Episode commentaries

Episode commentaries
Find the commentaries at NBC.com.

Full length video episode commentaries with the cast and crew of Heroes are made available on NBC's website after each new episode has aired in the United States. The first episode to have a commentary made available was Godsend.

The commentaries typically feature two or three members of the cast and crew who provide insight and other details about the story as well as the production techniques. Occasionally spoilers are revealed in the episode commentaries.

The audio from the commentaries was used as a commentary track on the Season One DVDs.

Season One

Godsend

Commentators

• Leonard Roberts, who portrays D.L. Hawkins
• Jack Coleman, who portrays Mr. Bennet
• Sendhil Ramamurthy, who portrays Mohinder Suresh

Trivia

• The television news reporter is named Angela Bromstad, after the president of NBC Universal Television Studio.
• Jack Coleman jokingly refers to the Haitian as "the Haitian Sensation That's Sweeping the Nation".
• Noah Gray-Cabey played the piano for some cast and crew during filming of the pilot.
• Sendhil Ramamurthy was very ill during filming of the episode and almost lost his voice, causing production to wrap five hours early one week.
• The conference room and visitation window in the Women's Correctional Facility were built in a rehearsal room where cast and crew screenings are normally held.
• Janice Parkman was originally supposed to be Australian, to allow for Lisa Lackey's natural accent.

The Fix

Commentators

• Greg Grunberg, who portrays Matt Parkman
• Hayden Panettiere, who portrays Claire Bennet (parts 1 & 2)
• Natalie Chaidez, co-executive producer, episode writer (parts 3 - 6)

Trivia

• The cockroach in Sylar's cell was controlled by blowing on it with a straw in the direction it needed to move.
• Thomas Dekker's dentist is Dr. Supertooth, who is called this because he dresses as a superhero.
• During filming of the episode, Lestat was unavailable, so another dog portrayed Mr. Muggles.
• Ali Larter was very allergic to the material used to make the padded cell, so much so that it came to be known as "the itchy set".
• A comic relief scene involving a plumber was cut from Matt's storyline.
• Lisa Lackey revealed to Greg Grunberg that she was pregnant just as the writers were in the writer's room, discussing making her character pregnant.

Distractions

Commentators

• Zachary Quinto, who portrays Sylar (parts 1 - 4)
• Milo Ventimiglia, who portrays Peter Petrelli (parts 1 - 3, 6)
• Greg Grunberg, who portrays Matt Parkman (parts 4 & 5)
• Jeannot Szwarc, episode director (part 5)
• Jack Coleman, who portrays Mr. Bennet (part 5)
• Michael Green, co-executive producer and episode writer (part 6)

Trivia

• The set for Sylar's cell was right next to the set for Nathan's office.
• The scenes involving Hiro's dad were actually filmed overlooking the ocean, no special effects were used.
• Zachary Quinto and Milo Ventimiglia have trouble shooting serious scenes with little dialogue together because they tend to laugh during the intense pauses.
• Zachary Quinto was supposed to keep wearing the Primatech uniform boots in future episodes but he opted for sneakers, which he regretted when he had to shoot scenes in snowy Montana.
• Baby food was placed on Zachary Quinto's shoelaces to get Lestat to try to eat them.
• Jeannot Szwarc was going for a Kurosawa-influenced style in Hiro's scenes.
• With the exception of Saemi Nakamura as Kimiko Nakamura, no casting needed to be done for the episode as every character had appeared previously.

Run!

Commentators

• Kevin Chamberlin, who portrays Aron Malsky
• Greg Grunberg, who portrays Matt Parkman (parts 1 - 4)
• Adam Armus, episode writer (parts 5 & 6)
• Kay Foster, episode writer (parts 5 & 6)

Trivia

• Greg Grunberg mentions he is not allowed to explain why he is wearing white clothes and a Primatech jacket. Matt Parkman wears this outfit in Parasite.
• Greg Grunberg drove in a "loop on the 10 and 110 near the Staples Center" during the filming of the scene where Matt drives Malsky to the diamond merchant.
• The building used to shoot the scenes inside Ridgway Jewelry is located in the "Diamond District" of downtown Los Angeles. This small neighborhood stretches from 5th and Olive Street to 8th and Broadway and features over 5,000 jewelry merchants.
• The building does not actually have ceiling tiles; Heroes production added them for the episode.
• Zane Taylor's "Ramones" T-shirt was written into the script and is a nod to executive producer Allan Arkush, who directed Rock and Roll High School (1979), which features the "Ramones".
• Zane Taylor is the name of writer Adam Armus's nephew.
• The real world location of Meredith Gordon's home is a trailer park in Santa Clarita, CA.

