Time After Time goes back to the future
ABC is going back to the future. On Sunday the U.S. network debuts Time After Time, its drama centred on a young H.G. Wells (Freddie Stroma) who visits different eras in the time machine he created in the late 1800s. His destination becomes modern-day New York when Dr. John Stevenson (Josh Bowman), better known as Jack the Ripper, escapes from authorities near Wells’ London home.
Bowman spoke about the series, which is based on the likenamed 1979 novel and movie, and also airs on CTV in Canada.
Q What are some of the key differences between the movie and this show?
A We did lift a couple of the scenes from the movie, but it definitely looks different. The other one was in San Francisco in the late 1970s, and this one is 2016 Manhattan. It’s a flashback to the old Amblin movies — that’s what the director was aiming for. It’s got that cinematic feel and you see New York and its vastness and rooftops.
Q How did you prepare to play Jack the Ripper?
A I don’t see him as a bad guy. I think it’s important to look at him as human and figure out why he ended up this way. And I think having the backstory is very important so I can justify why I’m doing this. The starting off point was his parents. I don’t want him to be this evil killer. He’s still human. He’s going to have humour and things that he’s drawn to.
Q How would you describe the relationship between H.G. Wells and Jack the Ripper?
A You have the hero in H.G. Wells and the bad guy in Jack the Ripper, and it’s these two opposites — the idealist and the realist. H.G. Wells thinks the world is this utopian society and he feels it will be a utopian future in the 21st century and it’s not like that at all, and he’s disheartened by that. And my character is in this world and absolutely loving it.
Q The element of time travel must’ve been fun to work with as an actor.
A Yeah, you’ve got to suspend disbelief and I think the audience is doing that more and more. I think there were three pilots (for the 2016-17 season) that got picked up in America, and one of them was ours. I don’t know where it started — maybe Doctor Who was a big instigator in this time-travel fandom. But I think it’s great. There’s a lot of scope for storytelling. It’s definitely this epic adventure, a good-versusevil theme and a little sprinkling of romance from the movie, the story of love developing between H.G. Wells and Jane Walker.
Q Is there a time you’d like to time-travel back to?
A I’ve always been fascinated by the war, the Brits back in London. I’ve heard stories from my grandpa. It’s a time of everyone rallying together. V-E Day would be an amazing day to go back to. But dinosaurs would’ve been fun. Shakespearean times would’ve been dirty and smelly.
Q What kinds of social themes will the show deal with? Time travel really allows you to look at things from a historical perspective.
A We’ll definitely be exploring (technology) and other social issues, not related to that but how far we’ve come and how far we’ve slipped behind and into bad habits. Terrorism, we touched on in the pilot. And the amount of violence that is present in the world and how easy it is to get a weapon and kill someone, and how we can combat these things.