All good things must come to an end, and so must Alex Rider, the series by creator Guy Burt based on Anthony Horowitz’s novels. After three seasons, it’s time to say goodbye to Alex, Tom, Kyra, etc., but not before we spoke to executive producer Eve Gutierrez, who was on board from the very first episode, and actress Sofia Helin, who joined the Alex Rider universe this season as the mysterious and manipulative Julia Rothman.
Geek Vibes Nation: Congratulations on the new season. Eve, I’m going to start with you. This is your third season as an executive producer. What about the Alex Rider books and the series made you want to say yes to this?
Eve Gutierrez (executive producer): I have known the books for a long time. I’ve read several of them over the years. And I was always astounded that these books are primarily written for young adults. But I met many adults like myself who were reading the books and enjoying them. What I have always loved about the writing is that the character of Alex gets richer and deeper across the series of books. When the opportunity came up to talk about the series and get involved, we were excited about taking that incredible depth of character that Anthony had written.
And obviously, he’s written the books over a long time. Alex has gone on a big journey as a character, even though he has yet to age much in the books. There was great excitement to take some of those real emotional deep things of the later books and bring them forward so that they would feel like it would be a fresh experience for people already familiar with the books. The world has changed significantly since the early books were published. And yet, the big themes of the books remain relevant. We were thrilled to be given this opportunity.
GVN: Sofia, you joined Alex Rider this season and played a vital role. How was it to join the series?
Sofia Helin (actress): It was exciting to be offered this part and to realise what a universe the Alex Rider universe is and to dive into it because I had no idea what it was before I joined the series. When I read the script and realized what kind of character Julia was, I was so thrilled.
GVN: Did you do anything special to prepare to play your character? Like delving into the book?
SH: Pure from the script from my side, and I very much imagined her inner dialogue and how she motivated her choices. Since she’s far from who I am, it was a lot about imagination.
GVN: Eve, you already mentioned that you could indeed see the transformation of the characters. How was it to see the actors grow equally? I also chatted with them, and they said, “Oh, we were just babies at the beginning of this. And now look at us.”
EG: I’m like some auntie to them all, I suppose. It’s been a joy to see them grow, gain confidence, and learn to inhabit their own skin. In many little ways, they’ve mirrored the journey that the characters within the story have gone on to. They’re incredibly talented. This season makes me realise how fortunate we were to find such great chemistry. In the original casting process for the characters of Alex and Tom, we were very conscious that they needed this fantastic chemistry. When we were doing the original casting, it was very much looking at all three of those roles at the same time.
GVN: And did you also do the casting for Sofia’s role?
EG: Yes, very much. I’m involved in the casting of all the shows. And I just have to say, I was such an incredible fan of Sofia before she agreed to come and do Alex Rider that I was wild with excitement when she joined the team.
SH: Thank you.
GVN: And Sofia, how has it been for you to be on set? Most of the time, your character is in a basement-like HQ. How has it been for you to work in such an environment?
SH: It was like a labyrinth, so it was hard for me to find my way sometimes because it was dark and underground. It affected the atmosphere in a good way.
GVN: Eve, for this season, you guys went to Malta. How was it to film in such a beautiful location?
EG: It was amazing to film in Malta. It’s an extraordinary island in its geography and architecture; North Africa and Europe influence it. That incredible history mixed with our proximity to water was just amazing. In the original book, Scorpia’s base is just outside Venice, a far less practical place to shoot. And with Anthony Horowitz’s blessing, we decided that Malta felt like a better home for that organisation. Therefore, we were able to build a relationship with the water and these incredible elements. We were able to achieve this because Malta is a particularly film-friendly location.
GVN: The fact that you were able to shoot there and, like, not only in the UK, does it make you realize even more how popular the series is?
EG: Yes. We also shot in the UK. So the story starts in Malta, but it comes back to the UK for the later episodes. That ‘coming back to the UK’ has been something that we’ve done in all three seasons of the show. Deliberately, we wanted Alex to feel that pull between international life as a spy, the reality of home, and what he’s missing out on in a stable, normal family environment.
GVN: Sofia, how was it then for you to film with Otto [Farrant, Alex Rider]? You guys have a lot of scenes together.
SH: He was so welcoming, and it was so easy to start acting with him. I guess it’s also a matter of the dynamics in the scenes that connect us very much. I’m interested in what will happen to him as an actor. He’s interesting. He’s an exciting actor to meet. We didn’t meet before I came on board, but we were lucky to have good chemistry and could work with that. The cast were all wonderful people. It was a special start because I got COVID the first few days. So I had to do the fittings of the wig, clothes, and so on outside. And everybody was helping me and trying to make it work. It was complicated but also a speedy way to get to know each other.
GVN: And do you still remember the first scene that you shot?
SH: Yes, I do. It was her trying to seduce Alex into her world.
GVN: Eve, speaking of Otto, he’s also an executive producer of this season. How did the decision come about?
EG: It was like a natural progression. He’s been incredibly invested in the show since the beginning—in fact, all the cast have—but it felt like a natural progression for him to take on that role and experience some of the other decisions that we make around production that aren’t purely from an acting point of view. And I think he enjoyed it.
GVN: Because this is the last season, how was it for you to watch that very last episode?
EG: We very much view this season as the final season in this chapter, but of course, there are many Alex Rider books still unfilmed. There was always a very, very strong arc in our minds for Alex, his relationship with the department, and his growing relationship with Scorpia. So these three elements sat very clearly in a fantastic emotional arc for the character. And yes, it was incredibly emotional.
I have to be honest: when we finally wrapped the series, we were enormously grateful for many of the people involved, not only the cast who have been with us across three seasons or at least two seasons but also the crew who have loved and nurtured the project with us and helped us deliver this series. There is still space and hope for more Alex Rider. It’s nice that there’s still hope because I’m sure everyone, like the actors, would love to do it.
GVN: Do you already have upcoming projects?
EG: My next project is Nine Bodies in a Mexican Morgue, which we are now in pre-production.
SH: I also had another show called Fallen with one of the writers of The Bridge, and it just came out. I’m busy, and I’m happy.
Alex Rider: Season 3 is out now on Prime Video. Check our review here.
Lovely interview. Do you think there is a Chance for a season 4 with the same cast? Did you interview Otto/Brenock/Marli, too?
Yes the interview with Otto and Brenock can be found here