Unexpected

Commentators

• Zachary Quinto, who portrays Sylar
• Sendhil Ramamurthy, who portrays Mohinder
• Greg Beeman, episode director (parts 1 - 4)
• Jeph Loeb, episode writer (parts 5 & 6)

Trivia

• The commentary was shot and recorded in the set of Niki/Jessica's bedroom. After the pilot they built a replica set of the room directly to scale, accidentally resulting in a very small set.
• The placement of the episode title is a challenge among the different writers.
• The actual hotel that was used for the Montana hotel Sylar and Mohinder stay in was a disgusting place to shoot.
• The commentators poke fun at the frequent product placement in the series, including the Nissan Versa.
• Hiro and the Dinosaur mistakenly shows up in Isaac's apartment during Isaac and Peter's fight.

Company Man

Commentators

• Allan Arkush, episode director
• Jack Coleman, who portrays Mr. Bennet
• Bryan Fuller, episode writer

Trivia

• According to director Allan Arkush, this episode is largely based on the 1955 film noir thriller The Desperate Hours starring Humphrey Bogart. Arkush also cites other films including Martin Scorsese's thriller Cape Fear (1991), as well as the film noir features Out of the Past (1947) and T-Men (1947) as having an influence on this episode.
• The shot of the Bennet family SUV pulling into the driveway was filmed using a false wall and window on the front lawn of the house.
• Scenes at the bridge were filmed at Big Tujunga Narrows Bridge, located about 30 miles NNE of downtown Los Angeles.
• Two houses were used during Ted's meltdown scene: the original house seen through out the episode as well as an additional house used to film the house as it became severely damaged.
• Production members refer to the cell at Primatech Paper as "Sylar's Lounge". The commentary was also recorded in this room.

Parasite

Commentators

• Allan Arkush, executive producer
• Jimmy Jean-Louis, who portrays The Haitian
• Chris Zatta, episode writer

Trivia

• The episode commentary was filmed on the set of the Burnt Toast Diner.
• Actors auditioning for the role of Candice were asked to perform the scene where Candice joins Mr. Bennet and Mrs. Bennet in their hotel room.
• The Texas airport was filmed in the Long Beach Convention Center.
• Around 300 extras were used for the airport scene.
• The kitchen of the Corinthian Casino was filmed in a "large hotel across the street from the Long Beach Convention Center". The Long Beach Renaissance Hotel and The Westin Long Beach fit this description.
• The films Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) and The Constant Gardener (2005) are cited as influencing the editing style of Heroes.
• Jimmy Jean-Louis sometimes dances after a successful take, reflecting his background in musical theater.

.07%

Commentators

• Timm Keppler, graphic novel writer/assistant to Dennis Hammer
• Chuck Kim, episode writer
• Andrew Chambliss, graphic novel writer/assistant to Tim Kring

Trivia

• The same set for the Primatech cells was redressed and reused to depict separate cells for Matt, Ted, Sylar, and Mr. Bennet. Ted's cell is lined with lead.
• Other powers were considered for Mr. Linderman, including the ability to control his age.
• Around 250 people work on each episode.
• For the scenes where Matt follows Mr. Bennet's telepathic commands, script supervisor Robin Anderson read the lines out loud for Greg Grunberg to react to.
• Pierluigi Cothran wanted to play the courier fanboy.
• The scene with D.L. and Jessica was staged outside the Sanderses' home because the rental furniture used in the home had already been returned.
• Malcolm McDowell's scenes in the archives were filmed all in one ====teen hour day.
• The scenes in the hallways of Primatech Paper Co. were filmed in the actual hallways of the studio.
• Nathan's sons Monty and Simon are named after Jesse Alexander's sons.
• The Burnt Toast Diner is named after a restaurant in Boulder, CO owned by Tim Kring's brother.
• Kristin Veitch's spoiler about Sylar being pushed out the window was in fact in the script--for once, the story really did change.
• The Japanese translation used for Hiro's reference to Sylar as "the brain man" literally translates to "the head-cut-off man".

Five Years Gone

Commentators

• Jack Coleman (Mr. Bennet)
• Greg Grunberg (Matt Parkman)
• Sendhil Ramamurthy (Mohinder Suresh)

Trivia

• The commentators refer to the episode as "String Theory".
• For their future characters, several of the actors began to make changes to their appearances early. Sendhil spent === weeks growing his beard (and Mohinder's stubble is evident in earlier episodes). Milo Ventimiglia began working out weeks before production began to make Future Peter more muscular than his present incarnation.
• Jack Coleman points out that Mr. Bennet is no longer wearing horn-rimmed glasses; they're wire-rimmed.
• According to Sendhil Ramamurthy, the Oval Office set from the movie Dave was used for Nathan's scenes as president.
• Adrian Pasdar had Zachary Quinto record all of Nathan's dialogue so he could use it as a reference for his performance as Sylar masquerading as Nathan.
• The effects for Future Hiro and Future Peter's time-stopping effects are all done in-camera. Frozen actors simply remain still.
• Joe Pokaski and Sendhil Ramamurthy attended college together and were in the same fraternity.
• The commentary is filmed in Isaac's loft. The Symbol paintings are visible in the background, and the commentators point out a pool of blood on the floor.
• The Department of Homeland Security building was in an abandoned Northrop Grumman aviation building. The building was also used in Genesis.

