Cross
word of advice : SPOILERS for the ending ofCrossseason 1!Prime Video brings one of James Patterson ’s most iconic character to life inCross , which has seen huge achiever in its debut time of year . The streamer had suchfaith inCrossseason 1 , in fact , that it renewed ( and shoot ) time of year 2 before the show even premiere . The burbling word - of - mouth is in large part thanks to the study of showrunner Ben Watkins ( ofBurn Noticefame ) , as well as the nuanced performances by Aldis Hodge and his talented endure cast .
One such endowment is Samantha Walkes , who takes on the role of Alex ’s quixotic partner , Elle Monteiro . While Elle is not a characterfrom theCrossbooks , she engage a similar space to Bree by helping him move forrad in his life story after the death of his wife , Maria . She nearly meets a likewise tragic fortune after being hold in hostage alongside Alex ’s children in the finale , but the resourceful tec bring through the solar day , and his freshly over family unit remains entire for the time being . However , Elle is much more than a beloved involvement and damsel in suffering , as her puerility friendship with Alex and passionate pursuit of societal jurist make her a three - dimensional eccentric who is fleshed out over the track of time of year 1 .
Cross season 1 has a well - rounded and conclusive conclusion , but at the same clock time , it also seems to pave the way for season 2 with many level apparatus .
ScreenRantinterviewed Walkes about becoming Elle Monteiro forCrossseason 1 , and the histrion generously shared her creative process from first read the book to " creating the world " of her character ’s living . Walkes also shared how her internal moments with Hodge were a choreographed saltation , bring out why she feelsmusic is so important toCross , and explained what she find were the most resonant differences between Prime Video ’s newfangled looping of the role and previous versions .
Cross Season 1 Makes Elle Monteiro So Much More Than Just A Love Interest
“Her passion for community is what drives her, and that’s the bridge between her heart and Cross.”
Screen Rant : How did your initial skepticism about the role of Elle Monteiro transform into excitement , and what aspects of the character stood out to you the most ?
Samantha Walkes : When I see " love interest , " I always tiptoe . I ’m very hesitant . Usually , we are painted , especially as black women , as wallpaper . We are an aid to the principal action , never really take care center stage or being in full develop . Multidimensional , rich , complex characters are just not written that way .
Going past the tryout cloth , seeing the nimble star under Elle Monteiro , and really moving through that handwriting changed the game for me . And that just really speak volumes to Ben Watkins and his written material way ; he does train a very vivacious environment for all of them to write in and really inspire them to push the gasbag . I retrieve that that ’s where it all starts .
Screen Rant : Can you take the air us through your journey of find , the complexities and depths within Elle ’s character reference , and how she differs from the distinctive love involvement role ?
Samantha Walkes : utterly . Elle has her own universe really develop . She ’s a college basketball jock . She run well , and that was her backbone . Then coming into her comprehensiveness as an grownup , create this beautiful nonprofit , and being the executive managing director of the Somewhere Foundation , her cacoethes for community is what drive her . And that ’s really the bridge deck between her heart and Cross . That ’s really where they meet first and foremost , after having this beautiful chronicle together of being puerility friends and originate up together .
I think the agency I ’ve created the world by having that cognition just gives her memories ; a cornucopia of recalling her first time seeing Alex on the playground , why they came into contact , where he came in and keep start the sidereal day when she was browbeat that one time , how he was always looking out for her , but then them drifting asunder through college before coming back into each other ’s periphery . When he got espouse , when I initiate the non-profit-making , the congratulations letter that I got from him … I just make memories , correct ?
Cross follows the life of Alex Cross, a skilled yet troubled homicide detective balancing his role as a devoted father and relentless crime investigator. Haunted by his wife’s murder, he navigates personal turmoil while persistently pursuing justice in the face of dangerous adversaries.
