Q) Describe the show "The Cult."

A) At the center of the show, there is something very identifiable, which is a young reporter whose brother goes missing. As he starts to investigate, he starts to suspect that his disappearance may have something to do with the fact that his brother was a fan of a new very strange television show (which also happens to be called "Cult"). Our audience at home will be watching a show called "Cult," that is about people watching a show that is very dangerous that is also called "Cult." My intent was to just kind of break down that fourth wall and really try to immerse the audience at home in an experience that will leave them wondering "what's real and what isn't?" When we showed the pilot early on to an audience, when it was over they were very excited to talk about the show. They would say, "In the show..." and they would be referring to the Billy Grimm part of it. Then they'd say, "In reality..." and be talking about the other part of the show. I would be grinning because they are talking about the show - the outer part of the show - as reality. It was my first very excited moment with the audience connecting to it.

Q) What was the inspiration for "Cult?"

A) "Farscape" started right at the beginning of that interaction with fans who were connecting with each other, via online. I looked at the "Farscape" experience and said, "What if they show they were all rallying around wasn't a science fiction show, but something darker and edgier?" The "Farscape" fans are an incredibly warm family. Then, it started to blossom from that into there are fans that love the object of their fandom, but love too much. And there are people that take it to another level. I started to think if there was a show that was an edgier show that drew people to it that were inclined to like the show, but would also draw that other level of people - what if they were able to connect with each other online. It's a pretty dark reference, but what if John Hinkley and Mark David Chapman were able to communicate and maybe connect online?

Q) Will the show be a complete mystery for the first season or will we learn some of the secrets?

A) The series is designed so that you can be a weekly viewer or a casual viewer and completely enjoy the show as a mystery that has a lot of surprises, but there is clearly a mystery with answers. It isn't something that will be piling one mystery on top of another. There will be answers on the way, but for those who kind of want to play along there is another level that people can sort of find and piece together. That dovetails with the social media aspect of the show. There are almost three levels of the show that are at play (probably more if I thought about it). There is the inside show, which is the show that everyone is watching - the Billy Grimm detective portion of it. There is what I call "the outside show," which is the Jeff and Skye investigation to find out what happened to his brother. Then, there is the world around us and the social media world of all of us and the fans of the show. All of those should play and interact with each other. It should be a very cool immersive experience.

Q) Where did your research in cults come about?

A) Kind of my own interests in that sense of connection and the sway that one individual or a group of individuals can have over larger masses. To me, that's obviously somewhat metaphoric to television, itself. So that seemed kind of natural.

Q) Did you look at any cults?

A) Not any specific ones. Really, it's more the cult experience and how it's twisted way can relate to television.