Editor’s be aware: The under interview incorporates spoilers for the Harley Quinn Season 5 finale.
5 seasons in, and Harley Quinn has confirmed that it is nonetheless simply as able to embracing all of the chaos, mayhem, surprising emotion, and irreverent superhero humor that made this R-rated animated sequence so memorable within the first place. Whereas Season 5 shakes issues up much more by taking our favourite energy couple, Harley Quinn (Kaley Cuoco) and Poison Ivy (Lake Bell), to Metropolis, issues aren’t as good as they appear to be on this new surroundings — particularly as soon as Harley talks Superman (James Wolk) into taking a little bit day without work. Between the looming menace of Brainiac (Stephen Fry) and Lena Luthor’s (Aisha Tyler) harmful energy journey, Harley and Ivy have lots to take care of, and never all the members of their motley antihero crew make it by in a single piece. But because the Season 5 finale, “The Mess Is the Level,” reveals, typically there actually isn’t any place like house — after taking down Lena, the true mastermind behind every thing, Harley and Ivy transfer again to Gotham and into their authentic rooftop residence in what actually appears like a full-circle second for each the characters and the present.
Forward of “The Mess Is the Level,” Collider had the chance to have a long-running dialog with showrunner Dean Lorey spanning a number of the season’s most memorable moments. Over the course of the interview, which you’ll be able to learn under, Lorey discusses why they determined to maneuver the present to Metropolis for Season 5, why he stays dedicated to the promise that Harley and Ivy are nonetheless a rock-solid couple, and standout installments just like the Brainiac-centric episode and the homicide thriller episode. He additionally delves into why they determined to kill off Frank the Plant (JB Smoove), how Harley and Ivy embrace their extra mothering sides this season, whether or not there is a plan within the works for Season 6, and extra.
COLLIDER: What fueled the choice to take the present to Metropolis this season? Was it needing a change of surroundings, shaking up the characters?
DEAN LOREY: We thought {that a} change of surroundings could be very nice for the present, and we additionally needed to return to fundamentals a little bit bit to re-emphasize Clayface and Joker and Bane and King Shark, these supporting characters. We thought it might be nice. We additionally needed to return to fundamentals with the characters as a result of the present had gotten actually huge, and we had been making an attempt to drag it down a little bit. It appeared like setting it in Metropolis could be enjoyable. That additionally led to the concept Harley is an agent of chaos, and she or he’s been in Gotham, which is a chaotic metropolis, however what if we took her, and we dropped her into primarily this good, lovely metropolis that follows regulation and order? Superman’s there maintaining a tally of issues and all that, in order that is likely to be fascinating. That is the place it got here from.
We have gotten Harley’s backstory earlier than, not less than this model of her story — being Harleen Quinzel, assembly the Joker and every thing — however this season is basically the primary time we get to see who Ivy was earlier than. Why did it really feel like a great time to lastly dive into her? It is a heartbreaking story, too.
LOREY: I had at all times needed to do the Ivy origin story. I did Seasons 1 and a couple of, after which 5, and I form of thought 3 and 4 may need addressed Ivy’s origin, however they did not, so I used to be like, “Properly, nice. Now I’ve a possibility to leap into it.” It was a narrative that we had been excited to inform, and we knew that we needed to tie it into her relationship with Frank as a result of there was at all times a query of, “The place did Frank come from?” So, we thought that that will be form of enjoyable. Additionally, it simply felt such as you did wish to know extra about Ivy.
There are a number of origin tales that we have seen within the comics, and we have at all times instructed our origin tales for our present to suit the present, so they are not precisely just like the comedian tales. We actually favored the concept of going again to her having a relationship along with her professor at college and having that go awry, however giving her quite a lot of company in that versus simply being a sufferer. So, that was a giant a part of it. Actually, we simply needed it to be emotional and to additionally assist draw Harley and Ivy even nearer collectively on an emotional stage, as a result of it is one thing that Ivy hadn’t shared with Harley previous to this. It is a huge a part of her historical past that we’re listening to for the primary time, however Harley is as properly. And being that this was a season about them beginning in a rut and making an attempt to get out of it, it felt like one thing like that is likely to be good early within the season to kickstart that.
‘Harley Quinn’ Showrunner Dean Lorey Nonetheless Has No Intention of Breaking Up Harley and Ivy
You talked about Harley and Ivy feeling like their relationship has hit a rut, however the season does make some extent to indicate that they nonetheless have a wholesome intercourse life, and so they’re not shy about displaying that they are eager about one another and prioritizing that a part of their relationship. How essential was it so that you can actually make it possible for the romance nonetheless felt prefer it was entrance and heart for them?
LOREY: It was massively essential. As you may think, we spent quite a lot of time at the start speaking about, “What is that this rut and what does it seem like?” One factor that I by no means actually needed to do, and Justin [Halpern] and Pat [Schumacker] had by no means needed to do, was break up Harley and Ivy and even actually present them closely on the outs in a real method. So, this was meant to be extra of the way in which that individuals get into ruts in relationships—simply taking one another as a right a little bit bit and all of that. Nevertheless it wasn’t meant to be like, “Oh my god, they’ll break up!” We by no means needed that.
