Y: The Last Man showrunner Eliza Clark suggested that the Hulu series’ pilot episode will create the same sense of dread that Jaws did when it was first released in 1975.
“I think that knowing something is coming is one of the scariest things in the whole wide world. I mean, that’s what makes Jaws so exciting,” Clark told CBR. “I’m glad that when you finally see it, you still feel the chills, because that’s the thing with Jaws: it’s like, once you see the shark, it’s not scary anymore.”
Clark further described the upcoming series adaptation of the hit comic book series as “a collaboration of a lot of different artists,” noting, “So, Louise Friedberg, who was our director, and Kira Kelly, who was the DP [Director of Photography] for the pilot, and everybody and all of the actors, I hope that it’s the subjectivity and point of view that creates that feeling of being inside of it.”
Ultimately, Clark said she hopes the pilot gives viewers a solid introduction to the characters and complete context for what’s to come next and teased that “it’s not just like a disaster movie scenario, where you’re just seeing destruction for no reason.”
“…I think it’s being inside of characters you’ve been following this whole time and understanding — even if you don’t know everything about their lives — you’ve connected to them in some way,” she continued. “And that’s who you’re with while this thing is happening. I think that’s what creates, hopefully, that feeling where you feel like you’re inside of it.”
Based on the hit comic book series by Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra, Y: The Last Man follows the two last males on Earth, Yorick Brown and his monkey companion Ampersand, following an apocalyptic event that otherwise left only females on the planet. While the pilot episode initially featured a real monkey portraying Ampersand, Clark and her team ultimately decided to use a CGI monkey following complaints from PETA.
While Clark was initially resistant to including a CGI character, she later admitted one of the key motivations for replacing the real animal was to protect actor Ben Schnetzer, who portrays Yorick. “[I]t means that Ben doesn’t have to do scenes with an animal where he can’t show his teeth, because that could get him in trouble,” Clark explained. “I think the CG solves a lot. The monkey is expensive, and I care deeply about him as a character and making him look good. So it’s one of the challenges of the show, but I think it’s gonna work out.”
Y: The Last Man debuts Sept. 13 on FX on Hulu.
About The Author
