Channel Zero Debrief with Executive Producer Nick Antosca: Episode 3

A new generation of children are being influenced by Candle Cove, and in this week’s episode of Channel Zero, we see that Mike Painter is not the only one who felt the effects or suffered the consequences. In order to truly appreciate what the children of Iron Hill are going through, the adults have to be understood first. That’s where executive producer Nick Antosca comes in.

As each episode of Channel Zero airs, we’ll ask Antosca the burning questions posed by the current installment and get a glimpse into the process used to create this wholly unique horror experience. Check back each week for further insights!

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Den of Geek: The interrogation of Mike was chilling! But since everyone knows that Katie tried to kill Dane, wouldn’t that be proof that Mike isn’t responsible?

Nick: Not necessarily.  Remember, in the pilot, they suspected Mike was involved with Katie’s disappearance and learned he just got out of a psych ward.  Then he fled, and when he showed up again he had “found” Katie in a place where no one else would think to look, seemingly by coincidence — which  looked a little suspicious.  Then she tried to kill Dane with a hook.  So a reasonable person might wonder if he influenced her to do that.  It’s his job to manipulate children’s minds, after all. 

Would it be fair to say the kids who were stabbing the anatomy model were practicing for the real thing?

Yes. Tune in next week.

Were the emails and texts between Mike and Jess just fuel on the fire of Gary’s going overboard, or is there more to their relationship to be suspicious about?

Nobody understands you like someone who went to elementary school with you and saw you eat paste.  Mike and Jessica were friends since they were little kids and by age 12 there was a hint of a childhood romance.  So there’s a sense between them of connecting back to something real, a life that could have been.  Gary and Jessica have a lifetime of adulthood’s compromises and disillusionments between them.

Do we know the identity of any of the other kids that have joined Katie as viewers of Candle Cove?

They’re all local kids.  One of them, Alex Fry, is the kid whose baby teeth were stolen from his mom’s house in episode two.

Daphne and Tim have been taken out supposedly for messing with Mike Painter. Isn’t that just going to make him look more suspicious even though we know the truth about who’s responsible?

If anything it underlines the idea that Mike is somehow connected to this even if he didn’t kill them with his own hands.  Remember, Mike’s recovering from a gunshot wound and he’s just left the hospital when they get dispatched.  As for Tim and Daphne, do you think their bodies will ever be found?

What the heck was Tim doing in the woods in the first place?

After he shot Mike and fled the abandoned house, he became a fugitive from justice.  As a cop he would’ve known he couldn’t show his face anywhere around town.  He’s presumably headed to some cabin to hide out and figure out his next move when he encounters his killers.

The Toothchild has been seen seeking out Mike’s fingers but also showed up in Marla’s dreams, but he doesn’t seem to be connected to Candle Cove. Is he a separate but related being?

He’s not a puppet if that’s what you mean.  He is connected to Candle Cove, though.

Amy has never seen the show, but now she’s wrapped up in the intrigue having seen the kids acting strangely. Is this mysterious gift of mushrooms going to bring her into it even deeper?

We’ll learn early in the next episode what the mushrooms mean.  They are not from the Tooth Child, but they will be indirectly connected to a murder.

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There are so many questions that even Antosca can’t answer without spoiling things, but it’s hard not to wonder who else will lose their life before the story ends. It’s likely that no one is safe! Antosca answered these burning questions from Winnipeg where Channel Zero is currently filming its second season. The series airs on Syfy each Tuesday at 9pm ET. Remember to return each week for more insights from the show’s creator.