Luke Kirby, Ashley Madekwe, and Gustaf Hammarsten are a trio of accomplished actors that have appeared in a bevy of iconic stories during their careers. Currently they star as Dr. Nathan Gamelli, Dr. Ana Lasbrey, and Dr. Anders Svensson, respectively in season two of Dr. Death on Peacock, and we here at NTG were lucky enough to sit down with them to discuss this year’s dynamic story. 
 
John Betancourt: I'm very curious what it means to each of you, as an actor to be part of such a powerful and dynamic story about ethics overall.
 
Ashley Madekwe: It’s exciting and really rewarding because I think that the story at the end kind of shows the importance of having ethics and the importance of having whistleblowers and medical oversight and the importance of advocating for yourself. So, I think it's great that it's a really dramatic story with a lot of human interest. But there is a message at the end of it. 
 
Gustaf Hammarsten: Yeah, you always want to, you know, this is what you want to do as an actor you want to play, as you said, a powerful story. Everything is involved, moral, ethics and struggle, you know, blood, rats, and murder, in a sense, you know. No, but seriously, the story with the whistleblowers, people, you know, normal people trying to stand up to the, you know, the big authorities, you know, and it's hard to tell the truth, but they fight for it. You know, that's something you should do every day.
 
Luke Kirby: Yeah, it's very compelling, to see people sort of stand up, find the courage and the guts to stand up to something that they know is going to impede the course of their future in life. You know, but at least they do that, you know, as opposed to just watching the wake, this sort of bloody wake of corruption, you know, leave a path of death and destruction behind it's, you know, you gotta speak up.
 
John Betancourt: With this being such a such a broad, amazing story. There are so many big moments to it. Without spoiling anything. What are you most excited for audiences to experience when it comes to this grand sweeping story? 
 
Luke Kirby: You know, there's a lot of sort of surgeries in the show that, you know, when I watched it, I had to kind of look away a bit. There's something that… as hard as it is for me to watch. There's something a bit enticing about that. So, you know, that's fun.
 
Ashley Madekwe: I think the audience will really enjoy kind of the human-interest angle. I think that we have the true crime medical angle, but we also have the human the human-interest angle, and the love story is really juicy. Really juicy.
 
Gustaf Hammarsten: Yeah. You have the love story. And you know, the medical stories, it’s like… a two for one special.
 
John Betancourt: One last question for all of you today. What are you most proud of when it comes to what you've done here on the show?
 
Gustaf Hammarsten: I'm so proud that I could manage to say all these difficult English medical words, like epithelium in animals. (Laughs) No, but I'm proud that I was a part of this, you know, it's like, international, you have people from all over the world. So, it's an including story, you know, it's not like, “Oh, this happened in this country, and this person.” You know, it's just people from all over the world, and we're just humans and trying to do okay, that's, that's the thing I'm proud of.
 
Ashley Madekwe: Um, I'm really proud that we were able to tell the story and do the story… justice. I think, I think that it's there on the screen. We haven't done it a disservice. We've done it justice.
 
Luke Kirby: I feel like the story, you know, doesn't shy away from the more complicated aspects of, standing up to big institutions. I think that you know, it addresses the cost and, and that there is a price to pay and in doing so, you know, I think that it shows a bit of courage to not, you know, just sweep things under the rug or tie it up in a fancy little bow and say, “Hey, isn't it just that simple?” You know, I think it's a little more complicated than that and leaves us all asking questions about our own self-interests and our own place in the world. 
 
This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity. 

Ashley Michel Hoban and Patrick Macmanus are a pair of accomplished producers and writers that have worked together on multiple projects throughout the years. Currently, they serve as Showrunner and Executive Producer of Peacock’s Dr. Death, respectively, and we here at NTG had the distinct honor of sitting down with both of them to discuss season two of this incredible show, which premieres on Peacock on 12/21/23.
 
John Betancourt: I would love to know what it was about this story that called to each of you and made it known it needed to be told.
 
Ashley Michel Hoban: You know, I think we had, there's obviously a lot of stories, unfortunately, of doctors that can be a part of the Dr. Death franchise. But when we heard this, this story on season two, season three of the podcast, I think it was clear that this was going to be the story for us. I mean, it's incredibly compelling on so many levels. And it takes a lot of the same themes that we have in season one and expands them globally. So, it kind of takes this problem that we think of as an American medical problem and takes it to Sweden, which is the last place that you think you're gonna run into, you know, money and medicine crashing together at the sake of victims and patients.
 
