Grimm’s Bitsie Tulloch Talks Going Dark, The Royals’ Return, Game-Changing Season Finale, and Lots More!
Were you as glad as we were to see “Grimm” return last night? Things have certainly taken a turn since Juliette’s “transformation,” and according to the actress who portrays her, Bitsie Tulloch, they’re about to get a lot darker.
She recently chatted with a group of journalists regarding her character’s humanity – or lack thereof – and what it’s been like to undergo such a drastic change. Bitsie also teased a new Royal arriving on the scene and what’s ahead in the game-changing season finale along with discussing whether or not she considers Juliette a role model.
You’ll find all that and more below along with a preview of next week’s Episode 4.15, “Double Date.”
Q: Can you talk about portraying this sort of new version of Juliette? What issues and challenges is the character facing now?
Bitsie Tulloch: Psychologically, it has been such a great storyline because there’s such a push-pull with her… you know, at first she really didn’t want it. She just wanted to have her normal life back. But now that she’s sort of learning how to control the Hexenbiest within, she’s realizing just how powerful this makes her. And to an extent, as much as she’s been able to contribute to the Scooby squad as a veterinarian and then also as somebody sort of good with a gun, this is the first time that she has sort of supernatural powers. So it’s really the question going back and forth of do I want to be normal again and be with Nick? Or do I want to stay a Hexenbiest because this is kind of fun? And I think the Hexenbiest are pretty wicked. And so she’s definitely going to the dark side, and that’s the intention. And I think that’s really where they’re going with the character, at least in the immediate future and for the rest of the season.
I’ve had pretty crazy arcs for my character since Season 1 [when] she was rather passive in order to serve the story with Nick kind of hiding everything from her. And then in Season 2 she was in a coma and lost her memory and had this love triangle with Renard. In Season 3 she finally found out and was able to kind of join the Grimm gang, and that was a really fun season. But… this sort of really changed everything. And I was really thrilled when I saw the first script. We had no idea, and I remember texting with the cast. Everyone was like, “What? This is so crazy; what an awesome idea.” And yes, going forward it’s adding a new element to the series for sure.
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Q: Nick (David Giuntoli) seems almost embarrassed at this point for all the things that have happened to Juliette as a result of him being a Grimm. Why do you suppose she continues to stay with him? And how do they get over this latest wrinkle in their relationship?
Bitsie Tulloch: Well, I think the reason they’ve stayed together thus far is that there’s a lot of love there. And it’s been one of the things in both of their lives that even though it’s sort of wreaked a lot of havoc, you know, you always go back to home. And I think he represents home for her and vice versa. And they’ve so far kind of managed to get through everything together even if it’s been tough. And so the initial question, obviously, [is] how are they going to handle this because this is the craziest thing they’ve had to deal with. Because the Hexenbiest are basically… they’re mortal enemies of the Grimms. And they just want to kill them and vice versa, which is why Juliette took so long to tell him the truth because she was terrified… that he would have a gut reaction and go after her and kill her. Also… it’s been made apparent to her by this point that she’s incredibly powerful, more so than Adalind or Renard, who are both Hexenbiest, could ever dream of being. And she doesn’t know how to really control it yet. So if he started to attack her and she morphs into a Hexenbiest, could she kill him?
But really the question going forward is can they live like this or not? And I think she’s kind of given up hope because she looks in the mirror, and all she sees is this ugly monster. And she hasn’t really embraced it yet. So she’s like, “I can’t handle the way that you look at me when I look like this, and this is what I am now.” Because, you know, we’ve tried… Juliette tried with Henrietta, and there seems to be no cure… it’s almost becoming like a Romeo and Juliette situation. Where, yes, they’re in love, but they can’t really be together the way it is right now.
Q: Can you tell us a little bit about the collaboration with the writers and how much they have clued you in as to where this is going to go? If it’s going to be a permanent thing or if it’s maybe going to resolve or change at some point, either later this season or next season?
Bitsie Tulloch: That’s a really great question. Sometimes we know more and we have a little bit of a heads-up. And then sometimes what I’ve found with the showrunners, Jim Kouf and David Greenwalt, is that they’re really open to ideas and stuff. And it’s very much a collaborative process. But a lot of the times stuff changes because the show moves pretty quickly. The [last] episode [to air] (#4.14, “Bad Luck”)… we shot in January, and it’s already airing. And they go on Facebook. They go on social media. And they see the stuff that the fans really like. And they’ll give them more of that… the Hexenbiest has been incredibly popular among the fans. And so don’t expect that to be going anywhere anytime soon.
The season finale for this season is the biggest game changer we have ever had… people will lose their minds. There’s going to be… gosh, I don’t know what I can say without giving it away other than yes, we’ve never done anything this big on the show before. So that’s going to really change everything going into Season 5. And the Juliette Hexenbiest storyline has a lot to do with that. The reality is that going forward, you’re going to see a lot of the push-pull with her psychologically wanting this power. And I think it adds a really interesting element to the story for her to turn really, really dark.
Q: How big a role does Juliette have in the finale?
Bitsie Tulloch: Everything. She is going to cause major, major problems for basically everyone involved. The reality is she misses Nick and she loves him. But she just can’t imagine a way for them to be able to stay together under the circumstances. She’s been told by numerous people now there’s absolutely nothing she can do about it. And so what else would you do? I mean, you have to embrace your new life. She has to go forward with that. And she is dead set on embracing it. She’s like, “If this is how it’s going to be, then I might as well be the best Hexenbiest I can. And there’s a darkness to that that’s going to seep into her veins. And you’re not going to really see the sort of sweet, loving girlfriend that everybody’s gotten used to for the last few seasons.
