Written by Luke Kalamar | Photos by Martin Roe (FOX)
When The Following first premiered in spring 2013, it was one of the most talked about shows of the season. The fact that industry legend Kevin Bacon had made the big jump from film to television was notable in itself. It also helped that the show had an interesting and engaging enough cast to keep the public hooked. Sure, the concept of a charasmatic serial killer/author murdering people on the works of Edgar Allan Poe is freaking absurd, but it actually worked on a certain level.
You wouldn’t have known that by looking at this year’s panel for Season 3. Despite being featured in the very large Empire Stage, only about half the room was filled. Out of the show’s sizable cast, Kevin Bacon, Shawn Ashmore, and Executive Producer Marcos Siega were the only guests present. Considering how big this show used to be, the vacant seats and complete lack of promotion made this a tad alarming. It’s also worth mentioning that, at the same time, the Main Stage was occupied by Dreamworks’ Penguins of Madagascar. On the same day as well, Sleepy Hollow handily filled up the same Main Stage area. Wherever fans of The Following were, they weren’t all at Comic Con.
Naturally Bacon, Ashmore, and Siega went on unabated for those in attendance. A clip from Season 3 was shown which brought us one year into the future and at Ryan Hardy’s wedding. He’s found love in a new doctor and is the happiest he’s been in years. Mike Weston on the other hand has completely ended his relationship with Max (Jessica Stroup) but clearly still longs for her. Hardy’s happiness is short lived though as we last see someone coming up to attack him. That’s right! The murder train is trucking along.
Following the clip, the presenters delivered a lot of interesting tidbits for this season. There already was the aforementioned year jump, but we also learned that Weston is beginning to realize that Hardy has harmed his life, there’s a lot in store for Joe Carroll (James Purefoy) in prison (supposedly Purefoy fought to stay on the show), and that this new season is the actual second chapter. According to Siega, if you missed the first two seasons, you can jump into the third season without issue. He worded it as a reboot of sorts. There is also a new threat in the mix fighting Hardy who will bring a lot of pain, said Siega. Dr. Arthur Strauss (Gregg Henry) was confirmed to be in this mix, along with another student of his ruthless teachings. Supposedly his “best student” is still out there.
The mystery behind the car driver at the end of Season 2 was less candid. Even though we’re apparently learning this in the premiere this mid-season, people wanted answers already. It’s unknown if these were slips or intentional, but we did learn that the driver is both female and not blonde. They might as well have just said Carrie Cooke (Sprague Grayden), but I guess they want us to think that Claire (Natalie Zea) or someone totally new are options. Considering how readily the show throws in new characters, the latter wouldn’t surprise me at all.
Lastly, it is worth noting that this new season will openly discuss why Hardy and Weston still have jobs, according to Siega. Considering how many people they’ve killed and missions they’ve totally botched, I’m glad this is an actual point of focus. Viewers everywhere are flummoxed by how these two men are still allowed to do stuff and it’s good to know that this is something that is on the minds of characters in this messed up world. It was also assured to us that this season will be a lot less “stabby-stab.” But Ashmore quickly joked by saying, “We said the same thing last year and look what happened!” So who knows.
As part of Pop-Break’s continuing interviews from NYCC, stay tuned for our interview with Ryan Hardy himself, Kevin Bacon!
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Luke Kalamar is Pop-Break.com’s television and every Saturday afternoon you can read his retro video game column, Remembering the Classics. He covers Game of Thrones, Saturday Night Live and The Walking Dead (amongst others) every week. As for as his career and literary standing goes — take the best parts of Spider-man, Captain America and Luke Skywalker and you will fully understand his origin story.
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