Patrick Macmanus: I mean, just jumping off of that, I'd say that when we first sold the show, back in 2018, the plan was always for each of the seasons to sort of stand on their own two feet, right? That the stories, the characters, even the cinema should all feel different. So that if you stripped away the name, that people were going to be able to watch these two things and say, “Well, it feels reminiscent, but it just also feels completely different.” And so when Ashley Michel took the reins on this, and she began to pitch out what the story and what the characters were going to be, it became apparent very, very quickly that everything that she and her team of writers and actors and her crew were setting out to do was exactly what that original vision was, which was to, and I do think I fundamentally believe that fans of season one are going to find enough touchstones that are gonna make them want to tune in. And then we're going to bring in a whole new audience because of everything that they did on this show. Because I do believe that the characters are extraordinarily interesting, the plot is extraordinarily interesting. And the themes that they're touching on what they're trying to impart to the viewers, as a deeper meaning for telling the story, I think takes the show to a whole new level, and it's going to be hard to beat.
 
John Betancourt: As writers and executive producers, what kind of challenges did you run into in assembling a story that features such tough, ethical subject matter?
 
Patrick Macmanus: Well, look, I think that the challenge that we will always face is figuring out how to present, how to make your characters and your story. approachable, and accessible for an audience. So that in a weird way, you know, they can see themselves in these stories and in these characters, not just as a victim, quote, unquote, but also as somebody who might be put into the, into the shoes of, in this case, the whistleblowers. We are all faced with ethical challenges, thankfully, not as challenging as these people. But I do fundamentally believe that the only way to tell these stories effectively, is to make an audience member feel like they are somehow a part of that, that they could see themselves in those people's shoes. And I will say that was a goal of season one. Absolutely. And again, I think that they you know, they took care of that in season two as well.
 
Ashley Michel Hoban: And, you know, watching, learning about Paolo, meeting Paolo, really, through the eyes of Benita was an important part of that, because it helps us understand how somebody like that can move through the medical system the way that he does for so long as long as he did. And because, you know, he's selling something that people are buying. And it's true on the personal side of the story. And it's true on the medical side of the story. And, you know, we're talking about complicity. The fact that our whistleblowers and Benita are all held accountable for their mistakes is something I think we're proud of in this in the show that makes it I think, hopefully a little more nuanced than then you would expect from a true crime show.
 
John Betancourt: Last question that I have today for Ashley, what are you most excited for audiences to experience in season two of the show?
 
Ashley Michel Hoban: I hope you experience thrill. No, you know, what I want people to take away is there's a scene at the very beginning of the show where there's a car crash, and that thing comes back. And there are all these little coincidences throughout the show. And some of them are true, which is crazy. But the point of those is to speak to one of the bigger themes that we wanted to hit this season, which is that an individual voice and individual action can have a huge effect. I think that's true for season one as well. Like you have people standing up against huge institutions with backing and money and influence and you don't think that your voice is going to make a difference. So, I hope that people come away with an understanding and sort of an empowerment of what their voice can affect in the world.
 
This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.
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Jack Lowden is a highly accomplished actor that has appeared in a bevy of films and shows in reecnt years. Currently, he stars as River Cartwright on the Apple TV+ series, Slow Horses, and we here at NTG had the distinct honor of sitting down with Jack to discuss his role on the show.
 
John Betancourt: I would love to know what it means to be part of such a beloved and respected franchise?
 
Jack Lowden: It's… it's nice, man. It's really nice. I'm not gonna lie. It's, you know, I don't want to get complacent. The whole team doesn't want to get complacent. So we are, you know, we're still working hard on number four, you know, to make sure that our team did better than three. So, but we're very grateful that the show is sort of blowing up in many ways and that people are loving it and are sticking with it. Oh, it's a nice feeling.
 
John Betancourt: You just mentioned something that actually I've been curious about too. This is just pretty much an actor's clinic every single week, you and your cast mates put in amazing performances week in week out. What have you enjoyed the most as an actor about being able to work on this show?
 
