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It's no secret that we are currently living in some very strange, sometimes scary, and tricky times. And, while many of us have been turning to entertainment either to learn more about what's going on in the dumpster fire that is 2020, or simply trying to find some small ways to escape for a bit so that we don't spend all our time at home shaking, sweating and crying in a corner, there are certainly several movies and TV shows which can offer us some perspective on today's issues, while still giving us enough space that we feel entertained. And, according to Evil star Aasif Mandvi, CBS' psychological thriller is just that kind of series.
Even if you're a fan of the hit drama, which was renewed for Season 2 just a few weeks after it debuted last fall, you might think that Aasif Mandvi is overstating the impact to be had from a show where one of the characters might have a horned demon-beast as a therapist, and so much weird shit goes down that it would be fair to call Evil a deeply creepy show. But, when I spoke with Mandvi recently, he noted that the series is actually much more than its possibly supernatural parts:
I think some of the most fascinating shows we did last season had to do with evil, not in the realm of the supernatural, but in how it effects our daily life or how we use technology to infiltrate. So, we see evil in our world all the time; we actually don’t need ghosts or goblins, we see the manifestation of evil all the time. I think we might create more of that; the different ways it lives in our world and [how] it’s almost more insidious than just dealing with an exorcism or something. Technology is a perfect example of a tool that can be used for good or evil - and people use it in both ways - and how it gets usurped by people who want to do bad things.
I mean, Aasif's Mandvi's words are all too true, are they not? As he said, whether or not things like "ghosts or goblins" are real almost doesn't even matter, because what we see plenty of on a daily basis is the evil that men and women do to each other, and usually have no problem at all finding plenty of justifications for so that they can be A-OK with their actions.
Technology is certainly a big part of the potentially paranormal cases that David (Mike Colter), Kristen (Katja Herbers) and Ben (Mandvi) have investigated on Evil so far, not to mention some of the things they deal with in their daily lives. From the freaky (and maybe sentient) little girl in the augmented reality game that Kristen's daughters really should stop playing, to the smart speaker that says some very close-to-home things to Ben's sister and the Christmas song which no-good-terrible-very-bad Leland designed to drive girls crazy, people (demons?) using technology for nefarious means have already been all over Evil.
According to Mandvi, even though the show will continue to walk the line between what's real, not real, supernatural or scientifically explainable, we will likely continue to get more examples of very real evil when Season 2 of the drama comes around. And, I'm certainly down for watching that, as long as I either watch while I have every light on in my house or when it's full, 100% daylight outside. What can I say? I don't need any George-level nightmares, OK?
Aasif Mandvi and Evil will be back for Season 2 on CBS sometime during the 2020-2021 fall season, so be sure to check out our fall premiere guide for updates. In the meantime, you can revisit Season 1 on CBS All Access or with the full DVD collection, which is out now.
