Why the creators of Paramount+'s 'Evil' think the series would have been canceled if it were still on CBS

• Paramount+'s "Evil" debuted its season two finale on Sunday.
• The show's creators, Robert and Michelle King, inked a new five-year deal with CBS Studios this year.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Was the move from CBS to Paramount+ beneficial for "Evil"?

Michelle King: We got the news about it shifting from broadcast to streaming at the very end of [filming] season two, so the changes we were able to make all were done in editing and post-production.

Robert King: The only thing we filmed different was the sexual bits in the finale. We were able to push the envelope. Everything else was editing. Almost every time actors say "fuck" is ADR (audio dialogue replacement). There were a few times when actors said "fuck" on set, though, so we were able to keep that.

There was an episode where they [Kristen, played by Katja Herbers, and Andy, played by Patrick Brammall] have sex in monster masks. That pushed the envelope when we thought we were on network, but sometimes we do that to see what we can get away with.

Michelle: We always felt in terms of content the show would benefit from being on a streaming platform where we had a little more latitude in terms of gore, sexuality, cursing, and length of the episodes.

Robert: I don't think we would have been renewed [for season three] if it stayed network because network is appealing to a certain kind of taste. This is outside the CBS network brand a bit.

Is that detrimental to network TV, that a show like this doesn't fit into that brand?

Michelle: At this point it feels like networks are taking fewer risks, and riskier product is going on streaming services. Most of these conglomerates now have a choice. They don't just have a broadcast network.

Robert: All these "FBI" shows and so on are doing well on CBS. My guess is broadcast's future is is doing 80% pilots like that, and then one or two outside the box that are taking a chance because the rest of the schedule is secure.

Does your CBS Studios deal involve any broadcast programming? Do you want to stay in this streaming lane?

Michelle: We're fortunate that the deal doesn't specify where we have to make shows. We have certainly not written off broadcast. If we had an idea that we felt belonged on the network, we would feel good about going back and pitching it there.

Robert: We're spread all across the ViacomCBS universe. "Your Honor" [which the Kings executive produce] is on Showtime. "The Good Fight" is Paramount+ and "Evil" used to be network until it went to Paramount+.

Since you filmed "Evil" season two before you knew about the move to Paramount+, was there anything that you filmed that you were worried would be cut if it were on CBS?

Robert: Yes, but not for the reasons you'd think. The episode "S is for Silence," which I directed, was about 23 minutes longer than it needed to be if it were on network. The biggest relief going from network to streaming was getting that added time so we didn't have to butcher it.

The last time we talked, you were just starting to film season two and you said you had to change the direction for the premiere because of the pandemic. Your original idea was about a haunted subway. Did you find that change to be beneficial and did the pandemic influence anything else about season two?

Michelle: I felt like we ended up with the exactly right first episode for the season. I think the fact that it focused on our characters more was a real plus. The pandemic absolutely impacted what else we were able to film. We were not able to get as many location permits, nor were we able to use as many background actors as we typically could. So that impacts how you're making a show and the kind of stories you're able to tell.

Robert: It worked out because we built more sets. Our production designer created a Gothic look. So not getting permits allowed us to build more sets than we typically would, which gave it a more distinctive look.

Is that something that will inform season three?

Robert: Absolutely. We got a new stage space and I think it's exactly where we want to be. Sometimes you want to be on a New York street, but other times that Hitchcockian smoothness of filmmaking can only be achieved on a set. That haunted subway idea would have been a disaster, by the way.

Do you have an endgame in mind for "Evil"?

Robert: We have an endpoint in mind but it's flexible. It's like an umbrella. It can be opened wider or tighter. We know what we're writing towards but we don't know how far we want to open the umbrella.