Earlier this week, Gerard Way took to social media to reveal that he will be sharing a number of new posts about each of the main characters in his new Netflix show, The Umbrella Academy.
Posting on Facebook last Tuesday (February 26), Way said that he would like to “try and do series of posts” where he “[discusses] each of the main characters of The Umbrella Academy” in response to how many of his fans were now watching the show.
He began with Luther Hargreeves, AKA Spaceboy, describing the motivation behind the character and revealing that parts of his own identity were written into the character. Now, he’s shared a new lengthy follow up post about Diego Hargreeves – The Kraken – describing him as “one of the beating hearts of the series.”
Way added: “I LOVE what they did with Diego in the show. His relationship with Mom is wonderful…It’s an improvement I welcomed gladly. So Diego, he’s got it tough. He has to be Number 2. In the comic, he can just hold his breath as long as he wants, but in the show, he can throw knives in an unnatural way.
“I do hope they will explore his power of being able to hold his breath as long as he wants, and I know David Casteneda, the amazing actor that plays him, would like to explore that. It kind of turns him into a gritty, knife-throwing Aquaman, which I think is fun.”
Number 2 AKA Diego Hargreeves AKA The KrakenOK, here’s the next character exploration. Firstly, I LOVE what they did…
Posted by Gerard Way on Friday, March 1, 2019
Way then went on to explore the character’s relationship with Luther. He wrote: “His relationship to Luther— they are important to each other…Diego’s obvious resentment and competition toward Luther pushed them both to be better. This is important— Sometimes the people that challenge us the most provide the opportunity for the most growth, and become out greatest teachers.
“But it isn’t all about Luther. Diego is on a journey of his own. Diego had to leave the house so he could be Diego and not just “Number 2”. And the only place being Number One got Luther at the end of the day was living alone on the moon. Maybe they’ll learn the numbers don’t matter, as Five did, which is why I feel he embraced his number as a name instead of a rank, and rejected an actual name (which I hope we see one day!).
“Diego is relentless. His sense of duty and his dedication to justice is unparalleled in the academy. He’s a beast. He is played wonderfully by @castenedawong, who has talked to me about how he wants to further embody the character, and my favorite moment of his is when he is outside the academy with Klaus after “something happens to Mom” (no spoilers) and he starts to stutter. My heart broke.”
I’d like to try and do series of posts where I discuss each of the main characters of The Umbrella Academy, since so…
Posted by Gerard Way on Tuesday, February 26, 2019
Earlier this week, Way explored the character of Luther saying: “I feel like there is a real sadness to Luther that the show captures wonderfully. To me he represents isolation and innocence.
“There are bits of other people and me in him, sometimes finding myself in a leadership role, sometimes unsuited for the role, and always making tough and sometimes unpopular decisions. Trying to do what’s best not for a single individual but for the whole. I failed at this many times, and it’s not an easy gig.” You can see the full post here:
Way went on to elaborate further, saying that being uncomfortable in his own skin is something he could recognise in the character.
He added: “One of the things the show tackled more than the comic was body horror, and I think they did a great job with that. Also a feeling that I have had and I know some of us have had where we aren’t comfortable in your own skin, or you are unhappy with your body or how it will be judged, or finding yourself covering up (I spent years doing this).
“But I’ve learned to let go of that over the years, and got more comfortable in my body. I think, with people in Luther’s role, the wish is that you can make everyone happy, but unfortunately the way you feel you can achieve that is if everyone does what you say, and that doesn’t always work out. I think a good leader knows when to listen, and how to inspire, not manipulate.”
Yesterday, Way also revealed that members of My Chemical Romance had inspired some of the characters in The Umbrella Academy.
Speaking to Rolling Stone, Way said all the different characteristics found in a band helped to shape the characters he created.
“A band especially is a dysfunctional family, so there’s little bits of me in all the characters, there’s bits of some of the guys in some of those characters and the different roles that we would play in the band and how those roles would change sometimes.”
Way’s Eisner Award-winning comic book series – first published in 2007 – was adapted by Netflix into a hit show, arriving on the streaming platform earlier this month (February 15). The show sees Ellen Page star as Vanya Hargreeves, while Tom Hopper appears as Luther Hargreeves.