Collider: How does it feel to be part of such a successful new series?
MAX THIERIOT: Its really rewarding.
I know the show is good.
I know what we have.
I know we have incredible actors.
I know the scripts are awesome.
Image via CBS
I know the visual effects are great.
We have all these things that are going for us, but you still dont know.
You dont know what audience youre gonna find or how theyre gonna respond.
Image via CBS
Its definitely really rewarding.
Im certainly doing more work now than ever.
Directing is a lot of work, as well.
Image via CBS
I had no idea the amount of Zooms and phone calls Id be doing.
Its all good stuff.
What got you to a place where you wanted to be this involved with something?
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THIERIOT: I think it was more the latter.
The further along I got, the control freak in me felt like I had to do it.
I dont like flying in airplanes because I dont know who the pilot is.
I dont know the person whos flying this thing.
My wife said, Babe, you have to play the role.
Buckley said, Max, youve gotta play that role.
With everybodys encouragement, I was like, Alright, youre right.
I need to do this.
I wanna do this.
Youve talked about how this has come out of your own life and experiences growing up.
How did that all come together?
THIERIOT: I didnt really ever think that, at first, because it was just normal to me.
It was just my life.
It was just my friends.
It was my community.
It wasnt until I started telling people about it that other people were like, Thats a TV show.
You hear that, all the time.
People say, Yeah, thats a movie.
For me, it was easy to write because you write what you know.
It was not something that I was really having to build, from the beginning.
The foundation was there.
Now, Im going back through other parts of my life and wondering what else there might be.
Its an interesting process.
Honestly, it was a lot of fun.
Ive definitely got the bug a little bit now.
Ive always wanted to tell stories, and create and build worlds, and do those things.
I thrive off of the human experience, life events, and all those things.
I tremendously appreciate how authentic the show feels from the fire angle.
What most helps you personally in achieving that accuracy?
THIERIOT: Thank you to your father, first and foremost.
You have to show the good, the bad, and the ugly.
They go through a lot of emotional and real tragic experiences and they see a lot of horrific things.
I hope that we can help people.
We should be making their lives better to afford doing this job.
So, thats a sidebar.
With this show, we have an exceptional cast, who all wanna make the show better.
We have even this great background crew of people who are there with us, all the time now.
Its really just about building that whole world and everybody bringing their A-game to elevate it.
We have technical consultants.
We work with a bunch of different firefighters, from all over, with many years of experience.
A couple of the guys that we have up here both have about 30 years.
We really make a run at bring in as much of the authenticity as we possibly can.
Its really a process, and were still finding it.
Its all those things.
At the same time, youre making a TV show and there is some movie making magic involved.
Is it weird to do a scene without the actual fire?
THIERIOT: Its totally weird.
One of the biggest things thats hard to adjust to is being able to imagine the heat.
Its an unreal heat that you feel.
You basically get sunburn.
Thats one of the hard things to figure out.
Theyll say, Okay, youre standing there, so this is where the fires gonna be.
Thats how big its gonna be.
That way, you’re free to imagine where it is and know the direction its moving in.
We want to get that into the back of everybodys minds, as much as possible.
THIERIOT: Yeah, I think he really is surprising himself.
First of all, the instinct that Bode has living inside him is something that every firefighter has.
Every day, firefighters go and risk their lives.
They run into homes that are on fire.
They pull people out of vehicles that are on fire.
They really put themselves out there, for the person that theyre trying to help.
They always put that person first.
Theyre some of the most selfless people in the world, in that way.
They do this purely for those people.
Bode didnt know that he was that person.
Its just in his DNA.
He probably doesnt do it in the safest way, a lot of the time.
He puts himself at risk.
Its not quite as calculated as firefighters, its just ingrained in his DNA.
Its something that his father, his mom, and generations of his family have done, forever.
He didnt always see firefighting as being that thing because he didnt understand.
Hed never walked in those boots and done the job.
It wasnt until he started doing it that he gained a greater appreciation for what they do.
He wants to help people.
He wants to save peoples lives.
Its nice to feel like you’re free to help people.
That makes you want to take a stab at do some good in the world.
What did you want to accomplish with the first season?
What was the goal you set out with?
Its also cool to get to tell more of the in between stuff.
Its about really dissecting and spending more time in those larger incidents.
Are you also looking to direct on this show?
THIERIOT: Yes, Im gonna direct in the back nine.
Ill be doing one of the last couple ones.
When I told my wife, she looked at me and she said, Im going on vacation.
I was like, Okay, go for it.
Inevitably, therell be a little less work by then.
THIERIOT: I give a shot to turn it on and off, in between takes.
Sometimes I cant help but think about it because I am so involved.
I was being producer Max, trying to save money on a visual effects shot.
Aside form that, Im always thinking about storyline.
Im always thinking about what kind of great arc throughout the season can we find, going forward.
Im also always the guy thats trying to build these things out, over time.
Im like, No, we cant rush that.
We really need to make this land.
We have to really love this person.
Its a fine line of, Okay, what can we give now?
Its a push and pull, but it honestly makes the process really fun.
Its different for me.
Fire Countryairs on Friday nights on CBS.
