Posted in: Amazon Studios, TV | Tagged: Erik Oleson, prime video, the bondsman

The Bondsman Showrunner on Kevin Bacon, Series Casting & More

The Bondsman showrunner Erik Oleson spoke with Bleeding Cool about mashing-up his favorite genres, Kevin Bacon, the show's cast, and more.

Erik Oleson thrives in the creative space when it comes to creating and writing shows, because of the various combinations he can have to sell the series since he burst into the scene in the sci-fi series Andromeda. He would do his share of action, crime procedurals, fantasies, and superhero shows from NBC's E-Ring, Chase, CBS's Unforgettable, Fox's The Mob Doctor, The CW's Arrow, Prime Video's The Man in the High Castle, and Carnival Row. His latest is the Grainger David supernatural action horror series The Bondsman, which follows a resurrected bounty hunter, Hub Halloran (Kevin Bacon), who gets a second chance at life, love, and music, but instead of hunting fugitives of the law, he hunts demons and brings them back to hell. The showrunner and executive producer spoke to Bleeding Cool about the easy pitch from Blumhouse, how The Bondsman is a unique genre mashup, how collaborative Bacon is during filming, the cast, and his thoughts on the Disney+ sequel series Daredevil: Born Again since his run on the third and final season on the original Netflix incarnation.

The Bondsman Showrunner Erik Oleson on Creating "Escapist" Fun

Bleeding Cool: What intrigued you about 'The Bondsman,' working with Jason [Blum] and helping to bring Grainger David's vision to life?

First, I hope we're "bleeding" and "cool" enough for you. It's nice to meet you, Tom. There was a terrific original script by Grainger David that Blumhouse had acquired, and they were looking to try to turn it, redevelop it into a television show, and they had Kevin Bacon circling it, so they brought it to me at Amazon. I said [with thumbs raised], "Kevin Bacon?! Bunch of Demons?! I'm in!" What we wanted to do was to create an original laugh-out-loud, scream-out-loud escapist mashup, a fun roller coaster ride that's got horror, and art and has Kevin Bacon plunging chainsaws through the foreheads of demons as he's gaining a second chance at love, family, and country music, right?! It was like this fun genre mashup I felt would be an enjoyable show to write, make, and watch.

I've seen the show, and some of the comparisons I see are 'Evil Dead' and 'Supernatural.' How does something like this stand out from your previous work?

I would say it's a unique genre mashup. Every show that I ever make matches up genres, (Netflix's) 'Daredevil' was a mashup of political drama with the 'Daredevil' world. 'Carnival Row' was a mashup of different genres. ['The Bondsman' is] a mash-up of family dramedy, horror, action, and comedy. It's got Appalachian noir crime and country music in it. What makes every show fun to make is when you start to mash up different genres, and then it becomes its own thing.

What made Kevin so perfect for Hub and the way he carries himself with his presence on screen?

Kevin Bacon has a natural charisma that allows you to forgive him for actions that some other actors – you want to turn off the television. Kevin is so fun to watch, and he is such a professional who has worked with so many great filmmakers over his career, like every great filmmaker in the last few generations that he brings this entire toolbox of skills to a show like this. and it became my partner in figuring out what the tonal balance of the show would be. Every time he did a take, he would give me a more dramatic or comedic take. We would have all sorts of options as we were dialing the show in, in editorial and post-production.

Can you talk about some of the supporting cast, including Beth [Grant], Jennifer [Nettles], Maxwell [Jenkins], Damon [Herriman], and Jolene [Purdy], and how they factor into this world and make it work in their roles?

We were incredibly lucky with the cast we got. First, let's just go down the line there that you mentioned Jennifer Nettles, phenomenal actor in 'The Righteous Gemstones and 'The Exorcist: Believer' (2023), which Jason Blum had done with her, then also happens to be a Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter from 'Sugarland,' and has one of the most beautiful singing voices I've ever heard in my life. Then you got Beth Grant, who is like a legendary actor's actor, who is this amazing human being who brings out sides of Kevin Bacon. You will never see any other Kevin Bacon show where she brings out those elements of him. She is such a ray of sunshine in everybody's life, both on-screen and off.

You've got Max, who's an incredibly talented young actor who can sell complex ideas with his in-the-moment looks and his impressive performance, and he grew up in a circus family in real life, which was an interesting aspect to him. Jolene Purdy was fantastic in the first season of 'The White Lotus.' I don't know if you remember that, but she has a tremendous comedy bone to her. She might be the most unlikely agent of the devil ever on screen, not to mention hilarious in that role to boot. It just so happened that she and Beth Grant had been in 'Donnie Darko' (2001) together. This was a bit of a reunion.

Damon Herriman is a chameleon, a phenomenally talented actor who has a long list of crazy filmmaker credits, everybody from Quentin Tarantino to David Fincher and the like. Kevin and I agreed at the end of the process that he might be among the most talented actors we've ever worked with. It was a real feast for the showrunner and for the show to have these terrific players to be able to throw onto the screen and bring these characters to life.

Do you have any opinions on 'Daredevil: Born Again' and how it built on the legacy of what you had on the Netflix series?

I'm very proud of season three of 'Daredevil.' I feel like that was a mic drop moment, and I'm proud of that show. I'm excited they've brought the show back in a new iteration at Disney+. I'm excited for my friends who are employed on it again. I haven't seen it yet. I only saw the first episode so far because I've been too busy on this show, but… I had dinner with Vincent D'Onofrio a couple of weeks ago, and he is extremely excited about the show and where it's going – and I love that guy. I love all those actors and the folks I made that show with, so I can't wait to see where it goes.

The Bondsman premiered today and is currently streaming on Prime Video.

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