We talk to the star of the summer TV hit about how music influenced the creation of Junior, a character who slowly descends into madness after being enclosed in an invisible bubble.
Alexander Koch is currently setting the standard for crazy people on network TV. A star of CBSs summer miniseries Under the Dome, based on Stephen Kings novel about a small town that gets sealed off by a giant bubble, Koch plays Junior Rennie, a kid who snaps when the chaos begins. After just two episodes, hes kidnapped his girlfriend Angie (Britt Robertson), chained her up in a bomb shelter, and tried to kill a guy that he thought wanted Angie for himself.
So how does Koch (pronounced "coke"), who attended the Theatre School at DePaul University, prepare himself to play a crazy person? I wondered if his process involved the media, so I called last week to discuss his screen habits. Turns out, theres a lot of Roy Orbison involved.
Tribeca: First things first: Does the media impact your work as an actor? Do you listen to music to get psyched up? Do you watch a sad old movie to learn how to play a tragic scene?
Alexander Koch: When Im working, I like to work with a lot of music. The more I can think of what a character would listen to, the more I feel like I have a place to create from.
Tribeca: Did you do that with Junior? Definitely. To me, Stephen Kings work has this 1950s, Eisenhower-era feeling. That classic, American nuclear family thing. So I was listening to a lot of Roy Orbison. I had this Roy Orbison record I was listening to over and over.
Tribeca: Do you remember the particular song?
AK: Let me look it up. I have a whole Under the Dome playlist that has like a hundred songs.
[searches his computer]
It was a best of Roy Orbison record, and I started listening to these songs about heartbreak. These old-fashioned songs youd hear on an old radio or something. I was rehearsing and thinking of things about Junior that seemed like they were on that record.
Tribeca: Like what?
AK: A lot of it comes from that ideal of what love is supposed to be. I was trying to develop a character relationship between Britts character, Angie, and Junior. I get the feeling that in Juniors mind, theres a running loop of 50s love songs, and hes looking at her singing, I dont know, "I Only Have Eyes for You" by the Flamingos.
Tribeca: Interesting! So youre using songs to give you insights into his character and not just to get you into an emotional space.
AK: Right!
Tribeca: And if Im getting you, these vintage love songs tell you how Junior wants to see the world, even though hes got his girlfriend chained up underground.
AK: When hes with Angie, he has this very distinct ideal of what its supposed to be. Even when shes acting out, he knows its going to be all rainbows and butterflies somehow. Shes misbehaving right now, but shes gonna come around, and were meant to be together. Were gonna have kids and run away together.
Tribeca: What else is on your Under the Dome playlist? Anything contemporary?
AK: Theres an Alt-J song called "Breezeblocks." I like the chorus of it: "Please dont go, please dont go. I love you so, I love you so." That makes sense for this character.
[Note: The video is also a primer on how to terrorize a loved one.]
Tribeca: How do you listen to music? Are you using a vintage stereo for Roy Orbison?
AK: I have a record player at home that I usually listen to, but since Ive been in Wilmington [North Carolina, where the series is filming], I couldnt bring it with me. When Im on set, Im listening through headphones on my computer, just trying to zone in and focus. Britt always makes fun of me about how Im always in my chair listening to music.
Tribeca: And what about movies or TV? Any inspirations there?
AK: It was great coming to Wilmington where Blue Velvet was shot because Im obsessed with that movie. I really love Badlands because I love the stylized feel of it. Its sparse, but its so rich. Theres minimal dialogue, but the images strike a chord. You feel something. To me, Terrence Malick writes from a point where images take precedence over dialogue.
Tribeca: As an actor, can you use that imagistic approach?
AK: When Im working, I find images and kind of attach to them. At school, when we were studying Shakespeare, wed have to create these huge booklets of images attached to the dialogue. It just makes the dialogue so much stronger if you have a distinct image in your mind. Before we go, Id love to know what else has excited you recently.
Tribeca: Anything youve seen or heard or read that stick with you?
AK: The book I started reading during my audition process for this show was John Fowles The Collector, because there were a lot of parallels with that and the Angie/Junior situation. That book freaked me out a little bit, and it was great to have that in my mind before starting this thing.
Previously in Screen Habits: The Shondes on Buffy & Star Wars
--
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
13/05/2026
New Adobe Premiere Color Grading Mode Accelerated on NVIDIA GPUs
Joel Pennington May 13, 2026
0 Comments
New NVIDIA RTX-accelerated features streamlin...
13/05/2026
Grass Valley announced that dB Broadcast has delivered new IP-based outside broadcast (OB) trucks for Cloudbass, featuring Grass Valley LDX 100 Series cameras a...
13/05/2026
Ikegami will exhibit the latest additions to its wide range of broadcast production cameras, control units, viewfinders and monitors on stand 5D3-1 at Broadcast...
13/05/2026
FISE, working with the founding members of the XR Sports Alliance (XRSA), Accedo, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. and HBS, have collaborated to develop an immersive...
