'The Magicians' star Jade Tailor says Season 5 will see Kady deal with inner turmoil while leading the Hedges
Season 5 of 'The Magicians' is almost upon us, and the cast is preparing to face all-new challenges and responsibilities while mourning the loss of Quentin Coldwater (Jason Ralph). MEA WorldWide (MEAWW) sat down for an exclusive interview with Jade Tailor, who plays Kady Orloff-Diaz on the show, to find out what's in store now that magic's back — and there's more of it around than anyone bargained for.
After the events of Season 5, Kady has taken on new responsibilities as the leader of the hedge witches, the magicians on the fringes of society who found their way into magic without formal training, and knowledge. The loss of Quentin Coldwater, though, still hangs over everything.
"Kady is still advocating and fighting for the Hedges," Tailor said and added, "And although she is grieving, she knows that there's a greater purpose and so she's really trying to fight for them while also dealing with her own feelings around his death."
Leading the Hedges has definitely been a new experience for Kady, and there's a steep learning curve. "She wants to be the best that she can possibly be, but she doesn't know what that looks like 'cause this is a new thing for her. So we find her sort of not struggling through it but really finding what that looks like for herself as a new leader."
The new responsibilities bring some old stresses back to the fore. "She really does struggle with knowing whether or not she can actually lead the Hedges, especially dealing with her own addiction, so there's a lot of inner turmoil," said Tailor.
The Hedges themselves are dealing with the magical surges in their own way. When asked whether the hedge witches' lack of formal training was an asset or a liability, Tailor had this to say: "I would say a little bit of both, because we've seen the Hedges got a bit of a shaft, because the library doesn't seem to care about the Hedges and takes advantage of them." Living on the edge of magical society, however, comes with its own benefits. "With all of this new magic, they are at an advantage in the sense that they're really adaptable and know how to deal with different and unique circumstances, unlike magicians and people that are really formally trained."
She elaborated on the Hedges' approach to the problem of excess magic. "When you have these extreme life experiences, you know how to adapt and move through it a little bit more easily than somebody that's just taught how to live through a book," she said. "I think the magicians are really trying to figure this out in a different way whereas Hedges are very instinctual with their magical abilities and responses to all of the surges."
Season 5 won't just be about Kady's new position as hedge leader, however, saying that while "it's absolutely explored... there's some really dire circumstances that they face and so the focus is not necessarily on that... there's some circumstances that they have to face that I think take precedent is a big way."
When asked to elaborate what those circumstances would be, Tailor said, "Well, I mean, when there's that there's an overabundance of magic, anything is possible and it could possibly get into the wrong hands."
Stay tuned for part two of our interview with Jade Tailor, which dives into everything to look forward to in Season 5, including what to keep an eye out for in the season, the confirmation of another musical episode, and why the moon has been so heavily featured on the season's promotional art.
'The Magicians' Season 5 premieres January 15, on Syfy.