'Ballard' Exclusive Interviews: Maggie Q and Cast

Moviefone speaks with Maggie Q, John Carroll Lynch and Courtney Taylor about 'Ballard'. "We're obviously building something different from 'Bosch'," Q said.

(L to R) Courtney Taylor, Maggie Q and John Carroll Lynch star in 'Ballard'.

‘Ballard’, which is the new cop show based on the popular character created by author Michael Connolly and is set in the same universe as ‘Bosch’ and ‘Bosch: Legacy’, premieres on Prime Video July 9th.

Maggie Q ('The Protégé’) stars as LA detective Renée Ballard, along with John Carroll Lynch (‘The Founder’), Courtney Taylor (‘Abbott Elementary’), Michael Mosley (‘Ozark’), Rebecca Field (‘A Star Is Born’), Victoria Moroles (‘Teen Wolf’), and Titus Welliver ('The Town').

Moviefone recently had the pleasure of sitting down in-person with Maggie Q, John Carroll Lynch and Courtney Taylor to talk about their work on ‘Ballard’. Q discussed introducing the character first on ‘Bosch: Legacy’, working with Titus Welliver, the team Ballard puts together and the future of the series, while Lynch talked about his character’s past with Ballard and his brother’s love for author Michael Connelly’s work, and Taylor talked about her character’s backstory and working with the cast.

Related Article: Titus Welliver Talks 'Bosch: Legacy' Season 3 and Ending the Series

Maggie Q (Renée Ballard) in 'Ballard'. Photo: Greg Gayne/Prime Video.

Moviefone: To begin with, Maggie, coming off the introduction of Renée Ballard in ‘Bosch: Legacy’, what has it been like for you as an actress to have the opportunity to really explore not only her past and her present, but her future with this new series?

Maggie Q: I mean, how cool is it that we were able to introduce her in that way, and I was able to just feel out the world through the eyes of obviously the ‘Bosch’ community and universe who have been established and obviously have all known each other? It was just this club, right? I come into this club, and it's so warm and welcoming and wonderful that it just gave me such a grounding in the universe. Without that cast, and the producers and their reaction to me and the welcoming that they gave me, I mean, I don't know that I would've been as grounded going into ‘Ballard’, so that was a huge gift. I mean, the episode is fun, and our outro, Titus and I, maybe we have a future together, maybe we don't. She thinks he's kind of a dangerous guy, and I think it set us up for a nice friendship that allows for Bosch to dip in and out and be that person that she can confide in about high-level stuff, and someone who understands her. I mean, the only other person she really has that she has history with is Laffont. It provides her something that I think we wouldn't have without his presence. I think, building and going to the future, we're obviously making something very different from ‘Bosch’, similar but different, in that we really wanted to create a world that was honoring the past, but also building on what they obviously did so successfully. I think that everything they did successfully, if we were smart, we would nod to wherever we can.

MF: John, can you talk about Thomas Laffont’s past with Renée Ballard, and why he decides to come out of retirement and help her on this new journey?

John Carroll Lynch: It's funny to think about that somewhere, while all these stories were told in the ‘Bosch’ universe with Harry Bosch, somewhere in the department, Tom Laffont's working. It's an interesting thing to play a character that you hadn't met in a whole new light. He retired from the police force. He changed his life. Then I think he came back to help Renée because not only of the connection that they have and that she needs the help right now, but also, I think there's a sense he has of a debt to pay, because he wasn't truly himself with her and he wants to be. More importantly, he wants to support her through this. I think he wants to help a good cop that he knows is a good cop.

(L to R) Courtney Taylor (Zamira Parker) and Maggie Q (Renée Ballard) in 'Ballard'. Photo: Greg Gayne/Prime Video.

MF: Courtney, just like Ballard, Parker has also had a bad experience working with the LAPD in the past. How has meeting Ballard and working with her team began to heal the trauma that she went through as a police officer?

