Actor and heartthrob Tyler Lawrence Gray stars as a male lead in the new hit Paramount+ show “Wolf Pack” as the character Harlan Briggs.
Recently released on the streaming platform on January 26, 2023, exclusively on Paramount+, Tyler joins other castmates Armani Jackson (“Honor Society”, Ready Player One), Bella Shepard (“iCarly”, “A Girl Named Jo”) and newcomer Chloe Rose Robertson who round up the main four characters of the highly anticipated teen supernatural drama. “Wolf Pack” is now available on Paramount+ in the US, UK, Australia, and Latin America.
Based on the book series by Edo Van Belkom, “Wolf Pack” follows a teenage boy and girl whose lives are changed forever when a California wildfire awakens a terrifying supernatural creature and drives it to attack a highway traffic jam beneath the burning hills. Wounded in the chaos, the boy and girl are inexplicably drawn to each other and to two other teenagers who were adopted sixteen years earlier by a park ranger after another mysterious wildfire. As the full moon rises, all four teens come together to unravel the secret that connects them – the bite and blood of a werewolf.
Fans are also excited to see veteran actor Sarah Michelle Gellar as Kristin Ramsey and Rodrigo Santoro (“Westworld”, 300, Love Actually). Written and executive produced by Jeff Davis, the series is a part of a multi-year plan with MTV Entertainment Studios.
Check out our interview with Tyler!
How did “Wolf Pack” come about for you and what was it about the show that really just grabbed you?
Tyler: Well, I mean, as a new actor, obviously, I was willing to take any opportunity that I could get. But this project specifically really stood out to me because I was a huge fan of “Team Wolf.” And as soon as I saw Jeff Davis’s name attached to it and saw just the word “wolf” in the project, I was like, this is going to be really cool. Like before even reading like the synopsis or the character breakdown or any of that, I was already excited from the start. And, you know, obviously, once I found out it was going to be an entirely new universe and show that was like, a huge opportunity that I saw and I honestly didn’t even know what the outcome was going to be. But, you know, obviously booking it and shooting it was so surreal. That six month span of shooting and becoming great friends with all of my castmates and getting to meet and work with people like Sarah Michelle Gellar and Rodrigo Santoro, it really just felt like I was in a trance. Like a long dream, and I still can’t even process it to this day.
What sets it apart from other supernatural shows, especially “Teen Wolf.”
Tyler: I think— you know, not to say that any of the other supernatural shows didn’t have a groundedness or like a sense of reality to them, because I do think that all of those other successful shows did and that’s why people love them, but I feel that “Wolf Pack” is a little more up to date with time. Like these kids are in high school in 2022-2023, so I feel that people can almost see it as like how kids interact nowadays, but it’s also like, the supernatural aspect of it. So I feel like it still gives an enjoyable watch to people while being able to be like, ‘oh well like they’re using iPhones and you know, they’re talking about relevant stuff, and they’re all their style is up to date, and it’s cool,’ and I feel like people just get inspiration for that kind of stuff. I know that I do. But, yeah, as far as it setting its own precedents in the supernatural world, I just feel like with a lot of the characters and with touching on mental health awareness and all of the environmental things, I love that Jeff is really telling this story while bringing awareness to issues that are going on currently in our world.
And you play Harlan, can you just describe him a little bit and then how you prepared to play him?
Tyler: Yeah, so Harlan is very charismatic. And as much as he comes off as someone who tries to make a joke out of everything, he does really deeply care about things, especially people that he loves. But I feel like a lot of the time he has trouble showing it because he has a lot of trust issues from his past and his upbringing and having a lot of, you know, unanswered questions in his life, which is totally expected and normal for someone who kind of has grown up in the situation that he had. He’s had to hide a lot of things from everyone and he’s had to kind of, you know, bring this made up persona of himself that he can show to the public eye because, you know, obviously his secrets might get him in trouble or even worse than that. I think that he just wants to live a normal life but at the same time, he does enjoy the little advantages that his powers bring him. And, you know, as far as bringing him to life, it was something I sort of had to figure out until like, probably episode three. I remember going back and forth in email with Jeff Davis and just being like, ‘what do you want me to really like honor with this character, like what is his character’s intentions?’ And Jeff just continued to tell me that it’s the way that him and the rest of the pack interact with all of the other kids and it wasn’t so much like, his intention, but how he was able to contribute as of the rest of the characters, which I really liked, because he really stressed that like, you know, the ensemble cast, every single character and every single detail about every character matters. And it’s really like full circle and I love that Jeff Davis does that. His style of writing is just fantastic. Sorry, I got a little sidetracked but back to bringing Harlan to life. I think it was just sort of understanding who he was by reading more scripts and actually creating in my head, what his upbringing and his life before the start of the show would have been and that was a really big game changer for me.
You work closely with Chloe Rose Robertson, who plays your sister on the show. What was it like creating that brother/sister bond, but also did you work together to kind of create your backstories?
