Harrison Abbott chats with The Umbrella Academy star David Castañeda…
Based on Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá’s series of graphic novels, The Umbrella Academy is Netflix’s latest foray into the superhero arena, one that promises to shakeup the genre with its quirky characters, distinctive style and offbeat humour.
For the uninitiated, this cult sensation is like a twisted version of the X-Men, wherein a bunch of ”gifted” youngsters are forced to attend the titular academy, in order to form an unstoppable vigilante group. They each have their own peculiar talents, like time travel, the ability to convene with the dead, and even the power to alter reality. However, unlike most super-teams, they’re also highly damaged, vulnerable and bitter about the childhood they were denied by their adoptive father, Sir Reginald Hargreeves (the comic’s equivalent to Professor X).
They consequently emerge from the experience troubled, emotionally stunted and harboring a deep resentment for one another. Upon reaching maturity, they each decide to go their separate ways and put the whole thing behind them. That is until Hargreeves dies some years later and they must all meet up again for the funeral. What follows is a typically awkward family-reunion, tainted by painful memories, passive-aggression, and unresolved baggage. Oh and there’s also the threat of an unspecified apocalypse lurking in the background as well. So yeah, a lot for them to process.
The first season of the Umbrella Academy is set to debut on 15th February. In anticipation of this, we had the opportunity to speak with David Castañeda, who plays Diego (aka ”The Kraken”), an expert knife thrower with the ability to hold his breath indefinitely. He’s also the only member of the team who continues to fight evil after they all split up, acting as kind of Batman-esque protector.
To kick things off, I thought I’d ask about how you tackled the role. Did you read the graphic novels beforehand, or did you try and come at it from a fresh perspective, so that you could define the character yourself?
To give you a clear answer, I didn’t know about the comics until after I took the part. Once it was in my hands, I then started researching the source material. You know [looking at] the people who made it: Dark House; Gerard Way; Gabriel Bá. But to be honest with you, I didn’t feel too much pressure. I think when it comes to comic books people feel a need to please the fans-
Absolutely.
But thankfully, I didn’t realise how big of a following [the novels] had, so it didn’t really occur to me. It’s such a young comic too, meaning that there was a lot of freedom to bring in my own essence.
At the end of the day, we had to take the version that Gabriel Bá and Gerard Way had created and incorporate it into what (executive producer) Steve Blackman is trying to do. Which is to ground the comic. He wanted to make sure that these Superheroes had weaknesses like everyday people.
After landing the role, did you get around to reading any of the graphic novels? Or did you restrict yourself to cursory research?
Oh yeah! I read both volumes. I read Apocalypse Suite and Dallas. I was blown away by how it was its own genre and also by the humour. Not so much in terms of the jokes that were being delivered, but in terms of the situations and how the comedy that was arising out of them.
And judging by the trailer, that sense of humor seems to have been retained and translated over into the show. How does Diego as a character fit into that aspect of things?
Well, I think there’s a comedic element in how he takes himself too seriously. The thing is, when we were shooting, there was never a moment where we were thinking ‘’Oh this is a funny line’’. It was more to do with how certain situations became funny because of our personalities. Just like in the comics.
You see, Diego’s main through line is that he wanted to be Number 1. But obviously Luther ended up in that position and so he feels a lot of resentment towards Hargrave’s because of that. For example, if you look in the trailer, there’s a scene where you see the ashes being dumped and it immediately sets the tone that Diego doesn’t appreciate what his father did to him.
And he doesn’t appreciate his siblings either. There’s a resentment that they’re not using their powers to their full capabilities, because he’s the only one going out there and trying to be a vigilante.
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