The Hard Part

Commentators

• James Kyson Lee (Ando Masahashi)
• Noah Gray-Cabey (Micah Sanders)
• Ian Quinn (Stunt coordinator/Officer Ramsford)

Trivia

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Landslide

Commentators

• Masi Oka (Hiro Nakamura)
• George Takei (Kaito Nakamura)
• Matthew John Armstrong (Ted Sprague)

Trivia

• The scenes at Kirby Plaza were shot at ARCO Plaza.

This section is a stub. You can help by expanding it.

Season Two

Four Months Later

link

Commentators

• Tim Kring (Executive Producer)
• Jeph Loeb (Co-executive Producer)
• Jack Coleman (Noah Bennet)

Trivia

• The scenes at Costa Verde High School were filmed at an actual high school in Panorama City, California.
• Detective Fuller was so named as a tribute to Season One writer Bryan Fuller.
• West is named for Tim Kring's nephew.
• Molly Walker's drawings were made by Adair Tishler herself.
• Brian Kimmet, the Copy Kingdom manager, previously worked with Tim Kring on Crossing Jordan. He played a serial killer.
• Jack Coleman jokes that the being who might see Molly is Paula Abdul.
• Tim Kring claims there was a great deal of discussion about how loud to make the sound effect for Takezo Kensei's urination.
• The old villager's line "is there no God to protect us?" is spoken by peasants from ravaged villages in several Akira Kurosawa films.
• Tim Kring confirms that the power Peter uses to repel Tuko is one not previously seen.

Lizards

link

Commentators

• Allan Arkush (Episode Director)
• Greg Grunberg (Matt Parkman)
• Michael Green (Episode Writer)

Trivia

• According to Michael Green, Costa Verde, CA is indeed meant to be a fictional town. The scenes in Costa Verde are shot in the same town as HBO's Weeds.
• Allan Arkush asked Wendy and Lisa to make the theme music for Hiro's heroic scenes as Takezo Kensei feel the same as Rossini's William Tell Overture -- more widely recognized as the "Lone Ranger theme".
• The regeneration video Claire, West, and Martha watch in Mr. Zern's biology class is a real educational video to which the show obtained the rights.
• The set for Bob's office was built by Ruth Ammon and the production department. Greg Grunberg says he has shot a scene as Matt Parkman in the set.
• To make sure the actions in Caitlin and Peter's first scene match without burdening the actors with remembering their exact moves, all three cameras--the master and each close-up--were filmed simultaneously.
• Allan Arkush refers to Peter's electrical ability as "lightning".
• The high school in Panorama City used for CVHS is a former factory.
• The scene between Hiro and Yaeko amid the cherry blossoms and deer is based on an experience Michael Green had during the hiatus while vacationing in Japan with his girlfriend.
• Masi Oka's scenes in Takezo Kensei's armor were filmed in July. The armor weighs eighty pounds and the temperature was over 100 degrees.
• The commentary is filmed inside the set for the NYPD station.
• The commentators discuss Maya and Alejandro's powers in very general terms: Maya cries "black tears", and Alejandro "heals" their effects. According to Michael Green, "she emits this, and he can take it in".
• The special effects for Maya's black tears are a "nightmare". "Black goo" is squeezed into Dania Ramírez's eyes. As she cries, the tears begin to run and flow. The "black goo" is difficult to remove, and after a few takes, Dania's face is red from having been scrubbed clean.
• Alejandro's lullaby he uses to clam Maya is a song they used to sing as children. In reality, the song was composed in one day by Wendy and Lisa, and is based on a lullaby Lisa's grandmother used to sing to her.
• Copy Kingdom is filmed in Los Angeles, at Sunset Boulevard and Gower Street.
• Cristine Rose played the mother of a character played by Greg Grunberg in Flying Blind, a short-lived 1992 sitcom on Fox.
• According to Greg, he has already filmed another scene with Cristine "very similar" to the interrogation scene in Lizards.
• According to Allan Arkush, Angela's assailant is "not really there".
• The ambush on Takezo Kensei outside the tavern was inspired by Akira Kurosawa's The Hidden Fortress.

