As the second part of Outer Banks season four is dropping today, actors Carlacia Grant, Austin North and Rudy Pankow share their highlights of the filming process and talk about encompassing their characters. The stars touch on maturity, friendship and character growth looking forward.

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What did you guys feel was different about filming season 4?

Rudy Pankow: This season, there’s that big jump we had to fill in. I think episode one is just a new chapter. It’s perfect, the writers did a great job at filling that space — that year, of ‘this is what happened’ and then the catch-up to the celebration of us being recognized as the discoverers of El Dorado. I think all the Pogues, every single character, is turning the chapter to their adulting page.

@beatroutemedia Interviewing the Outer Banks crew!🎬🎬 Pt.1 #outerbanks #obx #obx4 #rudypankow #carlaciagrant #austinnorth #jjmaybank #cleo #topper #chasestokes #madelyncline ♬ original sound – BeatRoute

 

Cleo is very courageous, very fierce, how are you able to portray that into her character? 

Carlacia Grant: I think for Cleo, I had the pleasure of creating a fully formed person. We have the strength of her humor, a little bit of her fear, and also of her sassiness. It was like completing a complete board of, this is kind of what human beings do, especially for Cleo, she just experienced a very human experience. I feel like she had her grandmother that died, I don’t even know where her dad was, but she’s had to go through so many changes and this one being so pivotal in her life – I think it’s because she left so much behind to do this, and she never really got to say goodbye. Building all those complex things as an actor and building her world, and using an imagination to put into all of those emotions. It’s also just a real emotion, to lose someone so close to you, like a father figure, and I actually had moments during this season and last season, where I would wonder if Cleo would think, “Where’s Terrence”, “How’s Terrence”, “How’s Stubbs”, just keeping a diary of all those. I have a diary of my character, so just going back to that and playing it. 

 

Cleo joined the crew in making Poguelandia 2.0, rather than just being a helper in the treasure hunt. How was it like joining the crew so late?

Carlacia Grant: It was pretty fun, like really really fun. 

Rudy Pankow: It was fun, there was a moment on set where we were building the shop, it said JJ’s hammering something and I was like, “No, Cleo needs to be doing this!” and I remember you were just whacking the shit out of it.

Carlacia Grant: There was a moment of — I didn’t want to be standing over there just watching — Cleo would not be standing over there watching, that’s why I took a tool belt. I was like Cleo is going to be here doing. But, it’s so easy, everyone is so great, and we’re really great friends so it’s seamless. It’s like joining a super fun summer camp. Everyone’s cool and everyone’s a vibe, it’s easy. When you’re around such good people, it’s really easy. 

 

We see JJ make some  risky decisions throughout the entire show, but we also see some moments where he’s being logical about some things, how are you able to find a balance between those two very different things and play it into JJ’s character?

Rudy Pankow: I think you might be the first to describe JJ as logical! I think he’s going through a little anxiety trip of, “OK, I need to dial it in, or else my friends might grow up and move away”. When Pope has the idea of making JJ’s house into Poguelandia 2.0, I think that was his [JJ’s] dream, so it sparked something in him. A new chapter, an adulting thing for JJ, where he’s thinking “OK, I need to make some bigger decisions here for myself as well as my friends”. 

 

JJ’s character also has some plot twists, what does that mean going into the second part of season 4?

Rudy Pankow: What does that mean? More shit hitting the fan, more leaning on his friends that he won’t want to at first. The writer’s always ramp it up. I think part two is going to be JJ spiraling. 

 

Topper’s character hesitates in some scenes in regards to the divide between the Pogues and the Kooks, what does that mean for the future of Topper’s character?

Austin North: Maturity. I think he’s maturing a lot. A lot of time has passed between season three and season four – 18 months – he’s got a new girlfriend and I think he’s becoming his own person. He was talking about his new ventures, getting away from what his mom wanted him to do — which was medicine — and all the pressure from her. He’s grown up and becoming his own man and figuring out what he wants in life, but there’s always that tension between the Pogues and the Kooks, it’s always going to be there. I think there’s a lot of development in that scene in episode four when they’re on the beach, they’re ready to surf, and he’s like “Oh let’s have a chill day, let’s not cut anybody off”, and then there goes JJ.

Rudy Pankow: I don’t think that was communicated to JJ!

Austin North: Well, John B should’ve communicated that message. I would say this time it kind of stemmed from the Pogues, usually Topper’s there to stir the pot but then again, it was his girlfriend, trying to retaliate on the fact that JJ cut us off, and then JJ threatened us. The pot is absolutely stirred in part two.

@beatroutemedia Interviewing the Outer Banks crew! 🎬🎬 Pt. 3 #outerbanks #obx #obx4 #rudypankow #carlaciagrant #austinnorth #jjmaybank #cleo #topper #chasestokes #madelyncline ♬ original sound – BeatRoute

 

What was the highlight of filming season four for you, and for Topper’s character?

Austin North: Just being back with some of my best friends, especially episode one on the beach, the big dirt bike race. It’s not often I get to have a scene with everybody together, especially the Pogues. I think that was definitely a highlight, and working with an amazing stunt team on that whole sequence was something I’ve never done before and it was really fun. That was definitely the highlight, although it was pretty chilly. 

 

What was it like filming that scene?

Carlacia Grant: 35 degrees. It was so freezing, it was so cold. 

Rudy Pankow: Windchill brought it down to 20 degrees, [they’re telling us to] “Get in the water!”

Austin North: It’s not as boujee as people make it seem, but we got it done. It was a lot of fun.

 

If you guys weren’t actors right now, what would you be doing?

Rudy Pankow: If it wasn’t painting, maybe being a carpenter. 

Carlacia Grant: I’d probably go into culinary, I really like to cook, so I’d probably give that a shot. 

Austin North: Drumming was my first love, before acting, that’s what I wanted to do, and then I was like, can I make a career out of this or go into acting? But I still play drums, it would be cool to start a band, and being on tour would be extremely exciting, but I’m also an entrepreneur at the same time, so anything business related I’d be doing as well.

 

 

 

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