Jack Lowden: The feeling of, because it's a recurring character, and I've never done it before, the feeling of getting better. I mean, that's why I feel anyway, as an actor, is all I want to do is get better at what I do. Really, you know, I want to do the best work and I want to work with the best people, but I love the feeling that I'm getting better. You know, and sometimes you take a couple of steps back or whatever, but I feel like I've gotten better than the kid that started 10 years ago or whatever, you know, I hope I'm a better actor than I was then. Otherwise, I have no interest in this. (Laughs) I don't think it's to do with acting, whatever I ended up doing. I think the great pleasure of it is getting better and getting more comfortable. And this is this has definitely been that moment where you know, I get to fit that because we get to come back and play the same game.
 
John Betancourt: Something else that I've noticed about this show that I've really enjoyed is that we can all relate to the characters on a fundamental level, what is it that you think allow for River to resonate with audiences?
 
Jack Lowden: I think because he's a tryer. He really trying. I think he thinks a lot of himself and certainly did in the first season. And I think that's probably been slowly chipped away. He, I think at first, he found it difficult to admit a mistake. I think he's doing that more now. He's doing that more. And I think, you know, look, I mean, he's definitely the character that's supposed to fit the sort of mold of the leading man, kind of knows exactly what to do. And we've worked very hard, and I don't have to work that hard to do that. But to make him not the complete sort of package, and I think that is definitely why people seem to be responding to him, that on the face of it, he should be the complete thing. But he really, ain’t.
 
John Betancourt: Now, without spoiling anything… what are you most excited for audiences to experience in the final episodes of this season?
 
Jack Lowden: I'm really excited for them to see the conclusion. I know that sounds like a fairly obvious answer. But I think where we are at the moment in the sort of third episode, to see how it concludes is quite cool. It's quite scary, and it's definitely a lot more, even more high-octane action wise than the other two have been. So, it comes to some kind of conclusion. I can say that and how it gets there is… kind of nuts. (Laughs)
 
John Betancourt:  Last question that I have for you today. What are you most proud of when it comes to your time on the show?
 
Jack Lowden: That I think I've gotten better. Definitely. Definitely. That is why, and that I get asked back. (Laughs)
 
This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.

District of Second Chances is a poignant documentary about a concerning aspect of our criminal justice system that makes its debut on December 3, 2023, at Dances With Films. And in anticipation of its release, we here at NTG were fortunate enough to sit down with Wynette Yao and Travis Edwards, the Director/Producer and Cinematographer/Editor of this powerful film, to discuss its construction and importance. 
 
John Betancourt: I would love to know and inspire each of you to want to come to work on this project. 
 
Wynette Yao: Well, I had previously done a project for Discovery called Prison Wives. And that's the first time I realized how messed up our prison system is. And I was very distressed. And then I just went on to other projects. So, this was a chance to get back to shining a light on people who are not only forgotten, but they are looked down upon. And, of course, we're not trying to whitewash it. There are innocent people in prison, an estimated 1%. These guys, we're not saying they were innocent, you know, they were convicted of murder, and they were guilty or guilty enough, you know, they were around. And so, a lot of times those people just get dismissed, you know, but to really show these people as fully human in a way that I think we can all relate to, and then explain how, in human development, you know, when you're 19, you're a dummy. And you don't have good impulse control. And that's true of all of us, you know, no matter what we're doing. So, there was a lot of appeal to shining that light.
 
Travis Edwards: Well, we're fortunate enough to work for FAMM (Families Against Mandatory Minimums). And so FAMM has been around for 30 years and has a large storytelling presence. And something that Wynette and I came at this, with documentary filmmaking eyes, is how do we tell a story about people who are currently incarcerated, because we're not going to get access to go into prisons or jails to film with people. And so, it just becomes incredibly difficult to show visually, you know, through the wonderful medium of film. And so, this was, I think, a way to look at the different angles of things, like we interview lawyers, we interview family members, we interview a lot of people on the outside struggling to get these guys out. And so, I think that we embraced that challenge of how do we still tell a compelling narrative while knowing that we're not going to be able to go in and, you know, spend a 10-hour day with a guy who's currently incarcerated?
 
John Betancourt: Which brings up a follow-up question on my part. Specifically, let’s talk about all the challenges you ran into in assembling this film. Because you talk to a lot of people, some in tough spots, and that could not have been easy, and Travis you just outlined some of those challenges.
 
