How Kayvan Novak’s Dad Shaped Nandor’s Big ‘WWDITS’ Episode

What we do in the shadowsNandor the Relentless has historically had no trouble narrating his familiar, bodyguard, fellow bloodsucker (even if briefly) and fandom ship partner Guillermo de la Cruz what to do. Until the last round for WWDITSthat is, when the power hierarchy between vampire and subordinate flips.

In the episode ‘Driving a Train’ Guillermo (Harvey Guillén) fires Nandor, played by Kayvan Novak, from the financial firm where they both worked, for nonsensical and highly entertaining reasons, and in “Nandor’s Army,” Nandor spirals into doom to New Hampshire to recruit a army to take revenge on Cannon Capital. The final episode is part true crime, as Guillermo and his roommates track down Nandor, part Apocalypse now tribute as Nandor amusingly spirals into a Colonel Kurtz-esque mania, and all the heartfelt as Nadja, Laszlo and Colin Robinson worry about Nandor’s emotional state and Guillermo realizes how deeply he has hurt his former master. Their confrontation and makeup, according to Novak, is another essential chapter in the ongoing story of their complicated relationship.

“With every interaction, you want another interaction to control the last interaction, because they never end well, right?” says a laughing Novak about the ongoing tension between Nandor and Guillermo. “He should have just left Guillermo to his fate, but he can’t do that because he needs Guillermo. He needs some kind of leverage.”

The episode is a showcase for Novak, whose dandy-like Nandor has never quite figured out what kind of vampire he wants to be after a lifetime as a ruthless Ottoman warrior. Although the rule is that Nandor sacked Nadja’s village before they were both undead, WWDITS has always played the tales of Nandor’s titular ruthlessness as a joke – until the final act of Nandor’s Army, which reveals that his powerful and aggressive personality has drawn dozens of wayward people looking for a cause to his side. The episode revolves around Novak’s ability to sell Nandor’s transformation: from seemingly depraved while teaching a warehouse full of mannequins, to roguishly determined when he orders his followers to burn down Dartmouth University. “It’s quite a challenge to imagine myself as a great leader, especially in that guise,” Novak says. “You do your rough approximation. You do what the script tells you to do. You really hope the audience buys it. In the end, it’s all just pretend.”

We’ve been hearing about Nandor’s military prowess for a while now. Were you surprised that we got to see Nandor in his full glory as a commander in this episode?
It was definitely something I hadn’t played before. I discussed it in the season two episode “Ghosts,” one of my favorite episodes. That was a bit quieter, while this is a representation of what Nandor would have been like when he commanded an army in Al Quolanudar. Whether you could actually go from being so aggressive and power hungry to being so goofy and clueless, I don’t know. I think 700 years will do that to someone.

The episode “Ghosts” meant a lot to me as someone who realized I was forgetting my Farsi. I wrote a piece about it. Thanks for that episode.
I read that. That was a nice piece. That was cool. It was so nice to get the chance to do that, to play with Farsi – even though he’s from Al Quolanudar, the audience knows he’s Iranian – and throw in a lot of slang that I got from my dad taken over. The way Nandor talks to his horse in Farsi is the way my father talks to his dog. And it’s lovely to do that in such a sweet and tender way, rather than doing it in some sort of spy drama where you’re a bad guy.

“Nandor’s Army” is very deliberately influenced by Apocalypse now. Did you specifically want to evoke Marlon Brando and Colonel Kurtz with your performance?
That was in the script, and Yana Gorskaya, the director, is very clear about what she’s going for. The way they lit it was very inspired by the Brando scenes in Apocalypse now. When they came looking for me, and then they walked and talked, it was all one long take. For me it was like that, ahhh. I said, “Can we split it into two parts?” It was three or four pages. I’m like, Oh my God, is this a play now? But Yana said, ‘Just do it. Shut up, you’ll be fine.’ I did that, and it was actually a lot of fun.

Most sets we work on are so complicated, and this one was huge. It was a converted warehouse that they converted into a men’s clothing factory. They build those sets for weeks and we just enjoy the fruits of all their efforts.

