Report: White Collar Set Visit

The season three premiere of White Collar has aired and the relationship between Peter and Neal has taken a dark and edgy turn. A question rises. Which side will Neal choose? Will he stick with Peter and or will he pull one over on the FBI agent and make off with the horde of Nazi treasure.

Luckily for fans, talking with the cast and crew during last week’s set visit helped shed some light on what viewers can expect from the third season of White Collar.

Talking about the direction of season three, Matt Bomer seemed to welcome the change with open arms. “I’m really proud that our writers are going there. I think it’s important to remind the audience that Neal isn’t sort of some friendly, aw shucks, every now and again he messes up, CI. That he actually is a criminal. I’m glad they’re steering the ship into murkier waters.”

Producer and Director Jeff King shed some light on upcoming episodes. “This season, we’re kind of getting back to the roots of the show. The Neal versus Peter, will he stay or will he go, you know the billboard kind of says it all, ‘Choose a Side.’  It’s pretty much on Neal to decide what he’s going to do with all of that treasure.”

King remained tight-lipped on details about Eliza Dushku’s character Raquel, but did tell us that “she’s going to come in and shake things up a little bit, in a lot of ways.  She’s a sexy thief with a way to stir the pot with a lot of trouble. Plus she will take on Keller as well.”

In terms of upcoming episodes, Willie Garson revealed an upcoming Mozzie-centric episode. “There is a great episode coming up about Mozzie being a foster child who’s never adopted.”

The episode moved Garson so much, he had the cast get together to film a PSA for adoption that will air after episode four later this month.

When asked if it was easier to create his character as the seasons go along, Garson said, “It becomes much easier. The writers have our voices better and better with each script. They’ll even write a line and know that I am going to whine about it and in the rewrite it’ll be changed before I even have the chance to say anything.”

During the set visit I got a chance to tour the FBI offices, Neal’s apartment, and yes even the infamous treasure room. Here are some fun facts below.

• Season 3 will be broken into two parts like the previous seasons. The summer will contain 10 new episodes before it goes on hiatus. White Collar will then return at a later announced date for 6 more episodes to finish off the season.
• While listening in to the scene being filmed on top of a parking deck, I got to hear Matt Bomer singing to himself as he prepped for the next take on the scene.
• The FBI set could easily pass for a real office environment with the level of detail that has gone into it. However, that hasn’t stopped the crew from having a little fun. Closer inspection of the Wanted posters on the bulletin boards revealed pictures of White Collar crew members wanted for various types of crimes.
• Ever wonder what’s inside the blue case folders at the FBI White Collar offices? Mystery solved. Peeking inside two or three folders revealed that it could be the episode’s script, expense reports for the show, and in one case, actual information on a suspect from the Myanmar episode in Season 2.
• The biggest shock came at the realization that Neal’s apartment is actually inside a studio and not a fancy penthouse apartment with an amazing skyline in the city. Deep down I always knew this was the truth, but I never wanted to believe it. So how does the city view look so realistic you ask? They took both a night and day photo of the New York City skyline that runs from the ceiling to the floor that acts as the view from Neal’s balcony.
• Matt On Why He Is NOT on Twitter – “There is no righteous or exclusive mindset behind my not joining Twitter. It’s just A) I don’t have time to do it at the moment and B) I don’t know, it’s sorta hard to imagine that my daily musings would be remotely interesting to people. Maybe too mundane unfortunately.”
• Matt wanted to be a marine biologist majoring in shark behavior. After a viewing of Jaws as a kid he wanted to know everything he could about sharks.
• Wondering what the Nazi treasures contain? Through my analysis I was able to see various paintings, gold bars and coins, a giant chandelier, a crate that looked like it housed the Ark of the Covenant, vases of various sizes, a golden seat/throne, and a miniature Egyptian Sphinx.

White Collar airs Tuesdays at 9/8c on USA.

For more on White Collar, click here.

Images courtesy of Bilal Mian and Poptimal.com

Actor Chairs (Note: Matt Bomer's says Neal Caffrey) Actor Chairs (Note: Matt Bomer's says Neal Caffrey)	Matt prepping for scene in the background Matt prepping for scene in the background	Inside the studio Inside the studio
Brand New Set – FBI Interrogation Room Brand New Set – FBI Interrogation Room	Bulletin Boards at the FBI White Collar Offices Bulletin Boards at the FBI White Collar Offices	FBI White Collar Offices FBI White Collar Offices
FBI White Collar Conference Room FBI White Collar Conference Room	Peter Burke's Office Peter Burke's Office	Books and binders on the shelves in Peter's office Books and binders on the shelves in Peter's office
The awards and certificates hanging next to Peter's Desk The awards and certificates hanging next to Peter's Desk	Ever wonder what's inside the blue folders? Ever wonder what's inside the blue folders?	Another view of the FBI White Collar Conference Room Another view of the FBI White Collar Conference Room
Poptimal Editor Bilal Mian sitting at Peter's Desk Poptimal Editor Bilal Mian sitting at Peter's Desk	Elizabeth Burke's new kitchen Elizabeth Burke's new kitchen	Photos on the wall of the staircase in the Burke household Photos on the wall of the staircase in the Burke household
Tim Dekay's face photoshopped onto Tiffany's husband Tim Dekay's face photoshopped onto Tiffany's husband	Brand new set – Peter and Elizabeth's bed room Brand new set – Peter and Elizabeth's bed room	Neal Caffrey's Apartment Neal Caffrey's Apartment
Neal's Bedroom Neal's Bedroom	The view from Neal's balcony. The view from Neal's balcony.	Neal's balcony Neal's balcony
A look inside the apartment from the balcony A look inside the apartment from the balcony	A look around Neal's room A look around Neal's room	Neal's Canvas Neal's Canvas
Neal's walk in closet minus all the suits Neal's walk in closet minus all the suits	Crew of White Collar setting up the dolly tracks for the next scene Crew of White Collar setting up the dolly tracks for the next scene	Director's Tent Director's Tent
Shoot in Progress Shoot in Progress	The Crew watching and listening as the scene plays out The Crew watching and listening as the scene plays out