Ian Collins Reflects on Tristan’s Transformative Journey in Snowpiercer’s Final Season, Championing Growth and Resilience

Collins shared mem­o­rable moments from film­ing intense action sequences, high­light­ing the elec­tric ener­gy on set which fueled their per­for­mances. He also empha­sized the deeply relat­able emo­tions of fear, loy­al­ty, and sur­vival that Tris­tan expe­ri­ences, mak­ing it eas­i­er for him to con­nect with the char­ac­ter. As a proud mem­ber of the 2SLGBTQIA+ com­mu­ni­ty, he not­ed that rep­re­sen­ta­tion has improved in the indus­try but still has room for growth. Ulti­mate­ly, Collins hopes that view­ers will be inspired by Tristan’s jour­ney of growth and resilience, see­ing it as a pow­er­ful reminder of the strength that can emerge from even the most chal­leng­ing cir­cum­stances.

1. What has it been like to por­tray Tris­tan through­out the four sea­sons of “Snow­piercer”, and how has your char­ac­ter evolved over time?

Por­tray­ing Tris­tan over the course of four sea­sons has been an incred­i­ble jour­ney. When I first booked Tris­tan , he was more of a shad­ow  fig­ure, some­one who was try­ing to sur­vive in the harsh envi­ron­ment of the train. But as the series pro­gressed, his role expand­ed, and we got to see him step into lead­er­ship with his pro­mo­tion to head of hos­pi­tal­i­ty. That evolution—watching him go from being self-pro­tec­tive and unsure to some­one who is respon­si­ble for the well-being of others—has been  a joy to play. His growth mir­rors the chal­lenges of sur­vival and loy­al­ty on the train, and I think it’s made him a more com­plex and dynam­ic char­ac­ter.

2. Can you share any mem­o­rable behind-the-scenes moments or chal­lenges you faced while film­ing the final sea­son?

One of the most mem­o­rable moments from film­ing the final sea­son was shoot­ing some of the more intense, action-packed scenes on the train. The tight spaces make every­thing feel more height­ened, and the phys­i­cal­i­ty of those scenes can be a chal­lenge, but they also add to the inten­si­ty of the show. There was one day when we were film­ing dur­ing a chaot­ic train sequence, and the ener­gy on set was electric—everyone was so immersed in the scene that you could feel the ten­sion in the air. It’s those kinds of moments, where the cast and crew come togeth­er to bring the sto­ry to life, that I’ll nev­er for­get.

3. How do you con­nect with Tris­tan’s expe­ri­ences and emo­tions, espe­cial­ly giv­en the series’ unique set­ting?

Con­nect­ing with Tristan’s emo­tions in such a unique set­ting as Snow­piercer is both chal­leng­ing and reward­ing. At its core, though, Tristan’s expe­ri­ences are deeply human—he’s nav­i­gat­ing fear, loy­al­ty, and sur­vival, which are emo­tions that any­one can relate to, even if the set­ting is a post-apoc­a­lyp­tic train. I also relate to his pro­tec­tive instincts and the way he grows over time, becom­ing more respon­si­ble not just for him­self but for oth­ers. The iso­la­tion and pres­sure of the train can ampli­fy those emo­tions, which adds an inter­est­ing lay­er to por­tray­ing him.

4. In addi­tion to “Snow­piercer”, you’ve appeared in a vari­ety of shows. How does work­ing on a series like “Snow­piercer” com­pare to your oth­er projects?

Snow­piercer is unique in so many ways—especially in terms of the scale of the pro­duc­tion and the com­plex­i­ty of the set­ting. The train itself almost feels like a char­ac­ter, and that con­fined, ever-mov­ing space cre­ates a real­ly intense atmos­phere to work in. Com­pared to some of the oth­er projects I’ve done, Snow­piercer is much more phys­i­cal­ly demand­ing, but it’s also giv­en me the chance to explore a char­ac­ter over a longer peri­od of time, which has been incred­i­bly ful­fill­ing. I’ve worked on shows across dif­fer­ent gen­res, but the depth of sto­ry­telling and the themes of sur­vival and social jus­tice in Snow­piercer make it stand out.

5. As a proud mem­ber of the 2SLGBTQIA+ com­mu­ni­ty, how do you feel rep­re­sen­ta­tion has changed in the enter­tain­ment indus­try since you start­ed your career?

Rep­re­sen­ta­tion in the enter­tain­ment indus­try has def­i­nite­ly improved since I start­ed my career, but there’s still a long way to go. When I was grow­ing up, I didn’t see many char­ac­ters on screen who reflect­ed my expe­ri­ence as a bira­cial gay man, and that absence can be iso­lat­ing. Over the years, we’ve seen more diverse sto­ries and char­ac­ters, espe­cial­ly in terms of LGBTQIA+ rep­re­sen­ta­tion, and I think that’s incred­i­bly impor­tant for audi­ences. It’s not just about see­ing our­selves on screen—it’s about telling real, nuanced sto­ries that go beyond stereo­types. I’m hope­ful that we’ll con­tin­ue to see even more progress in terms of inclu­siv­i­ty.

6. What do you hope audi­ences take away from the final sea­son of Snow­piercer, par­tic­u­lar­ly in terms of Tris­tan’s sto­ry­line?

I hope audi­ences take away the impor­tance of growth and trans­for­ma­tion from Tristan’s jour­ney. Over the course of the series, Tris­tan goes from being some­one focused on sur­vival to some­one who steps into lead­er­ship and learns to care for oth­ers. His arc is a reminder that even in the most chal­leng­ing cir­cum­stances, peo­ple can evolve and find their strength. As the train con­tin­ues its jour­ney, Tristan’s sto­ry is a tes­ta­ment to resilience, and I hope view­ers feel inspired by that. The final sea­son also touch­es on themes of loy­al­ty and what it means to pro­tect those around you, which I think will res­onate with a lot of peo­ple.

Be sure to fol­low Ian on Insta­gram by click­ing HERE .