Dominic Purcell and Wentworth Miller team up on Tuesday’s episode of The CW’s “The Flash,” marking the actors’ first shared screen time since wrapping on Fox’s “Prison Break” in 2009. But when they spoke to TheWrap during an on-set press visit in Vancouver, they said their focus was trained on thwarting Grant Gustin’s titular hero.
“[Captain] Cold and Heat Wave work together to bring down the Flash and we’ve got our guns,” Purcell said. “I’m firing a heat wave and Wentworth’s firing a cold gun. It’s all about crossing streams. It’s like ‘Ghostbusters!’ … It’s a lot of fun.”
For those who don’t remember, Purcell played a wrongfully incarcerated Death Row inmate on “Prison Break” and Miller was his loyal brother dedicated to helping him escape. But when they go toe-to-toe with Barry Allen (Gustin) on Tuesday’s episode of “The Flash,” they risk taking another turn in the slammer.
“We played brothers for four years, so there’s just something that builds up over time and I know his style and he knows mine and I think it’s brought an extra layer to these two characters and their relationship, because they do have a history – Cold and Heat Wave — and it was nice that we already had that bubbling on the stove,” said Miller.
“We had such a great time on ‘Prison Break’ and I haven’t worked with him since then. So, working with him again is great,” Purcell added. “We have a unique chemistry, so this gives us a chance to come into a different world, and it affords actors [a chance] to really play, and that’s what I’m really enjoying about this role.”
The duo were basically good guys on “Prison Break,” but on The CW’s freshman superhero drama they join forces for a much more nefarious cause — bringing down the Flash.
Miller plays Leonard Snart, a.k.a. Captain Cold, a villain who first appeared as a thorn in Barry Allen’s side on an earlier episode this season. Purcell, meanwhile, makes his CW debut as Heat Wave on Tuesday’s episode entitled “Revenge of the Rogues.” His villain is an arsonist gone, well, rogue.
“It was basically finding the character on the floor, really. Heat Wave, it just invokes a hot head. I’m bringing an animalistic kind of [thing] to him,” he said with a growl.
But Snart’s villain is more calculating. “Cold is a solitary, lone wolf kind of character and may occasionally enjoy having some company,” explained Miller. “So there is a push-pull between the two. They aren’t friends, but they do have a kind of intimacy and that’s been fun to explore.”
Purcell and Miller’s reunion has been the stuff of headlines since the guest casting was first revealed back in September. Fans clearly respond to the actors’ rapport, though Purcell can’t explain it.
“I don’t think there’s an answer to chemistry,” he said. “With Wentworth and I there was no ego. There was never any sense of competition, we just kind of worked very easily together. I don’t know what the chemistry is, but people respond.”
Gustin, the show’s breakout lead, agrees.
“It’s just really cool to have Dominic and Wentworth,” he said. “The first time I saw them together, like in costume, walking down the street with their weapons … it just looked pretty badass. It’s pretty exciting to have them.”
See the trailer for Tuesday’s episode.
“The Flash” airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. on The CW.