The Waterfront creator Kevin Williamson wrote the villainous character of Grady with actor Topher Grace particularly in thoughts. Williamson, recognized for initiatives comparable to Scream, Dawson’s Creek, and The Vampire Diaries, amongst others, has introduced a brand new TV sequence to Netflix. The Waterfront follows the highly effective Buckley household, who run a fishery and restaurant in a small city in North Carolina. To flee their debt, the Buckleys get again into the drug trafficking sport with a provider named Grady (Grace), who seems to be dangerously unpredictable.

Throughout an interview with ScreenRant’s Ash Crossan for The Waterfront, Williamson defined that he wrote the character of Grady with Grace in thoughts. “I wanted someone who was so darn likable,” the screenwriter stated, “someone we knew to be so darn cute and funny and winning.” Williamson went on to say that he enjoys characters which are actually humorous however do terribly evil issues. “[Grace] really plays the duality very well.” See Williamson’s full response beneath:

Ash Crossan: It’s humorous as a result of you’ve got somebody like Harlan who may be outwardly scary, after which you’ve got Topher Grace that is available in and he’s type of foolish, however he’s a unique kind of terrifying to me. He actually knocked my socks off.

Kevin Williamson: Isn’t he nice?

Ash Crossan: He’s so nice.

Kevin Williamson: Properly, to be truthful, I did write that character with him in thoughts I wished somebody who was so darn likable, and somebody that we knew to be so darn cute and humorous and successful in all these methods through which you don’t often see a psychotic psychopath, a horrible particular person. I like when actually, actually, very nice, humorous individuals do actually evil issues. He actually performs the duality very nicely.

Topher Grace Was An Efficient Inspiration

Grace rose to fame enjoying nerdy teenager Eric Forman on the sitcom That ’70s Present (1999 – 2005). Although he has performed dramatic and even villainous roles since, the truth that Grady was explicitly written with Grace’s model of comedy in thoughts made a major distinction concerning how the character got here throughout on display. The Waterfront is filled with massive, critical, and menacing characters, together with the Buckley patriarch, Harlan (Holt McCallany). Nonetheless, Grady is probably the most terrifying, since there’s an implicit understanding that this provider may do various violent issues at any second.

Characters like Grady have rather a lot to do with why Williamson’s initiatives have been so profitable.

Characters like Grady have rather a lot to do with why Williamson’s initiatives have been so profitable. The Waterfront is a Netflix crime drama that checks all of the containers of the style. Nevertheless, the unusual likability of Grace’s Grady and the way in which this high quality evokes worry slightly than conventional comedy helps the Netflix sequence to face out in a sea of comparable TV exhibits. This character may not have been as efficient had Williamson not written him with a particular actor in thoughts.

Our Take On Topher Grace’s Efficiency In The Waterfront

Grady Was The Spotlight Of The Waterfront Season 1

The Buckley household dynamics in The Waterfront have been distinctive, however I discovered Grace’s Grady to be a spotlight of the Netflix sequence’ first season. The actor leaned all in with the chaotic vitality of his character, and it was really unsettling to observe. Nevertheless, I discovered that the massive query of what unpredictable factor Grady would do subsequent served because the driving drive that saved me watching episode after episode. It is clear that Grace was the right muse, and I am desperate to see what different intriguing characters Williamson writes for The Waterfront season 2.

The Waterfront

6/10

Launch Date

June 19, 2025

Community

Netflix

Administrators

Marcos Siega

Holt McCallany

Harlan Buckley