Is the devil you know better than the devil you don’t?
That’s the question that CTV’s Lucifer attempts to answer. The series bills itself as the story of the original fallen angel. When the Lord of Hell, Lucifer Morningstar (Tom Ellis) gets tired of the monotony of his daily routine, he decides to retire in Los Angeles (where else?) where he picks up a new gig as the owner of an upscale piano bar. Just as Satan is enjoying his new life, he sees a pop star murdered outside of his club. For the first time, Lucifer feels something and witnessing the killing awakens his newfound desire to care. The show sees its protagonist struggle with the facets of both his past and present life. God’s emissary, the angel Amenadiel (D.B. Woodside) tries to persuade Lucifer to return to his former post but with his newfound freedom, this seems unlikely. The murder also draws the attention of LAPD homicide detective Chloe Dancer (Lauren German) who finds herself both repulsed and fascinated by Mr. Morningstar.
The result is a show that works on every levels and it’s primarily because of its star.
I had the chance to talk to Tom Ellis at last year’s CTV Upfront presentation and he made quite a favourable impression. His quick wit and devilish smile immediately drew me in and he uses both of these attributes in his new lead role. There’s something about Lucifer that just makes you want to root for him and while that sounds absurd on initial glance, it’s Ellis’ fantastic acting chops that are responsible for making you want to cheer for the bad guy.
When we chatted, I asked Ellis about who looked more like the devil in our respective red carpet outfits and what it is like to play the most feared entity in the world in Lucifer. Ellis explains the research that he did for the role and addresses the criticism that the show has faced in terms of glorifying the devil. Finally, he expands on whether the show is an attempt to humanize the Dark Lord.
It was easily my favourite interview of the day and Lucifer is easily my favourite new show of the mid-season.
A good show features average casting and an above-average script.
A great show features perfect casting and an excellent script.
Lucifer is the latter.
Check out the video above!
Lucifer continues tonight at 9 p.m. on CTV & FOX