Abrams on Fringe Season Finale

Tonight is the end of the first season of Fringe and it intends to go out on a high note with the appearance of William Bell as played by Leonard Nimoy. JJ Abrams comments on the season and the arc for season two with The Live Feed.

“The first year is about learning there is an enemy ... I would argue Season 2 is about getting to know the enemy ... Season 1 is building to a very specific type of confrontation ... there will be a really interesting shift in the fundamental paradigm of the show in a very cool way.”

“What’s particularly cool about where we’re finally going now is the story is working on all the character’s strengths,” Abrams said. “Over the course of the season you find what’s most exciting about a character. You’ll get a little piece of Peter’s ultimate story [in the finale], but it’s also a huge turning point for the other two characters as well.”

“There’s nothing more crazy than having that sort of massive chuck of exposition thrown at you in the story,” he said. “Sometimes the desire of producers/writers/network/studio is to provide clarity ... those kind of monologues of exposition don’t help anyone ... [actor Lance Reddick] delivers them beautifully, but any actor tasked with catching people up deserves a drink at the end of the day.”

Abrams added the finale will leave viewers with an idea of what the next season will look like and excited about what comes next.

“What’s particularly cool about where we’re finally going now is the story is working on all the character’s strengths,” Abrams said. “Over the course of the season you find what’s most exciting about a character. You’ll get a little piece of Peter’s ultimate story [in the finale], but it’s also a huge turning point for the other two characters as well.”

Another difference is Season 2 will feature less clunky exposition straining to bring new viewers up to speed.

“There’s nothing more crazy than having that sort of massive chuck of exposition thrown at you in the story,” he said. “Sometimes the desire of producers/writers/network/studio is to provide clarity ... those kind of monologues of exposition don’t help anyone ... [actor Lance Reddick] delivers them beautifully, but any actor tasked with catching people up deserves a drink at the end of the day.”

Fringe Officially Renewed

According to Sci Fi Wire, Fox has made official what we already assumed was true, that Fringe is getting a second season order of 22 episodes. The show is now the number 1 new drama among the critical 18-49 demographic that advertisers covet.

"Fringe proved to be a notable addition to our schedule all season and it really has fans buzzing as it builds to a fantastic season finale," said Fox's president of entertainment, Kevin Reilly. "J.J. and the whole Bad Robot team have been phenomenal partners, and we look forward to years of making great television with them."

Series co-creator and executive producer J.J. Abrams added: "Fringe continues to gain momentum, creatively and with viewers. We couldn't be more thrilled that Fringe will continue to freak people out for at least another season!"

Nimoy Talks Fringe Roll

Leonard Nimoy fresh off of working with JJ Abrams on Star Trek, has joined Fringe for a few episodes playing William Bell, for founder of Massive Dynamics and once partner to Walter Bishop. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, he discusses the role.

You worked with J.J. on Trek. Is that how this role came about?
Yeah, he called me and said: "We have this character that's been referred to but never seen." He gave me some backstory on the guy and sent me some episodes to look at. I think the show's extremely well done. And there's enough intrigue about the guy to make it interesting.

There is a lot of intrigue surrounding William Bell. What can you tell us about him?
I can tell you that he's very intriguing.... [Laughs] He has a great sense of his place in the scheme of things. Profoundly successful, very smart.... What's going to be explored is the story of his relationship with [former lab partner Walter Bishop], what he wants with [special agent Olivia Dunham], what he is intending to do with all this money and power that he has, what are his idiosyncrasies. I think we managed to get some interesting touches into the brief scene with Anna [Torv, who plays Olivia]. We're going to have some fun with this guy. I think we're going to ring somebody's bell.... It's a blank canvas, and maybe a misleading blank canvas. Maybe there have been some clues about him that are misleading, and I think that's part of the fun of the show.

Are you open to doing more than three episodes?
Yes, I am, depending on how much fun we have. It's got to be fun for me these days, otherwise why bother? I had a terrific time doing what we already did, and I like [cocreators Abrams, Roberto Orci, and Alex Kurtzman] a lot. I like the possibility of this character. I'm excited for the first time in a long time.