That ’s not scripted , but what it does is assure that , when we are sitting together at that dining elbow room table , it ’s just us . There is a familiarity there that can not be written , and it ’s something that really has helped me navigate the beautiful highs and the peak and valleys that you see when you learn Cross . That has to do with the Absorption method acting that I learned from an LA four-in-hand that I ’ve worked with for the past few years .
Screen harangue : Elle is n’t really directly based on any type in the book . Can you exposit a footling piece more on the process of create her backstory and how that help inform your kinship with Aldis as Alex on the show ?
Samantha Walkes : Absolutely . I start from childhood , from the very first moments that we really make memories as kids . produce up , I built her two parents . She ’s the only child — all of these thing . Like I told you , her ebbing and flux through college and adulthood , finding herself , and then hybridize in her periphery . We call it " creating the world . " The practice that we ’ve done is just assimilate more and more of the textile that Ben and his team would write .
Then it ’s , " Why does she say it this path ? Why does she choose that phrase and why now ? " From all of that , I have to make a storey . I have to work up the world even more in - profundity . It ’s so fun because what ends up happen is that we ’ll get on set , and he ’ll say something in a sure way . And I swear to God , he does n’t know all of the memories I created . He does n’t know all the world that I ’ve created for Elle , and it will have me express joy spontaneously , or it ’ll make Elle worked up spontaneously . It feels very energetic , like atmospheric static , and it ’s forward - move . All of the energy that ’s render is actuate this thing that ’s unseen , and it ’s like a duck on urine . You do n’t see the legs going because there ’s so much going on , and you are moving through it .
Samantha Walkes Details The Most Important Inspirations (And Differences) From The Cross Books
“Him being young hits different.”
Screen Rant : Fans are very conversant with Cross through the book series , and also there ’s been loop with Morgan Freeman and Tyler Perry . Did you go back and look at any of those other iterations to help inform the world when you were creating and craft Elle ?
Samantha Walkes : When I got the part , I did go back and scan Patterson ’s first few installments . I really wanted to see how he write love life interests for Cross , and how he had Cross approach being a widower of three kids . From that , I was just gathering what I want to use and what I found interesting about the way he write it , and then copulate it and combining it with what Ben and his writing room did . By allowing all of that to take surface where it ask to , I could build that world even more .
Screen Rant : In your planning , which elements did you find most helpful ?
Samantha Walkes : I loved the woman that he terminate up marry in the books properly after grieving . I mean , you ’re never done grieve , really . departure is going , and it come in waves , but he allows himself to wed again . What I loved was that this somebody is just so good - natured , and he line up a place to land that is gentle and that allows him to Diamond State - mask and de - vest and come down , even though they work together and have to do this very begrimed thing in the leger .
What I really require was there to be for him as Elle , especially as black-market people or minorities in general . We always have to armour up when we step outside that plaza of safety ; our rest home become our sanctuaries because it ’s the only place we remain from whatever jutting society has put on us . The way our bodies are politicized goes forth in this one space .
And so , I thought that I wanted Elle ’s house to be a place he can unmask . I want him to be at my front door , and it ’s already come down . When he steps into that brink and we are sharing space and breath together , we ’re breathing as one . It feels effortless , and it feels like coming home plate .
Screen Rant : I think Ben Watkins is such an incredible showrunner , and I enjoy that he ’s the one that ’s helm this show because I finger like it ’s such good hands . How did his leaders expressive style charm the aura on band , and what unique quality did he bring to the production ofCross ?
Samantha Walkes : Humility . That mankind demands so much of everyone , and it ’s because he demands it of himself first . When we step on set and acknowledge that we are meant to answer and care for each other , I do n’t care what role you have , or if you ’re a crew appendage — from top to bottom , you say , " Hello , upright morning . Are you feed ? Are you watered ? What do you need ? " We ’re all live . There is this storey of community that is non - negotiable .
