[Warning: Major spoilers from The Following's penultimate episode Monday.]
People are dropping like flies on The Following.
The penultimate episode of the Fox thriller saw a slew of followers dying left and right, including Jacob (Nico Tortorella), who saw his deadly demise at the hand of fellow Joe Carroll (James Purefoy) loyalist Emma (Valorie Curry).
During a conference call with reporters Wednesday, Tortorella reveals that he wasn't informed about his character's death until "a week before." "It was the last scene I got to shoot with Valorie," the actor says. "It was intense and dramatic and emotional. It was my goodbye to her. We've had such an incredible season working together."
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For Tortorella, who previously worked with creator Kevin Williamson on Scream 4, prepping for Jacob's death was a lot. "The neck prosthetic piece that I had on my neck was a big whole ordeal," he recalled. "It took four hours to put that piece on."
As he tells it, having Emma take Jacob's life made the most sense. "It made the most sense in terms of the drama and really the love story between them, and [Emma's] love story with Joe Carroll," Tortorella says. "Maybe besides from Joe Carroll, I wouldn't have wanted it to be anybody else."
Karma may bite Emma in the end in the April 29 finale. "There's going to be some twists and turns that will throw her off a little bit," Tortorella says.
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What would have happened had Jacob successfully lured Emma away from Joe? "If we had gone away, our whole Bonnie and Clyde story would have been a perfect season two, but I'm not the writer," he says with a laugh.
Tortorella adds that he "would have loved to have stayed on the show longer and watch Jacob's character unfold a little bit more and see how exactly he got to this place and where he was going."
One of the toughest moments for him was "filming Paul's (Adan Canto) death," he admits. "It was emotionally draining and probably the most satisfying and gratifying experience I've had as an actor. That was the last scene of the night and I gave it every inch I had available."
Tortorella, who is currently filming "fictional documentary" Hunter and Game, is already hoping for a team-up with Williamson in the future. "I'm excited for what our next project is," he says, telling The Hollywood Reporter that he is "actively seeking" projects in film and television of any genre.
What has he learned from his experience on the show? "Just to enjoy the moment because you never know when it's going to stop. In good and in bad, this too shall past," he says.
The Following wraps up season one at 9 p.m. Monday on Fox.
E-mail: Philiana.Ng@thr.com
Twitter: @insidethetube
