The cast of The Shards is just as in the dark as the audience about who attacked Susan Reynolds in the final episode. Even Kaia Gerber, who plays Susan, and Graham Campbell, who plays her ex-boyfriend Thom, can’t settle on what actually happened in the terrifying home invasion scene. The two actors talked through the sequence with DECIDER, and their uncertainty is part of what makes the show work.
Spoilers for The Shards Episode 9, “Stairway to Heaven,” now streaming on Hulu.
Partway through the episode, someone — possibly the masked man known as the Trawler — attacks Homecoming Queen Susan Reynolds in her own home. Just when her fate seems sealed, Thom arrives to save her. Or does he?
Fans know Thom has been cozying up to the creepy cult the Riders of the Afterlife, which may be responsible for the Trawler’s crimes. Was Thom really looking out for Susan, or was he the masked man the whole time?
“This is really funny because this is like a point of tension for us,” Campbell told DECIDER.
“Yeah, it is a fun point,” Gerber said.
“I don’t know about fun,” Campbell said. “I mean, I was trying to have fun that day, but you had been doing your Shelley Duvall thing for like three hours and I came in trying to be like…”
Filming the Attack Was Its Own Ordeal
The scene took a toll on Gerber long before Campbell ever stepped on set. She spent hours alone filming the invasion sequence, and the physical toll was real.
“I was there on set for the first, like, ten hours by myself filming the invasion with our incredible stunt man, Troy,” Gerber said. “Actually, my brother went to middle school with him and I thought he was the coolest stunt boy and now he’s a stunt man. And it was so wonderful to see him again.”
“He’s even cooler,” Campbell said.
“Even cooler now,” Gerber agreed. “Obviously in my mind, I’m like, ‘That’s Troy from when I was 12.’ But when you’re screaming and hyperventilating like that, your body does get freaked out.”
The terror was personal for Gerber. “Also it’s my nightmare — literal nightmare — walking by my closet and someone jumps out and attacks me with a knife. It’s hell on earth,” she said. “So I was definitely a little shaken up and then Graham comes in, as he always does, in the best mood, which is actually, like it’s wonderful, except for on that [day].”
“[It’s wonderful] in the right time and place,” Campbell said.
Troy the Stunt Man
Gerber’s reunion with the stunt man added a personal layer to an already intense day. She had known him since middle school, when her brother went to school with him.
“Obviously in my mind, I’m like, ‘That’s Troy from when I was 12,'” Gerber said. “But when you’re screaming and hyperventilating like that, your body does get freaked out.”
Campbell confirmed Troy’s credibility. “He’s even cooler,” he said.
The detail mattered to Gerber, who found comfort in working with someone familiar. “And it was so wonderful to see him again,” she said.
The Shelley Duvall Connection
Gerber revealed that Ryan Murphy was “very clearly about wanting to reference Shelley Duvall” from The Shining during the scene. The reference links back to the very start of The Shards, and it gave Gerber a chance to prep by listening to the Stanley Kubrick film’s soundtrack.
“How fucked up is that soundtrack?” Campbell said.
“It’s so crazy,” Gerber said. “I actually still listen sometimes when I film.”
The two actors had different energy levels when Campbell finally arrived on set. Gerber had been deep in her Duvall-inspired performance for hours.
“Graham came in like, [upbeat] ‘Da, da!'” Gerber said.
“Yeah, she’s going, [Shelley Duvall impression] ‘Ahhhhhhh!'” Campbell said.
“But I think in his defense, he didn’t,” Gerber said.
The Shining Soundtrack as Prep
The soundtrack became a working tool for Gerber, not just a reference point. She said she still listens to it when she films other projects.
“It’s so crazy,” Gerber said. “I actually still listen sometimes when I film.”
Campbell was struck by the music’s power. “How fucked up is that soundtrack?” he asked.
The Kubrick film’s score clearly left a mark on both actors, shaping the mood of the scene they were shooting.
What Changed Gerber’s Mind
Gerber said she felt one way while shooting the scene and another when she watched the finished episode. The shift came from a specific detail.
“But I’m very excited for the Reddit threads about it because I felt one way when we were shooting it and then watching it, I kind of felt a different way,” Gerber said.
“Well, do you want to say what way you did or didn’t feel?” Campbell asked.
Gerber admitted her view shifted during production. “I felt like when we were shooting it, there’s no way it was Thom,” she said.
“But then there’s that little —” Campbell teased.
“Then that moment when there’s no one on the ground, I was like…” Gerber said.
The Ambiguity Is the Point
Campbell said the series is built to keep everyone guessing. Every glance, every head tilt, every lingering shot is deliberate.
“But everybody has a moment like that,” Campbell said. “That’s what’s so expert about the way this series is put together, is that it’s the right look in the eye or the head tilt or the lingering on a shot where you’re like, ‘Holy fuck, it could be anybody.'”
“It could really be anyone,” Gerber said. “Do you think it’s you [in the mask]?”
“I think it’s… I shouldn’t say, I shouldn’t say,” Campbell said.
Gerber said one of her “favorite parts” of the sequence is when Thom officially arrives.
“When Thom comes in and tries to calm me down and I’m still in that space… I actually think that works so well,” Gerber said.
The Core Details
- Susan Reynolds is attacked in her own home in Episode 9, “Stairway to Heaven”
- The attacker may be the Trawler, the masked man tied to a string of crimes
- Thom has been linked to the Riders of the Afterlife cult
- Gerber filmed the invasion alone for about ten hours before Campbell arrived
- Ryan Murphy wanted to reference Shelley Duvall from The Shining
- Gerber listened to the The Shining soundtrack to prepare
- Both actors say they don’t know for certain who the attacker is
The Actors’ Uncertainty
Gerber’s theory changed between filming and watching. The moment when she looked at the ground and saw no one there shifted her perspective.
“I felt like when we were shooting it, there’s no way it was Thom,” she said. “Then that moment when there’s no one on the ground, I was like…”
Campbell refused to reveal his theory about the masked man. “I think it’s… I shouldn’t say, I shouldn’t say,” he said.
The actors’ uncertainty mirrors the audience’s experience. The show leaves enough ambiguity that any character could be the Trawler.
“It could really be anyone,” Gerber said.
Gerber is looking forward to seeing how fans dissect the episode. The ambiguity is part of the appeal.
“I’m very excited for the Reddit threads about it,” she said.
The two actors clearly enjoy the mystery. Their playful back-and-forth in the interview mirrors the show’s tone — dark, suspenseful, but with room for humor.
The cast may not know who attacked Susan, but they know the scene works. “I actually think that works so well,” Gerber said.
The Trawler’s identity remains the show’s biggest question.
Source: decider.com
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