An Interview with Tara Hernandez & Damon Lindelof, Co-Creators of ‘Mrs. Davis’

MRS. DAVIS -- “Mrs. Davis Premiere Event” -- Pictured: (l-r) ara Hernandez, Showrunner, Executive Producer; Damon Lindelof, Executive Producer at the DGA on April 13, 2023 -- (Photo by: Randy Shropshire/Peacock)

Tara Hernandez and Damon Lindelof are two highly accomplished writers that have both worked on wildly popular franchises, such as The Big Bang Theory and Lost respectively. Recently, they teamed up to give life to the new Peacock series, Mrs. Davis, and we were fortunate enough to be able to sit down with both of them to discuss this refreshing new show.
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John Betancourt: Let’s talk a little bit if we could, about each of your respective roles in bringing this series to life.

Tara Hernandez: Absolutely. So, I'm co-creator of the series, which means that early on, Damon and I got together and developed this wonderful world together. We wrote the pilot script together and spent time in the writers’ room with our writing staff. I also act as showrunner. So, I ran the room. And also, you know, oversaw production with many amazing collaborators.

Damon Lindelof: Yeah, and as Tara said, I co-created the show with her and was involved in a lot of the story breaking process, throughout, and was able to offer guidance, and lack of guidance, throughout the process, based on my own personal experience, but really wanting to be sitting in the passenger seat, as Tara drove, as for those of us who sometimes sit in the passenger seat, you can be like, “Why didn't you make a left, there!?” But I'll just say that Tara is an excellent driver, always knew how to get to where we were going, safely, and quite excitedly. And so, it's been almost 20 years since I worked on a show that I didn't run. But it was, it was an honor and a pleasure to work on this one.

John Betancourt: What kind of challenges came to light in crafting such a wonderfully woven story?

Damon Lindelof: Well, thanks for, you know, phrasing the question that way, I think the challenges are constant. I mean, I think on sort of the most obvious and meta level, I think a lot of writers have a desire to do something original. That's, that's not based on pre-existing IP. And even though we love, you know, the sequels and the adaptations of books, and movies and franchises, that have kind of come before, when you actually seek out and try to do something original, you suddenly feel the weight of the of the blank page. And so, when you're… when you have nothing that you're adapting from, every single idea is new, and the limitlessness of that it can be a challenge in and of itself. So, from the jump, Tara and I needed to kind of build some very, you know, tight guardrails. And then it was kind of amazing.

After we'd wrote the pilot, once we brought new writers into the process, to watch them sort of rebel against the guardrails, and then you have to start to question why is that rule even in place in the first place, and our rule is not there to be broken and, and so I think that the challenge is figuring out what the tone of the show was, you know, where you have a group of individuals starting in the writers’ room, but eventually, by the time, the thing is made, you've included 200 Other artists in the process, this sort of idea of we all took our jobs very seriously, but the show doesn't take itself that seriously. And like wanting the show to feel like it was a bit of an escape and a relief from you know, the post-apocalyptic… you know, I love watching, you know, The Last of Us, and I love watching Succession, but those shows give me a heart attack. And it's like, we… we need whatever the opposite of a heart attack is. It needs to be stressful enough that it has dramatic stakes, but those were the waves we are attempting to serve.

Tara Hernandez: You need a defibrillator. (Tara makes a zapping noise)

Damon Lindelof: Oh, yeah, that’s right… clear! (Laughter)
John Betancourt: Tara, anything to add?

Tara Hernandez: Just the defibrillator joke. (Laughter)

John Betancourt: I love it. Last question that I have for today, what does it mean to each of you to have a passion project finally find its way to audiences.

Tara Hernandez: It's, it's totally surreal. And I think it's never a guarantee in this business as a writer, to get to do something that feels so wholly, you know, just a reflection of yourself and the creatives that you brought along for the journey. So, sort of, we get to sit here today and talk about it and have a lot of pride in it. But you know, we're standing with, you know, all of the other amazing, talented individuals who worked on it. So, on behalf of the team, I really just feel an immense amount of pride.

Damon Lindelof: Yeah, and I guess I would echo what Tara just said, but also, you know, I've been doing this for a long time now, almost 20 years. And I know that left my own devices, you've heard, you've tasted all the food, I know how to cook. You've heard all the music; I know how to play. And so, like the fact that I was constantly surprised and delighted by the show, is a testament to Tara and her vision. And so, I think that I'm actually really enjoying the ride through the prism of watching, you know, I had my first ride back on Lost and seeing her do it as if she's already done it before, is quite incredible.

And I do feel like… this isn't to pat anybody on the back… but when you are trying to make something original that's not based on, you know, a book or movie or a comic book or any of those things. You're making something out of nothing. You know, it literally started with a conversation that Tara and I had when you know, we were walking our dogs. And now three years later, we're talking to you guys about these eight episodes that you've seen, and it… I never take it for granted, it does… it does feel like a miracle that the show exists, let alone this show. Um, and it kind of willed itself into existence and so that's kind of how I'm feeling about it today.

This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.

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