Emmy Raver-Lampman and Ritu Arya Say Goodbye to The Umbrella Academy

The Umbrella Academy wrapped up its fourth and final season on a bittersweet yet oddly fitting note. Fans aren’t the only ones saying goodbye. Flickreel recently spoke with stars Emmy Raver-Lampman and Ritu Arya about bidding farewell to Allison, Lila, and the rest of their lovingly dysfunctional TV family.

Q: Without going into any spoilers, what was your reaction when you read the script for the final episode?

Arya: It’s quite funny because I had to film some of the last scenes before we’d even started the shoot. We had to come in for a week or two because they could only have that location then. But the scripts weren’t ready. So, we read these last scenes and I was like, “I have no idea why this is happening.” So, I was like, “Right, um… can I call you, Steve [Blackman]. I’ve got some questions.” Then he filled me in with what was going on with the show, and I was like, “Is this a joke?” There were so many surprising moments. Then we would read the episodes as they would come and every time it’s a delight.

Emmy Raver-Lampman: It felt like an ending that I think everyone could be happy with and proud of, and tie up all of these journeys that at so many moments throughout all four seasons are just so all over the place and so far away and so separate. I think it really brought everybody back together in a really beautiful way.

Q: How did you prepare yourself for the end?

Arya: I wish I was more prepared. I’m a wreck (laughing)… We said goodbye to the show when we were filming the last episode. Then we moved on in our lives in the year-and-a-half that it’s been. Now it’s about to come out and we’re doing this press. So, it’s opened the wound up and we’re being asked to revisit our experiences. I’m so grateful for that because I’ve got a newfound appreciation for these amazing, beautiful humans I’ve got to work with… Because we said goodbye, I wasn’t expecting to feel this way about it. So, I’m probably going to go have a little cry after this with this one by the pool.

Raver-Lampman: It’s bittersweet. I think we all thought we’d said goodbye and then this past week… the band’s all back together again, talking about the show, just reminiscing and recalling all these fun moments on set. It’s been seven years for me and six for you. It’s been such a journey. It changed all of our lives in such an incredible way. We all felt incredibly lucky going into the fourth season knowing it was our final season. A lot of shows don’t get that privilege. They just get cut off. They go and shoot a season and find out later that was the end and never get to say a proper goodbye. I definitely went in not wanting to take any moment for granted and just really soaking it all up. So, the Canadian tundra was a little less cold, the long days on set were a little less long.

Q: The show is known for its comedy and music. A standout moment in the final season finds the gang driving while listening to a certain song. What was it like filming that scene?

Raver-Lampman: What’s interesting is that it was actually a different song when we were filming… It was this weird song that was very bizarre called Daddy Finger. So, we were all like, “This feels wild.”

Arya: We had that on repeat. The song that’s in the show, while watching it, it was a wonderful surprise.

Raver-Lampman: Yeah, I was like, “Oh, wait, did I know that? I didn’t know that. It was a different song. Was it a different song? It was a different song.” But yes, we knew there was this song that was slowly making us all crazy very much like the Lamb Chop song, The Song That Doesn’t End.

Arya: That’s truly one of my favorite sequences. It is so funny every time I watch it.

Q: What are some of your other favorite moments from the show – on and off set?

Raver-Lampman: Some of my most memorable moments on set while the cameras were rolling was the sit-in in Season 2. Stephen Surjik, who directed that episode, just took such incredible care of me and everybody that day. It’s a really powerful, difficult scene to pull off. There’s a lot going on. I think that was a really difficult moment as an actor, but also just as a human being. For everybody on set, a lot of people were asked to a lot of really difficult things, and I think that was a really beautiful moment where I saw everybody come together to tell this story that’s no easy to tell. And then I think we did a lot of dancing on this show… We rehearsed for weeks for the season opener in Season 3 with the Sparrows vs. Umbrellas dance-off/dream/fight sequence. That was amazing. Then getting to spend all that time with Tom [Hopper] during Season 1 to do the Allison and Luther dance. That was really beautiful, and I was so proud of Tom because he does not consider himself a dancer. And he rocked it! The magic of this show is when all of these insane characters come together and it writes itself. Those are some of the best days on set. When we’re all trapped in a room together, or a car together, or a mansion together, or whatever it is. Those were really fun days on camera and off. I think that’s the magic of the show because there wasn’t a lot of acting happening. We all just are goofy and that brother/sister relationship really does exist in real life.

Arya: I think literally the same. In Season 2, I had such an amazing journey that I got to play with David [Castañeda]. I loved the Lila/Diego stuff. I loved all the fight training that I got to have with this show. I loved all the stunts. That was such a dream. I’d never done anything like that before this show… In Season 3, getting to have this whole section in Berlin and drumming. Then coming back and getting to have this little family. It was so fun. And then this season there’s a lot of stuff with all the family together, and that was my favorite stuff for that same reason these people are my family. There were these big moments where we’re having this dance routine, we’re playing this game, we’re having this laugh. But it’s those little moments where Emmy is in the corner, reading her book, and Aidan [Gallagher] is in the corner with his headphones on. But you know we’re all here. Elliot [Page] is napping. This is just your group and you just feel so comfortable getting to be around these people, which only time brings and spending time with people.

Q: You’ve been playing these characters for several years. What are you going to miss the most about them?

Arya: I’ve loved playing Lila. I think everything’s a game for her, and it’s that bit that is so fun. That spontaneity. She just doesn’t care what people think. She’s amazing. I always want to take that, but it’s easier said than done at times. She’s so strong. She’s such a badass. She just is.

Raver-Lampman: I think we both have the privilege of playing these incredibly strong, fierce women. I’ve loved that about Allison. We see a different version of Allison in every one of her siblings. So, when she’s having a scene with Viktor, there’s that Allison. When it’s Luther, there’s that Allison. When it’s Klaus, there’s that Allison. Now we’re kind of in this season getting a new version that we’ve not met of her yet, which is playing out with Claire. And it’s almost unintentional because we’ve been doing this so for so long that these different actors pulled different versions of Allison out of me, depending on what the situation is. I think that’s what’s so beautiful about this show. That there are so many different dynamics that are all at play at once.

Arya: We get to tell these stories about these characters with trauma. Through humor and joy, that essentially brings people together because it reminds us of our humanity, even if it’s in a superhero genre. That we remember to open our hearts and through this representation, we get to see all these different kinds of people and it just reminds us essentially of our oneness. It feels like it’s been the biggest blessing every day getting to be a part of this show.