Wynette Yao: Well, thank you for that question. It is always so gratifying when people can see the efforts and that they hopefully successfully overcame the obstacles. Access is just key. You know, there's a reason that we don't tend to know what's going on behind prisons, they do not let people come in easily. And it was very, very hard to communicate with the guys, when they were behind bars. You can see we had Zoom interviews, you know, and you know, how hard it is to edit Zoom interviews. “Where are the cutaways? The lighting is terrible. The audio is terrible.” So, from the production point of view, lots of challenges there. And then I think also the, you know, we're filming in the middle of Covid. And the pandemic was shutting things down sporadically. And it really it was hard enough to try and get access to some of these places. And sometimes, we had gotten in and, you know, Covid meant that, you know, we had to cancel the whole thing. 
 
Travis Edwards:  Yeah, I mean, obviously, the Covid one is huge. I mean, you know, we're still we're still talking about it today. But just knowing what we were walking into, we had shoots to cancel because somebody got Covid, there was a -- I don't want to spoil it for anyone who hasn't seen it. But there's a scene later in the film that I got Covid for. It was something where there was a specific time it was happening. And so, we had to scramble and find somebody to go do it, who did a remarkable job. And just all these difficulties of you know, trying to spend time with people, were clearly exacerbated just by the limited access that we had. 
 
John Betancourt: I would love to know what invested each of you so deeply in the project to tell it in such a passionate manner.
 
Travis Edwards: Yeah, I mean, I think it can be an extremely relatable story, because it's following largely three guys who did things when they were teenagers, we were all teenagers. And so, we all know that we all, you know, did things when we teenagers. And so just placing it there and saying that if you're 16, 17, 18 years old, that you're going to spend the rest of your life in prison, I mean, that right there if you just... if anybody thinks about how their life would have changed, if that's what happened, it's just mind blowing to me. And so, I think we really wanted to just show what that does to people, to family members, to community members, to loved ones to everybody along that trail there. Because if any of us think about what our life would be, with the amount of people that we met at age 16, onward, I mean, it's, it's incredible. And so, I think that really just trying to hone in on that human impact, and emotion is what kept us going on this.
 
Wynette Yao: Yes, I mean, there was this whole backstory about this generation being labeled as the “Super Predators” in the 90s, you know, and it was, I remember it, it was, you know, full page ads and a national craze, that somehow this new breed of human had sprung up, and they had no conscience, and they loved to kill. And somehow, they were always black. And on the basis of that all these laws got passed, which put these guys in prison. And that whole backstory, I mean, I, I didn't really know how it came about, it was really invented, you know, but it took over the country. Unfortunately, we're still under that. Those laws are still mostly with us. And so, to have a chance at saying, “Hey, let me tell you something about how this came about, you know, that was based on some, some false premises, and let’s not go back to that,” you know, that really drove me. This idea of hoping to change a few minds that were not sympathetic, you know, and show just how human these people are, for the most part, you know, but they're totally relatable, and they can all be our friends.
 
John Betancourt: Ultimately, what do you hope people walk away from when they watch this documentary? 
 
Wynette Yao: Yes, I really hope people walk away, saying, I believe in second chances. We should make these laws, you know, because it began with Congress in 2008, they passed the Second Chances Act, and now different states are following, but you know, it's going slowly. And so if people said, “Wow, these laws make sense. It doesn't make sense to keep people locked up at a great cost, you know, both financial and human. So, I now know what I think about this.”
 
Travis Edwards:  We have a short scene in there that didn't make in the film where it was one of the guys who is released, someone's helping him with paperwork, and she talks about how she was incarcerated. And Gene, who was the person in the scene for that one, he had to stop. He's like, “I couldn't tell you like even just today, how many people I've met, who are formerly incarcerated.” And so I think that it's just getting the change that we all are capable of and then seeing that, as Wynette said earlier, that a lot of times these are invisible stories, and so we're showing it like you know, “My goodness, you go to the grocery store, and there's formerly incarcerated people,” they're just showing us that the stigma that we put on it isn't… it's not always appropriate or helpful. And so, you're showing that people have changed, and that there's a lot of people out there with these amazing stories that we just sort of have forgotten about or tried to put in the shadows for so long.
 