Courtney Taylor: I believe for Parker, it allows her to see that the job that she loves did come with good people, and I don't think she's ever been able to lean on people the way that she's always wanted to, and I think because of her bad experience, it made her go inward. When she meets Ballard and she meets Laffont and meets this team of passionate people on the cold case unit, I think it just reminds her of like, "Oh, that's right. I got in this job for a reason, because not only do I love it, but I wanted to work with other people who loved it too." I think that's part of her healing journey, which is recognizing she's not the only one who loves the job as much as she does.

MF: Maggie, can you talk about the team that Ballard puts together to help solve these cold cases and what it’s been like for you working with this ensemble cast?

MQ: It's perfectly cast, right? Everybody brings something so unique to the table. What I love about that is how the writing is very clear with each character, what their journey is, who they are to the team, so that's a huge leg up. A lot of times you're having to create something out of thin air that doesn't exist on the page, so having that was huge. I was able to know the whole entire arc from episode one to ten before I ever signed on. In knowing that, it was hugely invaluable to have the gift of going to be able to do character studies on each person and know really what I want to achieve with each person, and in doing that, what that would bring to the show. You don't get that, because you're not able to see it. I mean, people usually sign onto a show and it's a Hail Mary, right? "I hope it's good." I knew that the arc of the season was great, and if the cast was going to come together correctly, that it was going to be great. I was betting on a horse that I knew was fast, thank goodness, and it doesn't happen like that. You don't get that gift, and so that was huge.

(L to R) John Carroll Lynch (Thomas Laffont) and Maggie Q (Renée Ballard) in 'Ballard'. Photo: Tyler Golden/Prime Video.

MF: John, were you a fan of Michael Connolly’s books or TV shows before joining the cast of ‘Ballard’?

JCL: I was aware of the work, and I had seen the work. I really liked the ‘Bosch’ shows. I really liked ‘Lincoln Lawyer.’ I liked those shows and I thought they were good, and I also loved the feeling of different parts of the city. Truth be told, the person in my family who knew it was my brother. When I got the offer, he was like, "I've read every single book. I'm waiting for the next one." He goes, "Oh, you got to take this." Thanks, David.

MF: Courtney, what has it been like for you personally to join this world that Michael Connolly has created and to be joined by former ‘Bosch’ and ‘Bosch: Legacy’ actors, essentially giving their blessing for this new series?

CT: Well, I was always a fan of Michael Connelly's stuff. I think ‘Lincoln Lawyer’ is great and the ‘Bosch’ series has done so well, and I think it's an honor to be able to be a part of Michael Connelly's legacy, which is this new ‘Ballard’ inspired series. I think just watching Titus and seeing him whenever he came to set and him not even tripping, just very much like, "You guys got it." He was so supportive, and no giving us notes. He's like, "You guys got it. You guys understand it. I don't need to really say anything. I'm just here to read the lines they told me to do, to serve whatever you all need." It was a very big support from his end, in a way where he was just like, "I don't need to say anything. You guys have got it in the bag." It was nice to feel that.

(L to R) Maggie Q (Renée Ballard) and Titus Welliver (Bosch) in 'Ballard'. Photo: Tyler Golden/Prime Video.

MF: Finally, Maggie, what does it mean to you to have Titus Welliver reprise his role as Harry Bosch in season 1 of ‘Ballard’ and in a sense pass the baton of this franchise on to you?

MQ: Literally, and he was so generous. I say this to anyone who'll listen. People who've had that amount of success for a decade, who look at the people who will carry the torch forward and carry the baton forward and give them their blessing and have graciousness in their spirit, in their heart, and want to contribute to good things for us, that is not normal, by the way. I wish it was, but Titus ends up being somebody very special because that is who he is to us, and that's what he wants to do for the show. It's awesome.

What is the plot of ‘Ballard’?

Ballard continues to bring Michael Connelly's bestselling novels to life, following Detective Renée Ballard (Maggie Q) as she leads the LAPD's new and underfunded cold case division, tackling the city’s most challenging long-forgotten crimes with empathy and relentless determination. As she peels back layers of crimes spanning decades, including a serial killer's string of murders and a murdered John Doe, she soon uncovers a dangerous conspiracy within the LAPD. With the help of her volunteer team and retired detective Harry Bosch (Titus Welliver), Detective Ballard navigates personal trauma, professional challenges, and life-threatening dangers to expose the truth.