[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for Fire Country Season 3 Episode 14 “Death Trap.”]
Quick, someone call 9-1-1 for Manny! Kevin Alejandro‘s character is really not doing well at the end of the latest Fire Country.
The episode, directed by Kevin’s wife, Leslie Alejandro, also features key emotional moments for Leones. First, Vince (Billy Burke) has to accept that his father Walter’s (Jeff Fahey) dementia has gotten to the point that he needs a care facility (but they’re expensive). Then, Bode (Max Thieriot) opens up to Audrey (Leven Rambin) on their first date about wanting to take the pills he’d been holding on to not just for his knee but when Birch died and when his grandfather went missing, but he didn’t.
Below, Kevin and Leslie Alejandro take us inside this episode and tease what’s ahead.
Leslie, how did you directing this episode come about? Was it just the right timing? Was there something specific about it?
Leslie Alejandro: Oh, man. It was…
Kevin Alejandro: A journey.
Leslie: It was a big journey. KristieAnne Reed over at Bruckheimer had ended up being, she’s just been championing for me for years now. Before this, I’ve just done music videos, short films, creative content, documentary, but never episodic. I did do the HBOAccess Directors program, and then it came with KristieAnne approving me to shadow direct Kevin when he had directed an episode of National Treasure, which was also difficult because it was during Covid and so she kind of found a loophole for me. She really wanted me to be on that set and she made it happen. So between that, and then I shadowed a friend of mine who happened to be directing an episode of the first season of Fire Country. I had asked if she would be okay if I shadowed her, and she said, as long as it gets approved. And of course, KristieAnne had approved it, and Tia [Napolitano] the showrunner had approved it, and everybody at Fire Country approved it. So I was able to shadow her, which was an incredible experience. And then last season, once again, I came on and shadowed Kevin when he directed last season.
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Kevin: But it was in that moment where she was shadowing me where a lot of people realized that we’re not a director in a shadow, we’re a directing team in a lot of things. We feed off of each other’s feedback and get ideas from each other. And in fact, there was one time where I couldn’t even show up to the locations because I was in the other episode where everyone listened to her and she took the reins. So I think that opened people’s eyes like, oh, this woman is a badass. And she does it too.
Leslie: Getting the call that they gave me an episode was one of the best news I’ve ever had in my life. So I was just excited for the opportunity and of course nervous because this was my first time handling this big of a budget, but it was so much fun and I had the best time and I cannot wait to do it again. And I kept telling my DP, I’m just waiting for the other shoe to drop. And he’s like, no shoes are dropping. And I felt supported because I had been with this crew twice already, and everybody was like, we’re not going to let you fail. And the collaboration that everybody had and being aligned with the vision was amazing. And also anything that I had pitched and them accepting it made me even more confident that I knew that I was supposed to be there.
Kevin: Yeah, it’s really cool with Fire Country because they really do highlight the fact that they want to inspire growth from the very beginning. It’s like, if you want to shadow another department, let’s do that. They just want growth from everyone. So it’s a very inviting world. Joan [Rater] and Tony [Phelan] —
Leslie: That’s their MO at all times.
Kevin: Let’s keep people working and give people the opportunities that we deserve to move forward in the careers that we want.
Leslie: And if it wasn’t for their approval, too, I wouldn’t have been able to do that. So having that support was pretty incredible. And I had just met Joan and Tony through this process when I got on set, so it was amazing.
The episode opens on that heartbreaking moment for Birch and that loss, and Manny’s taking it hard. So Kevin, talk about filming that scene, and Leslie, talk about directing him for it.
Kevin: Yeah. Well, that scene was a very specific sort of setup. It was all her mastermind —
Leslie: — and Mark.
Kevin: Yeah, her and her DP really came up with the way to do this. So it is always interesting when a director comes in and they have a specific way they want to do something that’s not a traditional way that we shoot our show. So to figure out how that person wants it visually to look so that you can fit the appropriate emotions, it’s almost like you’re choreographing a dance. I need to choreograph how I feel, how I’m feeling with this moment, cut all the bulls**t out and get straight to the point of what this scene is making me feel like so that it moves appropriately to the dance of however it is the filmmaker wants to make it happen. So it was a great challenge, but I loved it because I am so invested in the world of Three Rock and what happens there and how much I genuinely care as Kevin Alejandro about this world was easy for me to jump in and basically I just had to listen to what she and her DP wanted and figure out for myself how I can fit all of this internal world into that. So it was an awesome challenge and I thought it was an amazing opening shot. I don’t think we’ve ever seen anything like that on the show.
