Bryan Cranston’s YOUR HONOR Asks The Blunt Question: How Far Will a Scared Parent Go To Protect His Kid?

By BILL HARRIS Special to The Lede SHOWTIME’s YOUR HONOR might be the ultimate “what would I do?” TV series. “I think that’s exactly what it is,” star Bryan Cranston agreed in a virtual interview with reporters. “You ask yourself, ‘what would I do in that situation?’ And if it isn’t terribly different from what my character does, then we’re in sympatico, we’re on this journey together.” The treacherous journey that Cranston is speaking about begins Sunday, Dec. 6 at 10 p.m. ET, only on Crave. Trailers and publicity for the 10-episode, New Orleans-set legal thriller, which is adapted from an Israeli series, have shared the intense premise. While nothing is revealed in the coming paragraphs that isn’t in the trailers, this nonetheless is a SPOILER ALERT. The EMMY®-winning and OSCAR®-nominated Cranston plays Michael Desiato, a respected judge whose teenage son Adam, played by Hunter Doohan, is involved in a tragic motor-vehicle accident. Adam leaves the scene without calling the authorities, even though he knows he has killed someone. Adam later comes clean to his devastated dad Michael, and the two of them understand that the police must be contacted. But Michael makes a 180-degree turn – literally and figuratively – when he realizes that the boy who died in the accident was the son of a notorious local crime boss, played by Michael Stuhlbarg. “The crux of YOUR HONOR is that it presents a scenario that is very relatable in a parent’s worst nightmare,” Cranston said. “Hopefully, none of you will ever have to go through this in real life. I hope I never do. But were it to happen, were you ever in a situation where you thought you had to make a decision that would save your child’s life, of course, you make it. You do it.” But as often is the case with split-second decisions, the consequences are innumerable. “My character cannot think down the road, ‘Well, how does this implicate me into other situations? And what other cover-ups, and lies, and alibis do I have to generate in order to serve the original decision?’ ” Cranston said. “But you just have to do it. And I think that’s where the sentimentality, and the sympathies of an audience, will be with my character in YOUR HONOR, because they’ll go, ‘I would have done the same thing.’ ” The ongoing fascination with YOUR HONOR – which also has plenty to say about the legal system, as well as the current state of race relations – largely lies in realizing just how complicated such a cover-up would be, and nervously eyeing the myriad loose ends as they start to unravel. Cranston, of course, played lead character Walter White for five seasons in arguably the most critically acclaimed TV series of all time, BREAKING BAD. Does Cranston see any parallels between Walter White and Michael Desiato, at least in terms of upstanding people being pushed or lured into incredibly dark places? “There are always going to be similarities, because I’m the actor who played both characters – No. 1, because of my age, I’m most likely going to be a parent, and all those things,” Cranston said. “But aside from that, when you look at the differences, Walter White was very methodical in his chosen journey. He planned it out and went there purposefully. With my character in YOUR HONOR, it happens impulsively. He has to make an immediate decision on whether or not he can save the life of his child. That’s his journey, and it takes twists and turns, as any good dramatic storytelling does. Hopefully, it’ll be surprising to you, which I think it will.” billharristv@gmail.com @billharris_tv