‘Titans’ New Robin Actor Curran Walters Sheds Light on Jason Todd’s Darkness

The latest episode of Titans forced Dick Grayson to team up with his replacement as Robin, bringing Jason Todd to live action for the first time in the character’s history.

But the new Robin has a mean streak, brutally beating both criminals and police officers alike as well as picking fights with anyone for any perceived sleights.

We caught up with Jason Todd actor Curran Walters, who shed some insight into his role as Jason Todd, and discussed whether he would return to the series after the latest team-up episode.

Warning: Spoilers for the Titans episode “Jason Todd” below.

ComicBook.com: Did you know what you were auditioning for when you went in for the role?

Curran Walters: I was familiar with the show, but I wasn’t all that familiar with the character. I grew up watching Teen Titans, which was pretty cool, so I was pretty ecstatic to go in for that, but [was unfamiliar] with the character, but I did a little research before I auditioned so.

What storylines popped out at you for your portrayal of Jason Todd?

Before any audition, I always do a little bit of research especially when you have that many resources on such a character. I think the hardest part for me with Jason Todd was just like transforming between the fun and the dark side that Jason has. Other than that it was pretty simple, it was pretty easy auditioning process too, which is awesome.

How physical was the role? There’s a lot of action in it; how much training did you have to do? What choreography did you have to learn?

We had a great [stunt team] in Toronto, but they worked me out as much as possible, and you know it really –it was awesome. ‘Cause I got to get my ass in shape too.

How long were you on the set for?

Like up there fully? I would say a couple months, but you know it varies on how many times a week you work or whatnot. So, yeah, it’s all just a part of production.

So we will see Robin again in the future?

Well next episode of course the title’s “Jason Todd”, but you know in the future who knows. Geoff Johns and Akiva Goldsman are great writers, and they know what they’re doing, but I really hope so, and Jason Todd has a lot more to show.

We kind of saw a hint to this with his violent tendencies. What do you want to see explored with this character? Like what would you want to see for the future of Jason Todd?

You know what man, I would just love to show the fans the full Jason Todd storyline, but yeah, like you said, you see a roughness [in] Jason… almost sort of a big chip on his shoulder. And you see him transform in the next episode between that fun cocky Jason Todd at the end and then you see him get pretty gnarly, and you know we’ll see where his character goes, but I would love to have the comic book fans have what they want.

So do you think we’ll see maybe like the Joker in this? Because Joker’s such a pivotal character in his past, so do you think that they would give you that storyline?

I don’t know anything on that yet man. I would love to know.

It’s interesting that they’re doing a Batman show without Batman, and showing the effects that he has on all these characters.

Oh absolutely… I think this is something that comic book fans have been waiting for for a really long time. And you know the shows gotten an [amazing] response. Especially with Jason Todd, I feel like he hasn’t been played in forever in what? 35 years since he was developed, and I think this is history in the making… I have some pressure, but I have a bit of freedom to bring the character to life. Be the first one to ever play it, so it’s a lot of fun to me.

What was the like for the Robin costume, because I’ve heard the costumes for Brenton Thwaites was a little intense. So how was your experience in that costume?

Yeah, Brenton and I actually chatted about that quite a bit. It’s funny. It’s fun. I think like he said in one of his interviews there’s a lot of tights, but I didn’t feel like Robin until I put on that chest plate. That was like the moment where I like looked in the mirror and I was like, “OK this is badass.” We had a great costume team. They put a lot of work into it and they look amazing, so props to them.

What were some of your favorite moments on set? Was there any moment where you were awestruck? Was it surreal in any way?

You saw at the end of last episode when I saved Dick, and after reading the comics, it was pretty cool. I felt that when I was doing that scene, that it was history in the making and it is. So I think that was one of my favorites right there that’s all. But you know you have a tiny bit of glimpse of next episode and that scene with me, Rachel, and Gar, and that is a really really fun scene right there.

So what were some of your favorite Jason Todd stories that you read in your research?

You know I read up, my two favorites have to be [Batman] #408 and #409 when [Jason tries to steal] the Batmobile tires and the next one, Batman kind of takes Jason under his wing at at the end and the first time you see Batman call Jason, “Robin,” which is awesome. Everything in Jason’s story to me is unique. Everything from his relationship with Batman and Dick to, in the comics, becoming Red Hood, which is amazing. So it’s all fun. I love every aspect of Jason Todd.

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The new Robin has a major impact on the latest episode of Titans, called “Jason Todd,” which is streaming now on DC Universe.