The first season of Amazon’s Man in the High Castle was one of the biggest surprises of 2015, and we’ll be going even deeper down the rabbit hole in Year 2.

We chatted with producer David Zucker, plus co-stars Rufus Sewell and Brennan Brown, about where they’ll be taking the story when it returns at the end of this year. Zucker drilled down into the extensive behind-the-scenes process of building a believable alternate history.

Sewell said he hesitated in reading up on World War II and the rise of the Nazis when he landed the gig, and how the movement expanded from early zealots to encompass more normal people in Germany during that era. He said he really found his character in those moments, as he figured out the underpinnings of what makes him tick. He sees his character John Smith as a “Nazi everyman,” just a human being existing within this evil system.

Season 2 of Man in the High Castle premieres Dec. 16, 2016, on Amazon.

Check out the interviews below and let us know what you think: