Deception Finale Interview: EP Chris Fedak on Final Piece of the Puzzle, Cameron and Kay, and More!

The day has come for the Deception series finale. Even though the series wasn't renewed for Season 2, the dedicated audience will be rewarded with answers to the most burning questions of the season surrounding the Mystery Woman, her plan and her connection to the Black family.

I spoke with the show's creator, Chris Fedak, to find out more about the finale. Read on for edited excerpts from our conversation. While the finale answers many of the show's mysteries, it does end with a bit of a cliffhanger, so come back after the episode airs for more from Fedak about what it all means!

What's coming up in the finale?

The way I look at it is the finale is like a combination of everything. We have a culmination in regards to the Mystery Woman, and what's she after, and all of that comes to a head in our two-part season finale. ... We had all of these mythology parts of the story this year regarding the pieces of the puzzle that the Mystery Woman's been after and so we focused on that in our first hour. And, then in the second hour, we very much get into the emotional connection between our characters, and how it all twists back around, and of course there's a very elaborate deception. 

We saw the finale definitely as a two-part thing. We were going to have one part delving into the mystery, kind of dusty box of our past, and Sebastian Black, and the Sebastian Black family, and magic. And a thriller that could happen right here and now in New York City. We wanted to do it all, so we decided to jam pack the finale with a lot of story that we really wanted the audience to see and to payoff all the things we've been setting over the season.

What about Sebastian Black?

A lot of the things we've stoked this season are answered and addressed in the finale. We're going to have flashbacks back to their father. We're going to explore a lot of things we set up in Episode 8 about Cameron's past, as well as, what we did when we went to Corvus Vale and realized that Sebastian Black had built Raven Hall. I think those are all things that will come out in the season finale and you'll get a much better perspective on that whole story. We do have an FBI case in both hours of the finale, but we also explore that mythology. You're going to meet their father and you are going to learn a lot more about them.

At the end of last week's episode, the Mystery Woman seems to have won and gets what she wants when she takes the Lynx diamond, what is the importance of the Lynx diamond and what she's collecting?

She has won. She's gotten all the pieces of the puzzle that she needs, but going into our finale she's not quite done with Cameron and Jonathan yet. She still needs Jonathan for the final piece of the puzzle, she still needs Cameron to help her to get the piece, and what we'll realize is that the final piece, the place where it's all going to, is much closer to home than anyone could realize. The target is Cameron. The target is Jonathan. She's gotten all the pieces of the puzzle, now she needs the person to turn the key.

The relationship between Cameron and Kay has developed as throughout the season. Where do they stand as we go into the finale?

This is a relationship which has evolved. It started off as partners and it's turned into something a little bit more. I think that they are finding that they have feelings for each other. Episode 111 gave us an opportunity to explore Kay's past and where's she's going in the future, and also the fact that Cameron has feelings for her. Even though, we're still in that zone where they haven't exactly said those words aloud, there is a relationship beginning to blossom. It's a kind of precious moment were it could go left or right. There could be something here. It could also fall apart. And that's where all the crazy excitement and perilousness is right in front of us in [the finale]. The other part of our finale, we not only wanted to answer the mythology questions, and Jonathan and why he was chosen, and what's going on with the Mystery Woman, but we also wanted to bring the Cameron and Kay relationship to a head and really make it emotional.

Up until this point, Jonathan has been trusting Cameron to get him out of prison, what's their relationship at this point?

I think Jonathan's been frustrated. You have a guy who's plan was to break out and he's relied on his brother, and helped his brother, and he's gone out into the world, and they've gotten close on this case, but he's definitely at a place where's he's frustrated and trapped in this prison and maybe his brother-- and maybe this isn't going to work out. There's the tension and the tension is also building is that realization that Cameron had a choice at one point to essentially work within this room and help Jonathan get out and he didn't do that. He could have betrayed Kay. You have this tension that we're going to explore as we head into our finale.

Deception airs Sunday night on ABC.

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Deception Interview: Creator Chris Fedak Teases Stakes are Getting Higher

The partnership between the Deception team and the FBI becomes rocky after Cameron's decision to help the Mystery Woman. In Deception Episode 9, "Getting Away Clean," Cameron works to repair the relationship by helping the NYPD on a case. Meanwhile, Jonathan deals with his return to prison.

I spoke to Executive Producer and Creator Chris Fedak to find out how the events of the previous two episodes will affect the relationship between the brothers, between Cameron and Kay, and the partnership with the FBI, plus how it changes Cameron's view of the conspiracy and Jonathan's time in prison.

How does Cameron's near death experience change the relationship between the brothers?

In some ways, it doesn't really change anything in regards to Jonathan and Cameron. Jonathan was desperate to save his brother in that moment, even though, there were very few things he could actually do. In some ways, that bond is strong and he was able to help him. Also, I think they're used to danger. It's like they've been doing this for some time. For me, the thing that was fascinating, especially coming out of it, was how Kay reacts to Cameron almost dying in that vault. She's new to this thing and the idea of daring life the way that these guys do and kind of putting themselves out there and risking everything is new for her. It goes against what you'd classically see in an investigation. She's the one who definitely felt that moment, even after the fact. It was so close.

Will Kay be more hesitant to be close to him or will it draw them closer together?

I think at first it pushes them apart. In Episode 9, it pushes them apart in a way. She's realizing that she's putting her emotions out there and that things can go wrong. Even though these deceptions are smart and clever, their lives are on the line. In some ways, Kay finds herself retracting a little bit. She needs to protect herself. 

Does the fact that Cameron has met the Mystery Woman and knows more about her, does that propel him even further? How does it affect how he approaches the mystery?

It just makes him that much hungrier to solve the case. It's not a conspiracy theory anymore. Cameron believed his brother, but still it was a mysterious outsider who he in some ways no contact with. At the end of Episode 5, it was a huge thing when we actually saw the mural with the Mystery Woman's eyes, but now it's not personal. She's a character who he knows, and understands, and that he's spent time with, and it's deeply personal between the two of them. At the end of the vault scene when she betrays him, it's like Cameron is not a person who punches somebody in the face, but he does it in that moment. And that speaks to the fact that he now knows the villain. He's now met her and seen her and that's a big moment. It definitely speaks to the drive for Cameron.

Cameron is more committed to this than ever and now he's getting more push-back from the FBI and others. How does re-establish his relationship and truth with the FBI after helping the Mystery Woman?

It takes time. There's definitely a version of reality where the FBI could have said, "We're throwing the book at you and even if you don't go to jail, you're never working with us again." But, part of them understands why he did what he did. For Cameron, he's still committed and the closest he's ever gotten to the Mystery Woman is with Kay and the Deception group, so he needs them. He's the place with hat in hand. He wants to prove to FBI that it can still work and they can still trust him. That trust issue speaks to the heart of his relationship with the FBI and also with Kay. That gets round up with the emotions that she's dealing with and that she's trying to protect herself from. There's definitely-- he has work to do.

What case are they working on in this week's "Getting Away Clean"? And how does Cameron use that to get back into the FBI's good graces?

It's funny. This week's episode, Episode 9, we always knew that New York was going to be a part of show and a part of our story. After the international intrigue and the air being sucked out of the vault in Episodes 7 and 8, I wanted to go back and look at New York as a character in the show and essentially knock Cameron back to the beginning in a way, and let him have to prove how he can help on a case. To built out our story, we have Adam Ferrara coming in as a NYPD police officer. The idea of a magician working with and having to prove to a hardened city cop that he can help him out on a case was too delicious an idea to pass up. It's a fun episode. It also gives us a chance to explore our characters and learn more about them as well. We also have Gunter pursuing the mystery of Alistair Black. We haven't forgotten our mythology, so we have that as well in the episode.

With everything they know now, why does Jonathan have to go back to prison?

Jonathan was convicted of manslaughter and he was convicted of a real crime. They are going to need more than simply Cameron's assurance that this is real. Even if you take apart the pieces of the case of what happens in [Episode] 7 and 8, there's not enough there for a judge to say, "Oh, Jonathan, you get to walk away from this." Essentially, it's his brother's word and the FBI's going to need more proof in order to make the case that Jonathan should be released.

Will things be easier or more difficult for Jonathan when he returns behind bars?

It's so going to be so much easier. No, I'm kidding. It's going to get worse. Jonathan, in a way, has put himself in danger because he's helping the FBI on this case. Even though everyone knows his story, it's still what you do and if you are helping somebody. If anyone finds out, it's a big deal. Things are going to change and the stakes are constantly going to raise inside that prison. It's getting more and more stressful there. 

Deception airs Sunday nights on ABC.

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