‘Watchmen’: Everything We Learned About HBO’s Series at New York Comic Con

The clock is slowly ticking towards the premiere of Watchmen on HBO, but fans who attended New York Comic Con got a sneak peek look at the pilot episode of the series, and a packed panel featuring stars and crew breaking down the first big episode. And Decider was on the scene like, I don’t know, some sort of… Person who watches things? A man, maybe? Anyway, we’ll figure that out later.

Attending the post-screening panel were Executive Producer and writer Damon Lindelof, Executive Producer and director Nicole Kassell, as well as stars, Jeremy Irons (credited in promo as “Probably who you think he is”), Regina King (Angela Abar/Sister Night), Jean Smart (Laurie Blake), Tim Blake Nelson (Looking Glass), Louis Gossett Jr. (Will Reeves), Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Cal Abar) and Hong Chau (Lady Trieu).

In case you’re wondering about that credit for Irons, the trick is that Lindelof, who previously EP-ed famous puzzle box shows LOST and The Leftovers has been characteristically cagey about what, exactly, this Watchmen TV series will be. Based on the classic comic book series by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, the HBO series seems like it could be a sequel, versus a remake (a la the Watchmen movie by director Zack Snyder).

And because of that, and some chyrons on promotional videos, it definitely seems like Irons is playing Adrian Veidt/Ozymandias, the villain of the comic book series. In the book, Veidt is a former superhero, the “smartest man alive,” who realizes that in order to stave off nuclear annihilation, he’ll need to bring the world together against a greater threat. That threat is a giant alien squid thing, that decimates New York and for a moment at the end of the comic series seems to unite Earth against the (fictional) alien threat.

Another familiar name to fans of the series? Laurie Blake, a former masked vigilante named Silk Spectre who seemingly has taken on the last name of Eddie Blake, a.k.a. The Comedian, the controversial figure revealed to be her father in the comics.

So with those two notes at least, as well as a group of alt-right activists known as the Seventh Calvary who seem to be inspired by the writings of Rorschach, a masked hero with a very mixed up mind, it would seem this was a straight sequel to the book. But as Lindelof and company insisted on the panel, the TV series is still very much its own thing.

“Watchmen has an incredible emotional connection to me, and I started to get really jealous of the idea that they were going to do this without me,” Lindelof said, opening the panel. “What happened to Adrian Veidt after he saved the world? What was the world like after this giant squid dropped on it? … We held it in such reverence, but we’d have to take some risks to make it work.”

That said, both Lindelof and and Kassell were well aware that they needed to pay tribute to the original, and layered homages throughout. Funnily enough, that came from LOST, which Lindelof said included easter eggs because he was inspired by Watchmen. So, snake eating its own tail and whatnot.

As for King, she joined the project because of the script, and the character of Sister Night. When she was given the script, there was an envelope with it, and she was told not to open until told. When Sister Night is introduced in costume in script, she opened it, and there was an artist rendering of her, in costume. She was blown away, and joined immediately.

Irons was a little more reticent, as Lindelof took him to a lunch meeting where the latter talked incessantly — and then he read the script. That said, Irons had a hard time reading the source material, quipping, “when you’re over 45, and the print is that small…”

“The temerity, the welcoming of danger, not only to take this on, but to imagine this universe, this future and on our present…” added Nelson, “To do it in a way that hewed to the aesthetic terms fo the source material, there was no way I wasn’t going to sign on.”

Meanwhile, after playing Black Manta in Aquaman, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II was a little reticent to sign on a comic book project. “No, it’s not a comic book,” said a friend. “It’s a graphic novel.” He was also sold on it because, you know: HBO.

Moving on to talk about Smart’s Laurie Blake, she noted that her older Laurie is resentful of her former life as a masked hero, though “a little part of her might miss it.” She’s now part of the FBI, and heads into the action in episode 3.

Next up was Hong Chau’s Lady Trieu, who is an “enigmatic, trillionaire businesswoman… She’s a boss bitch.”

Then a surprise for the panel, as Watchmen co-creator Dave Gibbons entered, saying that after talking to Lindelof at San Diego Comic-Con he was sold. “If anyone was going to create a TV show of Watchmen, he was the man to do it,” Gibbons said. He added that what he liked about this take is the “extrapolation” of the show, that “unexpected things can happen” in 30 years. He also noted that the TV show doesn’t contradict the comics in any way.

Talking about the Seventh Calvary, Gibbons noted that, “Rorschach is a very interesting character… There is a dreadful appeal to characters like Rorschach … I could quite see that Rorschach could be a role model for people in this future.” Lindelof also added that when talking about Watchmen in the writer’s room, they were worried about appropriating the material in the comics, and putting their own thoughts and aspirations on the source. As they discussed, they realized it might be interesting to take that idea, but apply it to the writings of Rorschach – that people in the modern day could read his words, and potentially see their own message in him that may or may not be correct.

On the score, which is composed by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Lindelof said that he tries to give every show a different sound, and when he thought about Watchmen, he thought about the two of them. He wanted to put in a call to them to discuss it, and that morning they had called his office because they wanted to talk about Watchmen. Anyway, it all worked out.

As for whether Watchmen will continue past this season? Lindelof says that the story they’re telling over nine episodes is a complete package, though quipped, “I certainly have a different idea of resolution than other people.” If you people like it, and they have an idea, they may tell a new story down the road.

…and with one look ahead at the rest of the season, that was it! Watchmen debuts October 20 at 9/8c on HBO.

Stream Watchmen on HBO Go and HBO Now