Chuck Creators' Post-Finale Discussion

Just a couple of hours before the Chuck series finale aired Friday night, I spoke the show's creators, Josh Schwartz and Chris Fedak, about what went down in that final episode, "Chuck Versus The Goodbye."

Initially it was just Fedak and I, with Schwartz joining the call a few minutes in. The duo discussed why they made certain story choices in the final episodes, explained a few things and looked at the overall legacy of a show with one of the most loyal core fanbases you'll find.

IGN's Review of the Chuck Series Finale
Suffice to say, major Spoilers follow for the very end of Chuck!

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IGN: I don't know if wishing you a Happy Chuck Finale Day sounds right. Melancholy Chuck Finale Day?

Fedak: It's a mix of emotions, but we're happy that we were able to tell the final chapter of the Chuck show.

IGN: When did you decide upon this final storyline, as far as Sarah losing her memory?

Fedak: It came about at the end of last season. We started working out what would happen if Morgan had the Intersect and the more we talked about it, the more we thought it would be cool if the Intersect had a different effect on other people, especially this new version of the Intersect. And then we thought... The biggest part of the show was the Chuck/Sarah relationship and that there would be nothing as dramatic as what happens if one of them would have their memories [taken away] - that they would lose the relationships if something as traumatic as this could happen. And we thought it just infused a very big emotion into the final two episodes. It was part of our pitch to NBC and it was there from the get go.

IGN: So let me ask you about the final scene, which I will tell you my wife and I differed on. She wanted to be 100% sure everything was okay. I think we both agreed they re-found their love, but can we assume that Sarah does or will soon remember everything? He told her everything, but will she actually remember her relationships, not just with Chuck, but with everyone else?

Fedak: You know, part of me feels it's very much dependent on the person who's watching the scene. I think it's a happy ending and I think that Sarah's memories… We've kind of implied throughout the episode that Sarah's memories are there and that she is slowly but surely recovering them. But we also didn't want to paint a picture of her immediately remembering everything. So I think that we loved the notion of Sarah and Chuck falling in love again – getting to experience those first moments one more time. We thought that was an amazing way to leave them. So I think that unlike that kind of moment where a person just remembers everything in their life – that wasn't exactly what we wanted to do there. But I also think that I'm much more comfortable with the individual viewer coming up with their own feeling in regard to what exactly… to interpreting their kiss, which I think is what we do on the show. We're interrupting the emotion there.

IGN: Like you said, we see signs earlier. The fact that she remembers how the Weinerlicious should be organized, which isn't a Chuck-specific memory, hints that it's all there, waiting to come back up to the surface.


Fedak: Listen, I think of it as a happy ending. I'd rather not be pinned down or tell you exactly what I think. I have my own strong feelings. But I also think that we wanted to do something that's somewhat open ended, in regards to what was going to happen next. But it's certainly a happy ending and I think that it's two people in love on that beach.

Looking Back: IGN's Original Review of the Chuck Pilot
IGN: Did you think a lot about what that final line of dialogue should be? I did wonder if Sarah would say, "Don't freak out."

Fedak: You know, for us…

[At this point, Schwartz joined the call, and after our hellos, we continued.]

IGN: I was just asking about that final line of dialogue and Sarah saying, "Kiss me, Chuck," and if there were thoughts about other things she might say…

Schwartz: "F**k me, Chuck," right?

IGN: [Laughs] Right, right! Of course!

Schwartz: I think it was "Chuck me." That's the Cinemax version. No, sorry to interrupt guys. I'm sure you had a beautiful flow.

Fedak: No, Goldman was trying to pin me down on it! I was trying to dance around a little bit. But I think for us, when we thought about the end of the season, we were thinking about the beach scene from the pilot. And we loved the idea that Sarah's kind of remembering parts of her past and those big important moments and that that beach would be something that would be critical to her. And so the scene itself, the last line was important, but the echo… Chuck saying, "Trust me" and being the person there who, like Sarah in the pilot, he's the one who can help the other person. Him saying "Trust me" was the important, critical part of it.

IGN: I was only trying to pin you down for my wife's sake! I love a little ambiguity. I'm just going to tell her that you said yes, she remembered 100%, everything, with that one kiss.

Fedak: You can say that. Just for your wife though.

IGN: Obviously there were a lot of big changes for characters at the end. Why did you decide to have Awesome and Ellie move?

Fedak: Well, I think that Awesome and Ellie, just thinking about their characters over the past five years… They're both doctors! What are they doing in this apartment complex in Echo Park, you know? It seems like for years, Ellie was kind of part sister, part mom for Chuck. And I think that it was time for them to move on and become that suburban family with multiple children. Chuck had grown up and so it was a real moment that we knew it was time for Ellie and Awesome to become full adults.