Power Rangers Dino Fury’s Hunter Deno Talks Kimberly Comparisons, Cast Chemistry, and More

Power Rangers Dino Fury delivered a stellar first season, and thankfully fans can look forward to a season 2 coming to Netflix next year. The cast is a huge part of what makes the season so enjoyable, and that includes the delightful Hunter Deno, who plays Dino Fury’s Pink Ranger Amelia Jones. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to talk to Deno all about the first season, as well as the chemistry between the cast, the bond between Amelia and Pop-Pop, and the frequent comparisons to the beloved Mighty Morphin Pink Ranger Kimberly. The praise is well deserved, both for Deno and the show overall, and she’s thrilled just to be mentioned in the same company as a beloved Ranger like Kim.

“Ahh, it’s so crazy. Ahh, it’s just something that, every tweet or comment or post or anything that even relates me to any of the OGs and the higher-ups in the rankings, or however you want to say that, it’s crazy too, one, even just think that I am in the same franchise as them. In the same legacy. I am the next one in line and all that stuff,” Deno said. “It gets me every single time when someone puts me in the same bit as those people, because it’s just like, ‘Wow, I am a part of this. I am the Pink Ranger.’ I feel like I still haven’t grasped the fact of what an impact it is. It’s like, every time I see something that compares me close to them, I’m just like, Is this real life?”

Looking back at when the season’s filming started, we asked if Deno could go back and give herself some advice at the start of this journey, what would it be.

“Just to trust the people who gave me this opportunity,” Deno said. “They wouldn’t have given it to me if they didn’t believe in me. I feel like I probably put a lot of pressure on myself in the beginning, because I thought I was auditioning for the Yellow Ranger, so it was just a mindset in that and everything. Then, as soon as I heard Pink, I was like, Okay, I already knew the shoes were going to be hard to fill, regardless of what color ranger I was, but, hearing that I was Pink was quite exciting. Just, trust myself a little more, because I probably put too much pressure on myself.”

The casting certainly knocked it out of the park with Dino Fury, and the chemistry between everyone is part of what makes this season so special.

“Oh, they did incredible. I can’t believe how well. First of all, the chemistry between me and the rest of the cast was just immediate. They couldn’t have chosen a better cast to create this story together, because I think even if one of us was different, it wouldn’t have felt the same,” Deno said. “Kudos to Iris and Simon and the writers and anybody else involved in casting us, because I’m so thankful that they were the cast chosen for us to all work together, because wow, incredible. So good.”

Another delightful aspect of the show is how it presents something that’s charming and funny upfront, but then as the show goes on we see more and more depth behind that idea. This is evident in Amelia’s focus on the paranormal, which is played for laughs early on but later is revealed to have a much more significant and heartfelt meaning. “Yeah, there’s a reason. There’s reasons for her madness,” Deno said.

That is linked to her missing parents, and in McScary Manor we see some of that come to light in a wonderful conversation with Pop-Pop, played by Greg Johnson.

“Greg is incredible. The first day we worked together was one of the unlucky episode scenes. That was the first time we ever met him and he just fit right in,” Deno said. “He is just like Pop-Pop, in the sense of being a character. Greg is absolutely phenomenal, I love working with him. He takes his job very seriously and it’s so nice because we were filming a different block before that and Charlie had made it a point for me and Pop-Pop and Charlie, the director, to sit down and discuss that scene.”

Deno wasn’t able to be in the suit to talk to Greg, so it took a bit of television magic to bring it to life. “Just because of scheduling and being on different units and stuff, I wasn’t able to be Pink Ranger talking to him on the stairs. I actually was just off the side, reading my lines, so that he could actually hear my voice and interact with it, so that he could just be the most authentic for that scene,” Deno said. “He knocked it out of the park. I was off to the side, reading off the script and I was like, ‘Oh gosh, it’s my turn.’ It was like, ‘Oh gosh.’ I’m focusing on his acting and everything. I’m like, ‘Okay, I have to be good for him off the side.’ Greg’s amazing.”

Power Rangers Dino Fury season 1 is available to stream on Netflix now, and season 2 is headed to Netflix next year.

What do you want to see from Amelia in season 2? Let us know in the comments and as always you can talk all things Power Rangers with me on Twitter @MattAguilarCB!