Brace yourself when "Sons of Anarchy" kicks off season six next month. To say that the horrific conclusion in the premiere about a violent motorcycle club is "controversial" is one of the greatest understatements of the year.
But that was never creator Kurt Sutter's intention, he insisted Friday at the Television Critics Association's summer press tour in Beverly Hills.
"I've wanted to do that story for about three years," he told reporters. "It's an organic story to our world ... thematically, it's the right thing. ... Nothing is done gratuitously. "
Although the episode was screened for critics, the showrunner sincerely hopes the cataclysmic events aren't leaked before its broadcast — but not just because spoilers will diminish its shock value.
"I don't want it viewed as us doing it to be controversial, to bring more eyes to the episode," he said. "I'm worried more about that kind of blowback" than the public's response following its airing.
"There's not really a statement I'm trying to make within the story," Sutter said, noting that the episode's events are integral to everything that follows in the last two seasons of "Sons of Anarchy."
"This is a story that's not being done to be sensational. It is truly the catalyst for the final act of our morality play. It sets everything in motion for this season that will ultimately lead to the end, and then will bring us into the final season and what I see as the ultimate comeuppance of everything in terms of the series."
"I didn't want to do that and ultimately have it just be a story beat and then go away," he told TODAY.com.
"Sons of Anarchy" returns Tuesday, Sept. 10 on FX.