Ella Purnell and Aaron Moten Talk ‘Fallout’s Shifting Morality, Surprising Humor, and How Vault-Dweller Lucy Is ‘Leslie Knope Meets Ned Flanders’

We’re getting closer to the end of the world. Prime Video’s Fallout series, based on the hit series of video games from Bethesda Game Studios, premieres on April 11, and TMS was invited to speak with members of the cast and the show’s creators ahead of its release.

One of the best things about the Fallout show is the nuanced characters with whom viewers will get to explore the Wasteland. I had the chance to chat with Ella Purnell (Yellowjackets), who plays vault-dweller Lucy, and Aaron Moten (Emancipation) who plays Brotherhood of Steel squire Maximus about what fascinates them about their characters and the world of Fallout. Especially since neither one had any experience with the Fallout games before working on the show.

For Moten, the unique tone of Fallout was the biggest draw. “What I think is going to be a surprise to people that are not already fans of the Fallout universe is the fact that … it’s funny,” he says. “It’s putting things against each other that really never get to exist [together] otherwise. It’s a really beautiful world that’s been created, and that tone, to me, was like Who wrote this? You know what I mean? Like, Where did they find this? It was so bizarre and so weird, but you’re turning the pages so quickly because you’re enjoying the ride so much.”

Purnell was immediately drawn to the project after her first meeting with Executive Producer Jonathan Nolan and showrunners Graham Wagner and Geneva Robertson-Dworet, who described Lucy to her as “Leslie Knope meets Ned Flanders.”

“And that was it! I was sold,” she says. “I was like Where do I sign? Let’s go! I’ve never seen Ned Flanders in the apocalypse, and I’d quite like to. That’d be quite entertaining.”

There were some elements of these nuanced characters that were difficult for Purnell and Moten to wrap their heads around and find their way into.

“I think the hardest thing for me was Lucy at the beginning of the season,” Purnell explains, regarding Lucy’s matter-of-factness when it comes to doing her civic duty in Vault 33. “Understanding the sort of communal, Vault-Dweller attitude towards duty, responsibility, relationships, procreation. How that was sort of a factual, direct mission.”

However, Purnell does relate to Lucy’s cheerful, tendencies. “I think I am a bit like that as well in that … when poop hits the fan, you can always count on me to crack a joke and rally the troops and go ‘Come on, guys!‘ I like to make the best of a bad situation. I actually think I thrive in chaos. That’s probably why I’m an actor.”

Moten found it challenging to get into the headspace of someone who grew up in the Wasteland, and talked about putting himself into the headspace of someone who needs to fight to survive and leans into distrust of other people. “It’s a different moral compass. It’s a different relationship to other human beings. There’s so much that I had to really try to spend time mining for myself.”

But Moten related to Maximus’ internal struggle and shifting morality, and thinks viewers will, too. “What’s more relatable to me is that ‘internal war’ aspect to [Maximus]. I think that there’s something like that in all of us, all the time. I think we’re always having to make choices about things…all these notes are playing in our heads, but we for whatever reason we choose what we choose.”

Check out the full interview over at TMS‘ YouTube Channel:

(featured image: TMS)