‘The Flash’ Season 2: Carlos Valdes Interview

Carlos Valdes Interview - The Flash Season 2
Carlos Valdes at Comic-Con 2015 (Photo by Richard Chavez / Showbiz Junkies)

Carlos Valdes says he knew his character, Cisco, in The CW’s The Flash was going to die in season one because writer/executive producer Andrew Kreisberg just couldn’t keep the news a secret. “I actually knew about it beforehand to be honest, because Andrew, when he gets excited about stuff, he’ll just tell us. ‘In episode 17 this is what’s going to happen…’ So, yeah, I already knew about it. He told me weeks in advance. He told me, ‘So, episode 15 Wells is going to kill you.’ I was like, ‘Oh…that’s awesome.’ He was like, ‘But don’t worry. We bring you back because Barry goes back in time.’

I was like, ‘Okay, that’s good. Either way, I just love being a part of the show so whatever happens, I’m cool.’ But now that the show is what it is, I’m like, ‘Yeah, don’t kill me. Don’t do it again, please. At least not for a while,'” said Valdes during roundtable interviews at the 2015 San Diego Comic-Con.

But as for any secrets Valdes might want to reveal about season two and his possible meta-human abilities, the actor said Kreisberg doesn’t tell him everything because Andrew knows he can’t keep a secret.

“He knows I’ll blab. He knows I get excited about it too, so he keeps it from me. But as far as I can tell, there are some weird things happening to Cisco biologically,” explained Valdes. “He has these dreams, like in episode 120 – around there, and they start using them to their advantage as a tool to trap the Reverse Flash. I think Cisco is not just grappling with what’s happening in his headspace but also the things that Dr. Wells told him at the end of season one about this destiny he is supposed to have. So I think you can expect those things to have repercussions in season two.”

Things are complicated for Cisco, and Valdes says in season two fans of the series can expect him to be attempting to come to terms with everything he learned about himself at the end of season one.

“At the end of season one, I think everybody, especially Cisco, was just so overwhelmed with what was happening that the dour circumstances, just the wormhole and Barry potentially going back in time and changing everything. I think emotionally Cisco is just so overwhelmed he has to just tunnel vision and work on the task and be a part of the team, and just do what it takes to stop the singularity, and do all this stuff.

He doesn’t have time to think about the emotional repercussions of anything like that. So when Dr. Wells plants that seed, there’s this complicated state of denial that sort of arises from that,” said Valdes. “I think with regards to that I don’t think he’s fully accepted that, you know? Dr. Wells essentially betrayed all of us, so as far as Cisco is concerned he doesn’t believe him. But we’ll start to see how that plays in season two.”

Obviously, Cisco’s not the only character in The Flash who will be attempting to grapple with the dramatic events that took place in the final episodes of season one. Season two may find Barry (played by Grant Gustin) keeping more to himself rather than being a member of the team.

Asked about that, Valdes replied, “I think Cisco to a certain degree, looks up to Barry and so as a result of that, Cisco will respect any decision that Barry makes. If Barry wants to go it alone, he will respect that. And I think even if their friendship would suffer as a result of that, I think Cisco ultimately wants what’s best for Barry because he loves him that much. He just wants to be the best hero that he can be, because it’s about saving lives.”

On a lighter note, which character in the DC universe would Valdes like to see introduced into the show? “Oh boy, where’s the list? I think Mirror Master would be good,” answered Valdes. “Mirror Master’s once that I want to see just because I feel like our effects team can do anything. They’ve been able to give life to stuff that they’re not even sure they can do. They just do it. I’d be interested to see how they would facilitate that character’s powers.”

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