Posted in: HBO, TV, Westworld | Tagged: interview, jonathan nolan, lisa joy, Paul Cameron, Special Ops: Lioness, westworld

Westworld Director Talks HBO Series: "We Were All Hoping" for Season 5

Paul Cameron (Special Ops: Lioness) spoke with Bleeding Cool about his time on HBO's sci-fi series Westworld, initial Season 5 hopes & more.

Paul Cameron's been a cinematographer and director of photography for over 40 years in the industry, but he has Westworld creators Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy to thank for letting him take that next step into directing for television. The revolutionary HBO series is a legacy sequel to the film franchise, the first was the original 1973 film of the same name, followed by the 1976 sequel Futureworld, based on the Michael Crichton works. The first attempt at television was the 1980-short lived series Beyond Westworld before the HBO series that premiered in 2016 that lasted for four seasons. Cameron, who was already working as cinematographer on the series, directed two episodes across seasons three and four before its cancellation in 2022, depriving fans of a definitive fifth season to close the lingering arcs. Adding insult to injury, Warner Bros Discovery removed the series from its rotation on Max and sold off its streaming rights elsewhere. While promoting his Paramount+ series in Taylor Sheridan's Special Ops: Loiness, Cameron spoke to Bleeding Cool about his experience on the sci-fi series and if there were any discussions in hopes from the creators of the series landed elsewhere.

"'Westworld' was another incredible experience for me. I shot the pilot for Jonathan Nolan in 2015. The show spread out over several years for the first few seasons," Cameron said. "It was incredible to be part of that world-building and shoot some of the initial first season. Then I went on to shoot the Western, New York, and Singapore stuff for the other seasons. I had the opportunity to direct seasons three and four. It was an empowering experience showing the conceptualization of it. Three or four years later, I'm directing the show with the incredible cast, incredible writers, and all their support."

Cameron joked about the husband-and-wife duo's long-term plans. "For Jonathan and Lisa, there were seasons five, six, and seven. We were all hoping it would be a season five, and the ability for them to wrap up the story," he said. "It might have been a bit of a shock on the one hand that it ended when it did. They also anticipated it and did their best to kind of wrap up the shows the best they could be the next season; they had a feeling like it might not go on for another season. I haven't heard anything about it resurfacing, so I think Jonathan and Lisa have moved on to other projects and as well as the actors."

The director will always be grateful for the opportunity given to him by the series. "It was an amazing moment in time to have a show like that. I don't think there was another show on TV that had an ensemble cast of that level; certainly, the experience of photographing them as the cinematographer is one thing, but having the opportunity to direct them was fantastic. It was an empowering experience, and I enjoyed it." The series focused on a theme park experience gone awry as attendees fall victim to AI characters, which have gone sentient, turning on guests and their creators. Westworld, which starred Evan Rachel Wood, Thandiwe Newton, Jeffrey Wright, James Marsden, Ingrid Bolsø Berdal, Luke Hemsworth, Sidsie Babett Knudsen, Ed Harris, and Anthony Hopkins, is available to stream on Roku and Tubi.

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