Tyler: I love when people ask this question because me and Chloe would talk about it all the time shooting. It really was effortless for us to have that sort of relationship on screen because we developed it so quickly off screen. I think we knew that we were going to get really close by how many scenes we were going to be shooting with our characters and their relationship. But I mean, the first time I ever met Chloe, she was just like the sweetest person ever. And like, I really was like, ‘alright, what’s the catch?’ Like, is she just doing this to you know, give a good impression? And I can still say, to this day, that she’s one of the nicest, most humble people I know. And we still hang out a lot. And so when it came to shooting, we would be pretty much interacting the same way we would interact on screen in between takes, obviously, except for the fighting and the arguing on screen. We never had that toxic part, but, you know, we really understood that brother sister dynamic, so I think it was really easy to tap into that because we were so close through the span of filming.
You mentioned this a little bit earlier, working with Sarah Michelle Gellar and Rodrigo Santoro, who happened to be incredible veterans in the industry. What was it like getting to work with them?
Tyler: I think it’s every actor’s dream to work with someone that they admire because you respect them. Like I had some little fanboy moments. I was like, ‘do I ask them how I should say this line or do I ask them for a picture or their autograph?’ At first I was so starstruck and to just get to know them and find out that they are the most humble people, some of the most genuine, hard working people I’ve met so far in the industry. It really is one of those moments where you meet your hero and they’re exactly who you thought they were, which honestly can be kind of rare sometimes because, you know, a lot of the time people have to put on a front just to do what they have to do for like the media and stuff like that, but they they keep it so real. And I love that about them. With everything they told me, I knew that they were being genuine and they were just telling me for my own good and so that I could learn and grow as an actor. And having those kinds of people, as talented as they are, I was like a sponge. I was trying to absorb every single thing they told me, especially when I was telling you that I created an entire backstory for Harlan and sort of how his upbringing would be, Rodrigo was actually the one who gave me that idea. The first time I ever met him, he sat me and Chloe down for probably an hour at lunch and just oh my god, he spit some of the greatest wisdom to us. And same with Sarah. Like both of them are just, they’re saints.
That’s awesome. I always love to hear stories like that. What would be like the biggest lesson that you learned from working with them?
Tyler: I mean, obviously, besides staying humble and staying true to yourself, and all of that, I think what they really showed was it’s not the result that matters. It’s the journey and the vision that you have, and really just being creative. And that’s the point of being an artist and actor, like you can either be a celebrity or you can stay being an artist. And they are two people who are true artists. They just get so deeply involved in their craft and like every single scene, and every single one that they have is so well thought out. Like I just see them acting and I can’t even tell that they are because they’re so in the moment, and it’s just beautiful to watch. And I’ve been able to sort of get my head around that and understand how they’re doing it and be able to do it on camera. It’s so nice. I love acting, acting is therapy to me. So, seeing that you can have a long career with ups and downs, as anyone’s career would be, and still be able to go back to the basics and just love like the true art of it is something that I will always keep reminding myself, if I have to.
So there are only two episodes left in this season. What can we kind of expect from the last two episodes?
Tyler: The first six have been pretty, pretty suspenseful, with some pretty big plot twists as well that I know people are enjoying from the buzz on the media. But wow, these last two episodes, I would say Jeff pushed it even further. When we were first reading scripts, our jaws were just dropping to the floor with every script that we would get. It was almost like the audience watching a new episode every week, we would be able to read a new episode. And I would say that seven and eight were by far our biggest reactions of like, ‘oh my god, how Jeff thinking of this stuff?’ You guys can definitely expect, I would say, more romance. I mean, it’s kind of obvious, but romance with characters that maybe you wouldn’t expect. Or maybe you would? I don’t know. The thing is, it kind of scares me because people are so smart. And people figure stuff out so quickly. Like I’ve seen a few people online saying some stuff and I’m just like, ‘do you like work for the FBI or something? Like I haven’t even figured that out like how did you see that?’ So I’m even scared to say anything in this interview because someone’s gonna take it apart and be like, ‘Tyler said this. So this means this and this and this.’ But, you know, there’s going to be a lot of action. I did do some stunts for episodes seven and eight, so there’s going to be some cool action scenes. And by the end of episode eight, people are either going to be upset, or they’re going to be just ready and hopeful for season two.
I can’t wait for these final two episodes. But in speaking of a potential season two, has there been any talk or anything?
Tyler: I mean, I know that Jeff wants to, like he was telling us during filming that this is his new project, it’s his child that he’s been crafting and I don’t think he wants it to just stop at one season. He’s said that he’s already had ideas for season two. I don’t know, they haven’t made an announcement as far as I know. But, I mean, it seems like it’s getting good reactions from people online. I can only pray for the best, but honestly I do have some confidence because I’m really happy with how the show came out. And, you know, I’m my own biggest critic, so to be really happy and satisfied with how everything came out. I mean, it’s got to be somewhat decent, right?
My final question for you is just if people want to stay up to date with you and your work, where can we find you?
Tyler: I would say I’m mostly on Instagram. My handle is just my name, @tylerlawrencegray. But I also have Twitter where I occasionally tweet some random stuff or very inspirational things, like one or the other. It just depends on what mood I’m in, which is @TylerLawrenceG. And then I also have TikTok. I don’t really post a lot on there, just kind of very random stuff. That’s also my name.
