Schwartz, Fedak & Zac Spills (some) Beans on Season 2

From Rachel at Collider.com comes this very informative interview with Chuck co-creators Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedak, and our leading man, Zachary Levi:

During comic con I got to go to a couple of interviews, the first of which set my geeky heart to new levels of excitement as I got to interview the cast of Chuck.

First up were the show’s creators Josh Shwartz and Chris Fedak, and really, it is always heartwarming to realize that the creators of your very geeky show are also about as geeky as you are. It just builds a bit of confidence and trust, you know. It’s okay, they understand.

They talked for a bit about Comic Con and the reactions they had the previous year.

JS: We operate from a place of “only disaster can foster at ever turn.” We were horrified last year going into it. We were terrified last year cause we were like, you know, people are going to be like “what the hell is Chuck and who are these people? Do we have any credibility in this world?” And [the panel] was very fun and it felt like a good way to launch the show. So this year we are expecting the opposite.

CF: We feel like we raised expectations, and this year is all about lowering it.

They also mentioned a few special things that were going to be presented at the panel, namely a 6 minutes footage reel for season two, showing off scenes from the first six episodes, (also showing come guest stars’ appearances, so as Tony Hale and Jordana Brewster) and also a special Comic Con introduction “to the troops” by Adam Baldwin.

The previous day Josh Schwartz had mentioned that Chuck would be starting up 2 years in the future for season 2, apparently this isn’t so.

JS: No, no. I think I was being sarcastic at the panel and I think it might have been misinterpreted. All of the Lost fanatics that were there paying much more attention to the time travel between Desman and Penny. But it was really, um, I was kidding. I was just saying that it feels like it’s been two years since we were last on the air. But, yeah, that’s an interesting idea actually, we’re gonna come back and Chuck is 48 years old. No it takes place a sort of indistinguishable amount of time since the last episode. It’s sort of designed like a second pilot, I think within the first two minutes of the show you’re caught up and you’re on the new adventure.

So, possibly they are trying to get us off the scent, or he really was being sarcastic. We’re not going to find out until the premiere!

Q: Can you tell us what is in store for fans of the show?

JS: More! More of everything!

CF: Bigger explosions, more romance.

JS: Wanna talk a little bit about the sort of deepening of the mythology this year a too?

CF: Yeah, that was something we sorta figured out last year. When we first started working on the show we kinda thought it would be stand alone episodes, each week Chuck would have a new mission. The more we worked on it and the more episodes we made, we realized the people were really interested in the mythology; why Chuck, why was he chosen, why did Bryce send those secrets to him? And just, what was the back story of all these characters, cause they were so interesting. So as we were heading towards episode six of last were we thought, well, let’s get into that. So this year I think we’re really going to focus on kinda deepening the mythology of the show, and really kinda going, from the first episode, in the first ten minutes of episode one we kinda had to do an immediate change up for the season. And from that point on, each episode to another we’ll learn more secrets each week.

JS: It’ll still have this sorta like “villain of the week” storyline, it’ll be a close ended story, but everything is built under this large umbrella of the season. Something catastrophic happens at the end of the first episode that will sorta launch us in. And we’re also really owning the romance right out of the gate this year. The show is swooningly romantic this year I would say. And there is a moment at the end of the third episode between Zac and Yvonne that even I get a little misty at. So we’re really coming out of the gate and owning the romance, and I think it’s really heightened. You know it’s something we found that both of them could do, Zac’s really funny and Yvonne can kick ass in a very credible way, but she’s also really great at playing vulnerable and that real side of Sarah, that woman who longs for a real life and yearns for that simple life of hanging at Chuck’s apartment with Ellie and Captain Awesome and being a real girl and tapping into that. And Zac also is really great in the dramatic scenes so we want to write towards that as well.

CF: We really take pride in our action scenes, but sometimes the most riveting scenes are just the emotional moments between our stars. They’re really fantastic.

JS: I’d say we have a lot of fun guest stars this year too. But I think in a way that feels . . . We found out last year we did the episode where Kevin Weisman from Alias was the villain, and people really responded to that. And I don’t know necessarily that that was our most nuanced villain we’ve ever had, the former Olympic gymnast with the truth serum, but people really responded to it. You don’t have a lot of time to get traction with some of these villains, you come in. . . but people gravitated toward him cause they knew him and it was fun to see him in a very different roll. So we sort of built off of that idea a little bit, so we have a lot of sort of familiar faces, but in rolls I think that feel earned, it doesn’t feel like it’s becoming The Love Boat.

Q: Can you name some of these guest stars?

JS: I sure can, I can name them quickly, too. Michael Clark Duncan in the Season Premiere, John Larroquette plays Rome Montgomery  -

CF: The master seducer . .

JS: Yeah the Master Seducer, former spy, now a drunk, who has to help Chuck seduce Sasha Banachek, the Black Widow, played by Melinda Clark. Bryce Larkin (Matt Bomer) comes back. Tony Hale joins the cast, Buster from Arrested Development, as Emmett Milbarge, the officious new manager of the Buy More who’s very suspicious of Chuck.