We had a crowd that showed up and really wanted to be there . I remember the last daytime we enwrap season 1 . wat ’s believably 3AM easterly time , but not one crew fellow member left . They all huddle up , need out their phones , hold picture , and watched us yelling , " Speech ! " Aldis ease up a speech , then he just confound the osseous tissue to me , which I was very excited about . But they all continue to take impression , to watch , to clap , to chirk up , to congratulate , and to fete what we did . I ’ve never been on a set like that .
I ’ve never been on a stage like that , where we ’re just like , " I need to give you your prime , Bronx cheer . " And it was not just Aldis , it was the crew too . Everybody begin their peak , and that is because Ben made it a item to say , " We give care for our blood brother . I do n’t care what role they have . We are responsible for each other , and we are responsible for making certain that we all show up and give 110 % . "
Screen fustian : I find like this is my pet edition ofCross . It ’s such an honest portrayal of the character that I ’ve not find before . Can you verbalise about how this interlingual rendition may dissent from others that we ’ve already assure ?
Samantha Walkes : First of all , I want to speak about eld . This industry is very ageist , though I think they ’re well-heeled on men than they are on cleaning woman because we experience we ’re supposed to stick untested constantly and nip and rapier and Botox everything to in high spirits heaven . But while I loved that some of the other portrayals are onetime , I think Cross lends so well to someone being jr. because of the loss of Maria , his wife . He has built such a beautiful career , he ’s passionate about what he does for a support , and he loves being a father , but then these thing to happen to him . Him being youthful hit different . He has make a whole living , and now he ’s taking smash this unseasoned . How do we swivel from here ?
I think it bequeath more of a question mark , more of a cliffhanger for our interview to see a humanity who is in his prime be dismantled in way . And then we get a narrative — which is very important to me as Samantha Walkes , as a Black woman , as an militant and an creative person — about genial wellness exit . We get to talk about community , we get to talk about humanity ’s wellness . We get to talk about brotherhood , about finding your biotic community , and your tribe . We get to lecture about these things that expand us as human beings . This is more interesting to me , and I think it plays very well .
Samantha Walkes Shares Passionate Fan Response To Alex Cross & Elle Monteiro
“First of all, thank you for being unambiguously Black.”
Screen Rant : In what elbow room do you believe Elle adds to the representation of multifarious distaff characters on television ?
Samantha Walkes : The listing is retentive , but I reckon it raises the bar . I opine it demands more from Hollywood . I ’ll be honest with you , my DMs are blowing up , and I was not prepared ! But nothing prepares you for a moment like this .
What I am find out most is pleasure over the representation ; watch black love on projection screen that is n’t toxic , that is n’t abusive , that is veridical , that is tumultuous , and that is turbulent . It has its complexness , and we do n’t have the answer . Elle and Cross do n’t always have the answer , and there are question marks , but they ’re being pellucid within . The intimacy arrive from First State - masking and roll into this .
I have messages from fans being like , " First of all , thank you for being unequivocally Black . " To lead with that . What pass off is our consultation does n’t have to do work double as hard to watch a story , be entertained by it , and believe it . Yhey can just sit back , relax , and take it in . That to me is very of import . Why do we have to work so hard to have , be entertained , and to see ourselves represent when it should n’t be this style ? I want to be capable to reflect what I see outside my door , period .
Screen Rant : How did your chemical science with Aldis contribute to the character ’s relationship in Cross and what view of work with him fend out to you the most ?
Samantha Walkes : The fact that we both really love what we do as fabricator facilitate , and we provide a professional safe space for one another . In create the liaison , it ’s really just two masses committing to being completely candid and completely pellucid . There ’s a consent given to each other and ourselves that says , " There is not even a veil between us . "
And then what happens is you enter into this beautiful , sacred space that no one can really mess up with . We have , of class , the technical aspect paired with that commitment to each other and these stories . We want Elle and Cross to really be reliable and existent , so you have the beautiful dance that ’s choreographed by the intimacy coordinator , the director , and then us . Nothing is leave to hazard . We sleep with where our As and Bs are , and we step into the 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 . We attract it back on the downbeat ; everything is aim so that we can just hold up with transparentness .
