“This is a far more edgier adult story, which is one thing I wanted to do after Teen Wolf,” showrunner and executive producer Jeff Davis said of Wolf Pack, which premieres January 26th on Paramount+. Based on the middle-grade novels by Edo van Belkom, the series is aimed at a more mature audience. During a TCA press conference in the summer, Jeff Davis said that although the word “wolf” is in the title of both of his shows, there is no relation. “It is an entirely new universe, entirely new feel, and tone. There are all new rules, all new mythology. I have to say, I had an initial idea for a show, and Edo's book had a very similar opening, so there was sort of a synchronicity when I read the opening to the book. He starts out with a park ranger, who finds these cubs in the woods.”
(Steve Dietl/Paramount+)
“I play Garrett Briggs, a park ranger who is also a father,” Rodrigo Santoro shared about his character. “This is a man of strong values, someone with dark secrets, and deep suspicion, especially towards anyone questioning the relationship with his kids. He is a protector.” While researching his role, Rodrigo discovered something about park rangers that made it easy to tap into his character. “There are three pillars of a park ranger: The law enforcement people; the environmental experts; a historian; or a combination of the three. We have with Garrett a combination of the three.”
“As the whole pack comes together, you will see how all of our different personalities bounce off of each other,” promised Tyler Lawrence Gray, who plays Harlan Briggs, one of Garrett’s kids. “He is sort of an adrenaline junkie. He likes living life on the edge, and he really just likes going by his own rules. He is kind of the irresponsible part of the group, the part that will always make the group laugh, but won't always come in to help them out at the end of the day. He is a very protective and caring person, especially to his sister Luna. However, he has a lot of built-up anger and rage, and he tends to take it out on some things that don't deserve it sometimes.” Jeff Davis also revealed that Harlan is gay and promised that there will be same-sex romances in the series that are just as important as the straight characters’ relationships.
“Luna is the resilient hope of the pack,” shared Chloe Rose Robertson, who plays Harlan’s sister Luna Briggs. “Towards the beginning, she is more confused and we don't know if this is what we want. That's the majority feeling, but Luna has always hoped for and wanted a pack, and friends who understand her. She really loves the people who come into her life very quickly, and she has a lot of empathy for them as well. Which ultimately will lead to a large change in her.”
The Briggs pack is already together when the series starts and the catalyst for the story is a Southern California wildfire and an attack that occurs on a logjammed freeway. “She starts out in a wildfire going through a lot with her family,” Bella Shepard shared about her character Blake Navarro. “Her life completely changes not only because of the massive wildfire in Los Angeles but also because of being bitten by an animal during the rampage on the freeway. She's reluctant to embrace her new family and friends. Then she realizes that as she gains more confidence in herself, and learns to trust people who really care about her, she belongs in this pack. They work better as a team.”
(Curtis Bonds Baker/Paramount+)
“He lives in a constant state of anxiety,” Armani Jackson said of his character Everett Lang. “He treats anxiety with medication, therapy, just the general ways that people deal with anxiety. His parents can be quite disapproving and doubtful of his mental health issues, especially his mom. But one day he is attacked and bitten during a wildfire in a traffic jam and in that, he gains supernatural abilities, a real family, and a newfound purpose in life.”
The fire is investigated by Kristin Ramsey, played by Sarah Michelle Gellar, who also serves as an executive producer. “At first, I had no intention of saying yes,” the Buffy the Vampire Slayer star revealed, having been pitched many shows in the past with similar themes. “When I read the script, and when I spoke with Jeff, we spoke about the issues that he wanted to speak about, mainly anxiety and depression among children, specifically having a lot to do with their use of devices and the lack of connectivity that the youth has today. It is something that I think about all the time. It is so prominent. A big study came out [recently] linking the effects of depression and the brain synapses directly to this. I thought what a great allegory to use these horrors to speak about the horrors that we are facing now. And then you add in the earth and what we are going through, specifically the backdrop of the fires. I lived very close to the last fire that hit LA, and I was actually evacuated for a week. We didn't know if our house was going to burn to the ground. Understanding what we are doing to our environment, and using this as an in to speak about these bigger subjects. But at the same time, I love the water cooler shows. I want to be on the show that everybody is talking about. ‘Can you believe this just happened? Can you believe what they did?’ And you go back and rewatch it and realize what we are saying and doing. And that's my favorite type of show. Jeff is a master, and this cast is incredible. Honestly, it's been such a joy.”
You can find out why Sarah Michelle Gellar and everyone involved with Wolf Pack is so excited when the series kicks off on Thursday, January 26th, only on Paramount+.
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