Season 1
Tom’s youngest son, 8-year-old Matt, has been forced by circumstances to face the kind of loss and upheaval no child should ever have to confront. Matt desperately wishes for everything to go back to normal. He struggles to understand why he can’t have all the things his brothers had when they were his age, like a birthday party or a new skateboard. Despite being too young to join the fight alongside his father and brother, Matt wants to help, even if it means going against his father’s wishes.
Matt Mason embodies the humanity in all of us in the simple things a kid wants. Matt wants things to go back the way they were. Where he went to school, his mom was alive and Ben was back with them. Matt was attached to Ben more than Hal. Matt misses him a lot and doesn’t understand what the aliens want with all the kids.
Season 1 saw young Matt test his fathers wishes when Pope and Matt discovered a way to use Mech metal to create bullets that could get through their armor. Matt asked his father many times to let him learn to fight like the other kids. Tom refused to let him, hoping that at least one of his boys might remain a kid and not have to become a hardened soldier.
Upon Bens return, Matt was thrilled. The brother he was close to was back and the two teased each other like old times. But when Matt asked Ben about his time with the skitters, Matt was afraid of his response. Ben said “they weren’t all bad. They were like family”.
Season 2
At 8-yrs old Matt has been forced by circumstances to face the kind of loss no child should ever have to face. Even though he is still dealing with the terror of the alien invasion, he desperately wants a fighting role in the resistance. The 2nd mass is fighting back and that means more losses will be seen. In the midst of all the fighting, Matt is going to learn that there are no easy roads in fighting and many will suffer from it.
Maxim Knight Interview
We recently interviewed Maxim about his character and how he progresses in Season 2.
How has Matts role in season 2 changed?
In season 1 I was the innocent one. The kid who stayed in the corner while all the other kids went out and fought for the 2nd mass. After Tom went on the ship, Matt had more space to try to do new things for the 2nd mass. When Tom comes back he isn’t up for me doing everything I wanted to do.
With a recently released photo showing Ben Mason (Connor Jessup) showing you how to hold a gun, did you get gun training like the other cast members?
As you have seen from a recent photo released of Ben and Matt, Matt is holding a gun. So I had to go through some gun training like the rest of the cast. It was neat and fun. The gun is very powerful. We do have to wear ear plugs when shooting it, but oddly you can still hear the person next to you talk but it keeps the loud sound from the gun down. It was a bit unnerving when I actual held it because the gun they ended up giving me for the scene was different from the one I was trained on.
Did you get a chance to interact with any skitter puppets this year or green screen?
Our puppet guy, Keith is really awesome. I don’t know how he does it in that suit. It’s so life-like that if you don’t pay attention and turn around and see him in that suit you almost jump out of your skin. The green screen shots they do for season 2 are amazing and acting against a ball on the stick isn’t so bad because there is so much puppet work with the real skitter suit you are acting against something that is actually there.
Whether Matt interacts with any skitters or green screen….you will have to stay tuned.
Who’s story do you find is the most interesting and complex for season 2?
I would have to say Ben’s, played by Connor Jessup, is the most interesting. In the first season he was just discovering his powers. He was becoming more of an alien, then his old self: the nerdy, geeky bookworm. Now he is becoming a warrior and he is fighting against the aliens. He wants to do it with a passion. It’s interesting because he hates the aliens, so it’s almost like he is hating himself for being one of them and that is how he deals with his anger. It’s an interesting transition he makes during the second season.
There are a lot of new guest stars for season 2, who were you most excited to work with?
I would say Terry O’Quinn. He is in the show this season, and was really cool to work with. He didn’t practice his lines very much but when he came there on the day he just jumped right into it and knew his lines. I saw him first on Lost and i loved his character and that show. It was really neat to get the chance to work with him.
During Season 2, the 2nd mass is not in one spot, is it harder for you to react to changing environments?
It interesting that you would bring that up. During the first season we remained in the school which kept the tone very much the same each week. The school was the safe place to be. But in the second season we are jumping around. We are not in a cosey place to settle down. We could be just 5 miles away form an alien base. Were not as prepared when we are moving around. Acting wise I think its neat to get into a new environment and see how you can play off that environment. Its fun to be able to work into your performance the environment around you and how that affects the way you react to a scene.
We recently heard about the release of a Falling Skies trading card set. What can you tell us about it?
Yea I just recently got the cards to sign, 500 in total and I have to get started on those soon. I’m going to have to spend a lot of money buying these trading cards now.
You and me both Max! We will have them available for preorder in the next week. So all of you fans stay tuned to our site for details on how to preorder your copies.
For those of you who also haven’t heard, Maxim will be starting a gaming blog where he will discuss his favorite games and talk about indie games. Stay tuned for a link once he gets started.
Season 2 is just 1 week away and you won’t have to wait long to see some crazy action. Season 2 starts out right in the middle of the fight against the aliens and Matt will deliver you some crazy scenes in the 2 hour premiere a week from today.
Before our interview with Maxim, we went to see Prometheus in Orlando. If you haven’t seen the film, you should. Here is a photo from our theatre trip.
Maxim Knight Bio
Maxim Knight stars on TNT’s sci-fi drama FALLING SKIES. Knight already has 15 film credits and will next star on the big screen opposite Melissa Leo, Nick Cannon, Rosanna Arquette & Chris “Ludicris” Bridges in the dramatic feature Ball Don’t Lie. Knight’s mature character “Sticky” portrays a young boy who is witness to his mother’s suicide and has to face and ultimately triumph over life’s challenges & unfair circumstances.
Knight continues to showcase his dramatic chops with numerous appearances on hit shows such as NBC’s Parenthood, ABC’s Brothers & Sisters, CBS’s CSI:Miami and Criminal Minds, FX’s It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, A&E’s former hit The Cleaner & CBS’s Three Rivers.
A Second City alum, Knight’s comedic strengths are undeniable. He held his own opposite comedian Frank Caliendo on TBS’s Frank TV, and has generated big laughs on HBO’s Funny or Die Presents & the Hallmark Channel’s heartwarming holiday classic Our First Christmas starring opposite Dixie Carter. Most recently, he brought his brand of funny toFX’s Wilfred, a remake of the critically acclaimed Australian hit.
Knight is also an accomplished voice over artist, with credits including Columbia Pictures’ much anticipated The Smurfs, Judd Apatow’s Bridesmaids, Twentieth Century Fox’s Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules, We Bought a Zoo and multiple episodes of Disney Channel’s Special Agent Oso just to name a few!
Knight’s love for the entertainment business started in first grade when Knight wrote his first screenplay, Magical Darkness, in his movie journal. By year’s end, Knight produced, cast, and directed his masterpiece, including choosing the musical score!
Knight currently resides in Los Angeles.
