Warning: This story contains spoilers forOur Flag Means Deathseason 2, episode 8, “Mermen.”
His shipmates bury him on land, marking his grave with his prosthetic wooden horse leg.
Might Stede and Ed take to the seas again or is the end for the Revenge?
Stede Bonnet (Rhys Darby) and Blackbeard (Taika Waititi) in ‘Our Flag Means Death’ season 2.Courtesy of Max / photographed by Lyndon Katene
Courtesy of Max / photographed by Lyndon Katene
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: Let’s start with Izzy’s death.
Did you always plan to kill Izzy off this season?
DAVID JENKINS:Yes.
It feels like the logical end of Izzy’s arc.
It’s heartbreaking to me because he’s my favorite.
And what’s the most interesting thing we can do with Con, who can do just about anything?
How did Con react when you laid out Izzy’s storyline this season?
I also didn’t want it to leak.
He was lovely about it.
We had dinner, and I gave him a cuddle, and he took it pretty well.
He went from being so dismissive of the others to being a key part of the crew.
What interested you most about his arc?
You know, I didn’t expect him to become kind of a father figure to Ed.
I think we hit on that while we were breaking the [final] episode.
He gets thrown away, and then he comes back.
He really develops, and he becomes a part of this family.
I think the biggest surprise was the extent that he was a mentor to Ed.
They both made Blackbeard happen.
What do you remember most about filming Izzy’s death scene?
That was one of the last things we shot.
As we got closer and closer to it, I could see it weighing on Con.
It’s hard: This is something we both made together, and his character is gonna die.
He was taking it really seriously.
Then, when we were shooting, I made him a playlist.
How did you want to approach that sequence?
But the location was just unreal.
Everything in New Zealand just looks amazing.
It was this giant black sand dune that seems to go on for miles.
We were like, “Oh, we have to do something here.”
Walk me through why you wanted to give these two a happy ending.
I wanted to leave them in a place where they’re really going to try and make this work.
I don’t think it’s going to be easy for them, necessarily.
They’re both still immature.
This is them decidingnotto run away.
And I don’t think it’s going to be easy.
I think the day after that scene would be very hard.
But they can try.
You mentioned the wedding between Lucius and Black Pete.
I know that pirate weddings and civil partnerships were a real thing from history.
Why did you want to end on that moment?
We knew we wanted amatelotagein the second season, and pretty quickly we landed on Lucius and Black Pete.
It seems like they were ready for that.
But they really did have this phrase “matelotage.”
It was a formal process for relationships between crew members.
It just seemed very sweet to see that they wanted to take that step together.
This could work as a series finale.
I mean, we’ll see.
We’ll see if it makes sense for them to make a third one.
But it felt like a good place to end the second season.
It felt like a contrast to the first season.
You’re leaving the door open for more but if this the end, you’re okay with that.
And Ed and Stede, they’re in the early 30s part of their relationship.
Emotionally, they’re going to move in together and start a business.
I think there’s a whole other story to tell about what happens when that relationship gets more mature.
How do you make that relationship work?
It’s not just happily ever after.
You have to work at it.
And that’s a story I’d like to see.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
