Hunter Doohan Talks Wednesday, Working with Jenna Ortega and Tim Burton, That Shocking Reveal, and More

Hunter Doohan is one of the industry’s most exciting leading men. The young actor, director, and writer has captivated audiences with his award-winning performances in projects including Soundwave, Truth Be Told, and Your Honor.

Currently, he stars opposite Jenna Ortega in Tim Burton’s first television series, Wednesday. The coming-of-age drama follows Wednesday Addams as she investigates a murder spree while making new friends—and foes—at Nevermore Academy. Hunter shines as Tyler Galpin, an unexpected ally that Wednesday makes along her journey.

Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to speak with Hunter about Wednesday, working with Jenna Ortega and Tim Burton, and more!

PC: You came out to LA in 2012 for an internship. Was there a specific moment while you were out here when you realized you weren’t going back to Arkansas and instead wanted to pursue a career in this industry?
Hunter: That’s a good question. I always joke that I came out here saying I was going to take a gap year and that turned into ten really quickly. But no, I don’t know if I had a specific moment. I wanted to give myself a chance to go for it because that was some advice that I got from my manager who I’m still with now. Then at the end of the year when it would’ve been time for me to go back to college and would actually have been good on my gap year promise, I felt like I hadn’t accomplished what I wanted to yet, so I decided to stay. By then, I had joined an acting studio in LA, and so I felt like this was the right move for me.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
Hunter: There are a few people. My manager, Valerie McCaffrey, really took a chance on me when I first got out here. Elizabeth Barnes, who’s the casting director I had an internship with. Lisa Melillo is an acting coach that changed my life.

PC: In addition to the work that you’ve done on screen, you’ve also written and directed. How have those experiences behind the camera made you a stronger actor and vice versa?
Hunter: I feel like I learned the most doing both on-camera classes and writing and directing shorts with my friends for no money. I did it to get experience because you come out here and everyone’s telling you to build a reel and do all these things to get in the door for these auditions, but it’s such a catch-22. I had to make shorts with my friends so I’d have footage of me acting that my manager could show casting directors or agents.

PC: It’s been a decade-long career. Has anything surprised you about this journey thus far?
Hunter: Calling it a decade long is really generous because I feel like I only started working a few years ago. I’m constantly surprised by it all, and I feel really lucky to have gotten to do the projects that I’ve gotten to do. With Wednesday, working with Tim Burton was unreal. Before that, Your Honor with Bryan Cranston. I was such a big Breaking Bad fan. I remember I was in my acting studio when the finale happened in 2013. I remember going to class and being like, “No one spoil it. I’ve got to go home. I’m not checking my phone. I don’t want to hear it from any of you.” It was really cool to work with him.

PC: Speaking of Wednesday, can you tell us about the series, your character, and what drew you to this project?
Hunter: Wednesday follows Wednesday Addams in high school. She gets kicked out of a normal school because they can’t contain her. She gets into Nevermore Academy, which is a place for outcasts and kids with special powers and abilities. That school is located in the town of Jericho. That’s where Wednesday meets my character Tyler who is a “normy” as they’re not so lovingly referred to as he doesn’t have any powers. They meet at a coffee shop, and he becomes an unlikely ally to her as she tries to escape that school.

PC: Tyler and Wednesday have such a unique journey throughout the series. What was it like getting to collaborate with Jenna as you brought the different shades of that dynamic to life on the screen?
Hunter: It was great. Jenna is amazing as anyone who’s seen the show or her work will know. She’s so smart about everything. One of the trickiest things from Tyler’s perspective was how do you build an attempted love story arc with Wednesday Addams? Because you think of that character as not having much emotion, but Jenna and Tim [Burton] did such an amazing job breaking down her walls with these subtle nuances. I learned so much from them. She slowly begins to trust him. He finds moments when he’s charmed by her darkness and oddness as opposed to being turned off as everyone else is. Then there are also moments where Tyler thinks she’s messing with him so he tries to jab back at her. They end up having more of a banter rather than her putting him down constantly. There’s a lot of that.

PC: Tyler also has a really complex relationship with his family, which you’ve brought so much nuance to on the screen. As an actor, how did you create the space for yourself to dive into that emotional arc?
Hunter: I felt like I had a good understanding of where Tyler started out, even before we meet him because he lost his mom at a young age. I lost my dad five years ago. I understood the pain to bring to that underbelly. Then it was working with Jamie McShane who plays my dad. We rehearsed a lot together outside of set and talked about everything with Al [Gough] and Miles [Millar], our showrunners.

There was a lot of material that didn’t quite make the show because it was too dark in some of the scenes that Jamie and I had. I think the show turned out really funny. That was interesting to figure out while we were shooting. I was like, “These scenes seem so funny, and then in this scene, I’m getting slapped around a little bit.” But I’m glad we did those scenes and that I read them because it informed so much of our relationship. You get to feel everything that’s going on with them even though you don’t see those scenes.

PC: This is also Tim Burton’s first television series. What was it like getting to collaborate with him and sharing in that milestone? What did you learn from that collaboration that helped elevate the performance that we see on the screen and also potentially in the way that you direct in the future?
Hunter: Tim is so great to work with. Honestly, what I learned most from him was his sense of confidence. He doesn’t ever over direct. He rehearses. He talks us through it and blocks it. He’s very specific in the preparation of it all and in the look of it for sure, but he doesn’t step in and he doesn’t get in and nitpick you too much. One night at dinner, he told us about his casting process and how he knows the right actor when he sees them in the role. Then he trusts them to do their own work. To hear Tim Burton say that filled me with so much confidence that I felt like I could handle the rest of the season.

