SEASON 3 PREMIER AND OTHER THINGS

I know for most of you it feels like an eternity since you last saw the boys of Samcro, but for me it's been a spastic blink since we premiered season two.  I can't believe we are here again. No wonder I'm aging so quickly. As I slide closer to the half-century mark, I often wonder, "Am I really this old? I was like 32 a year and a half ago. What the fuck happened?" I know this has nothing to do with this post, but I just caught a glimpse of myself in my window and saw my father. That's a whole different couch visit. 

Anyway...

As I said in a recent post, if the season three premier retains all the viewers we picked up between seasons one and two, I will be very pleased. I'm very excited about this season of Sons. It will be a different viewing experience for fans and I hope a very satisfying one. Creatively, I feel sometimes shows fall into a trap in season three. Writers and producers often figure out what works in season one, expand on that in season two, then try to do it again in season three. Unless you're working from source material like True Blood (whose third season was fucking awesome), repeating what works, ultimately generates storylines that feel derivative and familiar. It would be very easy for me to repeat what worked in season two -- create some internal beef that provided intensity and tension within the club (Jax and Clay), bring in another big nemesis (Zobelle), throw those two conflicts at each other (Gemma's rape) and watch the blood flow. Yes, I'm sure it would be okay and people would like it. But ultimately, I would be cheating my own creative process and your dedication as well. I've learned that devoted fans are very sophisticated viewers. They know when they are being fed leftovers. Yeah, they may eat them for awhile, but eventually, they'll get bored and leave to feed on something more tasty.

As an artist, I try to stay tasty. I constantly challenge my process. To do that, you must take risks.  You must be willing to move away from anything that feels like formula.  That approach is in complete contrast to the way many networks think.  They want familiar, they want you to repeat what worked.  The adage, if it ain't broke, don't fix it, fuels the network development process.  Unfortunately that philosophy is creative death and counterintuitive to generating compelling television.  My favorite shows never felt derivative. The Sopranos, The Wire, Homicide, Hill Street Blues; those shows took huge risks. Some worked, some didn't, but they all expanded the scope of the show and in the long run made them better. That's my hope for Sons -- to continue to push the boundaries of the narrative, the absurdity of the world and the emotionality of the characters.  I have no delusions that SOA will ever fall into the category of the above mentioned dramas, I only hope that the series never be called, "lazy".

So on this season of Sons of Anarchy, we expand beyond the emotional/geographical boundaries of Charming and our primary beefs, to divulge deeper mythological conflicts. The mythology revealed this season will serve as gasoline for the familial fires that will ultimately set our antiheroes ablaze.  I hope you enjoy watching it as much as I've enjoyed making it.

Please spread the word and join us on September 7th. As always, I deeply appreciate all your support.

FUCK ME, WE'RE TWO WEEKS OUT...

I can't believe we are two weeks away from the premier.  Time, in the throes of this process, becomes such an odd phenomenon.  Everything seems to be moving at a normal rhythm until about script number four.  Then it slips into this warped speed-hole, where one episode just dovetails into another and it feels like one big move.  All of a sudden, I'm staring at my white board in my home office and I see beats for 313.  Really?  I guess that's a good sign.  If we were agonizing over story, scripts and cuts, time would be passing much more slowly.

I've given a few interviews about season three and I'll be doing a few more before we air.  I'll tell you what I've told the press.  At least this way I know the story will get to you in it's intended construct, unlike those douche-bags who fucked with Mo Ryan's story to make Charlie sound disgruntled, then baited me into a reaction before I was bright enough to do the due diligence.  Those hit-whore motherfuckers should all die.  But I digress...  Season three is a bit different for us.  I felt like after two seasons of serialized character development, fans would be open to learn more about the history of the club.  This season we delve into the mythology of the Sons connection to the IRA and John Teller's relationship with Belfast.  It's a huge season for Jax.  In fact, it's all about the three generations of Tellers -- John, Jax and Abel.

Folks keep asking me about numbers -- will the premier be as big as last year, bigger, what do I expect?  To me, the growth of Sons of Anarchy between season one and season two was an extraordinary anomaly.  It was a result of the show's season one premier getting sideswiped by the RNC Palin speech and the steady increase of fans we added as season one continued.  We had like a 90% increase between the season one and season two premiers (something close to that).  Unfortunately, this season, anything less than another huge increase will most likely be labeled a failure.  Look at Mad Men -- they retained their big season three growth and even added a few percentage points this season, but the press tagged it a disappointment.  I would gladly accept that disappointment.  I will be very happy if all the fans we had last year show up again this year.  Yes, it would be awesome to grow, but in this TV landscape, retaining that huge growth between season one and two would be very satisfying. 

I really dig the season.  It's an important one for me.  There are a lot of deeply personal themes weaved throughout this mythology and this season we experience a chunk of them.  I hope the fans embrace it.  I also want to say on-the-record that everyone involved in this show brought their A-game to the court.  It was a brutal production this year.  We had two big story-lines running simultaneously -- Charming and Belfast.  A two-week second unit in Ireland.  A huge guest cast.  Actors and crew have been on overdrive since episode three.  And if I haven't said it lately, I'll repeat myself now -- I have the most talented cast working in television and the hardest-working, most dedicated fucking crew in Hollywood.  

With the bigness of this season, my producers and I have been working hard to figure out a way to make our pattern (budget) and even though we've been struggling to do so,  the studio and the network has been awesome this year.  They've really given me room and support to tell these expansive stories.  I'm still responsible for my bottom-line, but everyone has been extremely diplomatic in the way they've put my feet to the fire.  As a guy who easily rants my gripes, it's equally important that I share my gratitude.  FX, Fox 21 and Twentieth have been great creative partners this season.  And I thank them for that.

I'll try to post a couple more updates before we premier.  Again, thanks for all the support and I hope you all spread the word about SOA.  September 7th.  Aye.

COUNTDOWN TO SEASON 3

I thought I'd take a moment from my bombastic walk down the dark, rocky road I travel upon to update fans as to the current status of the show.  

All 13 episodes are broken.

A writer's draft of 313 is being written.

I am currently working on my draft of 312.

Adam Arkin is prepping 311.

Gwyneth H-Payton is directing/shooting 310.

Stephen Kay is working on his director's cut of 309.

I'm working on my producer's cut of 308.  This will be a 90 minute episode. 

Craig Yahata, my post producer, is working on the pre-mix for 307.

306 is mixed and in layback.

305 is getting final post touches and is ready for final mix and layback.

304 is done and out to critics.
303 is mixed and waiting for a re-shoot to drop in.  A temp version is out to critics.

302 is done and out to critics.

301 is done and out to critics.  The name of the premier episode is "SO".

The SOA iPhone app should hit the week that episode 308 airs.  It'll make sense why.  

Thanks for checking in.  More to come as we get closer to the premier date.