“There were bits that were blacked out until the read-through,” Sewell tells “Entertainment Weekly.”
Warning: This article contains spoilers for all ofThe Diplomatseason 2.
Hal Wyler (Rufus Sewell) was trying to do the right thing.
Keri Russell and Rufus Sewell on ‘The Diplomat’.Courtesy of Netflix
Now, Grace Penn who’s not currently Kate’s biggest fan is president.
Courtesy of Netflix
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY:Going into this season, were you aware that you weren’t dead?
RUFUS SEWELL:Yeah, I was pulled aside and reassured.
Rufus Sewell and Keri Russell on ‘The Diplomat’.Courtesy of Netflix
So I knew I’d be coming back.
Hal is such a fascinating character because on the one hand, I trust him.
On the other, I don’t at all.
Allison Janney on ‘The Diplomat’.Courtesy of Netflix
I’m curious of your perspective on the kind of guy he is.
I find people’s reaction reactions to him quite interesting.
Sometimes quite amusing, sometimes really exhausting.
Rufus Sewell on ‘The Diplomat’.Courtesy of Netflix
But that’s the thing.
It’s the same way with humans.
We make judgements about people.
But the play is for her to be vice president.
And that means he falls into a role that maybe isn’t perfectly suited for him…
He’s not naturally built to play backup without stepping on the lead singer’s toes.
And he really does try, bless him.
But he does truly believe in her, and they’re complex human beings.
I think he’s great.
I do think their relationship is rooted in love.
It’s maybe not rooted in trust.
Well, it’s rooted in even the lack of trust as a trust.
And that’s what he can’t be trusted not to do.
It’s like when he insists on talking to the president and then gives the man a heart attack.
Well, who would guess?
That would’ve been the right play had that not happened.
He very nearly saved the day.
And you’ll find that, occasionally, he does, too.
I’ve said in the past that I didn’t want to be playing bad guys.
What I really should have said was I wanted to be doing good writing.
Meaning in good drama, just like in politics, everyone’s a bit of everything.
They might lean one way or another, but all people have their good and bad side.
And what I love about Kate and Hal is that they are incredible fun.
They are liked, they’re funny, but in a certain way they’re both killers.
And I think that is what is essential to be in this world as they are.
They have to be able to know when it is a time to kill.
That’s what’s really fascinating about these characters, because they both actually have it.
I know, I know.
It’s just so well constructed.
And that’s just the way that [showrunner] Deb [Cahn] writes.
She just makes sure that everyone comes from a position that they can fight for.
That’s kind of the best of both worlds.
You know what you’re gonna wanna know, but you still get that experience.
You still get to enjoy it as a lover of the show the first time you read it.
And the great thing of this is, I’m really looking forward to the script.
It’s not always the case when you’re doing a long-running show.
Sometimes there’s a bit of anxiety about whether the writing is going to be consistent.
I don’t worry so much about whether my character is going to be killed off.
My great fear has always been that my character would be kept alive with bad dialogue.
Speaking of the dialogue, I don’t think people talk enough about how funny this show is.
When I read it, to me it was a comedy.
I loved the rapport between Kate and Hal.
That’s what I instinctively reacted to when I read it.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
The Diplomatseason 2 is now streaming on Netflix.
