‘Midnight, Texas’: How the Author Behind ‘True Blood’ Rewrote Her Own Vampire Rules to Create a More Tolerant World
Bobo Winthrop, Human
Bobo (Dylan Bruce, “Orphan Black”) owns the local pawn shop, which is filled with some of the most disturbing mishmash of objects that we’ve ever seen, especially during a set visit.
“It’s a freaky place to be. There’s a doll missing arms, and missing an eye, and an ancient baby carriage,” said Bruce. “The bear with bullet holes in it is kind of creepy. There are tons of clowns in there, lots of clowns. There’s this creepy demon ghoul skull face. There’s a lot of other relics in there that have historical relevance as well, that come out in the script. I won’t give that away, but when you research what a certain thing is, you’re like, ‘Oh, that is terrifying. It is absolutely terrifying.’”
Like Olivia, something from Bobo’s past haunts him still. Fortunately, town witch Fiji keeps an eye out for him. “She’s kind of his moral compass. She guides him, calms him, but he definitely has a tendency to be a loose cannon at certain times, especially in the series with his past, and with what could possibly be catching up with him in the town of Midnight. He’s kept that a secret. Everybody’s pretty mysterious in Midnight.”
Reverend Emilio Sheehan, aka The Rev, Species To Be Determined
The Rev (Yul Vazquez) is usually a man of few words and keeps to himself, even eating alone when he goes to the only restaurant in town, Home Cooking.
“I never [wrote from] the Rev’s point of view because he was a very mysterious character to me, even though I was writing him,” said Harris. “Finally, I thought, ‘Okay, he sees the Bible very differently from the way we see the Bible. He sees the Bible as interpreted through the animal scenes.’ That’s a very different point of view.”
As for what The Rev is, viewers won’t find out until Episode 2. “He has a very credible super power,” said Vazquez. “Episode 2’s really a lot about The Rev. What The Rev is, he’s born born into, he can’t become that. It’s not like a vampire can bite you and you become a vampire.”
The Rev holds service at the church, which is possibly the biggest structure in Midnight, and he also conducts weddings and pet funerals. A pet cemetery is right next to the church, and some familiar names can be seen on the headstones.
Mr. Snuggly, Cat
Mr. Snuggly is Fiji’s cat. He also speaks and has quite the attitude. Even though he is a cat, he is a very important part of the team, which is why he’s in the middle of most of the group shots and posters. No, really, Mr. Snuggly didn’t make us write this.
“Mr. Snuggly is Fiji’s homework, in a sense,” said Fitz-Henley. “She is left this cat by her aunt, and he’s not the most encouraging being in the world. He’s kind of a thorn in her side, but she loves him. And he has a way of kicking you when you’re down, but it’s funny. I think Fiji feels a bit saddled with this creature. She’d probably lay down her life for him too.”
Since Mr. Snuggly is a full-fledged character in the books, the show had to make sure he had a correspondingly large presence on the screen. Joe Smith provides the voice of Mr. Snuggly, who usually opens his mouth to demand something or say unkind things to Fiji.
“The cat, he’ll upstage you in every scene,” said Bruce. “You don’t want to act with the cat. He’s the Don Cheadle of the show.”
“Midnight, Texas” premieres Monday at 10 p.m. ET on NBC.
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