More than 10 years ago, Hurricane Sandy clean up $70 billion worth of bonds when they flooded an underground vault owned by the Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation, with no trace of where they had gone. Two years later, writer-producer Eric Garcia separately pitched an idea for a series that could be viewed in random order, he wrote in an email to a director friend at the time. These two different strands will eventually come together to unlock “Kaleidoscope,” Netflix’s nonlinear heist show starring Giancarlo Esposito as the mastermind behind a high-stakes vault robbery.
“I said, ‘I don’t think we need to see the show in order, necessarily, and I don’t know how it’s going to work, but I have this one-page concept of what to do,'” Garcia, who created the show made, recalled in an interview with TheWrap. “And over time, when I started researching it, we started bringing them together and realized that this structure is probably the best way to tell a story about a heist in which the characters are not necessarily what they say. That they are, isn’t necessarily the motivations they think they have. And you can approach this from different angles.
Indeed, Netflix says there are 5,040 possible viewing orders for the thriller-drama as the definitive series finale with viewers set “white” according to the streamer’s algorithm.
“‘White’ is the only one where if you watch it at first, I think you’re like ‘What’s up?’ It’s all twists and turns and answers and things you find out that really just refer back to something we’ve seen before, Garcia explained.
To properly craft the show’s structure and anthology-like, self-contained episodes, Garcia said his writers’ room approached each installment with fresh eyes, creating narratives that would make sense for those viewers. came in who were entering the story at that particular moment.
“Every episode had a different whiteboard; We had a lot of whiteboards, and we had a lot of wires,” Garcia said. “And we’d be like, ‘How do we pilot that?’ Couldn’t test all 5,040 ways, but we can at least say ‘well, if we start with this, what do we think about the characters?’ And we would literally be like, ‘If you start with this episode, what is the show about?’
Chronologically, “Kaleidoscope” takes place over a quarter of a century, starting 24 years before the great heist and reaching six months after the heist of the vault. With each color-specific episode, Garcia was intentional about how viewers might see the crux of the overarching story: for example, if a viewer entered the show with “Violet”—the origin story episode—” His understanding of “Kaleidoscope” is colored by the betrayal of a young thief who attempts to heal his family; If “Yellow” is the starting point, then “Kaleidoscope” is about a ragtag crew only being assembled in “Money Heist”-style. With each episode, Garcia also drew from countless crime drama predecessors.
“‘Red’ is a lot more of our ‘Reservoir Dogs’ episode, so to speak, ‘Yellow’ is a lot more mischievous in ‘Ocean’s’ slash ‘Italian Job,'” he explained. “‘In Pink,’ we started getting into deeper Soderbergh-y stuff and even things like ‘Point Blank.’ ‘Violet’ is — one of my favorite movies is ‘Thief’ Michael Mann.” ‘Orange’ hits ‘Heat’ stuff. And then ‘White’ is the granddaddy of them all, ‘Riffify’.
“Kaleidoscope” clings to genre-specific tropes, weaving a tale of redemption, retribution, generational trauma and healing largely through the strained relationship between Esposito’s Ray Vernon/Leo Papp and his daughter, Hannah (Tati Gabrielle). , who is caught unawares. in the midst of his criminal endeavors.
“The thing about all these characters and I think what the structure speaks to and really what we’re trying to do with the show is we’re all round creatures, we can’t get out of our own way,” Garcia said. Huh.” , “We all have our addictions. We all have our needs, be it our passion, be it revenge, or whatever.
Esposito, a veteran character actor and five-time Emmy nominee for “Breaking Bad,” echoes Garcia’s sentiments, saying, “Leo’s journey is one of trying to leave his demons behind and live a sober, honest life.” But I had to let go of the idea of what people might think. And isn’t that just what we all have to do to believe in ourselves, no matter what age we are today?”
Gabriel, who is best known for his scene-stealing appearances in “Chilling Adventures of Sabrina,” “You” and “Uncharted,” said he’d love to see “any little silliness” in a series like “Scavenger Hunt.” Excited for the channel. for her portrayal of the character, describing Hannah as someone who has to remain neutral and calm towards others while carrying a pile of emotional baggage and information. The actress added, “She has the weight of the world on her shoulders, but she’s walking on such air.”
He continued, “As [Hannah] understands, or attempts to understand, why Ray did what she did, she softens and is able to take that little girl [her past] with more power.
Just as Hannah is able to break out of the cycle of hurt and revenge in her family, Esposito said that playing Leo/Ray was akin to her own personal journey. Initially, the actor delved deeply into the unique format of the show before focusing more on the emotional maturity of his character.
“Because I realized that the most valuable thing is to live in the present. I was really excited about going back in time 24 years and at one point thought it might not happen,” said the actor, referring to his Broadway turn in Stephen Sondheim’s “Merrily We Roll Along”. Reminiscing, which traces the relationships between the characters across several decades.
He continued, “The exciting part of this journey for me was keeping all the information from all the episodes; Now as I get more mature in life, I realize that I look back more than I do at cultivating my life or knowing what the rest of it will be like… all those experiences Imagine what is about to happen in this moment. And that was the wonderful and fascinating thing about ‘Kaleidoscope’. You had all these elements that make up a person, all of our people, all the characters, the relationships, and you get to really get to the bottom of it and understand what these relationships are, how they threaten each other. How they inform, how they support each other, how they fail each other.
Esposito, who has four daughters, said he can sympathize with Leo’s missteps because “parents are unsure that you’re making the right move, that you’re showing the right part of yourself.” That personal connection helped him grow as both an artist and a person, and it’s something he believes can help others grow.
“We all have our own family journeys, but people have lost a lot in their lives and it’s going to play into healing to hold their backs and carry anger and resentment with them,” she said. “It helped me get going. And it helped me create great entertainment and with a great scene partner that I think is heartwarming.”
‘Kaleidoscope’ is now streaming on Netflix.
