is no chance for a breather nor is there a respite from the information…
What Lucifer Said: Favorite quotes from Supernatural “O Brother, Where Art Thou?”
Supernatural episodes are almost always funny but thanks to the dialogue and a certain man speaking said dialogue, I laughed a lot during “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” You know, when I wasn’t busy fearing for Sam’s life or wondering what in the world was going on with Dean and…
What They Said: The Flash, “Legends Of Today” and Arrow, “Legends Of Yesterday”
Two nights of Arrow + The Flash = what more could we ask for?! I don’t know what it is about blending these shows, but I can’t help but feel that every time they come together, they somehow become greater than the sum of their parts. And that’s saying a lot…
What they Said: Top 4 Quotable Moments from Graceland “Little Bo Bleep”
Shoot outs. Fake outs. And long-awaited revelations. “Little Bo Bleep” was a jam-packed episode that wrapped up some loose ends and totally frayed others. Â It finally gave us one Sarkissian in jail and pulled back the curtain on Briggs’ master plan, but it also set up Jakes for a world…
What They Said: Favorite Quotes from Poldark “Part 4”
“What have I told you, I don’t require my wife to crochet and sip tea, but I do require her to remember she’s not a beast of burden.†No, I’m not talking about The Rolling Stones! I have to admit though, just for a second, the lyrics popped into my…
3 Moments of Goodness from Brooklyn Nine-Nine “Johnny and Dora”
The most satisfying part of this season’s finale has to the Jake and Amy kiss. Well, they kiss three times but the last one is the best one — and it means something. The Charles and Rosa dynamic was also great. I love how she’s convinced he doesn’t know anything…
Thank you for this insightful interview! It is so wonderful to read a profile of a celebrity I admire that doesn’t rely on the same twelve overused questions for its content. Nice work. Will always seek out and read anything about the always articulate and impressive Mr. Stanford.
Thanks for reading and commenting, Maria!