Only half way through its first season and THE TOMORROW PEOPLE has surprised fans with reveals that genetically-enhanced Tomorrow People can kill, that Stephen Jameson’s dad (Jeffrey Pierce) may still alive but trapped, and the kidnapping of Ultra’s ruthless leader Jedikiah (Mark Pellegrino) who naturally sprang a trap for John (Luke Mitchell) at the end of last week’s thrilling episode. With John’s life on the life, the pressure is on Stephen (Robbie Amell) to step up and protect them all.
In a recent press interview at the Warner Bros. Mondo International Press Tour, star Robbie Amell talked about what the second half of the season will bring for his character and rules that they try to adhere to in order to make THE TOMORROW PEOPLE world more real.
The Tomorrow People have stirred up a little bit of trouble. They kidnapped Jedikiah who has of course escaped and things are all up in the air. Can you tease a little bit about what is upcoming and how wrathful Jedikiah is going to be?
ROBBIE: The mid-season finale is one of my favorite episodes. Episode 9 is really, really awesome. Episode 8 and 9 are the 2-parter where we break what the rest of the season is going to be about. You’ll find out a lot about Stephen Jameson’s dad and where he is and whether we can save him. You find out about Jedikiah’s relationship with Stephen’s dad and John. But the main thing is it really sets the stage for the next thirteen episodes. It shows you where we are going to go and what’s going to happen. You’ve met The Founder now and he’s going to play a large part in the rest of the season. And things are about to get really dark.
What are the elements of the show that you like the most?
ROBBIE: I love filming with the superpowers, but I also like that we don’t use them to use them. We don’t just teleport out of every scene. What people don’t realize is online is that it takes a ton of energy for these characters to teleport and to use their powers. Like if you teleport somewhere, it’s as if you just ran there. So that’s why they can’t always use them; and to teleport a person or an object, you can’t do that. I like that we’re really solidifying the rules in the TP universe. We continue to do that. We’re on Episode 13 and we’re establishing more rules. I think it is an important thing to do because it allows people to know what the limits are and if they are to be broken, there has to be a reason. I’m a big sci-fi fan and I’m a fan of the genre X-Men and all the superhero movies. So when I came into this, I was really hopeful that we would do that and the writers are great at establishing the ground rules. And I like that the show is trying to be as grounded in reality as much as possible. It’s one of those things where I think people can invest in a show a lot easier and a lot more if it feels like, “This is what would happen if people actually had these powers in real life.”
What do you like most about your character on THE TOMORROW PEOPLE?
ROBBIE: The main thing that really appealed to me — well, everything appealed to me. When I first read the script it is one of those really rare roles for someone my age where it’s got this great character drama and good relationships, but it’s still got the superpowers and the action, which really entices me. But the main thing I liked is that we have a lot of similarities in that he’s doing everything he can for his family and his friends. He’s not willing to sacrifice somebody to help somebody else. He’s trying to help everyone. That is ultimately one of his downfalls throughout the beginning of the first season. I would feel the same way. I wouldn’t be able to turn my back on my friends to help my family, or turn my back on my family to help my friends. There’s got to be a way to help everyone. The nice thing is I’ve talked to the writers and it sounds like in the second half of the first season, Stephen stops losing and stops getting his ass kicked and finds a way to move forward helping everyone and really finding out who he should be helping and who might have it out for him.
Now that you’re a star of a CW show, do you have any fun Christmas wishes this year?
ROBBIE: I told Stephen [Amell] that I want to play Batman on ARROW, but he can’t make it happen. He doesn’t have that much pull! (Laughs)
To see if Stephen can help John out of his thorny situation with Ultra and keep everyone safe now that Jedikiah has seen their lair, be sure to tune in for the mid-season finale of THE TOMORROW PEOPLE on Wednesday, December 11th at 9:00 p.m. on the CW.
Tiffany Vogt is the Senior West Coast Editor, contributing as a columnist and entertainment reporter to TheTVaddict.com. She has a great love for television and firmly believes that entertainment is a world of wondrous adventures that deserves to be shared and explored – she invites you to join her. Please feel free to contact Tiffany at Tiffany_Vogt_2000@yahoo.com or follow her at on Twitter (@TVWatchtower).
