Tim Kring News

Last week, we published an interview in which Heroes creator Tim Kring came across as rather bitter about the current state of television. He even manged to insult those that watch his show at its regularly-scheduled time.

To his credit, Kring has issued a statement apologizing for the remarks:

I need to strongly apologize for the slightly mangled quote of mine that is making it's way around the internet.  It was made while trying to explain the rise in DVR and online audience for the show.

 I was making the point that these platforms now offer a superior way to watch the show (without commercials, with extra content, commentary, at the audience's convenience, etc.)  And went on to say how it's getting to the point where "watching the show on the air is relegated to the poor saps and dip****s who can't figure out how to program their DVR's".  (Or something close to that)  

It was a boneheaded attempt at being "cute" and making a point.  

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This is discouraging.

Tim Kring sat down for a panel discussion at this week's Creative Screenwriting's 2008 Screenwriting Expo. We're thankful that the Heroes creator answered every question from fans in an honest manner, but we're disappointed by the admission that the show has pretty much gotten away from Kring.

For example, comparing the series to Lost, Kring said "we didn't have an island to get off of," as he admitted there's no planned-out conclusion to the series. No wonder the episodes often seem to be pieced together at the last second, with no consistent flow to them.

What will happen to Parkman, Claire and Peter? Tim Kring doesn't know.

Here are other excerpts from Kring, none of which, sadly, gives us hope that he knows there Heroes is going:

On his original intention: "My original idea was more of an anthological vibe to it, where you regenerate the characters... I was primarily fascinated by the origin story. Once the original story is over, and the character has no more questions about what's happening or existential drama, then the questions become just about plot, and then it becomes harder for me personally to connect to.

"The problem is you run into a whole series of issues, where show and business run into each other. The network falls in love with characters, the audience falls in love with characters, the press falls in love with characters... You find yourself writing for characters you thought would be gone."

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Our site has received a number of comments that focus on its recent negativity toward the show. We greatly appreciate the feedback, but do feel the need to clarify:

The Heroes Fanatic staff loves this series. Granted, we get frustrated by certain story lines, but we tune in every week, we take the time to write episode guides, post photos, quotes, etc. We wouldn't do so if we didn't enjoy what Heroes had to offer.

Still, it's also our job to report the news - and there's no getting around the fact ratings are down 21% from last season, a pair of producers have been fired as a result, and two leading entertainment publications (TV Guide and Entertainment Weekly) have questioned whether the show will even be around for a fourth season. It would be irresponsible of us to turn a blind eye toward these developments.

Even Heroes creator Tim Kring is aware the show needs a change. He recently tole E! Online that a couple characters will soon die:

"There are a couple more deaths planned," Kring said. "Someone you have come to know will not make it to the end of the season."

Who do you think this should be? Which character would you kill off?

In a recent New York Times article, creator Tim Kring says fans will see a rebooted, improved series.

“A little absence can really be a benefit,” Kring said, to the newspaper, citing other “eventlike shows” like The Sopranos that have rebounded from long gaps between seasons. In the intervening months, he said, viewers “have seen a lot of stuff on TV that wasn’t of the quality of Heroes. I think they’ll be raring to go.”

Regarding the criticism the show was faced with last season, Kring added:

“The double-edged sword of our fan base is they have a passion for the show. And that passion cuts both ways. It cuts towards, ‘You’re the greatest thing ever’ and towards ‘You’ve disappointed me.’”

In closing, Kring said season three will start fresh.

“We are not dragging a lot of story behind us,” he said. “It you started cold, I think you could pick up the thread. That is the goal from here on out."

At least week's Saturn Awards, Heroes creator Tim Kring discussed his plans for season three, the volume entitled "Villains."

"You're going to see a lot of bad guys in this one," Kring said to Sci Fi Wire. "The idea, also, is we're playing off the idea of our characters as heroes or villains. So it's really the duality of good and evil. All of our characters were given these powers and possess these powers, and at some point it becomes sort of free will and human nature as to what you're going to do with that.