Leslie: I am so proud and happy about that shot. It is a signature shot from my DP and choreographing it together and figuring out how it was going to look was definitely a challenge, and a challenge exactly to the point of Kevin, how do you create a choreography but still keep the actors in the moment seeing that we’re calling when — because nobody can be behind him, obviously when the camera’s behind him and then all of a sudden everyone has to step in, but make it look like they were behind him the whole time. And when the lights come up, how quickly it’s going to turn around, all of the above. But I love that s**t. I love doing that kind of stuff.
Kevin: If you really look at it, you’ll see how well it is. It starts and then a single light comes on and then it keeps continuing, then another light comes on. It just all looks like it’s all one fluid kind of thing. But it was so, so technical. I think we spent a lot of time on the rehearsal of it, but only did three takes.
Leslie: Yeah, it was great.
Kevin: The rehearsal process was so important in that moment, and everyone knew it. Everyone knew that it was going to be a oner kind of thing. You guys spent so much time on the rehearsal to get it right so that by the time they put us in there —
Leslie: And they nailed it, everybody did. And it was, again, it’s just always great to see that when you envision something happen. And then to see it come to fruition is like —
Kevin: [Singing] I did it, I did it.
Leslie: And it was such a fun day. I think we did that the first day. Because the funny thing was is that Kevin only shot one day out of my entire episode, and it was the first day.
Kevin: Yeah, they put me on the first day, which worked out perfectly. While she stayed up there to direct, I got to come home while she was directing and be with our kid. So it just sort of worked out perfectly.
But now we have this mystery of what killed Birch and might be killing Manny, which is very concerning. So Kevin, what can you tease about Manny’s condition going forward? Because he really was not looking good at the end of this episode.
Kevin: Yeah, I think what I can tease is that you saw what it did to Birch, and where you see Manny is just the beginning of how affects him health-wise, how it affects him mentally, and it becomes a really deep sort of journey on how to figure out what the hell’s going on. Expect to see more of that, but expect it also for a giant window to be open that will shed a lot of light as to what is actually going on in Edgewater.
It was Eve and Manny leading the charge on trying to figure out what happened. Now Manny’s down for the count, so that’s going to bring everyone else in because Manny is so beloved across Three Rock, 42, Edgewater, right?
Kevin: Exactly. Yeah. You get an idea of how strong the Army is when one of their own goes down.
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There were two pretty emotional moments near the end of this episode. I wanted to talk to you, Leslie, about directing them: the Leones at home with Walter, and then Bode talking to Audrey about the pills. What was your approach to those two scenes?
Leslie: The Leones, talking to Walter was such a powerful scene, and Jeff, who plays Walter is just such a powerful actor, and he came on and was really like, “Okay, what do you see? And I have some ideas, can I just try them first?” Of course. And killed it. He’s a vet, he’s a pro. But the one that was so heartbreaking was seeing Vince’s reaction to the realization of what his father is going through. And that was pretty powerful. Billy was really, really —
Kevin: He’s a powerhouse, man.
Leslie: Yeah, he did it so beautifully. So I really wanted this, not three against one, but opening it where you see Walter and from Bode’s perspective, and he’s in this huge room just kind of by himself as they’re kind of a little bit off. I really wanted that to hit because we know that that’s how he’s going to end up feeling and then seeing the Leones witness this, they know what the struggle is going to be ahead of them. So yeah, I really, really love that scene.
The scene with Bode and Audrey, I love that this kind of opens up — that’s going to validate the relationship they’re about to get into and how much they were able to open up to each other and not say what they said because they are confessing, but say it in a way that they’re opening up and being honest with each other and knowing that the other person is not going to judge them or leave them just because of their past. So seeing Bode let somebody in in that sense, and that made it so different than his tumultuous relationship with Gabriela, and seeing that difference I think was very important. And the chemistry that they have together was just beautiful to direct anyways. And then for the audience to see that this is the beginning of something really good by the end of it, was important for me to show as well.
And then Kevin, if Manny didn’t have bigger things to worry about like possibly dying, what would his take be on Finn for Gabriela? Especially since Manny and Gabriela’s relationship is finally back on track.
Kevin: It would be like, why isn’t he a firefighter? What do his parents do? I think because of the journey that Gabriela’s going on this season, she’s pretty wounded and trying to figure out who she is again and where she fits in this world and trying to navigate her emotions with Bode. I think at this point Manny would prefer her to step away and figure out before you add another element that could only hurt you more or take you in a direction that’s not you anymore. So I think his parenting, his father instinct is kicking in on high alert of being like, are you sure this is what you need to be doing right now? But also respectfully knowing that she is a woman who’s old enough to make her mistakes. He’s going to step back and just sort of watch it and be there for her if and when she needs him. But I think initially he’d be like, come on, figure you out first.
Fire Country, Fridays, 9/8c, CBS