The poignant manner in which How To Get Away With Murder writers decided to use the Flash Forward technique to tell the story of Sam’s murder is something that fans won’t see again.
In an interview with EW, showrunner Peter Nowalk said that the ABC drama doesn’t want to be gimmicky and that the Bonfire flash forward is the last time we will see that method of storytelling being used.
“We talked about it forever,” Nowalk said. “I didn’t want the flash forwards to feel like a gimmick or a device that the show has to have, because quickly they would feel forced and contrived. For me, I really liked doing them in the nine episodes. That night really had a lot going on in it, and it was so high-adrenaline that the situation allowed us to tell the story that way. We’ll see if viewers agree, but I don’t want to be tied down to a structure or a gimmick. I don’t think viewers expect that. The show can constantly reinvent itself. I like the feeling of going back and forth in time. I like the structure of not just telling a story linearly. I think there are different ways to do that, like how we come back in Episode 10. We have a structure that’s not at all like the flash forwards, but it does give you the feeling of them—that you’re spending special time with each character through the episode. If we do them next season? Maybe. It depends on if we come up with something that’s worthy of flash forwards. If not, we don’t have to do them.”
To read the entire interview, visit EW.com
