After another stint filming amid the spectacularly epic landscapes of New Zealand for the second season of The Gone, Richard Flood has said he is hoping to spend more time working in his native Ireland.
The Dublin actor is well-known to Irish audiences. He came to fame on the international crime drama Crossing Lines before playing Garda James McKay on Red Rock. A role on the US version of Shameless and as Dr Cormac Hayes on Grey's Anatomy earned him wider acclaim.
"I would like to be spending more time in Ireland working on what's happening there because there's so many unbelievably talented storytellers, and filmmakers, and TV shows, and actors, and writers and directors," he said. "So I would like to be spending more time working in Ireland if I could."
Flood said he's feeling a "different type of excitement" as the mystery drama prepares to return to screens.
"With the first season, I'd been away from Ireland for quite a while and it was very exciting to have something coming back on in Ireland," he said.
"And so there was a particular kind of excitement there, just personally I suppose. In the second season, it's a different type of excitement.
"You just hope that people enjoy it as much, if not more than they did the first season because it's a big undertaking."
He continued: "There's always a little bit of trepidation going into a second season, especially when you had such a good time on the first because nothing's ever quite the same the second time around.
"I was saying to one of the other cast [members], in some ways, it feels like you've never left. You're kind of straight back into it."
Flood plays the troubled Detective Theo Richter in the series and said of inhabiting the role again: "It's like putting on an old pair of shoes, you're like, oh, yeah, these fit."
Just as naturally as he stepped back into Richter's shoes, Flood and the returning crew and cast members gelled instantly on set.
"We were just straight back into it, straight back into a bit of banter basically - taking the p*** out of each other most of the time!" he laughed.
"The whole cast and crew decamped to a small town called Te Aroha for five, six, seven weeks. That feels like to me when the production all comes together because you're all really in it together. All of it feels pretty epic."
Native New Zealander Acushla-Tara Kupe plays Theo's Kiwi counterpart, Diana Huia, and Flood said the amiable and talented actress who "looked after all the Irish" that came over for the shoot.
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"She organises trips to the theatre or things we should be doing - gets us engrossed in the local culture. She's great to have in the cast", he shared.
Season two picks up as Richter is preparing to head back to Ireland after solving the case of a missing Irish couple. He is forced to team up once more with Huia when he discovers that Irish journalist Aileen Ryan (Carolyn Bracken) has gone missing while chasing a lead on the town's historical Mountain Murders.
"One of the big changes was that last time they needed Richter's experience and his expertise to be able to solve the crimes," Flood said of the upcoming six-episode run.
"But now the situation he's in, he really needs the help of everybody else. He's a very isolated character for his own reasons, but here you see a man who does feel very much for other people, and for Aileen in particular, and how that drives him in a different way.
"Because sometimes your emotion can cloud your vision, especially in his job, which is very analytical and precise, and you need to be able to see the wood from the trees. So he relies on other people's judgments a lot more this season."
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While remaining tight-lipped on the twists and turns ahead, Flood said: "There are always rumours on set, about who’s the bad guy. Everybody always throws their ideas into the ring. There were big surprises this time."
With over two decades of experience navigating the film and television industries, Flood is used to the highs and lows associated with a career in acting.
He said of his approach: "I'm not sure I navigated very much, I'm just kind of around! Hopefully, the opportunities come up. I think the main thing is that you just have to be open to all sorts of opportunities, whether they're big shows or movies or very small things.
"The kind of stage I'm at, luckily, I'm just interested in anything big or small that I get a creative buzz out of. You're less kind of trying to chase this big, Hollywood idea of what an acting career should be - you're more content doing the things you like to do with it.
"I think as you get older, certainly in my case, you're doing it for different reasons. You're getting something much more fulfilling out it than just trying a big TV show and all that sort of stuff.
"When you have a family, different things come into perspective and you approach the work differently and approach the lifestyle differently. If you're lucky, you find your sweet spot where you’re just kind of content."
He acknowledged that there are knocks along the way.
"It's a difficult profession because you’re constantly being hit with rejection and disappointment, no matter what stage you’re at," he said.
"But as you get older and you're in it a bit longer, you learn how to navigate all those disappointments because there's more losses than wins, that’s just the way it is. You just maybe learn how to navigate that a bit better."
After many years in front of the camera, Flood is actively pursuing more behind-the-scenes projects.
"I produced a short film last year and I've just done another one with a guy called Ryan William Harris, who's actually Irish, from Athboy [Co Meath]," he said.
"We just finished our second collaboration now in Sicily, that's been amazing. He's an incredible, young, visionary filmmaker, so it's very exciting to work with him.
"I'm in development on another series that's set in Rome, we’ll see how we get on. It's a long process but it's an exciting project, if it happens, you never know until you're on set!"
Most importantly, the actor is enjoying the pace of life in Rome.
"It's great, we’ve just moved into a new house. Finally, after about 10 years of constantly moving myself, my wife and our son, we finally put down some roots," he said with a smile.
"We're very happy about that. Just settling into a new house which is very exciting, and my son is enjoying his life in Rome. You know, I really can't complain. It's a way of life that suits me for some reason."
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