‘Mayans MC’ Will Address Border Crisis Conflict for ‘Authentic’ Look at Issue

With Mayans MC is set along the U.S.-Mexico border, it would be difficult for the show to ignore the immigration crisis. Co-creator Kurt Sutter said the show does address the issue and will organically find its way into the story.

“We never comment on it, right, but for the show to be authentic we have to address it because it’s right in our face,” Sutter told The Wrap at the Television Critics Association press tour Friday.

Political topics are not directly addressed or forced into the spotlight, but they have to be weaved into have some authenticity on the show.

“So they address the issues that they’re faced with on a daily basis in terms of legalities, and you know the extra pressure, the difficulty coming in and out — like all that stuff is real,” Sutter continued.

Sutter compared this to how Sons of Anarchy dealt with politics during the Obama era without ever mentioning President Barack Obama’s name. During that series, the rise of white supremacists and the Aryan Brotherhood after Obama was elected was reflected in the show’s use of white supremacists as antagonists.

In Mayans MC, “We never mention Trump,” Sutter explained to The Wrap. “We never talk about politics, but we deal with the reality that is happening at the border and the circumstances and external conflicts and s– like that.”

Even if the show is apolitical, co-creator Elgin James told The Wrap that their writers room is “very politically minded.”

“We write our show for the people who actually live at the border,” James said. “There’s no f– time for politics. They’re living it every day.”

There will be a Trump reference hidden in the series though. Sutter previously told Deadline before San Diego Comic Con last month that one of the street labels for heroin in the series translates to “tiny hands.”

“You know how everyone has street labels for their drugs? Theirs was tiny hands, which I’m sure will come back and bite me in the a–,” Sutter said.

Sutter also told Deadline there has to be references to politics, because otherwise the show would not feel realistic. Parallels between real life and fiction come up in the story, and he cannot avoid them.

“The parallels are right there and it’s not like I’m going out of my way to bend the story to fit it,” Sutter explained. “But when story lands there I have to acknowledge it or it’ll feel like bulls–.”

Mayans MC kicks off on FX Tuesday, Sept. 4 and tells the story of Ezekiel “EZ” Reyes (J.D. Pardo), a new member of the titular motorcycle gang. The premiere episode will be available to stream on FX+ on Sept. 1.