And all of us are given the choice to make decisions that lead us down very dark paths or towards heroic ends. And so, literally, every one of our characters gets faced with that dilemma."

What does the future hold for Hiro and company in season three of Heroes?

Kring also assured his fans that the new volume will try to delve deeper into the psyches of the show's characters.

"One of the things that this volume is going to do that, I think, is really going to be fun for the audience is that there were very initial sort of primal questions that the show asked," Kring said. "Who am I? What's happening to me? How am I connected? Where are these powers coming from? All of those questions get reframed and turned on their head in a very interesting way in this volume."

We can't wait to find out what that way is!

TV Guide caught up with Heroes director Tim Kring and asked him for thoughts on the winter finale to the chapter entitled "Generations."

Here are highlights of what Kring had to say:

On Elle clearly sparking when Mohinder called her a hero: "Kristen Bell gave us the perfect reaction in that scene. For a moment there, Elle sees she's been given an opportunity to use her powers in a good way. And she absolutely likes the sound of that word ‘hero.'"

On the next chapter's villains: "We've introduced a cadre of them over the course of the show and we're going to see them rise up. Just as the heroes have found each other to save the world, the villains will do the same with the opposite intent... The Company has catalogued many of these people over the years. There may be more of them down in that basement than we have alluded to so far."

On the one upside to the writer's stirke: "Sylar getting his power back does not bode well for our heroes. Originally, Zachary Quinto was not going to be available for much of Volume 3 because of his commitment to the new Star Trek film. Now, with the strike dragging on, he'll likely be done playing young Spock by the time Heroes returns to production."

Good news, fans, that photo of the older generation of Heroes won't be the last we see of these characters and actors.

"We will be seeing the people... in the photo," Tim Kring said during an October 16 conference call with reporters. "I think all of them will be [played by the actors in the photo]. I just have to tell you, the photo has got a life of its own, because, logistically, it was so difficult to actually come up with this photograph that's used now and refers to things that are shot well in the future here.

It was very difficult to get that all lined up. But, yes, the photo is as accurate as we can make it."

For now, the most important new character in the photo is the father of Matt Parkman (Greg Grunberg), who will be tracked down in tonight's new episode.

The photo also featured the by-now familiar faces of Daniel Linderman (Malcolm McDowell), Charles Deveaux (Richard Roundtree), Angela Petrelli (Cristine Rose), Bob (Stephen Tobolowsky) and Kaito Nakamura (George Takei).

Do you love Heroes for the characters or rather unique talents of these characters?

When Tim Kring created the show, he barely even focused on the latter. This isn't exactly a man familiar with the world of science fiction.

 "I have very little knowledge of the sci-fi world — and almost none of the comic book world," Kring said in a recent conference call. "So, my influences ... came from just the idea of basic storytelling and character development."

Kring said his 22-year background in television provided him with training in character development and allowed him to approach a superpowers show from a different perspective. The journey of each individual is more of a focus for him than how far each can fly, time travel, etc.

"I chose to approach this material almost entirely from the idea of who these characters were," Kring said. "I created the powers to reflect who the characters were, and not the other way around.

"So, I didn't start off by saying I want a guy who can teleport. I started off by saying I wanted a guy who felt trapped in a life that was not his dream and what could be a power that would be most wish-fulfilling for that character? And that was the ability to teleport out of that life. So, that's how I sort of approached it."

Masi Oka, the man whose character can teleport, isn't shy about his love of science fiction, however. He lets his geek flag fly as he portrays Hiro, a somewhat geeky computer and anime fan from Tokyo.

"If I can represent the geeks, I'm very fortunate to be able to do that. For me, the notion of a geek has always been someone who's passionate about something — whether it's computers, ant farms or musicals, or storytelling or paperweights — whatever it is," he said.

"That's what makes us human. It defines us as individuals. It gives us our uniqueness. And I think it's more human, it's more us. It's more commendable to be a geek — and be passionate about something — than be apathetic about everything."

