How Kurt and Wyatt Russell built key Monarch: Legacy of Monsters character
The father and son acting duo play the same character.
The latest instalment in the MonsterVerse, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, puts Godzilla and co to the side to tell the story of the humans impacted by an influx of titans.
And to do this, the new Apple TV+ series stars a spectacular ensemble cast, with Kurt Russell and his son Wyatt taking on a key character - older and younger versions of army officer Lee Shaw.
The shows alternates between two different timelines, showing Shaw's younger days and his 'retirement'.
Speaking exclusively to RadioTimes.com, showrunners Chris Black and Matt Fraction revealed how exactly the father and son built the character together.
Fraction explains: "I think that they had been presented with the chance to play father and son frequently, but what interested them about this was it was the same character, and the two of them worked together really closely, running lines, running scenes - 'How would you say this?'
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"Kurt would show up when Wyatt was shooting, Wyatt would show up when Kurt was shooting... You watch Lee become Shaw and you watch Shaw rediscover what it was like to be Lee over the span of the run, and you would watch them build this out.
"There were moments where you can see Wyatt kind of [channelling] his dad; he sort of changes his posture and does the head thing and just as, like, fans - like, lifelong fans - it was awesome to see their process as actors.
"And I think they understood that that character is the linchpin that ties all the different eras together."
Black adds: "He's the one character that exists in both timelines."
"So they really worked to build it it out," Fraction points out.
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Kurt and Wyatt also made sure to keep up with the timeline of the show - at times, even better than the showrunners.
Fraction explains: "The other thing, too, is like, 'Okay, well, if Lee knows this, now, Shaw knows this now. So when Shaw says, XYZ, he knows…'"
"They would remind us of that sometimes," Black adds. "We would get so caught up in it that we would forget. And Kurt would be like, 'But I already know that.' Yeah, of course you do.
"They're both wonderful actors and there's a striking similarity between them. And it was really an incredible stroke of luck for us to be able to get them to play this character, but they also have very different styles - sometimes you would see them and what they brought to that character in each of those timelines.
"And it was easy for me, anyway, to sort of forget that they're the same guy."
Monarch: Legacy of Monsters will begin on Apple TV+ on Friday 17th November - sign up to Apple TV+ now. Check out more of our Sci-Fi coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on.
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