13/05/2026
Canon Unveils New EOS R6 V Full-Frame EOS Camera and RF20-50mm F4 L IS USM PZ Bu...
13/05/2026
Boston Conservatory at Berklee Honors Beth Morrison and Moses Pendleton at Comme...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
13/05/2026
Creative software developer Foundry today announced the latest developments on Nuke Stage. A purpose-built application for end-to-end virtual production and in-...
13/05/2026
A definitive portrait of one of Ireland's most influential musicians
New TV documentary airs Monday 18 May on RT One and RT Player at 9.35pm
Watch the...
13/05/2026
Agentic AI is changing the way users get work done. Following the success of OpenClaw, the community is embracing new open source agentic frameworks. The latest...
13/05/2026
Reinforcement-learning agents - AI systems that learn by trial and error - can c...
12/05/2026
Beyond the Hype: A Strategic Post-Hoc Analysis of NAB 2026 If NAB Show 2026 had an underlying theme, it was a quiet, industry-wide pivot from the high-energy sp...
12/05/2026
Guntermann and Drunck (G&D), a Panoptec Technologies Group company, and CT Square, led by Chandresh Shah, have announced a joint venture to distribute G&D and V...
12/05/2026
With 30 days until the start of the FIFA World Cup 2026, Telemundo, the exclusive Spanish-language home of the tournament in the United States, has announced th...
12/05/2026
The NHL has announced the return of Stanley Pup for its third consecutive year, a 90-minute special featuring adoptable rescue dogs competing on a miniature rin...
12/05/2026
NBCUniversal presented its 2026 Upfront to advertisers at Radio City Music Hall, detailing upcoming programming across NBC, Peacock, Bravo, and Versant properti...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced funding for the Fandom and Social Connection Initiative at Harvard Kennedy School's Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Publ...
12/05/2026
TNDV and Live Media, both divisions of Live Media Group, supported live broadcast coverage around NCAA Final Four weekend in Indianapolis, including the March M...
12/05/2026
The European Football Alliance (EFA) has announced a content distribution agreement with Fubo Sports Network, the free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channel ...
12/05/2026
For the first time, Spanish-speaking fans in the U.S. will have two separate tel...
12/05/2026
CP Communications led a comprehensive spectrum management initiative on behalf of Churchill Downs during Kentucky Derby week, coordinating RF assets across the ...
12/05/2026
LiveU has announced a strategic partnership with DRONERESPONDERS, a 501(c)3 non-...
12/05/2026
Open Broadcast Systems has announced that BMC TV, a specialist in IP transport of broadcast content, has selected the Open Broadcast Systems 5G Flyaway solution...
12/05/2026
NEP Europe, part of NEP Group, has announced it will deliver broadcast solutions...
12/05/2026
Grass Valley has announced continued collaboration with Ravensbourne University ...
12/05/2026
Stats Perform has announced the launch of Opta Pulse, an AI-assisted video creation and distribution platform for leagues, rights holders, and broadcasters. The...
12/05/2026
FOX Sports has announced a collaboration with Sesame Workshop to integrate Sesame Street characters into FOX Sports' FIFA World Cup 2026 programming. Conten...
12/05/2026
To date, NHL Productions has produced 19 broadcasts with commentary in American Sign Language
NHL in ASL (American Sign Language) may be just one show, but the...
12/05/2026
Google's Brian Albert: creators, athletes, highlights, nostalgia, second-scr...
12/05/2026
A still from Past Lives by Celine Song, an official selection of the Premieres program at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. (Courtesy of Sundance Institute | p...
12/05/2026
Spotify is where fans and artists come together, turning discovery into somethin...
12/05/2026
Features patented Marco-MMC clocking technology
Black Lion Audio's latest release combines the company's expertise in clocking with their renowned p...
12/05/2026
New Track Panel, sequencer upgrades & more
Following their recent public beta release, Reason Studios have announced the full release of Reason 14. With the...
12/05/2026
One month to go! SBS reveals expansive FIFA World Cup 2026 lineup beyond the pi...
12/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz presents its advanced solutions for power electronics testing at...
12/05/2026
aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, has developed a modified fund raising p...
12/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/05/2026
Tyrell Corporation, specialists in high-end live sports and entertainment broadcasts, was tasked with delivering compelling broadcast coverage of premier equest...
12/05/2026
Registration is now open for IBC2026 as the global media, entertainment and technology community prepares to converge on the RAI Amsterdam from 11 14 September ...
12/05/2026
Ross Video, a global leader in live video production technology, will present its latest innovations and integrated production workflows at BroadcastAsia 2026, ...
12/05/2026
500 selected leaders from around the world across start-ups, corporates, and venture capital. Over 50bn in assets under management among attending investors, a...
We talk to the star of the summer TV hit about how music influenced the creation of Junior, a character who slowly descends into madness after being enclosed in an invisible bubble. 