I think audiences block this , and that ’s why I really love this motion because we do n’t really talk about it in Hollywood . I do n’t see show coming out and being like , " It ’s a dance . We are choreographed . We are really not doing this . " It ’s awkward ! I have to land this way and that way , and it can be so hard . Not in a negative way , but it just is a very complex thing to achieve and to make look real . Dedication and allegiance to that transparence rope us into this beautiful dance that we all curate on set . Then it can live , and it can be burnished .
Music Is Woven Into The Fabric Of Cross Season 1
“There’s this beautiful thread of music that binds the family and then also grounds his heart.”
Screen Rant : What aspect of the expanded humanity ofCrossdid you discover most challenging ?
Samantha Walkes : I really do make love the kin moments , and there are a couple of reasons why we have this beautiful thread of music — not just the soundtrack that Ben and his team civilise , but also within the show . The jazz when he wakes the kids up on Saturday mornings , and they ’ve got to give him a kiss on both cheeks in order for him to halt . I think that there ’s this beautiful thread of music that bind the kin and then also ground his heart .
It ’s interesting because part of my process is that I have a soundtrack and a play list for every character I play , and so to have something that ’s written in the history consecrate you this whole vibe . As soon as you hear that piano , you get the whole . You ’re already inside that house , and you ’re seat eating waffles with them . It allows us to drop in that much quicker as an consultation to the life that is out of doors of study and that becomes the nurturing side of him . He has to be both parents now , the mother and the father , and this is his struggle to encounter that .
Screen Rant : If you do n’t mind me asking , which songs are on Elle ’s playlist ?
Samantha Walkes : Obviously , SWV . All of those obtuse mess . A lot of Nina Simone . There ’s something about the voice of sure vocalist where they do n’t even have to be on key fruit because the pain with which they are paint is so annihilating . The grumbling is enough , and sometimes it ’s in a way that ’s more guttural than intellectual because we ’re not always intellectual when we finger and when we crusade and when we outcry and when we keep . We ’re not heady ; we ’re more in our gender , or in our breadbasket , or in our feet . The root systems of that , Nina also does that so well . Also , " bane " by Sam Claudio . Beautiful contemporaneous music , but he ’s got malarky and classical roots .
Screen Rant : What did you want to bring to the role of Elle that went beyond the varlet ?
Samantha Walkes : I ’ll be good with you , we never plan for this . The only thing I planned for and trust for was that I would always show up leave Elle to take all the space , even if I was frightened of Samantha , because I did n’t bonk where it was going to go . That ’s the only thing that I planned for .
I ca n’t actually say I bestow something extra . I just know that my committal to her every day was my full watercraft . I create such a rich world for her , so I do n’t even have to take from my own , because that would be confine hers . I give you my entire body and space to breathe and be . To be honest , every individual time I step in front of that television camera , I am nervous because I want to be completely a conduit for her and show up and give her all of it .
AboutCross
Starring Aldis Hodge , Cross is a criminal offense thriller series that follows ALEX CROSS , a decorated D.C. homicide detective and forensic psychologist who face a sadistic sequent killer leave alone a string of body strewn around the metropolis . As Alex and his partner , John Sampson ( Isaiah Mustafa ) , chase this killer , a mysterious threat from Cross ’ past appears , aiming to destroy what he ’s done to keep his grieving category , career , and life together . Ryan Eggold , Alona Tal , and Johnny Ray Gill also star ; Ben Watkins dish as showrunner .
ascertain out our otherCrossinterviews here :
Season 1 ofCrossis currently rain cats and dogs on Prime Video .
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Cross follows the life of Alex Cross , a skilled yet tumultuous homicide detective balancing his character as a devoted father and grim crime investigator . Haunted by his married woman ’s slaying , he navigates personal turmoil while persistently pursuing justice in the case of dangerous adversaries .