We additionally love the truth that the 2 of them have a really wholesome intercourse life. They nonetheless love one another very a lot. It isn’t that. It is simply that typically you fall into complacency. We felt like preserving them in love and excited with each other did not battle with complacency, which typically, many instances, occurs in a relationship. It wasn’t meant to be dire. It was meant to be that they are in want of a change of surroundings, mainly, to study one another some extra.
One of many character pairings you briefly talked about earlier that I used to be actually delighted to see was Clayface and Bane. Whose concept was it to staff these two up, particularly as soon as they get to the Day by day Planet and so they’re simply writing all types of untamed articles?
LOREY: That was mine, but it surely’s as a result of Bane and Clayface are in all probability my two favourite characters to write down. I’ve liked them from day one. We had the notion that Clayface was pissed off at Perry White for giving him a nasty evaluation for… we did not know what it was going to be, however some form of dangerous efficiency of his, and what that then in the end became was the concept Clayface is pissed off at Perry White. He kidnaps Perry, he takes over as him, and this then escalates to he is bought a possibility to placed on a Broadway-style present by orchestrating issues behind the scenes on the Day by day Planet — and that Bane, who was the final particular person on Earth whom you’ll think about who would wish to write a musical, turns into his go-to man.
Placing the 2 of them collectively simply felt prefer it was going to be actually humorous, and it additionally, in a method, allowed us to, hopefully, with a spoonful of sugar, get out a bunch of exposition about what occurred on Brainiac’s ship to do it by track and thru this efficiency that had different ramifications, reasonably than simply making it totally expository. That is partially the place all that got here from.
‘Harley Quinn’ Showrunner Dean Lorey on Season 5’s Deep-Dive Into Brainiac
Episode 4 is generally instructed by Brainiac’s perspective. We get the backstory, and it is nonetheless humorous, however the tone, the model of it convey the principle story to a halt, after which we get an evidence for this very difficult character. What prompted placing that episode the place it was, and why did you wish to shift the main target of the season to leaping again and telling that story?
LOREY: Previously, we’ve achieved these one-off episodes, like Batman’s origin story, and stuff like that. We simply go and inform the story of 1 particular person all through the entire episode. So we knew that we needed to do it with Brainiac, and a call that we made early on was as a substitute of simply treating Brainiac as the massive dangerous, we needed to present him the form of loss of life that we did with Mr. Freeze in Season 1, the place he was form of a tragic villain. We didn’t wish to play Brainiac as a tragic villain, however we did need you to emotionally join with him and perceive the place he was coming from as a result of after we began to interrupt it aside, it was actually fascinating. Like, why would he wish to make every thing within the universe good? What would result in somebody wanting to try this?
Then, as we bought into it, we had been so in love with the Brainiac character, and Stephen Fry was wonderful. We actually gave him the largest character arc of anybody within the season as a result of he form of has essentially the most change the place she comes into this wanting to guard the universe in a approach to repair his failures in life that prompted him to lose his household. By the very finish of it, he comes to comprehend that perfecting issues isn’t a life, that the mess is the purpose. The mess of issues is what makes life value dwelling. And so, in doing that, it permits him to make peace along with his previous. And he is been going a little bit loopy, so although he dies on the finish, he dies pondering he is along with his household and that issues are solved for him.
It got here organically out of simply asking the query, “However why would anyone wish to make issues good?” It was at all times a battle after we had been engaged on it for. What is the definition of good? As a result of it is fully subjective, actually. So, we tried to determine that out. Katie Wealthy wrote the “Breaking Brainiac” episode, a form of one-off episode, and she or he did an awesome job actually making an attempt to floor us with him.
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The homicide thriller episode is such an awesome installment, not solely since you get all people within the room collectively, but additionally as a result of we get a shock reveal within the type of Purple X. Had been there ever plans to make Dick a extra vital a part of Season 5, or was it extra like, “We’re simply going to verify in with him and the way he is clearly a little bit tousled from that complete loss of life and resurrection factor?”
LOREY: The season ended up being actually stuffed. The Brainiac stuff took over lots, however we did wish to… not resolve it, however not less than verify in on that storyline from final season. So, that is how we selected to do it. There was some dialogue about, like, “Is he going to think about in a much bigger method because the season goes alongside?” By the way in which, this has occurred in each season of all of those reveals. By the point you begin to enter the midpoint of the season, it is like, “Oh my god, we’ve bought to simplify as a result of we have solely bought 5 episodes left.” So, all of it bought put into this episode, which began as a totally completely different episode.
It was initially going to be a couple of promenade with the Teen Titans. My concern with that was that it did not contain our major characters lots. It felt like one other “Breaking Brainiac” episode that got here proper after, and I used to be involved about getting away from all of our major characters for too lengthy. So, we reworked it and spent quite a lot of time on it, and finally, we hit on doing a homicide thriller episode with our major characters, however locked in a single location. Jamiesen Borak wrote this. He is been an awesome author for us, and he did an awesome job on this. However like all these episodes, it went by 1,000,000 permutations.
