Without spoiling the ending of the series, Alex Garland wants everyone to know that his new FX on Hulu series, “Devs,” is a limited series, with a conclusion, and not the first season in a long run. But in a new interview with Collider, the filmmaker had so much fun working the cast that he assembled for “Devs” that he’s actually looking at ways to continue collaborating with them without the show going any further.
How would Garland do that? Well, it appears the filmmaker is interested in the “American Horror Story” idea of using the same cast in a completely new series with a brand-new story. He likens it to how a theater might have an acting troupe.
“This group of actors, I feel incredibly bonded to them,” explained Garland. “I really like them, on a personal level. I really do. They were so generous, in the way they approached the whole thing. There was no narcissism. It was so collaborative and so earnest, and I really, really liked them.”
He continued, “And then, I subsequently thought that it would be an interesting thing to take what theater does, quite often, which is to have a company, and then you move around the parts within the company, and you can do a different play with the same actors, where someone who’s the lead in one is now a supporting actor. That’s a very interesting thing that theater does, and I think it could work in television, so I thought I’d try it.”
When asked if he’s already started work on the mysterious new series, Garland replied, “Yeah, I’ve written one-and-a-half episodes. I’ve written the first episode, and I’m working on the second episode. I have no idea whether FX will want to make it, and I don’t know if the cast will want to do the parts I’ve written for them, so it’s all completely speculative. But the only way to do it is to try to do it, so I’m trying to do it.”
As for what the new series will be about, Garland is a bit vague, as he likely doesn’t want to spoil anything. But he does offer some clues.
“It’s really about civil disobedience,” he teased. “It’s not science fiction. It’s essentially apolitical. I don’t know if I’ve come up with this idea because of this cast. It’s chicken and egg. But these guys, if I manage to get it made, I think they’ll be perfect for it.”
This is the same series that Garland hinted at earlier in the year, but it wasn’t clear that he is interested in using his “Devs” cast for the show. The writer-director admits that there isn’t a network associated with the new series, as of yet.
