From star Harold Perrineau knows how you feel.
He knows how excruciating the wait for answers can be, especially when seasons end with dramatic cliffhangers and we have to wait over a year to find out what happens next.
However, with season 4 finally upon us and the reveal that the show has been renewed for a fifth and final season, it seems like the pay off is almost here.
“I think this is the fun part of it, right?” Perrineau told Radio Times in an exclusive interview. “Figuring out the puzzle of it. And I know that people are really frustrated, and I’ve seen a few online people, like, ‘there’s no answers, and I don’t want to watch it.’ But if you had the answers, then the show’s over.”
Season 3 of the show ended with Perrineau’s Boyd watching the rebirth of an old enemy, shattering his sense of control over the town. We also discovered that Tabitha and Jade are the reincarnated parents of one of seven children sacrificed by the towns original residents in order to obtain immortality.
Oh, and those same residents would then go on to become the monsters that have hunted those trapped in Fromville since season 1.
And then there’s perhaps the biggest unanswered question from season 3, the fate of Jim, who was left bleeding out when the sinister Man in Yellow attacked him by the RV.
As season 3 proved, From has always been good at answering one question in a way that deepens the mystery even further. We now know the origin of the monsters, for example, but we don’t know with whom or what they made their deal for immortality all those years before.
Thankfully, Perrineau promises we’re in good hands with the shows creative team.
“Here’s the thing that’s been really great and creative about the way that John’s written some of the stuff,” Perrineau added. “Some of the answers, some of the clues, are so subtle that you are not going to know for a long time. And some of [the clues] are really big, so you’ll be able to make big guesses about them, about connections with the town, and connections with the creatures.”
Mystery shows like From might be frustrating as every answer begs even more questions, but it is these questions that have created the shows fandom; or, to use its proper name, the Fromily.
Perrineau added: “You keep asking questions, and you talk to your friends or your mum or your brother or, you know, you talk to me, and I don’t know what’s going on. So, this is where it gets it’s really groovy.”
We often get so caught up in the answers that we forget to enjoy the process of trying to solve the puzzle ourselves alongside this wonderful new community that has grown around the show. That process makes those pay-off moments even more rewarding as we all wait to see if we were right or wrong in our speculation.
“There are lots of little Easter eggy things, for lack of a better term, that are there,” Perrineau continued. “When they pay off, you’ll be like, ‘oh, wow, that was, that was slick.’”
Frustrating as it can be to wait for answers, we need to remember that this moment in the journey is nearly over.
The mystery and speculation will come to an end when season 5 comes out, so I think its worth keeping in mind that, as Perrineau said, this is the fun part and we should enjoy it while we can.
From season 4 will arrive in the US on 19 April. From seasons 1-3 are available to stream on NOW.
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