Quincy Tyler Bernstein Confirms Which ‘Furious’ Character Nora Is Ready To Take Down in Season 2
Editor’s note: The below interview contains spoilers for the Furious finale.
It may seem strange to point out that Hulu’s Furious actually has a comedic side, but those moments of levity and dry wit are often the balm viewers need to get through the more harrowing aspects of creator Liz Meriwether‘s crime thriller. In that regard, perhaps the deadpan, wearied FBI agent Nora Washington, played by Quincy Tyler Bernstine, was always destined to become a fan favorite character.
Amidst the major revelations that lead investigators to billionaire Jay Easton’s (Peter McRobbie) home, resulting in a standoff that results in fledgling serial killer Catherine Grace (Lola Petticrew) finally being apprehended and FBI agent Alice Black (Emmy Rossum) having a secretive hand in Easton’s demise, the agency now has its hands on a flash drive containing videos of many victims, Alice included, which Nora ultimately encourages her coworker to dig into when she’s finally ready. It’s unclear, based on Alice’s reaction, exactly what will be done with the drive and its contents, but as Nora bluntly asserts to her corrupt boss, ASAC Ed George (Danny McCarthy), it doesn’t bode well for anyone who may have been even tangentially caught up in Easton’s web of trafficking and abuse.
Ahead of the finale’s airing, Collider spoke with Bernstine about her road to joining the cast of Furious, the complicated twists and turns of Nora and Alice’s relationship, how she prepared to play someone who has to look into the darkest parts of humanity regularly, what’s on her personal wishlist to explore for Nora in Season 2, and more.
COLLIDER: What was your journey to becoming a part of Furious?
QUINCY TYLER BERNSTINE: It was last July. I was sitting on my couch in my living room watching Dying for Sex and thinking, “What an extraordinary, tough show, and wouldn’t it be amazing if I could work with Liz Meriwether someday?” I got through Episode 4, I checked my email, and I had an email from my agent asking if I’d like to Zoom with Liz, who had this adaptation of the film Black Widow, and would I like to participate? Or at least meet with her. And I said, “Of course, of course, of course!” I read the sides, was blown away; read the pilot, was blown away; saw that Emmy [Rossum] was attached, and the rest is history. I had a Zoom, I had a chemistry read, and here we are today.
Nora feels like such a distinct character. I’m sure that she popped off the page for you, but in preparing to best embody her, was there a specific scene or line of dialogue that best helped you find her voice?
BERNSTINE: I was given that first hospital scene with Nora and Alice, when Nora is telling the story of Medusa. I was given the scene when they’re in the car, waiting for Tina to come out, and Nora is singing K-Ci & JoJo, and I was given the scene where they first meet, where Alice is like, “I want to work with you,” and Nora’s like, “Put it in an email.”
But the two moments that kind of captured Nora for me were the Medusa story and the singing of K-Ci & JoJo. They were just such extreme things, and I just saw who she was in those extremes. And like you said, she jumped off the page. I saw who she was immediately and was like, “I have to sink my teeth into this somehow and get this part.”
Quincy Tyler Bernstine Had To Prepare To Face the Darkness as Nora on ‘Furious’
“I always try to just take the best care of myself that I can so that I, Quincy, am as healthy as I can be to do this kind of work.”
Nora’s very multifaceted, but she’s also someone who has to stare into the horrors that humanity is capable of on a day-to-day basis. Did you do anything special to prepare yourself to play a character who is having to deal with that darkness as part of her profession?
BERNSTINE: I can’t say that I did anything special. I always try to just take the best care of myself that I can so that I, Quincy, am as healthy as I can be to do this kind of work. I had the opportunity to speak with several people who do this actual work for a living, and just them talking about the horrors of what they have to see on a day-to-day basis. My main question to them was, “How do you get through this day every day?” And they all, to a one, talked about how they took care of themselves physically and mentally and how important family was and how important, sometimes, religion was.
It’s so sad because Nora doesn’t have those tools, but I, Quincy, wanted to make sure that I exercised and put good food in my body and just was the healthiest vessel that I could be in order for her to come out, if that makes sense.
Like you said, Nora doesn’t really have a lot of personal or professional connections. It really feels like it’s not until Alice comes in as this sort of bridge between the FBI and the NYPD that these two women forge this unlikely camaraderie. One of my favorite sequences is Episode 4, where the two of them are working the city late at night, and then it spills over into the early morning, and they’re still walking around and talking.
BERNSTINE: Exactly. That shot along the water was dusk, so we had a very limited time. It’s supposed to be early morning, but it was dusk, and so the sun kept setting, so we had to kind of do it quickly. I remember there was that element of pressure to it.
That’s one of my favorite scenes, and the scene leading up to that when we were in the car, because there is a real, like you say, camaraderie, a real sisterhood that develops over the course of those first four episodes that I love so much. I love that Alice is determined to get under Nora’s wing, and Nora reluctantly lifts her wing up and takes her in. It’s just really, really moving to me.
