Kyle MacLachlan Brought His Own Yo-Yo Skills to the Set of “Fallout” Season 2: 'I'm Like, I Got This' (Exclusive)
- - Kyle MacLachlan Brought His Own Yo-Yo Skills to the Set of “Fallout” Season 2: 'I'm Like, I Got This' (Exclusive)
Stacy LambeDecember 21, 2025 at 4:00 AM
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Lorenzo Sisti/Prime
Kyle MacLachlan in 'Fallout' season 2 -
Kyle MacLachlan is opening up about season 2 of Fallout, the post-apocalyptic Prime Video series
For his role as Hank MacLean, the actor had to play with a yo-yo on set — something he grew up playing with as a kid
He also reflects on working with his younger costar, Ella Purnell, who plays his on-screen daughter
Kyle MacLachlan is a man of many talents — one of which includes the mastering of a popular childhood toy: the yo-yo.
On season 2 of Fallout, the 66-year-old actor brought his own skills to the set of the post-apocalyptic Prime Video series. In the show he plays Hank MacLean, the leader of Vault 33 who turned out to be one of the sinister forces behind the nuclear fallout in America, and who heads for the remains of New Vegas.
When the new episodes pick up on Hank's story, he's determined to complete his mission — even if his motives aren't quite clear at first. As he resumes his corporate lifestyle with lab experiments, bad coffee and head-to-toe suits, Hank also plays with a yo-yo.
"So we pick up with Hank pretty shortly after the end of season 1, when I've flown off into the distance and made my way into the wilderness and coming upon New Vegas," MacLachlan tells PEOPLE. "Basically, it's a continuation of that same journey. He has an idea, he has a plan, he knows what he wants to do."
Courtesy of Prime
Kyle MacLachlan in 'Fallout' season 2
MacLachlan adds that Hank "is hatching a scheme that we learn as the series progresses." And as things play out in the first few episodes, the actor teases, "it involves a yo-yo."
While a lesser star might rely on some special effects or a stunt double, MacLachlan says that Hank's yo-yoing is all his own. "There was some worry, you know, when they brought up this idea, like, 'How are you with a yo-yo? Do you need practice?' And I'm like, 'I got it. Don't you worry,' " he recalls of being on set.
Lorenzo Sisti/Prime
Ella Purnell in 'Fallout' season 2
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Growing up, "Smothers Brothers was a big yo-yo," the actor explains, joking that "that's an old reference for you right now." He adds, "I was a big Duncan yo-yos guy and I was a big yo-yo kid when I was younger, so it was pretty easy to get it going."
Despite having a lifelong familiarity with the toy, MacLachlan says the props they had on set let him down at times. "The yo-yos that we had kept breaking though. In true Fallout condition, they would come apart — "but we made it through okay," he notes.
Although it looks like Hank and his daughter, Lucy (Ella Purnell), will spend season 2 apart as the former vault dweller chases her father across the wasteland in hopes of confronting him about the truth, MacLachlan says working with the Yellowjackets breakout was a delight.
"She's really a joy," he says. "She's hardworking, serious with a great sense of humor. There's a lot of laughter between takes. I admire her so much." He adds of his costar, whose character takes a real beating while trying to survive life above ground, "It's a huge role. She has to go through so much and she keeps a really upbeat personality about it. She takes it in stride."
Stephane Cardinale - Corbis/Corbis via Getty
From Left: Kyle MacLachlan and Ella Purnell in France on April 6, 2024
"I really admire that," MacLachlan continues, explaining, "We have some similarities, that we always wanna keep things moving forward but work hard and enjoy the process and have fun with the people you're working with. She really embodies that."
Given the nature of the show, especially as it compares to the diverse career the actor has had, starring in everything from Twin Peaks to Sex and the City and Portlandia, MacLachlan explains what excites him most about his role as Hank. "There are just so many aspects to his personality that I really enjoy and I want to hit each one and I wanna make them all work within the character. You've gotta believe he can do all these different things," the actor says.
"He's got a sense of glee and fun and joy, and yet, he's got a dark side and kind of an angry side. And, of course, he's got love for his daughter and his family," he continues, explaining that "you gotta pull all of those elements and make them work in one person."
"That's a challenge and really a pleasure and a joy because it's done so beautifully," MacLachlan says, teasing that "I get to explore that in this season even more. I'm around a little bit more than I was in the first season."
Fallout episodes drop Wednesdays through Feb. 4 on Prime Video.
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
