‘Into the Badlands’ Star Daniel Wu Previews Season 2: ‘Stories Have Been Broken Apart’

“What Ireland provides for us is much more epic visuals,” AMC actor says of the show moving production locations

into the badlands
AMC

“Into the Badlands” expands beyond its borders in Season 2, necessitating a move to Dublin, Ireland.

The new location affords the AMC martial arts fantasy drama the luxury of telling bigger stories, especially as its characters headed off into different directions at the end of the first season.

“Sunny’s outside of the Badlands, he got taken outside in the last episode by the River King, so now he’s trying to get back in to get to his family,” star Daniel Wu told reporters of his character’s whereabouts on set in January. “This season, the stories have been broken apart. She’s here, he’s there, Ryder (Oliver Stark) and Jade (Sarah Bolger) have their story going on, the Widow (Emily Beecham) has her thing going on, everyone’s kind of separated. And then as the season goes on, everyone kind of comes back to the climax point, so we’re working our way towards that point.”

And they are working towards it in a new location, with production on the show moving from New Orleans to Dublin, Ireland for the second season.

“What Ireland provides for us is much more epic visuals,” Wu said about the move. “We can shoot in the mountains, we can shoot on the coast, it’s all within a half hour. It gives a broader scope compared to last season. New Orleans was basically swamp and more swamp and more swamp, we didn’t have mountains or any of that stuff. That was challenging about last season, we couldn’t really shoot anything in an epic cinematic scope. This season we have that, which kind of ups the game for the visuals of the show.”

And the rolling green hills of Ireland provide some relief, weather-wise.

“The weather last season was unbearable,” he admitted. “It was like 100 degrees, 90 percent humidity. Now it’s much more tolerable when you’re wearing a trench coat and fighting… It was leather. I had to go through like four or five in a day because I just sweat through the leather.”

Season 2 premieres March 19 at 10 p.m./9c on AMC.

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