Bates Motel enjoyed a sun-drenched week of filming this week after pushing back production of its third season to the Fall in order to return to the darker, creepier look of its first season on A&E. The scene: Norma Bates (Vera Farmiga) arrives home in her green Mercedes, gets out of the car and she and her psychotically loveable son Norman Bates (Freddie Highmore) climb up the steps to their gothic house where Norma has one of her trademark hysterical freak outs with shouting that could be heard from 272nd Street. As Friday was the first time I’ve seen Norma and Norman at the Aldergrove motel and house set, it didn’t occur to me how many times the actors would have to go up and down those stairs in take after take for any scene on screen. Quite the workout.
Related: Norma Bates (Vera Farmiga) Freakout in Steveston.
And back down to the motel as the camera crew resets.
Going again.
Season three marks the return of Norman’s crush Bradley (Transformers Age of Extinction star Nicola Peltz), who left White Pine Bay by bus last season after killing her father’s murderer. As well as the return of Norma’s brother Caleb (Sons of Anarchy’s Kenny Johnson) whose incestuous relationship with his sister produced Dylan (Max Thieriot). And Caleb reportedly has more than one enemy in White Pine Bay with the introduction of motorbike shop owner and gun runner Chick Hogan (Johnson’s Sons of Anarchy castmate Ryan Hurst) as a new nemesis.
Soa stays here tonight !!! pic.twitter.com/LKFDdwkZbI
— Kenny Johnson (@TheKennyJohnson) November 21, 2014
Other new characters include a young woman Annika Johnson (Revolution’s Tracy Spiridakos) who somehow gets involved with Dylan. And rich hunting club owner Bob Paris (Kevin Rahm) who grew up with Sheriff Romero (Nestor Carbonell), which should shed some light on Romero’s past. And psych professor James Finnigan (Joshua Leonard) who must be attracted to Norma’s special brand of craziness. Who else will check in?
Bates Motel has free wifi, swing set, tether ball and some blood stains Norma couldn’t scrub away.
Bates Motel re-opens for business on A&E in March 2015.