‘Harley Quinn’s Showrunner Explains That Surprising Season 5 Dying (and Why This Character Will Keep Lifeless)
Like Ivy, I used to be devastated when Frank died. By the subsequent episode, while you get the funeral, he has a humorous method of signing off, however how early did these conversations about killing him off begin? Do you know you needed that full-circle second of getting each Frank’s delivery and loss of life?
LOREY: It was after we leaned so closely into the delivery of Frank, an origin episode, and you actually bought a way of the longevity of the connection between Ivy and Frank that we began enthusiastic about, “Properly, we have invested a lot on this relationship that it might be a giant and surprising journey to drag the rug out from beneath that and let him die within the episode.” We took a giant gulp after we did that as a result of even telling folks, like Warner Bros., that we had been going to kill Frank, all people was… they weren’t in opposition to it, they only had been very stunned. However I assumed it was invaluable to us, probably not simply because it is one thing surprising, however as a result of I assumed it allowed Ivy to indicate how a lot she loves Frank in that second, the second of his loss of life, and her anger afterward and desirous to get revenge.
It additionally allowed us to usher in Frankette, which we thought could be actually enjoyable to see this new character that is lots like Frank and form of restart what we noticed in Ivy’s origin story with child Frank with Frankette. That appeared prefer it was going to be form of enjoyable. Additionally, I do know Frank’s lifeless—and he’s lifeless; we’re not planning to convey Frank again—nevertheless, within the Inexperienced, that is a spot the place, when you’ve got the power to entry the Inexperienced, you could have the power to fulfill characters which have handed.
That is true.
LOREY: We didn’t wish to say goodbye to J.B. Smoove, and that really does come into play, as a little bit later within the season. We did not really feel like we had been dropping him for eternally, however we felt it was a very reasonable flip.
Speaking about Frankette additionally bought me enthusiastic about how usually Harley and Ivy discover themselves in varied parenting roles this season — first with King Shark’s kids after which with Frank, and now with Frankette. Ivy mainly has to step into the function of a mother, and never simply because Frankette is part-her. Was that one thing that you simply had been enthusiastic about, too, when it comes to evolving each of them as characters?
LOREY: Sure. We thought it was simply a part of their development as characters. We did wish to discover quite a lot of completely different variations of motherhood, and that is why Sharon turns into a big character in direction of the tip of this season, Harley’s mother. What we actually needed to get to was that second in Episode 10 the place they’ll die. They’re on this ruined spaceship, and thru there, it is Sharon and it is Harley, and it is Ivy and it is Frankette. It is mothers and daughters throughout the board, and so we actually needed to discover that dynamic, and it paved the way in which for possibly future tales.
‘Harley Quinn’ Showrunner Dean Lorey Has a Plan for Season 6
The tip of the finale does really feel like one other full-circle second — not only for the characters however for the present, as a result of you could have Harley and Ivy again in Gotham of their authentic residence. You can even argue that it appears like a pure place to finish the present, too, in a method. Was that one thing you had been enthusiastic about in any respect? Are you curious about doing one other season if the celebs align?
LOREY: We had been solely enthusiastic about it largely within the sense of not wanting it to really feel an excessive amount of like the tip of the sequence, as a result of we wish to do extra. We realized that if the present had been to finish there, it was a pleasant ending for the present, however we’ve each intention of doing extra, and we have achieved quite a lot of work determining what that might be. So, I hope we’ll have some thrilling information quickly.
Is there a super variety of seasons that you’ve in thoughts, or is it extra like, “We’ll simply maintain doing it till the wheels fall off”?
LOREY: Properly, I hope we cease one season earlier than the wheels fall off. There isn’t any general plan. There actually by no means has been, apart from a really fundamental need to maintain Harley and Ivy collectively by thick and skinny, however to permit them to develop and all that. However we do have a reasonably great concept for what Season 6 could be if we get so fortunate. We’re excited to proceed.
One thought I had whereas watching Creature Commandos was that it is a present that feels prefer it may not have been attainable if Harley Quinn hadn’t paved the way in which first. Possibly you may have had a model of that present, however Harley is a present that proved that you may inform R-rated tales in DC animation in a method that lots of people hadn’t seen earlier than. Now that we all know that Commandos is coming again for an additional season, do you could have an replace on the place you guys are when it comes to Season 2 planning?
LOREY: The one factor I’ve is that it is early, however we have begun to get into it. I do know there is a need to aggressively pursue making the season. A whole lot of instances, this stuff take years and years, however hopefully, it will not take that lengthy. We’re positively into it at this level.
Harley Quinn Season 5 is on the market to stream on Max.
- Launch Date
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November 29, 2019
- Community
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DC Universe, HBO Max, Max
- Showrunner
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Dean Lorey, Chrissy Pietrosh, Jessica Goldstein
