What We Do within the Shadows Interview: Kayvan Novak as Nandor

On What We Do within the Shadows, Nandor might be the goofiest of the vampires—even when he doesn’t understand it, since he has a full lack of self-awareness always. io9 bought an opportunity to speak to Kayvan Novak about what’s in retailer for season six, together with Nandor’s ever-conflicted relationship along with his former acquainted, Guillermo (Harvey Guillén), and an episode the place he briefly thinks he’s an notorious former American president.

Cheryl Eddy, io9: Did you already do a Richard Nixon impression or did you must develop that for the present?

Kayvan Novak: I didn’t. I used to be conscious of Richard Nixon, however I suppose the film Good Morning Vietnam was actually [where I got most of my awareness] of him and his character and other people making enjoyable of him. Robin Williams does an impression of him and he cuts that interview as much as make him sound ridiculous. However I used to be given many YouTube movies of Richard Nixon to check and I didn’t do any of it. I simply turned up on the day and did an impression. I did just a little little bit of homework. I used to be apprehensive. I used to be nervous. To be sincere, it didn’t make sense as to why Nandor would be capable to do a Richard Nixon impression even when he’d been hypnotized. However nobody listens to me. So I simply went and did it anyway.

io9: Nandor has a disaster when Jerry, the long-slumbering roommate who makes a sudden return, factors out how far he’s fallen from being “Nandor the Relentless.” What do you suppose occurred over these 50 years to make his character shift a lot? Was it Jerry’s absence or one thing else?

Novak: I suppose dwelling in Staten Island, doing much less pillaging and massacring, in all probability has softened his edges just a little bit, , pondering possibly there’s one thing else that he’s lacking in his life. The affect of Guillermo in all probability made him see issues a special approach as a result of he secretly cares about this acquainted, this human being, that he sort of pretends he doesn’t care about. I believe 700 years of life would try this to somebody.

io9: I’m glad you talked about Guillermo, as a result of he and Nandor (“Nandermo” to shippers) are in an odd place when the season begins. As we see, Guillermo has tried to set some new boundaries. How would you describe Nandor’s headspace about the place they’re at after the occasions of season 5?

Novak: [Guillermo] doesn’t actually need Nandor anymore as a result of he doesn’t need to be a vampire anymore. That was Nandor’s leverage on him, and now that’s gone. Nandor’s sort of been dumped, actually—and I believe with out letting on that he provides a shit, he clearly provides a shit and acts accordingly. So actually that’s his motivation, I’d say, is sort of fucking with Guillermo, although Guillermo doesn’t really need something to do with him.

io9: Nandor and Nadja have had this operating competitors between them all through the present—they each see themselves as having extra authority than the opposite. What do you suppose had been the origins of that?

Novak: It seems like a sibling rivalry, to be sincere. After I’m doing these scenes, it’s like I’m bickering with my sister; it’s bought that sort of vibe to it. I like that. There’s a sort of disrespect and a disdain that we each have for one another, however we nonetheless sort of need to obtain our objective collectively, ? I actually loved that truly, as a result of we sort of hinted on that in earlier seasons, however this season, the vibe felt actually excessive power and farcical with me and Natasia [Demetriou, who plays Nadja]. I did actually take pleasure in that.

io9: What character trait about Nandor would you say you take pleasure in essentially the most, or that you simply loved taking part in essentially the most?

Novak: Indecisiveness—in a world the place making selections is necessary. And when [Nandor] did [make a decision], making the mistaken selections is at all times a pleasure to play. An actual vacation from being a grown up.

io9: Did you retain something from the set?

Novak: I grabbed the portrait of Nandor from the opening credit.

io9: Good. You may have it hanging in your own home?

Novak: I do.

What We Do within the Shadows season six premieres October 21 with the primary three episodes on FX; you may stream them the subsequent day on Hulu.

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