People often declare that they’ll do whatever it takes to achieve their goals, no matter what circumstances they’re forced to overcome. But once they begin forming true connections in their community, they have to make the hard choice of whether they should remain committed to their original ambition. That powerful internal struggle of whether remaining true to your initial aspirations is enthrallingly explored in the fourth season of the popular AMC western series, ‘Hell on Wheels.’ In honor of the basic cable’s top-rated drama receiving a home release on Blu-ray and DVD on Tuesday, Shockya has an exclusive new clip, titled ‘A Look at Season 4.’
In ‘A Look at Season 4,’ the western’s main actor, Anson Mount, who plays former Confederate soldier Cullen Bohannon, states that the series’ entire subject matter can be summed up in one word: ambition. The actor adds that the fourth season proves that people have to make hard choices if they want to remain committed to that ambition. One of the show’s executive producers, Mark Richard, then adds that civilization is catching up to Hell on Wheels as it leads towns in its path.
Actress Robin McLeavy, who plays Eva, a woman who was once held captive by Native Americans, states that characters who viewers love are being confronted with consequences for the first time. Richard then adds that Cullen is in the worst possible place, which Mount agrees with. The actor reveals that he thinks his character isn’t a talented farmer or family man, and he’s in a new family situation that he’s afraid to be in. The producer points out that the former soldier has to choose between his new family and the railroad. Actress MacKenzie Porter then discusses that a love has formed between Cullen and her character, Naomi, and she helps bring out a new side to him.
Richard then delves into how the world philosophies between Cullen and Colm Meaney’s character, Thomas “Doc” Durant, a businessman and investor in the First Transcontinental Railroad, have begun crossing. Cullen becomes more thoughtful, while Durant reverts back to his dark side. The businessman is fighting government oversight, particularly with Wyoming’s first governor, John Campbell, who’s played by Jake Weber. John believes that the best way to use power is by humiliating other men, Weber reveals. Mount adds that the governor has psychotic tendencies, in the fact that he doesn’t have much of a conscious.
Mount adds that overall, the show’s fourth season is all about how the railroad will change humanity. McLeavy states that a lot more law is coming into play, as more conflict arises between the drama’s characters. Actor Phil Burkem, who plays Mickey McGinnes, states that the town is offering a lot of opportunities, and the season explores how the characters will achieve their goals as they explore their new circumstances.
When it premiered in 2011, ‘Hell On Wheels’ was credited for helping to modernize the Western genre. The series tells the story of post-Civil War America and of Cullen Bohannon, a soldier who sets out to exact revenge on the Union soldiers who have killed his wife. When his journey takes him west to Hell on Wheels, a lawless melting pot of a town that travels with and services the construction of the railroad, the lavishly-produced series gathers steam, and introduced characters and plotlines that have helped the Western drama become one of AMC’s top-rated series-and underscores just how uncivilized the business of civilization can be.
Season Three of ‘Hell On Wheels’ ended with Cullen married to a pregnant Naomi and living in a Mormon fort where the Swede (Christopher Heyerdahl) was impersonating church leader, Bishop Dutson; Thomas “Doc” Durant back in control of the Union Pacific Railroad, which had successfully expanded westward to Cheyenne; and Elam (Common), gravely injured by a bear while searching for the missing Cullen.
As ‘Hell On Wheels: The Complete Fourth Season’ unfolds, civilization makes its way west with the railroad, bringing with it men who attempt to do with their pens what rougher men did in seasons past with their guns. Conflict between government and big business, ranchers, homesteaders and the railroad will continue to define the drama as all of those interests compete with one another for control of Cheyenne, Wyoming, the “Magic City of the Plains,” and the most important railroad hub in the country.
Watch Shockya’s exclusive ‘Hell on Wheels’ clip, ‘A Look at Season 4,’ below.
Written by: Karen Benardello