Masi Oka is a natural born Hiro.

As we all know, but The Boston Herald recently detailed, The Japan-born, California-raised actor nabbed an Emmy nomination for his role as Hiro Nakamura, a computer programmer turned time-traveling protagonist on the NBC hit drama Heroes.

The series, which begins its second season Sept. 24, also earned an Emmy nod in the best show category.

"Personally, it is definitely an honor," Oka said of his nomination. "To be part of this ensemble is just a gift. To have an Emmy nom is a cherry on top. We're all proud of it."

Heroes -  the standout hit of last season, also stars Ali Larter ("Final Destination"), Milo Ventimiglia ("Gilmore Girls") and Hayden Panettiere ("Ice Princess") as everyday people with superhuman abilities. But the show's moral compass, Hiro, almost wasn't part of the show, creator Tim Kring said during a recent conference call with reporters.

"When I read the first draft of the script, the character (Hiro) didn't actually exist. There were a preponderance of characters that felt these powers were an affliction. The character was created to lighten up the initial script," said Kring, whose writing credits also include "Crossing Jordan" and "Providence."

Luckily, for Oka and for viewers, Kring opted for a positive presence.

"He embodies the sense of the Everyman. He kept his dream. To be able to live vicariously, to live my dreams through his dreams, is fantastic," said Oka, 32.

Oka and Hiro share some similarities - Oka is trained in Kendo, Japanese sword fighting, and Hiro battled the heroes' nemesis Sylar (Zachary Quinto) with an ancient Kensei sword - but Oka turns to real-life heroes for inspiration, not anime comic books as Hiro does.

"My real-life hero is my mother. Growing up, being raised by a single mom who came from Japan to America (to give me a better life) and gave up her entire life for me, I will never be able to repay what my mom has done for me," Oka said.

The Brown University graduate also works for George Lucas' Industrial Light & Magic special effects company when not acting.

With the season one DVD release scheduled for Aug. 28 and the Emmy Awards on Sept. 16, Oka and Kring hope to maintain the show's momentum throughout the fall.

"It's not pressure to top it, it's pressure to keep it going. A show like this or this particular show has been defined by its ability to defy your expectations. People want to watch it because they don't know where it is going to take them. We have extraordinary staff and cast," said Kring. "We are on a big roll right now."

Perhaps more than any other show on TV, Heroes does a tremendous job of selling itself.

Therefore, it comes as no shock that - fresh off a popular panel discussion at Comic-Con - two main influences behind Heroes sat in on a conference call with journalists this morning.

Masi Oka and Tim Kring talked about the second season, while also revealing intriguing details about the initial few episodes.

One interesting detail revealed right away was that Masi's character, Hiro Nakamura, did NOT exist in the original script for the Heroes pilot. When Kring looked at the bulk of dark and conflicted characters, though, he felt the show needed someone who really wanted to be a hero.

The creator also indicated there will be more fan-friendly casting in season two, similar to the choice to use George Takei as Hiro's father. Kring didn't wanna give away too many Heroes spoilers, but promised that the next special actor's appearance would evoke a similar response.

The stars were then asked about their real-life heroes. Oka talked about his mother who raised him as a single parents and brought him to America; for Kring, it's the people who work mostly anonymously in small charity organizations, as opposed to those that seek celebrity through their efforts.

When reported brought up the chance that Heroes would win the Best Drama prize at the Emmys, Kring made it clear that The Sopranos will be difficult to beat. And he's right. There's no chance any other program wins that trophy this year.

Oka, who is nominated for Best Supporting Actor, was quite humble in discussing his odds, focusing instead on the validation that comes with just being nominated.

On the brand expansion side of things, Kring detailed a new project waiting in the wings that will be a hard-covered graphic novel that collects the online comics that covered events between episodes. Sounds great to us.

Remember: The Heroes season 1 DVD comes out August 28; and the second season premieres Monday, September 24.