Lee Shorten on ‘The Terror: Infamy’ and Working with George Takei [Exclusive Interview]

AMC’s The Terror has now begun its second season entitled: The Terror: Infamy. By taking a historically negative time in our nation’s history and adding a bit of horror element, it is driving home that history should never be forgotten.

Among the stars of this unsettling season is Lee Shorten who plays Walt Yoshida, one of the heroes. Walt faces down this horrific time in his life and never wavers in his determination to do the right thing.

Shorten took the time to answer a few of questions about his role on The Terror: Infamy, what it’s like working with the legend George Takei, and what he hopes people take away from the show.

Tell-Tale TV: There seems to be a great deal of cultural myth and legend involved in the storytelling of The Terror: Infamy. How much of your own roots do you feel are reflected this season?

Lee Shorten: There definitely is. Our writers drew heavily on the idea of Kaidan (traditional Japanese ghost stories) when developing the story.

I come at things from a somewhat unique perspective. I was adopted and raised by a white family. I didn’t really start connecting with my Japanese heritage until my 20s.

So in some ways, I deeply relate to Walt’s struggle/journey as a Nisei (second-generation Japanese). Walt, Chester, Amy, and Ken all see themselves as American and it’s the world that sees them as other. And like most second-gen, he’s also struggling to reconcile his parent’s traditional Japanese views with his more Americanized ones.

I find myself experiencing a similar dichotomy in life. When I travel to Japan or when I hang out with people who grew up in Asia, I sometimes feel like an outsider. And unfortunately, even today, I still experience racism too.

Tell-Tale TV: You get to work alongside acting great, George Takei, this season. Is there anything in particular that you took away from that experience?

Shorten: George is a true gentleman and scholar. He has a great sense of humor and he is extraordinarily generous, both as a human and an actor. I’ve been incredibly fortunate in my career, to have worked alongside a number of veterans like George, Tzi Ma, Joel de la Fuente, and Jimmy Saito.

And you know what they all have in common? They’re all exceptionally talented, hard-working and kind to a fault. Working with George with a beautiful reminder that no matter how successful you become, the most important thing is to stay grounded and to recognize the humanity and dignity in every person.

George had time for everyone. He never complained and always offered advice and insight, a true leader on set. You can feel his love, compassion, and deep connection to the material. It was really something special.

Tell-Tale TV: Was there anything in the script this season that terrified you when you first read it?

Shorten:  I’ve been a horror fan since I was a kid. I remember reading The Shining when I was ten and just falling in love with the genre. So I guess I have a high tolerance for terror. Ha.

But the closing scene of our first episode definitely stood out. It really sets the tone perfectly. And of course, we have a couple of Ring/The Grude style moments which are great.

But similar to the first season, I think the real horror in The Terror are the things we, as humans, are capable of doing to one another. And I know that might seem cliche or flippant but it’s not.

I did a lot of research to prep for this and I was deeply affected on a number of occasions, both in prep and then on set, seeing the history brought to life, shooting at locations where Japanese Canadians were actually held during the war, working alongside people who had been or have had family in the internment camps.

I hope the show inspires people to further research the actual history and see for themselves the horror and the injustice.

Tell-Tale TV: Tell us a bit about Walt Yoshida. What really draws you to him?

Shorten: When Alex Woo pitched Walt to me, I was drawn to the idea of playing a hero. I’ve played a lot of villains in my career, which I love (and want to do more of, call me Marvel, haha). But Walt is a real all American hero.

As I was developing the character I started to see him as Captain America. Walt experiences a lot over the course of the season, suffering, loss, oppression, racism but he never falters. He is determined to protect his family, his country and he does his best to always do what he thinks is right, no matter the cost.

And I think, out of all the characters, he sacrifices the most. A lot of the other characters lose things or have things taken from them but Walt makes a conscious effort, knowing full well the personal cost of his actions.

Tell-Tale TV: How important is it to tell this story, set during the time of the Japanese Internment camps of WW2, in today’s climate?

Shorten: I’m a huge history buff. And history is being written every day, and as cliche, as it sounds, we have to learn from history or we’re doomed to repeat it. There are obvious parallels you can draw between the Japanese Internment and what’s happening today.

But even beyond that, I think the most important thing we could all learn is empathy. True empathy, the ability to understand those who we may view as other.

Art is such a great tool in that respect because you can craft characters that are sympathetic and then use them as an entry point to help people understand other communities or perspectives they may not encounter in their day to day lives. Because it’s easy to distance yourself when you aren’t personally affected.

So I hope people from all walks of life watch the show and they see Walt and Amy and they see something of themselves in these characters, they see the underlying humanity and dignity that we all have, as humans. And then they also see the differences. But that they understand the differences don’t make us lesser or greater, just different.

Tell-Tale TV:  You were on another show that is set around the events of WW2 when you were on The Man in the High Castle. How do these two projects compare?

Shorten: Well, I play a Yoshida in both. Haha. But there were actually a lot of similarities, both use genre elements to explore historical events.

Sci-Fi in one, horror in the other. Both are what I hope are sophisticated, prestige dramas with stunning cinematography. And both explore oppression, racism, choice, family, and what we’re capable of as humans, both good and bad when placed in extreme circumstances.

On a more personal level. Sgt (Hiroyuki) Yoshida and Walt Yoshida, really are two sides of the same coin. They just made different choices.

Hiroyuki decided he would never be powerless again and having lost his family to the war, found a new father figure in Kido. Walt decided that protecting others and ideals were more important than himself.

Tell-Tale TV:  You were a lawyer before you were an actor. What drew you to want to be an actor?

Shorten: I love everything about film making. I majored in film studies as an undergrad.

I guess I originally approached the industry thinking I’d be a writer or a director (funny enough I’ve started moving down that path now), but I realized I liked being in the trenches, you know? I always liken acting to boxing, and there’s just something special about getting down and dirty and trading blows with other actors.

I had more of a corporate law background. I was working in tax and legal drafting so it was pretty dry stuff. Always felt like you were outside looking in, always clinical and aloof. Acting seemed like the polar opposite in the most attractive way, a chance to be vulnerable and tell stories.

Tell-Tale TV: And finally, what is a story you’d love to tell someday?

Shorten: I really want to do a female-led Asian crime drama. Cowboy Bebop is one of my favorite shows of all time, and I’d love to do a Peaky Blinders/Fargo style show with an Asian cast and a little Cowboy Bebop flavor.

I wrote and directed a short film earlier this year called Parabola, which stars some of my Man in the High Castle castmates. And I’m currently developing it into a feature. It’s about an Asian American single mother struggling to reconcile with her estranged Yakuza father. So hopefully one day I’ll get to make that.

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Be sure to catch Lee Shorten as Walt Yasido on The Terror: Infamy, on Mondays at 9/8c on AMC.

*Featured image credit: Kyla Hemmelgarn

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