Why Carlton Cuse Finally Directed an Episode of TV

The showrunner opens up about finally getting behind the camera.

By Terri Schwartz

Carlton Cuse is going to be donning a new hat in Sunday's Season 3 finale of The Strain.

The episode, titled "The Fall," will feature the co-creator and showrunner of the FX series doing something he's never done before: directing. It allowed him to try a new experience, he explained to IGN, while also understanding the process of creating a show in a new way.

"There just came this point where I really felt like it was an important experience to have and I just felt like The Strain was the perfect environment," Cuse explained of the decision to direct an episode of one of this shows. "It was a real learning experience, despite having sat at the right hand of directors for over 400 hours of television, I really felt like I had a different perspective, learned a lot. I think it will help me going forward in my relationship with prepping other directors, as well as just my general knowledge of being a filmmaker."

Cuse also acts as showrunner on Colony and Bates Motel, as well as developing Amazon's upcoming Jack Ryan show. He said it was the visual nature of The Strain's finale and the fact that "it's a really challenging episode" that made him decide this was the first time he'd get behind a camera.

"There's some stuff that goes on that was so cool I was like, 'Oh, I have to direct that.' It's just this impulse that finally struck me," he said. "I feel like the process for me for what I do is always about learning and trying to get better and improve my craft and know more, and that was part of the journey for me to finally direct."

David Bradley and Corey Stoll on The Strain

Fortunately Cuse had a support system ready to offer him help. He called executive producer Guillermo del Toro "super supportive," and said both directors Michelle MacLaren and Greg Yaitanes offered him advice.

When asked if he'd look to direct again on one of his other shows, Cuse admitted he does still have "the itch." "It's not something that I think will overtake my life. I don't feel like, oh, I suddenly want to just be a director," he said. "But to have it in my repertoire is something that I definitely plan to [do] going forward."

Shifting from being a hands off showrunner who would only casually visit set to someone who was there 14 hours a day was a learning experience unto itself, and one that deepened Cuse's relationship with his cast and crew. As someone who has been writing and producing television since the mid '80s and early '90s, he felt this was the right way to continue to grow his career.

Kevin Durand as Vasily on The Strain

"It was a huge deal, but I also felt like if you don't challenge yourself, if you don't do things that make you a little scared, that's a part of life," Cuse said. "I think that's what's good. You should always be pushing yourself out to a place where you feel at least a little bit nervous about doing something. I think out of that comes good work, comes things that are really meaningful."

The Strain: Season 3 finale airs Sunday, October 30th at 10 p.m. ET/PT on FX.

Terri Schwartz is Entertainment Editor at IGN. Talk to her on Twitter at @Terri_Schwartz.

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