Q: Is he recurring?

JS: Yeah yeah, he’s in for a long run. He’s really funny too. First day on set, we saw the footage, we’re like “this guy just feels like he’s part of the Nerd Herd.” Which he can take as a compliment or not, I guess, I’m not sure. Michael Strahan of the New York Giants is, by the way, actually hilarious, and he plays the manager of the Mighty Jocks, sports store, which actually was a story line when Damon Lindelof moderated our Chuck panel at the Paley Festival, he pitched us this whole storyline of like, the Sports Jocks, who were like this sports authority store in the strip mall next door, and we were like, that’s really funny.

CF: And we had that opportunity with Micheal Strahan and we were like, lets use that Mighty Jocks idea!

JS: And he’s really funny in it. And I think Nicole Richie, some of you may have heard about in a shower scene involving Kung Fu. And Jordana Brewster as Jill, Chuck’s childhood sweetheart, who has come back to turn his love life upside down. And she’s really good, so . . .

Q: How hard was it to get Nicole Richie, was it hard or . . .

JS: No, she came in and read! I mean she was . . . We were like, “okay, that could go either way,” it’s gotta be good, you know. I’ve worked with Paris Hilton before on The OC, it was . . . you know, a limited range sometimes with these people. But she came in and was really funny and surprisingly . . .Cause we were like “isn’t Yvonne like, several feet taller then she is in an action scene?” But it’s totally credible when they beat the crap out of each other with lead pipes.

CF: It’s really vicious and exciting, we’re working on that episode right now and the fight scene is amazing.

JS: And when you see what Sarah looked like. . . you’ll get a glimpse of it at the panel of what Sarah looked like in High School. It’s pretty fantastic.

Read the rest of the interview, including Zac’s comments, here…

PHOTOS: More from Comic Con

We’ve added some hi-res photos of Zac, Yvonne and Sarah at Comic Con to the Gallery. Looks like Yvonne and Zac were having a fine time goofing for the cameras!

PHOTOS: Everyone At Comic Con!

Many, many apologies for the delay in posting photos from Saturday’s Chuck-tastic Comic Con panel. Blame it on the abundance of riches we had to sort through and upload, then go to the Gallery and enjoy!

Adam Baldwin is a Porcupine and Other Chuck News from Comic Con

WARNING: SPOILERS!

Today’s Chuck panel at Comic Con was a blast! The panel featured Ryan McPartlin, Sarah Lancaster, Joshua Gomez, Zachary Levi, Yvonne Strahovski, Adam Baldwin, Chris Fedak and Josh Schwartz, but first we were shown a preview of season 2. It’s going to ROCK! We saw scenes from the first 5 episodes including the already infamous shower fight between Yvonne and Nicole Richie, Sarah’s new undercover uniform (orange tank, white shorts), Chuck being dangled out the window by Michael Clarke Duncan, a cage match at the Buy More, the return of Bryce, Jill’s appearance, and LOTS of Chuck and Sarah. (An abbreviated version is on YouTube.) Here’s a quick rundown of what happened during that all-to-brief hour:

ROMANCE
Josh Schwartz says that they’ll be “owning the love story right out of the gate” this season. Zac embraced Josh Gomez, to the crowd’s delight, then realized Schwartz meant the Chuck/Sarah romance. The moderator asked how the “bromance” between Chuck and Morgan was faring this season. Zac says that it’s strained because Chuck is in his spy world while Morgan is holding down the fort at the Buy More, but it’s still simmering. That flame will never go out, he claims.

Speaking of the other romance, Zac looks at Yvonne and asks, “Isn’t she hot?” The crowd says that yes, she is. Zac then asks Yvonne, “What is our romance like this season?” “Steamy,” she says. Based on the clips we saw before the panel, there is a LOT going on with Chuck and Sarah at the beginning of the season, including a couple of kisses and possibly a real date!

In other romance news, Awesome & Ellie are planning their wedding with Ellie in full “Martha Stewart mode”. Schwartz is planning his own bachelor party and apparently some of that (and his wedding) will be ending up on the show. Morgan and Anna are also smooching this season. Alas, no smooching for Casey yet. Later a fan went up to the mic and said that Big Mike (Mark Christopher was in the VIP section) wanted to know if he’s getting a love interest.

Schwartz: Is that true?
Mark: OK
Schwartz: Big Mike might be getting a love interest and it might be Morgan’s mom.
Gomez: *gasp* Well, she is a MILF.

Schwartz also revealed that there will be a same sex kiss this season between two people who were on stage. The cast all started looking at each other, but no one knew who it was going to be.

