This article contains spoilers for Paradise episode 1.The massive twist at the end of Paradise episode 1 gets an explanation from creator Dan Fogelman, detailing his plan for the new Hulu drama. The new series reunites This Is Us creator Fogelman with Sterling K. Brown, who won an Emmy for his performance as Randall Pearson in the NBC family drama. Paradise proves to be something else entirely, beginning with the apparent murder of the U.S. President and then switching genres in the closing scene of episode 1.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Fogelman talked about the twist that Brown’s character and the President live in a man-made underground city. Asked about what the Hulu series intends to explore, Fogelman confirmed that he has a three-season plan for Paradise. He talks about each season being different and that episode 7 is a standout. In the quote below, the creator also stresses that he doesn’t want to leave viewers hanging with unanswered questions:
I have a plan for three seasons of the show. Without giving away too much, each season of the show is a slightly different show, within the same show with the same characters. The pilot reveals something at the end, and then there’s twists and turns in the course of the season. Then the seventh episode is kind of a standout, standalone episode of the show. As we go into second season, we pivot a little bit, but in a way that I think is very follow-able. But yes, there’s big moves ahead.
The goal at the end of the first season… I get frustrated by television shows that titillate and keep you guessing and have twists and turns, but then don’t give you the answers at the end of your first break going off the air. I want to provide a complete meal by the end of the episode for the audience that’s invested. Any question that people have after the first couple of episodes should be answered at the end of the eighth episode. Then a new question and journey will start that takes us into the second season.
What The Paradise Twist Means For The Show
There’s More Than Meets The Eye
Hulu’s latest high-profile original pitches itself as a fairly straightforward thriller. The U.S. President, a relatively young and charismatic man, played by James Marsden, is found dead when Secret Service Agent Xavier Collins (Brown) goes to check on him. There’s also the Vice President, played by Julianne Nicholson, who seems like she has goals of her own. To top it off, the relationship between the U.S. President and Xavier turned sour by the end. Helped along by the strong Paradise cast, that premise would have been enough to last a few seasons.
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But the first three episodes of Paradise completely switch things up. The premiere, which is written by Fogelman, with Glenn Ficarra & John Requa directing, plants the idea that not everything is as it appears. There’s even a mention of the underground city, but the surprise is that Xavier has been there all along. It raises the question of what’s been going on outside of this murder and whether the two things are connected.
Our Take On Paradise
A Solid Start Is Its Own Kind Of Worry
For long-time fans of high-concept dramas, whether The X-Files or LOST or the varying imitators that have popped up since the seminal series, there tends to be worries about a show gradually losing its focus and just introducing further questions without resolution. Paradise‘s creator, at least, tried to put those concerns to rest mere days after the premiere. It has credibility since his previous work, This Is Us, answered a lot.
New episodes of Paradise streami Tuesdays on Hulu, with the finale on March 4
Source: THR