*Spoiler Alert Ahead*

PC: There’s an ongoing murder mystery that happens throughout the series. How early on did the writers clue you in on who was behind those events that unfold?
Hunter: Spoiler warning for anyone. During the audition process, I basically found out because right before my final chemistry read with Jenna and Tim, I had a scene with Percy [Hynes White] too, who plays Xavier on the show. That scene ended up being cut because it was a little too suspicious. The note that I got beforehand was that Tyler has a big secret. I remember asking, is it the secret? They wouldn’t officially tell me, but we got enough hints for me to know to play just a bit of the darkness there. Then after I got cast, I had an hour-and-a-half phone call with Al and Miles where they filled me in on the whole history of Tyler and what was going on there.

PC: It’s so unexpected when the reveal comes out about Tyler. How do you as an actor make sure that doesn’t bleed into the first couple of episodes in the series and instead drop subtle hints?
Hunter: I thought the scripts were so good. Once you get to Episode 8, if you look back, it all makes sense. I felt like I didn’t want to be winking at the audience, but I didn’t want to make it too obvious. I tried to approach it as if Tyler wants to pull this off, so he’s going to lie. My whole goal for the first seven episodes is basically to play the stereotypical perfect boyfriend-type character that Tyler’s trying to convince Wednesday that he is, and then have a total switch in Episode 8. It was fun to play two different characters.

PC: When that reveal happens, there’s this switch that happens in Episode 8 where we get to see Tyler in his true form. How did you prepare to play those different sides of him?
Hunter: I’ve been preparing for a long time the inner workings of why Tyler feels the way that he does. It all comes back to his mom and the fact that he basically has been lied to his whole life about what really happened to her. Miss Thornhill, played by Christina Ricci, is the first person to ever tell him the truth of why she died. It filled him with so much rage, and he hates Nevermore because they wouldn’t accept her because she was a Hyde. She was never able to learn to control her power, and it ended up killing her. That was his justification.

Then I looked at a bunch of movies, especially for that monologue. I tried to really go back and figure out how I wanted to approach it. I remember rewatching Silence of the Lambs and the first Scream movie. I love when Billy’s character has that big switch in the movie, which was a fun connection because Jenna’s in Scream 5.

PC: The series ends pretty open-endedly, and there’s potential for a Season 2. If we were lucky enough to get a Season 2, where do you want to see Tyler’s storyline head?
Hunter: I hope we get a Season 2! Like I was saying, it was like I played two different characters, but I only got to play the real one for three scenes. I’m really excited to see what Al and Miles have in store. They’ve kept it close to their chest about what exactly would be going on, but I think Tyler’s even more pissed off. I’m definitely curious to see what is going to happen with him now that he doesn’t have a master pulling the strings on him. There’s definitely a lot to explore.

PC: Did you feel any pressure heading into this project, just given how beloved the Addams Family franchise is and this new take on these beloved characters?
Hunter: I felt a ton of pressure, even from the first time that I auditioned. It had a code name. Once I figured out what I was auditioning for and learned that Tim was involved, I definitely felt the pressure. I feel the pressure now as it’s coming out. I’m on the edge of my seat and hoping people like what we did.

PC: Have you started making plans on how you’re going to celebrate the release of the series?
Hunter: I’m actually going home to Arkansas. My friend Grace and her mom have helped me plan a little screening in my hometown at a movie theater. We’re going to get together with my friends and family and binge. I don’t know how much we will see but probably most of it on the day.

PC: You deliver such a standout performance in the show. Is there a particular scene or episode that you’re really excited for your fans to see?
Hunter: Thank you so much. I really like the first episode. There’s a lot of fun in that one. I haven’t seen it yet, but I’m excited to see Episode 6 because it’s just different with me and Enid going around together. Then Episode 8 was the most fun.

PC: Outside of this project, you have a short film making its way around the festival circuit. Is there anything you can tell us about Ringing Rocks?
Hunter: Gus Reed reached out to me when I was still in Romania shooting Wednesday. He’s a talented filmmaker. They were starting production the day after I was going to get home from Romania. We weren’t sure if it was going to work out, but I loved his script and really wanted to play the character. Thank God it worked out! I’m really proud of how it turned out. I’m excited. He and I are going to work on another film coming up pretty soon. Hopefully, that can end up online someday and people can check it out.

PC: You’re such a dynamic storyteller. As you look ahead to the next five to ten years, is there a dream role or a story that you would love to bring to life, either as an actor or writer or as a director?
Hunter: I’ve definitely got some scripts that I’ve been working on, and I’m hoping to write and direct a feature-length film at some point in my life. I don’t like to plan out too much because I feel like all of the best opportunities that I would have never anticipated have come my way. I would never have seen Your Honor or Wednesday coming my way. They’ve been life-changing experiences. I’m going to stay open and keep on reading great scripts and will hopefully get to work on more great projects.

To keep up with Hunter, follow him on Twitter and Instagram. Binge-watch Season 1 of Wednesday on Netflix today.

Photo Credit: Emily Sandifer