» October 13, 2014

Backstage at NYCC with Sleepy Hollow cast, producers

by Charissa Jelliff

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On Sunday afternoon at New York Comic Con, Sleepy Hollow executive producer Len Wiseman, show runner Mark Goffman, writer Raven Metzner, and cast members Orlando Jones, Lyndie Greenwood, and series newcomer Sakina Jaffrey discussed the second season of the hit Fox series.

While remaining cagey about details for plans in the second season, they did drop a few hints about what is to come, such as the fact that Ichabod Crane will soon discover karaoke as well as yoga. When asked about favorite Ichabod-vs.-21st-century moments, Jones cited the karaoke scene as one of his favorites.

During the panel, the audience was treated to the first half of tonight’s episode, which features the Sleepy Hollow version of the Pied Piper. Like everything in Sleepy Hollow, he’s much more malevolent than the legend would have one believe.

The panelists were a little more forthcoming with information during press interviews prior to the panel. They stayed away from specific details, but did give us some hints of what to expect in season 2.

Metzner revealed that we will be seeing other sides of Jenny Mills this season. As he described it, we’ll get to see more of her “emotional and beautiful and lighter side” in the fifth episode, which airs October 20. He also revealed that there would be a lot of interesting things happening with Jenny’s character in the second half of the season.

According to Metzner, one of the added benefits of having 18 episodes this season is the ability to delve a little more into the story lines of each individual character.

“We are really able to stretch out a little but more and give all our characters little chances to have larger stories,” Metzner said.

The writers have also introduced a new character this season, in the form of relic hunter Nick Hawley. Greenwood’s initial response to Hawley’s effect on the dynamic of the team was that, “He’s really hot.

“He’s like this Indiana Jones type, and I love the interaction with him and Crane, I just love him,” Greenwood added. “You know, he shakes things up a bit.”

Metzner went on to further state that Hawley’s position as an artifact hunter will help generate more stories for the show, and he promised we will learn more about Hawley and Jenny’s past relationship. However, as for Jenny’s relationship with Captain Frank Irving and the chemistry there, Wiseman only responded with a simple, “Who knows?”

One of the big questions was about the future of Jones’ character, Irving. Now that he knows his “lawyer” was really the Horseman of War, will he understand the full ramifications of the contract he signed?

According to Jones and Wiseman, Irving will start to discover that with tonight’s episode, and it will have a big impact on Irving, “because there’s part of … signing that contract that does work in his favor, as dark as that is; there is something that will be offered that’s quite hard to turn down, as most deals with the devil are. … It is something that his character’s going to have to struggle with because the temptation is not an easy one to turn his back on.”

Jones has a lot of respect for the Irving character and perhaps is hopeful that he will make the right choice — if there is a right one to make.

“I think what [the writers] have clearly built is a character unlike any police captain I’ve ever seen, whose really going through an emotional journey in both family and redemption, but he’s — he’s broken, and part of it, I think, is his past haunting him in the sense that my daughter’s handicapped, and I feel responsible for that, and everything I’ve done to try to get ahead of that 8-ball has just not gone my way,” Jones said. “But I love the fact, no matter how it goes, he just keeps trying. I love his commitment to try to be a better man while it all falls apart. That’s part of what I love about the character.”



The cast and producers of Sleepy Hollow chatted Sunday with Curiata.com in the New York Comic Con press room.

Another popular topic was that of the new sheriff in town, Leena Reyes, played by Jaffrey.

When asked about his thoughts on the new sheriff, Jones joked, “She don’t know what’s going on! I’m trying to tell this fool, there’s something happening in Sleepy Hollow that she doesn’t understand.”

In a more serious tone, Jones added, “But she’s me from last season. She doesn’t know. And she has a very specific connection to the sisters in that she knew their mom, and she knew them as kids. … She’s in a more interesting position than Irving was, in some ways, because she has that personal connection with Abbie.”

Jaffrey defended her character’s decisions so far.

“All I can tell is that she believes in her mission and I think she … she’s good, as far as I’m concerned, she’s good and she’s right,” Jaffrey said. “She’s not there to play, she’s not giving anybody an inch.”

Goffman added, “I really like crafting strong characters with a distinct and strong point of view, and Sheriff Reyes, I think, has that.”

Jaffrey had never seen an episode of Sleepy Hollow prior to joining the cast, and, in fact, hadn’t really watched much of the genre.

“When I was younger, I think it wasn’t the type of show that I thought I could relate to in any way,” Jaffrey said.

But now, Jaffrey is thrilled to be a part of this show and feels “blessed” to have finally discovered this world. In fact, Jaffrey feels that there really isn’t much difference between Sleepy Hollow and her previous series, House of Cards.

“You could call Frank Underwood a monster,” Jaffrey said.

Jaffrey also pointed out that there’s chaos in Washington and there’s chaos in Sleepy Hollow; neither of them is that different from the other.

Wiseman wasn’t too forthcoming about what other historical characters we might be seeing in upcoming episodes, though he and Jones did confirm we would see Irving’s family again. Goffman also confirmed we will see the mother of Jenny and Abbie Mills.

“We do a lot with Abbie this season, learning about her history as she really is trying to understand her role as a witness and how that’s impacted her family and her ancestry, because what we learn is that there is a much bigger picture that becomes clear by the end of this season, and we will have full episodes where we really get to meet her mother,” Goffman said.

When asked about the Kindred — the creature Abbie and Ichabod raised to fight the Horseman in the second episode this season — Goffman suggested we might be seeing him again.

“Yeah, I hope so,” Goffman said. “I think he’s got some grand plans. It’ll be fun to see how he plays out in the rest of the season. Don’t forget about him.”



The Sleepy Hollow cast and producers posed for photos.

Charissa Jelliff is a self-proclaimed "fangirl" who loves nothing more than discussing her favorite books, movies and TV shows with fellow fans. She's currently finishing up a Master's in literature and dreams of becoming a writer some day.