“Falling Skies” final season premieres Sunday

Clanton native Drew Roy plays Hal in TNT's sci-fi drama, "Falling Skies."

Clanton native Drew Roy plays Hal in TNT’s sci-fi drama, “Falling Skies.”

 

After fighting the final battle against the alien force in TNT’s sci-fi drama, “Falling Skies,” actor Drew Roy is “excited” to see the audience’s reaction to the most “fast-paced and dark” season yet.

Roy, originally from Clanton, plays Hal Mason in the series, which will premiere its fifth and final season Sunday, June 28 at 9 p.m. Central Time.

“Falling Skies” opens in the chaotic aftermath of an alien attack, in which a small group of survivors have banded together.

Tom Mason (Noah Wyle) is the group leader, and Hal (Roy) is his oldest son, who proves to be a growing fighter in the resistance movement against the alien force.

According to Roy, the final season wraps up the storyline and provides a thrilling final battle between the human survivors and alien powers.

“The one thing I can guarantee is that we’re really going to wrap everything up,” Roy said. “I know what’s going to happen in the final episode, but I’m excited to see how the computer-generated images will look. They’re putting the final touches on it now.”

While Roy said that his personality isn’t dissimilar from Hal’s, he tends to “over-think things,” while Hal is quick to act on impulse.

Roy also shared that people may be surprised to find out just how much work it takes to film a TV show.

“People don’t believe me when I tell them there might be hundreds of people on set at any given time,” Roy said. “We shoot at different times each day, usually five days a week for about 12-15 hours each day. But it’s a lot of fun and we all get along so great.”

Simulating realistic emotions is a huge component of acting, and Roy said he is always searching for new creative techniques or studying other actors.

“The most important thing, for me, is to notice how I react to certain situations in everyday life,” Roy said. “You have to listen to the rhythm of conversations, notice how emotions build and use those things to make your acting more like real life.”

While each emotion is difficult to master in its own way, Roy said he most enjoys coming into a scene “normal” and showing his emotions elevate.

“I hate coming into a scene already mad or already a certain way. It’s fun to let that build on screen,” Roy said. “I’ve always been able to laugh really well. It’s just easy; you look at another actor, start laughing, and you just build off of each other.”

Residing in Los Angeles and acting is still “surreal” to Roy, who enjoys visiting his hometown of Clanton when he gets the chance.

“It’s been such a joy to have so much support from my hometown,” Roy said. “I’ll be at Walmart or Durbin’s in Clanton talking to an old friend, and there’s nothing weird about it. People are excited for me.”

Roy has also appeared in episodes of “Hannah Montana” and “iCarly,” the film “Secretariat” and several other movies and TV series, though Roy said he enjoyed acting in the sci-fi drama.

“I do like things that have a war setting and historical period stuff,” Roy said. “But the way I look at it, whatever is telling the best story is what I’d like to do. I would never shy away from anything just because it’s a specific genre.”

As the series comes to a close, Roy looks back on his favorite memories on the set.

“In the third season, Hal becomes possessed by aliens, and it brought out an evil side of him,” Roy said. “‘Evil Hal’ was probably my favorite episode. It was quite fun and entertaining.”

Without giving any “major spoilers,” Roy shared that there will some human versus human situations that will raise the tension between the survivors.

In addition to the building tension, Hal gets himself into some pretty odd, but compelling situations, according to Roy.

“It’s been a fun transition as Hal has moved from a naïve and bullheaded character to a leader and valuable asset for his father in the show,” Roy said. “Things are always changing. It keeps the human relationships interesting.”

For now, Roy is looking forward to watching the final season, auditioning for more roles and attending acting classes to keep his skills up to par.

“There are definitely no breaks,” Roy said laughingly. “It’s definitely a competitive business, but even after 11 years, I’ve never once been bored with it.”

 

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