THE NERD HERD
The Nerd Herders will be regulars this season so we’ll be seeing more of them. Gomez says that the Buy More crew “is up and running…not well.” A new assistant manager is needed, so Jeff and Lester compete for it in a cage match Morgan rigs up (we saw a clip in the preview; so funny!) which is, of course, the best way to choose leadership. Lester wins and rules the Buy More for a while until he can’t hack it, then Emmett Milbridge (Tony Hale) comes in.

Warner Bros. gave away a Nerd Herd mobile, but the lucky winner wasn’t in the panel. Hey, Samuel, if you see this, send us a photo of yourself in your new car!

THE INTERSECT
Schwartz says they’ll deal with the Beta Intersect issue right away. Casey has to “disappear” Chuck, and we’ll see Casey start to develop “a feeling”. Just one.

THE STORY ARC
Something catastrophic happens at the end of the premiere which sets into motion a story arc leading up to an amazing season finale. Each week will have it’s own villain or crisis to solve, but there is an overarching storyline for the whole season.

GUEST STARS
Zac’s job “does not suck.” He has Jill and Sarah fighting over him and has to make out with Melinda Clarke so far this season. “I don’t write it, but I’m gonna go with it, if I have to.” That Zac, he’s a team player.

Yvonne talked about what is going to be an iconic moment in the series – the shower fight between Sarah and Heather (Nicole Richie). “I enjoyed kicking Nicole’s butt on the show. She kicked my butt, too. You’ll have to watch to see who wins.” This was her first fight scene with water, which she thought was a lot of fun.

There aren’t any plans for Lou to return in the near future, but her deli is still there by the Buy More. Schwartz says that she’s probably still making the Chuck Bartowski, just not making out with Chuck Bartowski.

ADAM IS A PORCUPINE
The crowd was all about Adam Baldwin, of course. A Firefly alum at Comic Con? As Zac said, Adam could be on the panel by himself speaking gibberish and people would show up. Someone asked if there was a chance that Adam would appear on Dollhouse and he replied, “H*ll no, I’m on Chuck now!” The crowd approved.

More jokes about Adam’s status at Comic Con had us laughing and cheering, then Adam got serious and thanked the fans for their love and support following him to Chuck. It was very sweet. Gomez voiced what many of us were (sort of) thinking: “Adam’s like a porcupine: prickly so you don’t want to touch him, but inside he’s all soft and cuddly.” That earned a growl from the porcupine, but it sounds like the secret is out.

GOOD QUESTION
The fans had some good questions for the panel. Someone asked how each of the cast would want their character to die. Here’s how they answered:

Ryan: In bed.
Yvonne: In Chuck’s arms. (awwww)
Ryan: No decapitations, because then you can’t come back. I was on a soap, I know.
Sarah: I think I’d want Casey to kill me, he’s a bad*ss.
Gomez: At the arcade.
Zac: All the good ones are taken. And I don’t really sit around thinking about how to die. I’ll say in Sarah’s arms. (awwww)
Adam: In an exploding Crown Vic.

Another fan asked someone in Chuck’s “real” life would find out about his secret spy life this season.
Zac: No.
Schwartz: You want to bet on that?

Relating back to Adam’s work on Firefly, a fan asked if Casey had any names for his guns.
Adam: I like the name “shiny”. (massive cheers)

Someone wanted to know if Chuck will be going back to college to get his degree. Schwartz says that will be addressed in the first five episodes.

RANDOM CHUCKNESS
Yvonne auditioned for the lead on the Bionic Woman series at the same time she auditioned for Chuck. Schwartz was gleeful about having grabbed her first.

The cast likes to do impressions of each other. Gomez did his impression of Awesome. Ryan claims that he’s working on his impression of Morgan, but has to grow a beard and cut himself off at the knees. Zac did his impression of Yvonne saying no – “Naeiou”.

And that winds up the text portion of our report. We have video and photos to upload, but the Internet connection in the hotel is sloooooow, so it will be a day or two before we get those posted. Also, be on the lookout for contests to win some cool swag we scored to give away to Chuck fans!

It’s Chuck Day at Comic Con!

It’s Saturday at Comic Con, which means one thing – Chuck! The panel is at 3:30 this afternoon and we’ll be there to bring you full coverage. But that’s not the only Chuck at Comic Con – check out these photos of Mel and Liz with a Nerd Herd Mobile and with the giant poster of Chuck:

ChuckTV.net Goes to Comic Con!

That’s right, we’re heading to the uber-geekfest to get the scoop on season 2 of Chuck, meet the cast, and see what kind of swag we can score to give away on ChuckTV.net. We plan to give you live coverage of the Chuck panel on Saturday, so be sure to check back!

In the meantime, do you have questions for the cast or Josh Schwartz? Besides marriage proposals, of course. Leave your queries in the comments below and we’ll do our best to get them answered.

Chuck Goes to Comic Con

The tentative schedule for this year’s Comic Con is starting to emerge, and it looks like the Chuck panel will be on Saturday at 3:30PM. Tickets for Saturday are already sold out, but your ChuckTV.net team will be there to cover the event and bring you all the scoop!