Baptiste Series Two | Interview with Conrad Khan (Will Chambers)

Can you introduce us to Will and tell us about his journey through the series?

Will Chambers is one of two brothers in the Chambers family. He looks up to his older brother Alex, a lot. His journey begins when a horrific incident happens in his home which scars him for life. Will’s journey is trying to cope and deal with that.

Where do we meet the Chambers family at the beginning of series two?

The story isn’t necessarily chronicle in the way that the writers have structured it. It starts in the middle of the Chambers family story. As the series progresses there are flashbacks which help you understand why they are like they are. At the beginning of the first episode the family is on holiday, it’s the two brothers and the parents who are trying to take their mind off something awful that happened in their family.

Where have they gone and what is the relationship between the four members of the family?

They’ve gone on holiday in Hungary to a resort, but there’s no snow there and the relationship between the family is quite tense. My character Will is always on his phone and he’s quite shut off from his family, which is a coping mechanism I think for blocking everything out. Despite that he does have a close relationship with his brother. They do get along and he’s the only person that he communicates with.

Set up what happens to Richard and the two boys.

Emma, the mother, wakes up to find that her husband and two sons are not in the hotel they’re staying in and they’ve gone missing. Julian Baptiste vows to help her find her missing husband and two sons.

What did you think when you saw the first series and why is Baptiste an interesting detective?

Something I liked about the show, and something that made it stand out for me, was its tendency towards Europe as a backdrop and its ability to reach an international audience because of that. In the first series it was in The Netherlands and a lot of it was in Dutch. With this, likewise, a lot of dialogue is in Hungarian and that’s something you don’t necessarily see in a British detective drama.

What does Tchéky bring to the role of Baptiste?

Tchéky Karyo is a wonder to work with. He is very diligent and conscientious on set and he is really focused on the role. He has a lot of traits of that you would expect from a seasoned actor like him. I would hope some of those qualities rubbed off on me when we worked together.

Tell us about going to Hungary to shoot Baptiste, what was the experience like?

For the first part of this production, we went to Hungary and Budapest, which is a beautiful city architecturally and historically. It was a pleasure to be there. Unfortunately, it wasn’t for very long, but working abroad is one of the privileges of the job. It feels like such a long time ago, I really enjoyed it.

Why is this story compelling for audiences in 2020?

I think television is vital for escapism and just to be distracted, generally speaking, in a time like this is important. New television shows and new films is something I’ve really missed in this period of isolation and productions have just started to get back up and running. This story works as an adjective for family. The idea of family is something everyone can relate to. Of course, then you have the action, and you have the entertainment which I think everyone likes but there are a lot of emotional scenes, which hopefully the audiences will like!

Lastly, what journey are audiences going to go on?

Baptiste series two is a real rollercoaster of a story and it takes you in lots of different directions. You meet a wide range of characters, young and old, with their own individual stories to tell. Even reading the script, the ending really shocked me!

What type of journey are you sending audiences on when they watch Baptiste series two?

It’s like a series of mini explosions that happen, over the course of the series. Everybody has a computer, everybody has access to these things. It will spark conversations about to deal with grief in a family and how important it is to stay connected and not shut your feelings out.

Lastly, what makes Tchéky so perfect for the role of Baptiste?

Tchéky is the perfect fit for the part because he himself is such an eccentric and unique person. He has so many quirky and creative ideas. When we were doing the read-through, the things he brought to the table were just so different to anybody else I’ve worked with, because of the sheer experience he has.