Peter Capaldi wanted a "more cosmic" Gideon in The Devil's Hour season 2
"I don't want grounded, I want cosmic!"
After his years of playing the Doctor in Doctor Who, Peter Capaldi has returned to another time-bending venture in The Devil's Hour season 2, revealing he asked creator Tom Moran to make his character "more cosmic".
The second instalment of the Prime Video series sees Gideon (Capaldi) and Lucy (Jessica Raine) form an uneasy alliance to prevent a recurring tragedy.
Capaldi's Gideon is a mysterious character who describes himself in season 1 as having a "complicated relationship with time" - a description that was revealed to be quite the understatement by the end of the season.
Season 1 saw Gideon locked in a cell for almost the whole run, leading Capaldi to ask writer Moran to make the character more "human".
But this time around, Gideon is free and unleashed on the world, so Capaldi wanted to bring more mystery back.
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Exclusively speaking to RadioTimes.com, Capaldi explained: "I went the other way this time, probably because there was more grounded stuff.
"Last time, it was just me in a cell, and so I requested that we give him more humanity in that what he does has a cost, because I think originally, it was slightly more veiled - I wanted to make him more vulnerable.
"But this time, because he's out and about in the world, we see him doing things and we see the cost to him, so this time I said, 'Let's make sure he's still a bit cosmic.'
"Poor Tom! I'm always asking him for more. I don't want grounded, I want cosmic this time!"
Capaldi's co-star, Jessica Raine, meanwhile, has the huge challenge of playing two different versions of her character Lucy Chambers, something she described as "amazing".
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"I took it really seriously," she explained to RadioTimes.com. "I thought really carefully about how I could define them... There is more of a thriller aspect to this series, rather than the spectral feel. So there's literally a countdown to this horrific thing that's going to happen.
"And the frazzledness of season 1 Lucy is kind of replaced with pin-sharp focus getting the job done."
She added of the main characters' evolving and incredibly complex dynamic: "The relationship between [Lucy and Gideon] in season 2 was really different and exciting to play - scratchy, grumpy, but kind of bound.
"It was such a challenge and such a joy to really get my teeth into it."
The Devil's Hour season 2 will stream on Prime Video from 18th October 2024 – you can sign up now for a free 30-day Prime Video trial.
If you’re looking for something else to watch in the meantime, check out our TV Guide and Streaming Guide, or visit our dedicated Fantasy hub. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.
