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EXCLUSIVE: Wynonna Earp – Hellfire and Tarnation…

Wynonna Earp

Beau Smith: comics veteran, writer and even an Impact columnist. Nowadays the action heroes he creates are heading from the page to the screen. He tells John Mosby about the evolution of tv’s Wynonna Earp and why he wants Scott Adkins for his next project…


Wynonna EarpLong-term fans of Impact will know Beau Smith from his regular column in our lamented print edition and those of you with even longer memories and reading choices will know how important a role he’s played in the wider comics-industry. So it was a delight to have an opportunity to talk to him about a subject that unites his love of comics with a mutual appreciation of the action industry… a longer version of this appears in the new print issue of Martial Arts Illustrated

IMPACT: Beau, we’ve spoken about your comic work before and the earliest stages of the rights to some of your creations being readied for the screen… but can we look back at to the point when you knew it was actually going to happen and not just be an ‘option’. Even as a respected comics veteran, that must have been a very nice ‘pinch me’ moment?

BEAU SMITH: Ted Adams, CEO Of IDW Publishing as well as David Ozer, President of IDW Entertainment, and Rick Jacobs of Circle Of Confusion, all kept telling me all these positive things that were moving forward with Wynonna Earp.  Of course I believed them, but – as you mentioned –  I had properties of mine optioned before, Some move fast, some… well, kinda slow. But this one with Wynonna Earp was different.  There were no steps backwards or slowing of momentum… if anything, it just kept gaining more speed and substance.  When I did get the call from Ted that everything was ‘GO’, It took time to sink in.  I didn’t really get the goosebump moment until I started watching the audition reels and saw all these actresses saying “Wynonna Earp, U.S. Marshal!”  Then I looked at my wife, Beth and said “Hey, this IS real!”  I wouldn’t really call it a “Pinch Me” moment, it was more of a “I got away with it!” moment. J

So, for anyone who hasn’t seen the show as yet – what is the basic concept at the heart of Wynonna Earp?

BEAU::The show is about Wynonna Earp, the great-great Grand Daughter of Wyatt Earp, the most famous U.S. Marshal in the history of the American West.  Wyatt not only left her his name, but the family curse as well.  You see, unknown to the real world, Wyatt was not only hunting down outlaws, he was also hunting down demon outlaws. Now, here in present day, she’s the heir of the Earp curse. Wynonna, on her 27th birthday, has to hunt down the demons that once made Wyatt’s life a living Hell.  She does have one major thing going for her.  She has Wyatt’s famed gun, “Peacemaker” and its ability to send the demons back to Hell—for good.  She also has back up in the form of her boss with the Black Badge Division. Agent Dolls, her sister, Waverly, and the mysterious, “John Henry”.  Each of these characters also bring in their fair share of secrets as well. The Black Badge Division is the most covert branch of the U.S. Marshal Service, formed by Theodore Roosevelt during his time as Police Commissioner of New York City when he found there was a massive, secret paranormal organised crime society.

The show’s been compared to having a ‘Buffy’ vibe – horror and action but with a knowing sense of itself and fun. Do you think that’s a fair comparison?

BEAU:  Very much so, I would also add that it has a touch of SUPERNATURAL and even JUSTIFIED. It’s a genre show that truly covers ALL genres.  After five episodes, we’re finding that because of this, the show is garnering a good amount of every age demographic there is, as well as gender. The audience for the show is as hardcore and rabid as I’ve seen, especially for a show that doesn’t have the biggest budget or most famous cast.  What we’re finding out is that we have a very special group of cast and crew that could possibly be one of the most likable that TV has seen in recent years, I understand that’s a big claim, but we’re finding out it’s true.  The cast has done an incredible job of making the roles their own and unique.  As an audience, you’ve seen law officers, cowboys, demons, monsters, before, but you’ve never quite seen them with the particular slant that the Showrunner/Head writer, Emily Andras (and each individual actor) has presented.  Wynonna Earp not only brings you intrique ever week, but it also makes you smile.  How many all genre shows can you say that about?

There’s a lot of different outcomes when the writer sells the option for someone else to reimagine those ideas. You’ve been actively involved in the SyFy series, to the extent of being on-set… but how formal is that role ?

BEAU: Contractually, my input is very little, but it has never turned out that way.  From moment one, Emily Andras, and everyone producing the show has made me a part of almost everything.  They don’t and didn’t have to… but they wanted to.  Everyone has been so much more than generous, it goes against any ‘Hollywood Nightmare’ story that any original creator could ever tell you.  (Remember, this is also a Canadian production, the most mannerly people in the world!)  From series bible, outlines, scripts, auditions, rough cuts, dailies, call sheets, set visits, Hell, I even did some assist-directing on a key scenes between main and secondary villains while in Calgary on the set.  The cast and crew have become like family members for Beth and I.  When I say this is really a special group and a special relationship, I mean it.  As the writer/creator of Wynonna Earp, I wanted this to be the chance for the character to reach the widest audience it possibly could.  Serial television is the way to go.

I’m a 30 year veteran/expert in the field of writing comics and marketing, I’ll go toe-to-toe with anyone that wants to challenge me in both, but that’s in my field of comic books. TV is another field and I knew that if the broader audience were to be cultivated, then I needed a more experienced team of experts in THAT field to do it.  Ego and pride must be set aside if you truly want to see your property, your child, get the best treatment and education possible. That was my goal. What I got from IDW Entertainment, Seven24 Films, Emily, the cast and crew was that – and much, much more.  Because of this special group and this small Canadian production, we have brought non-traditional consumers to the Wynonna Earp comic book.  We’ve done what Marvel and DC Comics have found  so hard to do, we have brought new readers, from ALL demographics from TV to comic books.

