WARNING: Spoilers for the first 4 episodes ofSmoke!The cat and mouse game throughout Apple TV+‘sSmokecontinues to get all the more layered. The miniseries follows Taron Egerton’s Dave Gudsen, a former firefighter turned arson investigator, as well as Jurnee Smollett’s Michelle Calderon, a detective who finds herself paired with Dave to investigate apair of arsonists in Umberland.
Smokecomes from the mind of critically-acclaimed writer Dennis Lehane, the author behind classic books turned into feature films likeShutter IslandandGone Baby Gone. In recent years, Lehane has partnered with Apple TV+ to develop screenplays for miniseries. His work alongside the streamer beganwith the Emmy Award-winningBlack Birdand continues with this series.
ScreenRant’s Liam Crowley spoke with Egerton and Lehane to discuss the decision to reveal both of the show’s arsonists in the premiere episodes and analyze how that has altered the dynamic ofSmokeinthe most recent chapter.
Smoke’s Arsonists Reveals Ignite Rest Of Show’s Swerves
“Him Being The Arsonist Is Only Really The First Of A Series Of Twists…”
The secret has been out since the premiere: Dave is the “divide & conquer” arsonist.Smokeepisode 2 concluded with the revelation that the lead arsonist investigator is one of the blaze-crazed criminals, independently but also alongside the milk jug arsonist, Freddy Fasano (Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine).
When reflecting on that reveal, Egerton teased that his character’s true identity only begins the show’s series of turns.
“The thing that I really liked is that that twist about him being the arsonist is only really the first of a series of twists, and I love that,“Egerton said. “You mentioned Dennis not wanting the characters to be put in boxes, and I think that’s what really defines the show. None of the characters are totally good or totally bad. They’re all very complex, all very challenging.”
“We just thought that we’d play fair with it, and then we’d reveal it as fast as we can,“Lehane added when asked about the D&C arsonist reveal.“And then we get to the real story, which is what the hell’s going to happen now?”
That freedom to roam is something Lehane emphasized inSmoke’s most recent episode. Dave’s arsonist identity is just the surface of what exists inside his twisted mind, as episode 4 concludes with Dave setting fire to a woman’s stomach while in the middle of S&M-heavy intercourse.
These revelations about Dave build upon each other, as Lehane noted that he doesn’t write just for the sake of shock value.
“We layered stuff in right from the very beginning. The very first thing you see is a man running through a fire to himself. That’s right off the bat,“Lehane explained.“Audiences are extremely intelligent now. We knew that holding off on that turn, that reveal, for more than two episodes would be idiotic.”
Taron Egerton’s “Nightmare” Playing Dave Gudsen Pre-Arsonist Reveal
“If I’m Too Interesting In The First Two Episodes, I’ve Blown It…”
As evident by the latest episode, Egerton is now acting without any chains on.
“How did I approach playing him without giving away who he really is? It was a nightmare,“Egerton replied when asked whether he had to restrict his performance prior to the arsonist reveal.“Thankfully, it only really applied for the first couple of episodes because you gained a big insight into who he is at the end of the second episode. I found those two episodes really challenging because, well, I’m an actor. I want the character to be interesting and compelling.”
“I think it’s also been something we’ve been able to modulate in the edit, where anything that felt like it gave the game away early on, we’ve tucked out of there. But yeah, hopefully it all feels kind of well judged.”
Egerton has dug further and further down the rabbit hole of Dave’s mad mind asSmokehas continued, but he was allowed to show he was even holding a shovel until the end of episode 2.
“It’s a bit of a poison chalice because it’s a phenomenally interesting character, but if I’m too interesting in the first two episodes, I’ve blown it. It was tough,“Egerton continued.“We have great directors, and Dennis is eternally refreshing, no nonsense about it in his Bostonian kind of way of just being like, ‘We’ll be fine, get on with it.’ Meanwhile, I’m freaking out.”