But you’re walking a bit of a tightrope because you don’t want it to be too dramatic or too heavy. Then you lose the joke or the lightness, and it doesn’t fit well into the show. You go with your instincts. I’ve played Nandor depressed and distant, despondent and pissed off, so work with those emotions. I take the comedy seriously, but the drama less so. You always have the other vampires to fall back on. We are each other’s protective fuse.

There’s a scene where the other vampires are talking to the camera, and you’re in the background, shirtless, trying to fight the mirror. What do you remember of that moment?
Yana let me watch Apocalypse nowwhich I had often looked at anyway. But that’s a pastiche of the Willard scenewhen he drinks himself crazy in the hotel room and punches the mirror, which Martin Sheen famously did and actually cut his hand. Physical stuff, fight-the-mirror stuff, you start doing stuff, and before you know it, you’re crouching down and making noises like a tropical bird. Because it is in the background, you feel extra free. You feel quite free on set anyway, but this was a case of just being silly in the background. That’s kind of my specialty.

As you train Laszlo, Nadja and Colin to join your army, you’ll shout military chants in Farsi. Did you advise on those translations?
Actually, I had my father translate many of the chants into Farsi, and then I added a few lines. I added an odd reference to the Iranian kebab, koobideh, somewhere. I don’t know what got into it. Expecting everyone to sing along was probably too big an ask. But I was quite diligent. My father made me learn them and pronounce them correctly and with the right emphasis. I thank him for that. I don’t think they would really do that kind of chant there. The chants would be very different.

The chants probably wouldn’t mention koobideh…but maybe?
It’s worth fighting for a good koobideh.

How much improv were you able to do this episode?
This episode probably provided the least amount of improvisation for me, as it was very much about Nandor’s current state of mind. I was there to say, ‘This is where we are,’ and then the other vampires could strut around. Someone throws something aside or reacts in a different way, but it all happens very quickly. If you know your character, you start to imagine what the character might say at that moment. It’s really about responding. You want to be as lazy as possible with your approach to improvisation, using it as icing on the cake to complement something else. (Slides into a friendly radio broadcaster voice) Any of you aspiring improvisers, that’s my top tip. You can have that for nothing.

As you said, Nandor has been depressed, he has been distant, he has tried to find self-fulfillment in many ways: the cult, bringing back his women, the desire to travel. Is there a core to Nandor that you think you’ve kept consistent with your performance, that makes writing all these different experiences possible?
Oh, I don’t know, because I’m playing a character that’s written.

But your performance helps with that, by building it from words on a page.
Certainly. But ultimately the comedic essence of him is that he is a great warrior who is actually very pedantic and in many ways quite unwarrior-like. He is sexual, but he is asexual. He is dominant, but also submissive. He is all of these contradictions, adding to the comic trope of a delusional character. We can all see it; he can’t see it. He always reinvents himself. One moment he is looking for a woman; the next second he wants to be alone. One moment he wants to be a soldier, the next moment he wants to be a janitor. It’s like, just think about it, but that’s the way we all are as human beings. That way it is recognizable. You don’t necessarily want to be like Nandor. I think people want to be more like Laszlo because he’s so confident, sure of himself and cocky. He bows to no one, only his wife, while Nandor is a bit more slack.

Of all of Nandor’s different experiences trying to find himself, is there one that you enjoyed playing the most?
I kinda liked him stealing Guillermo’s friend – I’m sorry, I cloned his friend. I enjoyed playing him falling for someone, and then acting on it, enjoying it, and pranking Guillermo. He says, ‘I have Freddie and you have Freddie. What’s the problem? Just chill.” That was a really good episode because it was screwed up, but again, in a pretty relatable way. Although I’ve never cloned anyone’s partner, nor have I ever had a twin brother…or have I? Maybe I did that in Iceland years ago. Just that one. (Laughs.)

In this episode, we hear Nandor call a radio show to request Simon and Garfunkel’s “Scarborough Fair,” and he also plays JoJo’s “Leave (Get Out)” to get Guillermo fired. Do you have a third song that Nandor would listen to in the context of this episode?
Maybe ‘Bicycle Race’ by Queen. It’s a crazy choice Nandor could make. It’s a great song.