‘The Wilds’: Charles Alexander’s Intense Exercise Routine to Prepare to Play Kirin
Actors had to prepare differently for season 2 of The Wilds. One of them had to work out intensely because of his origin story. Charles Alexander revealed his routine to prepare to play Kirin in the Amazon Prime Video.
[Spoiler alert: Spoilers ahead for The Wilds Season 2 finale!]
Kirin O’Conner’s backstory on ‘The Wilds’
Kirin is an intense lacrosse player. “I run a sub-50 400, and I deadlift three times my body weight,” he said in his first scene. “So if you think I’m gonna be challenged by some stand-up paddleboarding bullsh*t, you can f*ck right off.”
He went to the same high school as Ivan (Miles Gutierrez), and they seem to be opposites and therefore don’t get along. Season 2 later reveals their issues are much deeper because Ivan revealed publicly that Kirin’s coach was pictured in blackface. He was then fired, which really upset Kirin, who said his coach was the only father figure he had.
Ivan then baited Kirin into saying a homophobic slur and got him suspended. But his boyfriend revealed the truth, and Ivan was suspended. Kirin continues to have anger issues on the island.
Charles Alexander’s intense exercise routine to play the athletic Kirin
Alexander told Screen Rant how he got in shape to look like a college athlete. “I just wanted to lean into that and get in peak physical condition. So I worked with a nutritionist, a friend of a friend, who actually helped Hugh Jackman prepare for Wolverine and gave me this Spartan diet and crazy exercise routine where I had to run every day for 45 minutes to an hour. And weightlift every second day.”
“That was really good because it just helped channel my vision and just be like, it felt like I was already working on the show months before I got there,” he added. The actor said his exercise routine was less intense while filming. Alexander also learned his lines while on the treadmill.
“I found that it really helped find creative choices because my heart would be beating,” he said. This was a different strategy for him.
What happens to Kirin at the end of ‘The Wilds’ Season 2?
“Exodus” showed Kirin, Seth (Alex Fitzalan), and Raf (Zack Calderon) leave the island on a boat to look for help. Kirin and Seth get into a fight, and Seth throws him off the boat. He then tries to leave Kirin, but Raf stops him by punching him repeatedly.
The season ends with Gretchen’s (Rachel Griffiths) team leaving the island. The boys and girls finally meet in the bunker, which includes Kirin. It’s revealed Gretchen plans to continue the experiment with Seth watching them from a separate place.
