Kurt Sutter Reveals How the ‘Sons of Anarchy’ Story Will Inform ‘Mayans M.C.’ Plot

Sons of Anarchy creator Kurt Sutter recently revealed how the story building elements from that series will inform the plot of its spinoff, Mayans M.C.

While speaking to Variety, Sutter opened up about the creative connections, and how there are some very specific things he learned from SoA that have come into play while crafting Mayans M.C.’s storyline.

“We didn’t set out to create strong female characters. We didn’t set out to unravel the relationships the way we did,” he first explained about the direction on Sons of Anarchy. “We just started telling organic stories.”

“I had to be aware of the fact going into Mayans,” he then explained. “I have to trust that I tell stories the same way, organically, I let the stories evolve and the characters evolve as a result of that story, and therefore the Mayans mythology will hopefully have its own things that stand out memorable.”

Sutter also spoke candidly about why he felt most comfortable bringing the original series to the FX network, citing his time working on The Shield as the main reason.

“I really felt like their brand was the right fit. To me, it was all of the variables in the right place,” he stated, adding that he was not ignorant to the idea that show would evolve. “I knew from being on The Shield, and having some experience in the financials of all of it, that after seven seasons the production model changes and reverts back. It becomes a much more expensive show to do and perhaps the economic feasibility of it somewhat goes away.”

Sutter also confessed which Sons of Anarchy death was the hardest on him to write, saying that it was the murder of Opie, who was played by actor Ryan Hurst.

“I loved the actor and the character, but the road we had taken him down was so heavy,” he admitted. “The amount of death and sense of betrayal, I just organically could not have that guy sit at the table with Clay. It just didn’t make sense.”

“Really it was about, ‘All right, the evolution of the character has reached this point [so] how do I use that to move the mythology around? How do I use that to send my hero in a different direction — or on a collision course with X?’” Sutter added.

Fans can see the next chapter in Sutter’s vision when Mayans M.C. debuts on Tuesday, Sept. 4 on FX.