Widow’s Bay has captivated viewers (and now Emmy voters, with its staggering 19 nominations) since its series debut in April. Blending horror with comedy, the Apple TV show takes place in a fictitious New England island town afflicted by a centuries-old curse that brings about supernatural evils.
In episode one, Mayor Tom Loftis (Matthew Rhys) clashes with local resident Wyck (Stephen Root) as the latter tells him the cursed history of Widow’s Bay. Loftis is immediately skeptical, and the argument turns personal.
“I really like scenes where no one is really wrong and you can understand why everyone’s arguing so hard for their case,” says creator and showrunner Katie Dippold of scripting the interaction. “To Wyck, it’s like the danger signs are there, but you’re too arrogant to pay attention to them.”
Apple TV
“We’re catching the tail end of this ridiculous conversation [of] Wyck giving the island’s history, and he’s treating it as deadly serious. Loftis is watching Patricia [Kate O’Flynn] get sucked into it, and Loftis finally just blows up,” Dippold explains. “I liked showing Loftis’ impatience with Wyck and the island and also that he’s ignoring all this stuff that’s about to ruin his life.” Dippold, who also jokes that Rhys is “actually very good at swearing,” adds that a lot of the show’s comedy is Loftis just biting his tongue and many residents of the island “rage-baiting” him. “Wyck also thinks Loftis doesn’t take the island’s history seriously, and it’s that message of the dangers of not knowing your history.”