Q: Moving into Season 5, especially with the game changer that you’re talking about, do you see your characters moving to different locations outside of Portland, kind of how Adalind has moved around throughout the series? Or are you still going to keep the home base in Portland?
Bitsie Tulloch: I’m not sure about that. I can’t imagine that “Grimm” is really ever going to take place in any other city besides Portland. Portland is the perfect setting for this because the city in and of itself has not only these luscious forests, but there’s also a little bit of an eerie quality because the weather can be… you know, it’s gray. You have these really thick forests, and they get really dark during the day. And also the city has been so great to us, and we love shooting here. We certainly haven’t run out of locations to shoot in. If anything, you might see a little bit more of a storyline with one character maybe going off to Europe or something. But otherwise I would imagine it would be pretty centered in Portland still.
Q: You’ve talked quite a bit about Juliette’s continuing changes. Do you see her losing her humanity through this? Is that going to be less and less of a quality?
Bitsie Tulloch: Yes. The more that sort of evil takes hold inside her, she realizes that there’s really nothing she can do to get back to her normal life. Like I said before, she really needs to embrace it. And this is not a human character anymore. She’s a witch. And she is, you know, kind of a monster. But that’s her new reality. That’s the new normal for her, so to speak. And so I think that yes, if we’re going to a really, really dark place, then that is what it would entail.
Q: So is she worried about reactions from Rosalee and Monroe in particular?
Bitsie Tulloch: Yes, for sure. That’s something that’s going to be resolved and sort of played out through the rest of Season 4. Initially of course, she has to do deal with Nick’s reaction. But yes. It’s scary. Her friends have known her to be one way for this amount of time… they’ve all, as a group, collectively basically been hating on Hexenbiest for years. And now she is one. She’s one of those people. And the reality is, too, that there’s probably a little bit of resentment because they did this to her, you know. They asked her to do this for them because Rosalee and Monroe were coming under so much fire. And in order to protect them, Nick needed to get his Grimm powers back. I mean, the only way to do that was to use Juliette as a vessel. And she agreed to do it. But she would never have done that if she had known this would be the side effect. This was not something that she’s initially really excited about. I think that’s something that going forward is going to be pretty complicated.
Q: Is there anything else other than the finale that maybe you can tease that’s coming up, either other Wesen or just in general?
Bitsie Tulloch: You haven’t seen the last of the Royals. There’s a new Royal who’s coming to town, who’s kind of taking charge. So that’s a storyline that’s coming up. Obviously dealing with the whole Adalind being pregnant storyline is coming up. And then it’s definitely a big episode when there is a final reveal with Juliette and her friends and their reaction to that. And then really it’s kind of about her going to the dark side going forward… this is not something that has an easy resolution.
Q: How do you see your character being a strong female role model so far and then moving forward?
Bitsie Tulloch: In Season 1… the storyline sort of necessitated her being slightly more passive, but… [also] being someone who is capable of holding her own, who is capable of learning this life-changing secret from her man. And just realize, “Okay, there’s nothing we can’t do together. I can handle this. And I’m going to help you in whatever way, shape, or form I can.” Also, she’s contributed a lot to solving these cases. There’s been a lot of fun scenes, especially in Season 3 where she was really into doing all this research and helping out with the whole veterinarian skills going forward.
And then as the Hexenbiest… I hope nobody really tries to do anything that Juliette’s doing as a Hexenbiest. But it’s always nice to have a very powerful female character, whether for good or evil… to just have someone who is very much in control. Who is not relying on anybody else for anything. That’s one of the differences between Adalind and Juliette. Adalind was really reliant on the Royals and was sleeping around and stuff. The Hexenbiest are, you know, very sort of sexy witches. Juliette is kind of… it’s just everything that goes forward is going to be on her terms. So even if it’s evil, she’s doing it on her terms. And she’s in control of the situation; she’s doing what she wants to do when she wants to do it.
Q: Have you met any young women out there who have identified with your character or just fans of the show that have made an impression on you?
Bitsie Tulloch: Oh yes! I’m very active on social media, on Twitter and Instagram and Facebook. And I try to reply whenever I can. I see a lot people saying, “I love how strong she is. I love how smart she is.” They’re really liking the Hexenbiest stuff because they’re like, “What a badass!” [They] like seeing a woman walk into a scene and just kick butt and be more powerful… the manticore scene, that was something that Nick didn’t even think he was going to be able to deal with. And Juliette just kind of instantly took control of the situation and killed him. And so I think there’s probably a little bit of cheering when stuff like that happens.
We’re definitely cheering these latest developments and can’t wait to see what happens next in Episode 4.15, “Double Date.” Check out the preview below.
“Grimm” Episode 4.15 – “Double Date” (3/27/15; 8-9 pm)
THE SCENE OF A MURDER TRAILS BACK TO A STRANGE LOVERS’ QUARREL – Nick (David Giuntoli) and Hank (Russell Hornsby) are called to investigate a one-night stand turned deadly when a man finds himself in the middle of a very bizarre love triangle.
Captain Renard (Sasha Roiz) hopes Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell) and Rosalee (Bree Turner) can help him deal with recurring episodes of phantom bleeding.
Meanwhile, Adalind (Claire Coffee) makes a discovery that might turn the tables in her favor, and Juliette (Bitsie Tulloch) makes a big decision that could change the course of her relationship with Nick. Reggie Lee also stars; Alexis Denisof guest stars.
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