Actor Katja Herbers’ series Evil tries to answer where the devil comes from and if there is a scientific reason behind it. By Team Viva

What is the premise of Evil?

I guess it tries to investigate evil and where it comes from. It tries to figure out if there’s a scientific explanation for it or there might be something else at play.

Why will Evil resonate with viewers?

We live in a time where a lot of horrible things happen, unfortunately. And I think it’s an interesting question to see why. Why are people driven to do things that harm other people? How can we get a grip on that? Evil might resonate for these reasons and so much more.

Who is Kristen Bouchard?

My character Kristen works for the DA’s office. She a forensic psychologist, has four girls and her husband is away climbing. She takes care of the girls on her own with some help from her mother. Her work-home life is poles apart from each other. During the day, she talks to these serial killers and then comes back home to her four great daughters.

How does Kristen rationalise supernatural phenomenon?

Kristen would like to believe that everything has a scientific explanation, that science can answer any question, obviously, not all at once. There are certain things that are very hard to explain and that makes her uncomfortable if she doesn’t find a scientific explanation to things.

What is the state of Kristen’s marriage at the start of the series?

Her husband’s been away for five months, out climbing the Everest. Kristen used to be a climber herself too. She was trying to climb up all seven summits, however, she did five and then quit because she had children. Her husband, however, wants to climb all seven and she is okay with it.

How would you describe Kristen’s journey in Season 1?

You follow Kristen and she joins the team of Ben, played by Aasif (Mandvi), and Mike Colter’s character, David Acosta. From then on, the three of us are investigating all these different things.

More on Kristen’s journey.

In the first episode, we see her quit her normal job and she engages with David Acosta about possession. Then she starts getting nightmares and is visited by this ghost. And then it turns out that the serial killer that she’s interviewing got ahold of the notes of her therapist, so he knows all her secrets. She’s also introduced to a character called Leland Townsend.

Is there a scene in the pilot episode that you feel defines your character?

Definitely a scene with the daughters defines my character because they are her loves. And then maybe, when she finds out that the evil people, Michael Emerson’s character, stole her therapy notes and they

now have every single secret, or just even things that she said out loud. He now knows everything and will try to use against her. So, I think those two scenes makes her very vulnerable.

Will faith and religion play a role in the show’s exploration of evil?

The series tries to answer where evil comes from and see if there is a scientific reason for it, or if there might be something else. And that something else, I think, could be: Is there a devil or a god?

How did you prepare for your role?

I talked to a forensic psychologist about what it’s like to have that kind of a job. And I read a lot of interviews with people who have the same job. I also watched a lot of climbing documentaries because she used to be a climber, she did free solo climbing, climbing without ropes, so she’s quite interested in walking on a cliff’s edge and playing with danger. I think part of why she is a forensic psychologist and is drawn to that kind of dangerous place, or talk with these people who are that horrible, might have to do with that she likes challenging herself.

What do Michelle King and Robert King bring to the series as Executive Producers?

I think Robert and Michelle are absolutely extraordinary writers and producers. Robert is directing this episode. And they’re also really great people. What I find probably most important to take on a job is if I like the idea of spending time with people. And I absolutely liked that here.

Have you ever had a supernatural experience?

As an adult, I had a lot of headaches and I once went to someone who could help me with the headaches. She said, ‘Oh I can see why you have a lot of headaches. You have thirty-three ghosts on your back and thirty-three is a lot.’ And she’s like, ‘It doesn’t matter if you don’t believe in it. I’m just going to take them away and you’re going to feel much better.’ And I was like, ‘Okay, sure thing.’ And she took them away and talked to them. I don’t really believe in that, but it did get rid of my headache, so there you go!

(The series premiers on Zee Café.)