Summary
- The ultraviolence and irreverent humor of Peacock's Twisted Metal series kept viewers engaged, despite negative opinions from fans of the original game franchise.
- Stephanie Beatriz, co-lead of the series, revealed in an interview that she almost hit her co-star Anthony Mackie with an axe while filming, highlighting the dangerous action on set.
- Twisted Metal allowed Beatriz to showcase her more deranged and cynical side, different from her role in Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and the characters experienced genuine personal growth throughout the series.
The ultraviolence in Peacock's Twisted Metal series kept viewers returning for more, along with the irreverent humor and Anthony Mackie. But some of the action almost went a bit above and beyond thanks to series co-lead Stephanie Beatriz.
Despite the low opinion of the Twisted Metal series from fans of the original game franchise, the show managed to wrangle a respectable audience. In all fairness, the premise of a post-apocalyptic car-centric story filled with explosions and a deranged clown voiced by Will Arnett would be enough to lure anybody through the door. But there's no denying the Twisted Metal series made an impression. However, that impression was almost a lot more permanent in one case.
In a pre-strike interview with NBC, Beatriz spoke about one time on set when she almost took out co-star Mackie. "There was a day where I almost took off Anthony's head as we were both running toward camera and I threw an axe and it whizzed by his ear," the star behind the character Quiet revealed. "I was like, 'Oh my God, I almost killed Anthony Mackie!' But [my throwing skills] are getting better. They look great on camera, which is all you really need." Imagine being the person who accidentally decapitates the actor behind Captain America on the set of Twisted Metal of all things.
Luckily, things didn't turn out that way. Twisted Metal allowed Beatriz to let out her more deranged and cynical side that everybody has (even if they don't admit it) in ways that even her delightfully deadpan role as Detective Rosa Diaz in Brooklyn Nine-Nine didn't. "I certainly brought all the stuff that I'm too polite to say out loud most of the time," Beatriz admitted. "I think we all have these thoughts in our heads of like, 'I would say that, but I'm an adult.' What is that line [from] George Constanza? 'We're living in a society!' You can't be an a**hole, but I think for me, Quiet was definitely a chance to just let it loose and that's really fun to me."
Twisted Metal was more than just cool designs and explosions punctuated by cathartic profane outbursts. Beatriz's Quiet went through a legit character arc as she learned to trust, while Mackie's amnesiac John Doe slowly discovered that there's more to life than surviving for one's self, even in a wasteland. That may be why so many fans of the Twisted Metal games bounced off this series so hard. Frankly, that's a valid response. Sometimes, all that's needed is some good old-fashioned carnage without all that pesky baggage that comes with having characters and dialog.
At the very least, fans can rest easy knowing the upcoming Captain America 4 hasn't been unceremoniously canceled due to a sudden loss of head. Here's hoping any potential future seasons of Twisted Metal will take a few extra precautions on axe-throwing day.
Twisted Metal is available to stream on Peacock.
Source: NBC