
Warning: Orphan Black Spoilers
The fourth season of Orphan Black is finally here. It’s time — once again — to sit back in awe at the marvel of Tatiana Maslany and the rest of the cast who are tasked with bringing to life the weird wild dangerous world of the Clone Club, Projects Leda and Castor and all that that entails.
I recently chatted with one of the best reasons to watch OB not named Tatiana. In my chat with Kristian Bruun a.k.a Donnie Hendrix, we talk about why he’s excited about Season 4, Donnie’s new friendship with Helena, he reveals which clones he’ll get to spend some quality face time with this season, and what it’s like to watch Ms. Maslany in action. Spoiler Alert: he’s as much in awe of her talent as the rest of the world is.

TV GOODNESS: Season 4 — what do fans have to look forward to in a big picture sense?
KRISTIAN BRUUN: I would say, one of the big themes you’re going to see this season is pretty much everyone on the show dealing with the past and how it comes back to haunt or sometimes even help their future. I think they’ve done a really, really good job this year — the writers — in bringing it back to the start of the whole story. And this season, especially, feels a lot like Season 1. It has this exciting edge to it that I think fans are going to dig.
TV GOODNESS: What’s ahead for Donnie and Alison?
BRUUN: So much has happened to these two in the last three seasons. At the end of last season, Alison, of course, got elected School Trustee and we had this whole crazy drug empire thing blow up in our face. And we have a new roommate, Helena, who is pregnant. So things are a little bit crazy right now. We’re trying to get some normalcy and safety back in our lives. Ultimately, if Donnie and Alison had their druthers, they would go back to their boring, normal life. And just sort of bury the past so to speak, just like Dr. Leekie’s body. Just forget about everything and try to get on with their lives.
TV GOODNESS: If that happened, if Donnie and Alison suddenly went back to their normal existence — do you think they would last? I feel like their drama and all the craziness is what really brought them together. And has allowed them to become a solid couple.
BRUUN: It totally brought them together. I think their love is stronger now than before. But they still really, really want that normal life again. Which, of course, I think is completely impossible given all the things that have happened in their life. And, also, this world that they’re now a part of. The Clone Club is a pretty dangerous world whether or not you want to be a part of it. It’s a crazy, crazy existence that’s for sure. Donnie and Alison will be striving for that. It’s just whether or not they get safety. Whether or not that’s gonna happen. Of course, we all know what Clone Club is like. That’ll be an interesting part of their storyline this year.
TV GOODNESS: What I loved about last season and it continues this year is Donnie and Helena’s connection. They sort of forged a friendship. Can you talk about that from your perspective?
BRUUN: Yeah, for me that was really exciting to work on. And it’s also one of my favorite pairings on the show. We’re definitely getting more of that because she’s living at the house. And she’s also pregnant. And so there are things we have to take care of with that respect. But it’s also a huge amount of pressure on his relationship with Alison because they are two extremely different clones. I think that’s why it was so fun to see Donnie and Helena end up together.

