"We know how these things work," Olivieri told TV Guide. "Somebody's got to figure something out. The writers did a good job on the ending. There's a few twists that you don't see coming that I personally loved, and it made me crazy to know what happens next."

After Lydia was caught in the crossfire (which Samuel ordered), Samuel regained control and the trust of his people. But Olivieri knows that her character's death will soon spoil Samuel's wicked master plan and she's banking on Claire to spring into action.

"I think Lydia gave Claire the insight that the carnival wasn't this roving band of lunatics," Olivieri said. "She was able to convey to Claire what it really meant to the people that were there and that they wanted help. Samuel is not on their side. If anything, that gives Claire incentive to get her father [Jack Coleman] to help."

"My death was a chance for the audience to see just how far he's willing to go. He's pushing it, and he's getting really close to the fire with all the things he's doing," she said of Samuel. "I think the closer he gets, the more extreme his actions have to be, and eventually that just all implodes on itself. He's sinking cities, and he's killing the people that are close to him. It becomes too much eventually; it's catching up with him."



(Image courtesy of NBC)