Grimm is one of the more successful and inventive of the genre series on network television right now and, perhaps more interestingly, it’s one that seems to absolutely understand its genre predecessors and fanbase. It may not garner huge ratings or critical attention, but it quietly serves its audience each Friday on NBC, providing reliable, entertaining fare that’s surprisingly family-friendly on a night that typically has not sought that audience. So far, the PtB at Grimm have left fans hanging each season, with a delightfully self-aware final note to fans, “To Be Continued… “ followed by in season one, “Sorry.” and this year, “Oh come on. You knew this was coming.” I had the opportunity at San Diego Comic Con to sit down with some of the cast and creative team behind Grimm and here’s what they had to say about season three, both for the show and their individual characters.
Season three will pick up right where we left off in the finale, with, as Silas Wier Mitchell (Monroe) puts it, “tons of crazy stunts. … It’s extremely cinematic. Very large in scope. [It’s] a feverish pace in season three”. Bree Turner (Rosealee) concurs,”I was on a harness to a 30 foot crane two nights ago doing my own stunts. … There was just this ambiguous ‘Are you afraid of heights?’ email to being on a crane. But it’s super fun.”
Obviously there’s the drama of a zombified (Grimm-style) Nick to deal with, but elsewhere Adalind will still be up to her tricks in Europe, and according to Claire Coffee (Adalind Schade),“We pick up where we left off with Frau Pech. So we definitely see the end of that”. Apparently the rituals to get Adalind’s powers back will be a bit more trying than she may have anticipated, “She’s really on her own, so it’s made her scrappy”. Expect somewhat of an arc for everyone’s favorite schemer. Coffee continues, “[Adalind was] almost like a psychopath; no feelings, no remorse, nothing like that, just having the freedom that that gives you. But what’s going on with her now where she’s really feeling human and she’s making allegiances possibly, it’s a more delicate balance.” Don’t worry though, Adalind fans- Coffee assures us, “She’s still a badass.”
The producers also have big plans for the Royals, who, according to David Greenwalt, “have a pretty big world-wide agenda. It’s gonna keep widening through the whole series”. Don’t expect the balance of serialization and standalone to shift in a big way, though. The producers plan to maintain a similar trajectory, with big picture arcing in the beginning and end of season three, but plenty of procedural-heavy episodes throughout the season. Another aspect of the show we shouldn’t expect to change is the fantastic and varied representations of women. When asked if this characteristic of the show, unfortunately uncommon in television in general and genre television in particular, was a deliberate choice, producers Greenwalt and Jim Kouf said, “it’s how we write and that’s the women we deal with. We’re around a lot of strong women so we just…, these are the women we know.” They also complimented their female cast, remarking how having such strong, intelligent actresses on the show helps the writers keep these traits front and center in their characters. And as a tease, while I didn’t get any specifics, we can look forward to fairy tales from the Phillippines and Russia popping up as the inspiration for a few episodes in season three.
Unsurprisingly, given some of the writing towards the end of season two, the show is currently casting Monroe’s parents, and according to the producers we may be seeing or at least hearing more about Rosalee’s family coming up. As for everyone’s favorite Fuchsbau, Turner says, “I love that I’ve become, I think one of the more powerful apothecaries in my world. … Rosalee has an incredible gift that she denied for a long time because I think that power scared her. … It’s been really fun to just build her confidence as a healer and trust in herself.” The character’s role as the problem solver is fun for Turner and a natural fit, “I love being a smarty pants on the show. It’s super fun and that straight-A geek inside of me is, like, ‘Ooh!’”.
At the precinct, we can expect more of the same for Hank, particularly now that actor Russell Hornsby is healed up from the injury that sidelined him last season. Hornsby likes having Hank in on the secret and more able to step in, “I like the idea [of Hank] being the enforcer. I’m one of the big guns. I walk in, I walk tall, I carry a big stick, and I look cool as a motherfucker.” We’ll see how long that cool lasts, with a love interest on the way for Hank this season, presumably with the standard Grimm twist.
There’s plenty of fun to come for Sergeant Wu too. Says Reggie Lee (Wu), “This season it sounds like I’m gonna see something … I’m a little afraid of when that moment comes. I heard it’s gonna drive me a little bonkers. … Wu gets the brunt of things, and I kinda like that.” We should also perhaps look for more development with Wu, “I think he knows what he’s doing and I think he’s got a wicked sense of humor, but I think that sarcasm and snarkiness comes from a bit of insecurity. So maybe you’ll see a little bit of that”. Lee also discussed his love of ComicCon, “I get a little more relaxed every year and … just enjoy it. I’m the type of person who wants to go up to each person who watches our show and say thank you, because otherwise we wouldn’t have a show. … [At ComicCon} you can’t do it all, but if I could tell every single person, I would.”
Season three of Grimm premieres on Friday, October 25th at 8pm EST on NBC.
Kate Kulzick