Ten minute TV? That might sound a bit crazy or foreign to what we’re used to, but Quibi, the new short-form mobile video platform has mastered the art of ten minute entertainment, and has a whole slew of amusing and quirky shows to prove it.
In the new Quibi series ‘The Fugitive,’ audiences will get the chance to revisit a classic story with a new modern and contemporary twist. Boyd Holbrook plays Mike Ferro, a new father who is fresh out of prison for a crime he didn’t commit. Ferro has the unfortunate luck of being accused yet again of another disastrous and fatal crime, this time the accuser takes the form of a tweet and once that goes viral, he has to go on the run to try to evade being captured by detective Clay Bryce [Kiefer Sutherland].
Holbrook sat down with Metro to discuss more on what went into making the show and why he thinks this rendition of the classic story is more contemporary and socially conscious than ever.
What was the initial intrigue for you to want to sign on with this particular project?
I thought this was a really modern take on that classic action-thriller film that I loved as a kid, and I thought it had a really cool modern twist on it. We’re re-making things now from Marvel to Shakespeare and all this, and I thought it was a really great story and a great character for me to play in this kind of world where people tweet something and confirm the facts later—I thought it was contemporary in that way.
How would you describe the show?
It’s not a remake, so if you don’t know anything from the movie or television series, that’s great. It’s just a take on the theme of a fugitive and the variations of that. I play Mike Ferro, who’s a father and a husband and just got out of prison for a crime he didn’t commit. Now, he’s going through this all again through these social media outlets and umbrellas that are putting out this news whether it’s fact or fiction. So, he’s on the run now and is desperately trying to reclaim his name, or clear his name I should say.
Did you do anything specific to get ready for this particular role?
You know, not really. What I liked about playing Mike Ferro is that he’s an average everyday man. So, he’s not this buff guy out there jumping fences and stuff like that, he’s really just normal.
What do you think of the Quibi model as a whole?
Personally, I watch or listen to podcasts or audiobooks in that sort of timeframe. I am a new dad, working at home and I pop on to YouTube or something and I’m watching content that way, that’s how I’m interacting with it. I think it’s a really interesting place and an innovative place for artists especially to try unique sort of outlets of filmmaking that you really are limited to in a long series platform line, especially in a theatrical way, too.
Could you see this being the start of maybe similar content-viewing models coming out?
I absolutely think so. I was kind of on the front lines I guess you could say with Netflix and ‘Narcos,’ those series were becoming hot. For us, making the show though, we couldn’t really tell a difference in sort of how the day to day operations went. You have the same sort of day, just arranged slightly different. Almost like making a short film because you’re building up to these sequences, which is sort of what Quibi is really good at, creating content that is looping other content into cliffhangers.
Do you enjoy getting to do the more action-packed type of roles?
You know, that’s kind of why I wanted to sign on with this project. I’ve been fortunate enough as an actor to be able to do these different types of [roles] because in terms of my personal balance, I don’t like doing the same thing over and over again as an actor. I think a lot of actors relate to this and they want to play something different. You want to stretch your muscles in different ways and try on different hats.
How was it working with the rest of the cast and Stephen Hopkins as a director?
Brian Geraghty is an actor that I’ve been a fan of for a while and I was really excited when he came onboard. So, getting to know him and working with him was a really great pleasure. We have a great dynamic in the show together and it was really some great content there. Then Kiefer and Steven has this great rapport and this incredible shorthand from working on ’24’ together and I was really curious to see that dynamic go. Those guys together definitely have a flow. Kiefer is probably one of the most focused people and it was refreshing and cool to see—he’s been around and has been doing incredible work for a long amount of time so it was nice to see that was still fresh and on everyday.
After working with Quibi, is this something you would want to tackle again?
I think what Jeffrey Katzenberg is doing, there’s going to be a lot of storied content that I’m sure I’m going to find appealing. His sort of haste-maker sensibility and being on the pulse of what’s going on in the world today, I think he’s so sharp in that aspect. So the door is totally wide open for me.
Overall what do you hope audiences take away from the series after getting to watch it?
I think there’s a commentary that’s going on with social media and how it can sort of pick up an individual’s life and leave it for dead and then pick up someone else. I think it’s a real sharp commentary on that and I think it will make people have more insight and more perspective on what’s happening.
‘The Fugitive’ is now available to stream on Quibi.
