Jonathan Ames never faces a shortage of creativity or ambition.
Blunt Talkis a perfect distillation of Ames trademark neurotic, impressionistic approach to writing.
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JONATHAN AMES:Well I guess Im hoping to say many things.
So we make an allusion toChinatownvisually and thematically with Los Angeles, water, and corruption.
So thats the new story.
The kind of the uniting theme is sort of romance, heartbreak, and love.
I was happy to see Walters cryptic, stylistic dreams reappearing in the show.
Do you see these as a constant in the series to play with each season?
Yeah, in season one it was Burt Lancaster films.
Hes having these ominous Orson Welles dreams.
So yeah, it is something that I have fun playing with.
The show itself makes lots of allusion to film and cinema.
BothBlunt TalkandBored to Deathdo a really beautiful job at portraying the beauty in male friendships.
What about this specific sort of bond are you attracted to?
So I think that really imprinted on my mindyou know the way animals or babies get imprinted with something.
Its come up in my novels and almost everything Ive written.
Then that master/servant relationship between Walter and Harry, Im a big fan of P.G.
Wodehouse, and the Jeeves novels.
With him, its a very Don Quixote/Sancho Panza relationship.
Walter Ive always seen as a very Don Quixote figure.
Hes someone who dreams of being a hero and doing the right thing.
So yeah its a dynamic Ive always enjoyed.
That we have at least three very strong female roles.
Rosalie, Celia, and Shelly Kinkle.
WhereasBored to Deathwassomale-centric and here we have three very fun roles for women.
Duncan certainly hasnt run his course on this show.
He shows up a few times this season, particularly in episode eight.
In that we go back to the prison that Duncan is in and do a whole prison episode.
We see another play that Duncan is putting on in prison and its really funny and hysterical.
But yeah, I love Jasons involvement.
I could certainly see bringing him back in season three.
At one point I thought, maybe Duncan could get a little broadcasting segment on the environment or something.
That he gets released from jail but has become such a ratings hit for them.
Well see if that circles back.
Im also very excited about your new TBS series pilot,Worlds End.
How has that experience been so far and what attracted you to that idea?
Im in the editing room right now as we speak!
We finished shooting about two weeks ago.
It went really well.
We have a really fantastic cast.
This was a project that was brought to me by Ben Silverman.
He had found this Icelandic series calledHeimsendeirthat translates to Worlds End.
He was looking for a writeror wanted me to adapt itIm not sure.
Its about an asylum where the inmates take over.
So its been a fun project.
Its actually something that precededBlunt Talk, fell dormant, and then came back to life.
I did get commissioned to write a script.
I wrote two totally different drafts.
I thought that neither of them quite worked.
Id like to look at them again, maybe one of them worked better than I thought.
Thats really only three episodes.
So I dont know if it would leave people wanting, or if we could recapture the magic.
But I wont say never!
The actors all remain interested and were all still good friends, so maybe it could happen.
The wholeBlunt Talkporno storyline is some great stuff.
Would you be flattered if someone actually made aBlunt TalkorBored to Deathporn?
I dont know aboutflattered, but I guess they say that imitation is the greatest form of flattery.
I think Id beamused.
All the characters go throughsomuch.
I think thats some fun stuff.
The whole Jim and Celia romance.
Shellys emergence, which youll see more of as the season goes on.
Rosalie singing at the piano bar.
I think theres a lot of rich stuff for all of the characters.
Blunt Talkssecond season premieres October 2ndat 10 p.m. on STARZ.