Simultaneously, there is the reveal that Nora was previously involved in closing Isabel’s case, but, as much as you would think that the show would use it as an obstacle in her partnership with Alice, it also speaks to the broader systemic issue and how these women so often find themselves stuck between a rock and a hard place. What did you like about how that subversion where Nora and Alice’s relationship almost takes on a new dimension, as opposed to just having them be at odds for the rest of the season?
BERNSTINE: What I love, and what Liz is so brilliant at, is you think it’s going one way, and it goes another. Every other moment, you’re surprised. As I was reading these scripts week after week, I didn’t know where it was going, and so I was sort of on the edge of my seat, as I think audiences have been on this journey, as well, wondering where these relationships are going to go.
Nothing is precious, and that’s what makes, I think, for such great television. And also sort of watching along with people and getting texts like, “I loved Nora, but now I don’t know.” We’re just constantly questioning, and it’s been fun to experience it in that way.
One moment that really stands out to me as almost a way to sum up the emotions that Nora’s dealing with — or maybe not dealing with — is the monologue that you have about different types of anger in Episode 4. How did you prepare to deliver that speech, and what did you want to come across about how Nora is using it, not just as a way to wax philosophical, but also to send a message to Ed?
BERNSTINE: I absolutely loved that scene. From the moment I read it, I was blown away, and I couldn’t wait to work on it. I’m not going to blame Ed entirely, but he is largely responsible, I believe, for Nora’s drinking situation. She reached out to him years ago and asked for help and was denied help. Nora didn’t come into this job as a drinker. As we were talking about, it’s being in the basement and carrying around all of these weights.
So, this anger has been brewing inside her for a long time, and not just anger about her situation — anger about this system that she’s been trying to work within, trying to get justice for these women, oftentimes in vain. That’s infuriating, to say the very least, and so that’s what I wanted to come across. It’s like there’s a lid on it, but it boils over, and eventually the lid is gonna pop off.
Quincy Tyler Bernstine Explains Why Nora Encourages Alice To Look at ‘Furious’ Sinister Flash Drive
“You do it on your own time, but if you want to get anywhere, if you want to do this work, if you want to save these girls, you have to start with yourself.”
I’m realizing now, in doing these interviews, I’ve unexpectedly followed the path of the flash drive. First, I spoke with Steve [Way], and then Scoot [McNairy], and I asked both of them about their characters’ roles in making sure that the drive gets into the hands of the right people, but in the finale, Nora encourages Alice to look at what’s on it. What was your read of that scene, and why do you think Nora ultimately does encourage Alice to face what’s on the drive?
BERNSTINE: I think it’s really in the line. You want to do this job, you face it. I feel like it’s about facing your demons, facing the monsters. We’re looking at a whole lot of darkness, and it kind of starts with self. You know what I mean?
I feel like it made perfect sense that Nora would encourage her, almost demand. “You do it on your own time, but if you want to get anywhere, if you want to do this work, if you want to save these girls, you have to start with yourself.” And the fact that Alice finally gets that code and the first thing that she is seeing is the mirror is herself is chilling to me.
There’s some catharsis in the finale because of what happens with Jay Easton, but there are still reminders of how widespread and pervasive this is. There are people in positions of power who worked to cover this up. Yet, in Nora’s final scene with Ed in the elevator, it almost feels like there’s a power shift, with the leverage that Nora now holds. How did you prepare for that moment?
BERNSTINE: The entire season, I was like, “Liz, are we going to get Ed? Are we going to get Ed?” And Liz was like, “We’re going to get him. We’re going to get him.” I didn’t know how. I didn’t know what it looked like. We’re coming off of Episode 6 where Nora is at the top. She’s triumphant — until she is not.
One of my objectives is to get Ed, because “the bane of her existence” is like an understatement. But he needs to go. And so I was so delighted that she finally gets that flash drive, and I feel like that’s the key. I do believe that she is going to get him. We end with that scene, and I’m like, “Okay.” Because she has all the cards now. There’s a desperation that we see coming from him. I really believe that we’re going to get him finally.
Quincy Tyler Bernstine Reveals Her Personal Wishlist for ‘Furious’ Season 2
“I’m actually very curious about her history…”
What’s on your bucket list, in addition to nailing Ed, for where Nora’s story could go in Season 2 and what you would like to have the chance to explore more with the character?
BERNSTINE: I’m actually very curious about her history, like where she has come from, how she got to C20. I don’t know what it looks like, but I would be curious to see what picture Liz and the other writers might paint, as far as that goes.
What do you think Nora’s reaction would be if she knew about Alice’s hand in what happened to Jay Easton?
BERNSTINE: Oh, wow! That’s a hard question. I don’t know. Maybe a little bit of a smile. You know how Alice had that little bit of a smile at the end? Maybe there’d be a little upturn of the mouth. Who knows? Alice is very, very good at her job. That’s all I’ll say.
All episodes of Furious Season 1 are now available to stream on Hulu.