With The Terminal List now streaming exclusively on Prime Video, we were granted an exclusive opportunity to sit down with stars Constance Wu ("Katie Buranek") and J. D. Pardo ("Tony Layun") to talk about their pivotal roles in the action-thriller series that stars fan-favorite Chris Pratt (Jurassic World; Guardians of the Galaxy) in the lead role as James Reece.
Since the series stresses the importance of good journalism, with Katie Buranek (Wu) assisting James Reece (Pratt) in getting the truth out, we asked the Crazy Rich Asians star what it meant to be able to tell that part of the story.
We also asked Pardo about being a part of the thrilling fifth and sixth episodes where Layun is hot on Reece's trail.
Check out the full video interview below!
ROHAN: The series really does a good job of stressing the importance of good journalism and the importance of media - how important was it to you really nail those aspects of Katie's character?
CONSTANCE: Yeah, I feel like in today's social media world, it often feels like journalism has been reduced to clickbait, or what causes the most internet engagement, and I think it was refreshing for me to find a character whose journalism is about journalistic integrity, and uncovering the truth, by whatever means necessary. I think it's important. I think that's how we expand the human experience, rather than reduce it down to a clickbait headline that's misleading.
ROHAN: Can you walk me through episodes five and six? Those were incredible hours of television - how intense was it to film those episodes?
J.D.: Oh, they were exciting for me, because I knew going into it that I was going to be out of my element. So, I had to, in a way, give myself permission to go with the flow, and just to learn and that I was going to fall, I was going to mess up, and to accept that, that's Tony. Tony is experiencing that in real time. So yeah, it was great to face that challenge, to be in those elements. I was like the audience in a way and I was just curious as well at how it was going to turn out?
ROHAN: With everything James Reece is going through in the series, you get to work with Chris Pratt at his most intense, so what was it like developing chemistry with him while he's playing such a psychologically tormented character?
CONSTANCE: I mean, well, Chris, as a person, is so lovely and warm, so working with him was great. Also, he and I had babies around the same time, his wife Katherine had a baby around the same time I did. So, honestly, a lot of the time we are just trading family stories, like, “How many teeth does your baby have? My baby has this many teeth!,” For such a show that feels like kind of masculine and aggressive sometimes, it's really lovely that the atmosphere on set, I think was warm and almost family based, and that's what it was like working with Chris and it was a gift.
J.D.: Yeah, it was same. When cameras stopped, we were just like two dads talking. We're just talking about our kids and things that we have to go home to and -
CONSTANCE: *get to go home to. *laughs*
J.D.: *laughs* I was just thinking something didn't feel right about that, it was a little too eh, but I'll pay for that later. Bring my wife flowers after I take out the trash.
CONSTANCE: *laughs* I’m sorry!
J.D.: So, yeah, it just felt like, Chris is an amazing, amazing human being, he's as advertised.
CONSTANCE: He’s a sweetheart.
J.D.: He's just a sweet man and he's a friend.
CONSTANCE: And so passionate about this particular project.
J.D.: Absolutely. He's committed to the work and I, because I never went to a film school or an acting school. Like for me the work. It's about the work, right? Like, I dive myself into that.
CONSTANCE: You didn’t?
J.D.: No, I didn’t.
CONSTANCE: You’re so good!
J.D.: Thank you! - So, I love it when I meet actors who are so invested in the work as well, and Chris, he's a part of that. He would film all day and then, even though he had an early call time, and I had the last scene, he would stay there to do off-camera dialogue.
CONSTANCE: And never complained! JD: Yeah, never complains, smile on his face, laughing with the crew, and I was like, that's why he is where he is.
Plus, check out our interviews with director Antoine Fuqua (Training Day; The Equalizer), author Jack Carr & screenwriter Dave DiGilio, stars Jeanne Tripplehorn ("Lorraine Hartley") & LaMonica Garrett ("Commander Bill Cox"), and Tyner Rushing ("Liz Riley")!
Based on the best-selling novel by Jack Carr, The Terminal List follows James Reece (Chris Pratt) after his entire platoon of Navy SEALs is ambushed during a high-stakes covert mission. Reece returns home to his family with conflicting memories of the event and questions about his culpability. However, as new evidence comes to light, Reece discovers dark forces working against him, endangering not only his life, but the lives of those he loves.