If you look at Helena in Season 1 and she’s this assassin clone trying to kill all the other clones. She’s been led down such a different path to where she is now. You can see how she just wants a normal life as well because she never had the opportunity to have that. And so she sees that with Donnie. She sees this father figure slash pseudo adopted husband kind of character. They’re such opposites that, of course, it kind of works. At first Donnie is so reluctant to even have her near the house. They both warm up to each other in a very strange way. Because, as we know, at the end of Season 3, she goes and kills the Portuguese mafia in a garage and gets us whole lot of cash. So it’s a very strange relationship. But it’s a strange world that they’re living in so it somehow it works.
TV GOODNESS: What does he see in her?
BRUUN: I don’t know what Donnie sees in her at all. She’s such a strange person. He cares for her, definitely. I think he also recognizes someone who has suffered a lot of abuse in her life and how damaging that has been to her. He also realizes and sees that there’s a really sweet caring, very, very, probably extremely too loyal of a person in there. He sees the good in her. He was very reluctant to spend any time with her at first but he really does share this connection with her. And it’s because genuinely she is a good person. She’s been just led down the wrong path. So, yeah, Donnie sees her as part of the family a hundred percent. She’s really become someone who’s welcome in the house. Whether or not she’s a good fit is another story. But he does care for her.
TV GOODNESS: What episode are you looking forward to people seeing regarding to your character?
BRUUN: Like every year, I always challenge the writers to try and top some of the shenanigans that they’ve had me do. And like every season, they’ve somehow managed to do that. So I definitely have three or four moments this season that I’m really looking forward to getting out there. And I’ve looked at the calendar to see when those episodes come out. So I won’t say specifically when. But there are definitely some fun really memorable things coming up. We definitely do get to see Donnie spend time with some new clones that he hasn’t really worked that much with so there’s actually some fun stuff coming up with Donnie and Cosima, which is another kind of an odd pair. And even odder, almost as odd as Donnie and Helena, you get to see Donnie and Krystal interact with each other.
TV GOODNESS: What’s it like to watch Tatiana in action?
BRUUN: It’s amazing. It’s a real treat to get to work on such a unique project like this with someone who’s as talented as Tat. The biggest shock I think I’ve ever had was…you know for the majority I’ve worked with Alison, I would say. I remember the first time working with a different version of Tat, it just really threw me how different she is…in person. It’s literally like acting with a different person. You get used to it. You kind of have to. But honestly, you just prep yourself to work with a different actor, essentially, when you’re working with a different version of Tat. She’s doing the exact same thing. She’s prepping five lead characters per episode, essentially. And doing the work of five lead characters per episode so she really has to delineate them all.
Then, of course, you go down a whole other rabbit hole when you see her playing Alison playing Sarah. Or, you know, another clone playing another clone — Cosima playing Alison. That’s when you really see the magic of what she’s capable of doing happen. I mean, no one has ever really had a challenge like this. There have been other clone films and TV shows and things like that where people have played multiple characters. But I don’t think anybody’s done something this long and this complex and this layered and nuanced either. And then on top of that, just damn good in terms of the quality of the acting. So she just hits it on every level. It makes your head spin. But it’s incredible to witness. It’s incredible to watch on screen. But it’s even more incredible to work as an actor with them. I feel so lucky that I’ve had a chance to spend so much time on this project and witness that. And luckily I haven’t been killed off or anything like that. The more we do it the more it really amazes me.
TV GOODNESS: What do you enjoy about the way Donnie has developed throughout the series?

BRUUN: A lot of what Donnie does is comedic relief to help ease the tension of the show. The show is very dramatic.. It’s thrilling. It’s a lot for people to take in. So a lot of the stuff that Donnie does — with Alison, with Helena, with whomever, lends a bit of comedic relief. But at the same time, the show also throws some dramatic stuff my way and also some absolutely ridiculous scenes. Like killing Dr. Leekie (Matt Frewer) certainly is so out of right field that I don’t think anybody saw it coming. I didn’t see it coming until I read it. And I love that the show feels comfortable enough with a character like Donnie to take these huge milestones.
I mean, Dr. Leekie was a lead character on the show, like a very important element of the show. So I felt honored. And we don’t take the death of any character lightly. We do treat it with a lot of respect because we’re a family and everybody is pretty close on the show. And so even though the fashion and the shock of that death was inherently kind of comedic or just jaw-dropping as such, it’s still a big turning point for the clones and for Donnie especially. And so I just love that they trusted Donnie enough to be able to handle plot points like that and whether it’s the ridiculous situation surrounding that or some of the comedic relief, it’s just been really a fun role to grow with, within the show. And sort of slowly become part of the Clone Club in his own goofy way and find his own importance. So it’s been great to be able to do that.
Orphan Black Season 4 premieres tonight at 10/9c on BBC.
Related posts
Classics
Dennis Heaton Talks The Imperfects
Longtime readers at TV Goodness will know that Motive is one of my ride-or-die series, and as such, I am fiercely loyal to its creator, Dennis Heaton. He followed up that fantastic reverse procedural with Netflix’s The Order and is back on our streaming screens with The Imperfects, which dropped…
Kelly McCormack Talks Favorite Moments in A League of Their Own
[Warning: Mild spoilers for season 1.] Now that you’ve had a chance to watch A League of Their Own, here’s the rest of my chat with Kelly McCormack about her favorite moments of the season. Seeing the iconic Peaches uniforms for the first time wasn’t just a goosebump moment for…
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…
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…