Kindred

link

Commentators

• Zachary Quinto (Sylar)
• J.J. Philbin (Episode Writer)
• Paul Edwards (Episode Director)

Trivia

• The commentary is filmed in the set for the Wandering Rocks Pub.
• During the chase scene in Mexico, Dania Ramírez pulled a quad.
• Candice's new identity as "Michelle" came about because Missy Peregrym was no longer available.
• The commentators are joined by a dog named "Noah".
• Derek's back story--that he was on Spring Break, and was arrested for drunk and disorderly conduct--was written, but cut.
• J.J. Philbin confirms that Derek's car is Claire's stolen Nissan Rogue. Zachary Quinto says he has filmed upcoming scenes featuring "that car"; it's not explicitly clear whether he means Claire's car or another Nissan Rogue.
• While the commentary was filming, a piano was being tuned in the next set for an upcoming scene featuring Noah Gray-Cabey.
• The "ninety angry ronin" were originally "ninety hungry ronin".
• Zachary Quinto briefly lived in Galway, Ireland while he was in school.
• West and Claire's beach scene was filmed at Zuma Beach in Malibu. The same location was used for Chandra Suresh's funeral in Seven Minutes to Midnight.

The Kindness of Strangers

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Commentators

• Adrian Pasdar (Nathan Petrelli)
• Tim Kring (Creator)
• Dana Davis (Monica Dawson)

Trivia

• The commentary is filmed on the set for Charles Deveaux's rooftop.
• According to Adrian Pasdar, the cast and crew had several vulgar variations for what "HRG" stood for.
• Tim Kring talks a great deal about this season's focus on pairing up new sets of characters.
• Adrian is able to tell Monty and Simon Petrelli apart ... barely.
• There is a water line about three feet high in the set of the Dawsons' home to show the extent of the damage it received during Hurricane Katrina.
• When Matt is hearing voices, a special camera lens is used that focuses on just a single spot, throwing the rest of the shot slightly out of focus.
• Adrian Pasdar rides bikes with Zachary Quinto's brother Joe.
• Dana Davis's first scene filmed was her tomato-cutting scene with Camille. The scene was shot in an actual fast food chili restaurant in Los Angeles, redressed as Burger Bonanza.
• The montage of post-Katrina New Orleans was added to give a better sense of the city, since the New Orleans scenes are filmed on sets in Los Angeles.
• The Hollywood Sign scene was filmed on the same soundstage as Charles Deveaux's rooftop, using the same bluescreen process.
• Nathan's "monster face" makeup takes about four hours to apply and an hour and a half to remove.
• West's flight is supposed to have a "more lyrical, Peter Pan quality" than Nathan's.
• Tim Kring explains Maya's ability as the "emitting of a plague ... that makes people sick."
• The "Tim Sale font" used for all of the title cards actually predates Heroes.

Fight or Flight

link

Commentators

• Greg Grunberg (Matt Parkman)
• Greg Beeman (Co-Executive Producer)

Trivia

• The commentary is filmed in the set for Bob's office. According to Greg Beeman, Bob is now "in charge" of The Company.
• Beeman calls Monica's power "photo reflex muscle memory power". Grunberg calls her "Xerox girl".
• Bob's office contains a didgeridoo. Beeman claims Bob has spent a lot of time in Australia.
• Monica's mother appears (very briefly) in a photograph on the top of the piano. Curiously, Greg Grunberg begins to comment on the chemistry between Dana Davis and the actress who plays her mother, but catches himself.
• According to Greg Grunberg, the set for Bob's office contains files for all of the evolved humans on the show. Some of the actors like to frequent the set because it's the only location that lists a last name for some characters, such as Bob (who is listed as "Robert Bishop".) However, Greg is quick to point out that the last names in question were selected by the props department as set dressing and may not reflect the actual direction the show takes.
• Greg Beeman confirms that Niki has the Shanti virus.
• Greg Grunberg discusses a deleted scene from late in Season One where Matt spoke with Janice on the phone and realized the baby was not his. Tom McHenry appeared in the scene, packing Janice's bags. However, the scene was ultimately scrapped because it took away from the dramatic tension and action of the last few episodes of the season.
• The martial arts move Monica practices is a kippup. The film from which she learns it is The Bruce Lee Story starring Jason Scott Lee.
• Greg Grunberg says he has a flying scene coming up in Episode 10.
• The combination of Greg Grunberg and Greg Beeman is perhaps best described as "comedy dynamite". The best line of the commentary occurs during Elle's phone call to her father:

Greg Beeman: Now, I wanted a right-hand drive car...

Greg Grunberg: ... but Nissan didn't make one.

• The car in question didn't actually work. When Elle drives off, it's being pushed by crew members.
• Intriguingly, Greg Grunberg implies that Matt Parkman will learn how to kill Peter in spite of all his powers.