Posted in: FX, HBO, Preview, TV | Tagged: fx, our flag means death, preview, Rhys Darby, season 4, taiki waititi, what we do in the shadows

What We Do in the Shadows: Taika Waititi, Rhys Darby on Guest-Starring

With filming on the fourth season of FX's What We Do in the Shadows having wrapped filming back in mid-December, fans are counting the days down until news of the series return. And if you've been following our reviews, you understand why as fans & critics alike raved about the third season being its best yet. And then there's the matter of how things left off, with Laszlo (Matt Berry) now having Colin Robinson 2.0 (Mark Proksch) to raise, Nadja (Natasia Demetriou) & Guillermo (Harvey Guillén) on their way overseas to join the Vampire Council, and Guillermo got screwed out of being able to travel the world with Nandor (Kayvan Novak)… who left thinking Guillermo had gotten cold feet when in fact he was locked into a packing crate by Lazlo to protect Nadja. As we said, there's a lot of baggage for the new season to unpack.

Of course, the other thing fans like about the series are the guest stars as well as the familiar faces from the franchise that make appearances. So it would only make sense that Taika Waititi (vampire Viago Von Dorna Schmarten Scheden Heimburg) and Rhys Darby (werewolf Anton) would be asked about the possibility of making an appearance when they were speaking with Deadline Hollywood about their upcoming HBO Max series Our Flag Means Death. Unfortunately, the news isn't too promising…

"My werewolf gang are in New Zealand so there's no reason for Anton to be in America," Darby (who played the character in the 2014 film What We Do in the Shadows and in spinoff series Wellington Paranormal) explained. "There's no reason for Anton to be in Staten Island," echoed Waititi. "I never want to dress as a vampire ever again, so I probably won't be in that I don't think," added the film's director, writer & star (who has directed and executive produces the FX series and appeared in person in S01E07 "The Trial" and on videotape since).

Back in October 2021, Guillén took some time to speak with Vulture about the Guillermo-Nandor dynamic, his character's evolution, Guillermo's sexuality & representation, and more. Here are some of the highlights (and here's a look back at Bleeding Cool's conversation with Guillén here and here):

Guillén on Why Nandor & Guillermo's Dynamic Works So Well: "I think everyone's cheering for something to happen, whether that's romantic or [having] some truth be told — what is their dynamic? And what is the bond that they have? I'm very blessed to have a counterpart like Keyvan, where we're both so comfortable in the characters, and Keyvan's such a giving actor. We're making a comedy, but at the end of the day, their storyline is what grounds the humanity, because it's a split 50-50 between someone who's immortal and no longer is worried about time, and someone for whom the clock is ticking, and needs to either make a choice to be immortal himself or to make a choice and live a life that doesn't include this world."

That Said, Guillén Understands Fans Hanign Onto Every Development- and Wanting More: "It's really a tough situation to be in, and it's a fork in the road. Even when I'm reading the scripts, it feels very, 'Oh my God, what's gonna happen?' Because it's a slow burn with them. And I think people are like, 'No, do something! Either be together or not be together or say something!' Or is one of you not into it? Or maybe it's not even love like that? Maybe it's a love between two males, and we normalize two males having affection for each other without making it sexualized? That could be a possibility. It's just, what is it? I think everyone's just eager to know, like, 'Tell us what it is!'"

Guillermo Has Evolved as a Character But He's No Victim- and That's Important: "It's important to feel that you're represented and feel that you're cheering for a character that isn't the victim, that their queer storyline doesn't define how tragic the outcome of their life is. Because we've seen that for so long in media, in the way that queer people are portrayed, and it's very black-and-white. You're either fabulous and the best friend and over-the-top, or you're like, 'Oh, he came out and then, tragically, they kill him.' It's been so black-and-white for so long. That's not the world we live in, and that's definitely not the lifestyle and life that are led by our queer brothers and sisters. I've always said, everyone in the show, the characters are queer, but the vampires, they have nothing to lose. They could chop your heart out or bite you or snap your neck. There's no fear. The difference with Guillermo is he doesn't talk about sexuality. He has this fear that's been placed on him by society, this fear that's been placed on him maybe by his culture, his upbringing. There's fear that we all overcome to be our authentic selves, and that's why it's so freeing when that opportunity happens.

Guillermo Stays Because That "Group of Assholes" is His Family: "As much as Guillermo has his own dreams and aspirations, he's made a monster, in the sense of Nandor being helpless. He could be 'The Relentless,' because he never relents, but may not be the smartest in some scenarios, where he needs a human like Guillermo to get him out of a pickle. And that's why he sticks around. Remember, he walked away from the household at the end of season two and decided to go back and save them. He could've left them; he owes them nothing. They think they owe him a life of immortality because he wants to be a vampire, and they never saw that through, and they promised. So he could have been an asshole about it and said, 'That's not my problem.' He puts himself in the middle of a room of vampires to save the group of assholes that he's learned to love and made into his chosen family for over a decade.

Guillermo's Not Going Big Bad- But He's Understanding More & More How to Play the Game (& His Roomies): "I like the idea that we introduce a Machiavellian approach to his technique because he's tried so many things for ten years: He's tried to do things by the book, he's tried to play by the rules, and he's not getting anywhere. They say nice guys finish last, and he's starting to realize modesty is a virtue, but in this world, modesty can hurt you. You need to speak up, you need to say what you're owed, you need to be paid a certain wage, you deserve a promotion. The squeaky wheel gets the grease, and for so long, he's been so submissive that they dismiss him, like, 'Whatever, you're always going to be there.' And I see that, sadly, in a lot of other professions."

Created by Jemaine Clement and produced by FX Productions, What We Do in the Shadows stars Kayvan Novak as Nandor, Natasia Demetriou as Nadja, Matt Berry as Laszlo, Mark Proksch as Colin Robinson, and Harvey Guillén as Guillermo. Clement, Waititi, and Paul Simms serve as executive producers, alongside Scott Rudin, Garrett Basch, Eli Bush, and Stefani Robinson.

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