John Betancourt: What kind of change do each of you hope that this particular film inspires? 
 
Travis Edwards: Yeah, that's a big one. So, the specific laws in this film, they’re referred to as second look laws, and there's a handful of states that have adopted them. And so we're hoping that more people have the opportunity as the people in our documentary have to show that they've changed, and we're not, we're not saying open up the doors and let everybody out, we're just saying that people who put the work in these guys put in so much work, that they deserve to have the chance to, you know, have their cases looked at, and to have the opportunity to go back and be community members, family members, you know, loved ones, amazing human beings. And that's, I think, that's the hope is that we can just move the needle a little bit there. 
 
Wynette Yao: Well, you know, as you're asking these questions, I realized that one particular thing really drove me. And that is that we don't understand that long sentences don't work. Who knew? Well, all the criminologists know, you know? But it's crazy that the word has not gotten out to We the People, and particularly the lawmakers, I was wondering why it hasn't reached them. But yeah, it's pretty much proven. It's not the length of a sentence, that’s effective. What's effective is swift punishment, and the certainty of punishment. And so, if we took the resources that we spent warehousing people for decades, when they are not dangerous anymore, and put it on that kind of, you know, enforcement, law enforcement and also help, you know, like programs that help people, wow, that would actually make us a lot safer. So that's a very specific thing. But I was really like, “Oh, everyone thinks, oh, you know, throw the book at him. 20 years, 30 years, never see him”, that's not gonna do anything, and it doesn't deter crime. You know, people when they commit a crime, they're not thinking they're gonna get caught. So, they're definitely not thinking, “Oh, is it worth it? 25 years?” It just doesn't work the way we think it does. But it's such an easy thing for politicians to say, I'm tough on crime, to get votes. 
 
John Betancourt: I think one thing that I’ve started to appreciate more about documentaries, is that they can also inspire change in our local environments. What can we in both your opinions do locally to enact more change? To help with this kind of problem? 
 
Wynette Yao: Well, if you live in Washington, DC, you're lucky because two laws have already been passed, but you can continue to support them. Recently, they tried to take Second Chance further, and Congress intervened and shut it down. So, and if you live in other states, you can support those legislative efforts because they are ongoing. It's pretty simple. You can, you know, write, or call your Congressperson. You can get involved in groups that are trying to help those in prison just rehabilitate themselves, you know, there’s groups, like, there's FAMM, Free Minds, that does writing workshops. So, there’s quite a bit.
 
Travis Edwards: Wynette did a great job of summing that up. But I think that Wynette and I also came to this project with open minds, and we learned an incredible amount on the journey. And so, I think that going at the topic of second chances and everything that entails I mean, I think that our curiosity really, was incredibly beneficial to both her and I and we're just two people. And we're hoping that more than two people will see this film and more people will become inspired and find ways they can, they can support.
 
John Betancourt: Last question I have for both of you today, what are you each most proud of when it comes to this project?
 
Travis Edwards: I mean, there's a lot… but I think it's interesting… I mean, from the technical standpoint, it was difficult. We filmed… it was all-natural lighting aside from sit down interviews, we didn't know what we were walking into, we didn't know what to expect in most situations. And so, the fact that we were I mean… Wynette has been an amazing resource as the director on this, to be able to tap into her expertise and knowledge and experience, it's just incredible. And so, we were able to walk into so many scenes and literally have no idea what we'd get, if there would even be a usable second of footage. And now look, you know, we have a final product. And I think just that… that confidence, being able to go in there and know that we can do it, I think is a, it's still great to watch some of these scenes.
 
Wynette Yao: I have two things I'm proud of. The first is that I always try… I'm always conscious that people are giving you their trust, when you walk into their lives. And you, you want to be open minded. It's not that you want to advocate one way or another. But I think you want to have a good human relationship with your subjects. And I feel that, that we did that, that we respected them, while at the same time, sometimes pushing them. And the second thing is, I really am proud that Travis and I made this film as a two-person team. So many times, you know, heading out there, we were, “Oh, what are we going to do today?” It was a lot of fun, but it was our teamwork really made this possible. Because, you know, often we would have to do multiple jobs. I was the PA as well as the director and Travis was you know, the grip, and the sound person, as well as the cameraman. So, we made it work. And I'm very grateful to Travis.
 
This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.