Spoilers for season one of Westworld below!
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The television industry is currently thriving with complex, captivating shows, in an era that many have been calling ‘peak tv’. With so many different shows for fans to sink their teeth into, it should be no surprise that fan theories seem almost prevalent than ever. Recent hits such as Mr. Robot, Legion, and even The Walking Dead have sparked a flurry of online debate and speculation amongst their viewers.
Another show that knows this phenomenon well is Westworld. HBO‘s reboot series of the 1973 film became one of the breakout hits of last year, with the help of the show’s impressive production value and complex storytelling. That later facet caused the show to be heavily deconstructed amongst avid viewers, with many constructing their own fan theories surrounding even the smallest elements of the show’s ambitious world.
As it turns out, Westworld‘s showrunners have very mixed emotions about this response from their fanbase. While speaking at the show’s PaleyFest panel, Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy addressed how the theorizing amongst superfans affected the overall response to the show.
“It’s annoying sometimes when people guess the twists and then blog about it.” Nolan explained. “But the engagement is gratifying, on one level, because if someone guesses your twist, it means you’ve done an adequate job [of structuring the series]. You can’t complain when people are that engaged. It’s very gratifying — but stop doing it, please.”
Given the events that have happened so far on Westworld, this response is absolutely valid. Despite many of the major plot twists within the show’s first season – namely Bernard Lowe (Jeffrey Wright) being the cloned host version of one of the park’s creators, as well as the highly-discussed Dual Timelines theory – being well-received and ultimately earned within the world of the show, they were all theories that fans had begun positing earlier on in the ten-episode run.
So how will this level of engagement affect the plot of the show’s sophomore season? Nolan jokingly mentioned that one particular faction of the fandom has caused the duo to write much more on their toes.
“We’re writing right now — we’re terribly excited about what we’re writing. Reddit has already figured out the third episode twist, so we’re changing that right now.”
Westworld returns for a second season in 2018.
MORE WESTWORLD NEWS: ·Louis Herthum Promoted To Series Regular In Season 2
·Will The Man In Black Enter Samurai World In Season 2?
·Thandie Newton Says Westworld Is “Part Of The Solution”
·Westworld Creators Confirm Major Season 1 Finale Theory
(via Deadline)