Wynonna EarpIt’s an ensemble cast led by Being Erica/Damien’s Melanie Scrofano. What do you think she brings to the role – how close is the performance to what you imagined on the page (and given that the character appeared two decades ago, who was your idea of the ideal actress at the time?) 

BEAU: Melanie Scrofano brings so much to the role of Wynonna Earp.  Her sense of comedic timing and expression is pretty flawless and so important with the Wynonna Earp character.  Melanie is a whirlwind of being humanly funny.  She also can shift right into expressing all the deeper human emotions that make the character of Wynonna use her sense of humor as a defense mechanism. Melanie is a truly caring, sweet person and her sensitivity makes people gravitate to her both on the screen and off.  She brings forth the Wynonna I always thought Wynonna should be (especially at a younger age than the age I had always written her).  She is the 27 year old Wynonna that I imagined.  Melanie has managed to “get” what Wynonna Earp is at 35-40, as I had written her, and then taken her back to what she would be at 27 without all the experience.  I was amazed when I saw the first episode complete, between Emily and Melanie, they managed to reach back into my head and yank out stuff and add to it.  It sure makes me look good, and I can use all the help I can get in that department. J  Twenty years ago, I imagined actress, Andrea Roth (RoboCop, Ringer, Blue Bloods) as Wynonna Earp.  In my head that’s how I saw the 35-40, established, monster hunting, wise cracking, composed Wynonna Earp.  Hey, maybe we can have a fast forward to the future episode where Andrea Roth plays the established 48 year old Wynonna?

Your other characters have also been optioned for the screen. One of those is COBB. You mentioned recently that you could see Scott Adkins playing the role – an excellent choice. If Scott’s reading this article (and there’s a good chance he actually will be!)  can you speak to what you feel he’d especially bring to the role?

BEAU: Yeah… I could see Scott Adkins playing the role of Cobb, the former Secret Service agent.  As you know, John, I’ve been a fan of Scott’s work from early on.  He’s proved that he has an incredible range when given the chance.  He can play, good guy, bad guy and the always popular in between good and bad guy. As far as action, Scott is in a realm of his own, or with few peers.  He knows film-fighting on all platforms and always enhances it with his acting. Scott would not only be able to bring Cobb’s action-heavy physicality to the screen, but more importantly, his talent to translate likability to the character would be key.  Cobb is not a cardboard , stoic cutout: he has a sense of humor and drive to protect. I know Scott could cover that with not just ease for a natural flow that is so needed.  Even if the role of Cobb were not to happen, I know Scott would be perfect as the character, Agron “The Cossack” Rostov, Cobb’s Russian counterpart who is a born ‘protector’ as well.  Rostov is almost Cobb’s mirror image as a fighter. Rostov is what the United States trained Cobb to be. Rostov is a Cossack, as his family has been for many generations. His traditional Cossack upbringing is a very large part of his actions and his very unique way of thinking. He is an interesting mix of today’s world and that of the Cossack way. He also believes that Cossacks are not only here to defend those that seek it, but also the protectors of Orthodox Christianity. If you’ve seen Scott’s role of Boyka in Undisputed 2, then you know he can handle this part.  I’ll just add that I believe Scott Adkins is also a perfect actor to lead television back into action roles.

Scott Adkins

Scott Adkins

As an aside, what do you think of the current state of action television? We seem to have survived the ‘reality show’ era and there’s quite a lot to choose from now…

BEAU: There is a lot more to choose from these days in the realm of adult drama, I think the way people consume their entertainment is a major part of that growth. I think that leaves the major networks with a loss of viewers in that genre. Instead, they seem to be filled with sub-par situation comedies, reality shows, scripted talent shows and formula crime for the elderly. When they try and copy what is working on the cable and streaming networks, they end up with pale copies that just seem unfunny or crass. I believe and regret that there is a scarcity of true, testosterone driven action. The male gender as a whole has truly become the minority as a valued viewer. Men are shown now as inept fathers, metrosexual dolts, and Peterless Pan Man-children. If I were a 21-35 year old male right now, I’d be pretty insulted by the way fictional characters are being show on TV. There are no male heroes to look up or aspire to.

There’s nothing wrong with being a man, not all men are knuckle dragging monsters, and muscular writing geared towards men is a lost art. Yes, you can still find it if you know where to look and look hard, you must, but it’s not on the main screen. Westerns haven’t died because of the lack of interest in the genre or subject… they’re dying because no one wants to work hard enough to keep it smart and laced with action. An action film doesn’t have to have an extreme amount of special effects, endless car chases and eternal gunfights, moderation and make the conflict you do have count for the amount of screen time. The art of a good fist fight between good and evil is much more satisfying than spaceships chasing and blasting each other for 30 minutes. It’s not just man vs. man in these fights, it’s right and wrong, it’s morals being challenged and fighting back, someone protecting the weak in the most primal way possible. It’s so much more than just violence. People want heroes. They want right to defeat wrong. Men are hardwired to not only be that hero, they want to aspire and inspire others, and that transcends all genders and ages. Yes, the male in fiction has had more than their fair share of time in the spotlight, but if you truly believe in equality, then all genders should share the spotlight of hero and of action, it shouldn’t be taken away, it should be equality, not payback.

 

Wynonna Earp is currently playing on the US version of the SyFy channel. A UK broadcast date is expected soon…

 

 

 

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