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There was a familiar face on screen last week when the penultimate episode of Homeland aired – Ben Savage.

The -year-old actor, who is best known for his role as Cory Matthews on Boy Meets World, portrayed a young version of Mandy Patinkin‘s Saul Berenson – but it wasn’t the first time he played a young version of one of Mandy‘s characters.

Ben also portrayed a young Jason Gideon on CBS’s Criminal Minds, where Mandy starred for three seasons.

“[We] went through so many discussions about how we would portray the Young Saul,” co-creator/executive producer Alex Gansa shared with TVLine. “There was some talk of trying to make Mandy (who is 67 in real life) look like he was in his late 20s, but we did some tests and it just wasn’t believable.”

After trying out his real life sons, who are not actors, they turned to Ben.

Alex added that “when Ben came in to read, the resemblance is so strong it felt like the smart thing to do. He just bears such an uncanny resemblance to Mandy.”

Homeland‘s series finale airs tonight, April 26 at 9/8c on Showtime.

Claire Danes is officially saying goodbye to Carrie Mathison on Homeland tonight, when it airs its’ series finale on Showtime.

Speaking with The Guardian, the -year-old actress opened up about how she was going to miss the character on the long-running show.

“Oh my gosh, so much,” Claire shared. “I loved her. It was just so nice to play the smartest person in the room, somebody who was so daring and unapologetically ambitious and such a badass. She’s not really going away.”

In a separate interview with CBS News, she revealed that the role was a dream for her: “It’s been great for me as an actress, ’cause so often — especially coming out of my twenties — you know, I was playing ingénues or characters who were completely defined by their romantic experience, or the guy!”

Claire also opened up about her final scene with Mandy Patinkin and the chemistry between them.

“I think that’s a wonderful and surprising love story,” she recalls of their characters’ relationship. “It’s not one that we see depicted all that often in pop culture: mentor and mentee.”

Claire continues, “In our first read-through the chemistry was really powerful and palpable. He looks uncannily like my best friend’s dad, who kind of raised me and is a wonderful person but, if [he] got mad at you, you felt pretty shitty. I think that helped: very strong Pavlovian response already built in! And he’s [Patinkin] just very good at what he does. Our partnership grew and deepened over time.”

“It’s not a casual scene,” she added about their final scene together. “I think for me that was my cathartic moment when I realized it was over, because to say goodbye to it in its entirety is just too abstract and too huge. There were some tears – many of them – and we just hugged each other for a really long time.”

The final episode of Homeland airs tonight, April 26 at 9/8c on Showtime.

Claire Danes is on the cover of The Hollywood Reporter‘s latest issue, out now.

Here’s what the Homeland star had to say…

On Homeland’s popularity: “Three episodes in, people were literally running out of stores, charging me with enthusiasm. I’d never experienced that before. My So-Called Life had this amazingly rich afterlife, but there wasn’t that appreciation as it was airing…There were parodies on Saturday Night Live and in MAD Magazine. That’s a real sign that you’ve made it, getting roasted. There was a porn made about us.”

On taking a look at their portrayal of the Muslim world after being accused of peddling Islamophobia throughout the show’s run: “There was always some parallel like that — but the bombings and shootings in Paris, that’s what made me jumpy. I didn’t know that we were always going to be mirroring current events so directly, that that would be such a part of the DNA of the show.”

On shooting the final season: “We were so much about reflecting what was happening, politically, in the moment. How that ages, how we perceived it and what that exposes, in 10 years’ time, will be compelling to see…I need this last season released into the world before it really ends for me, and then I’m sure I’ll surface eventually. It’s going to be a long process of seeing who I am as an actor out of this show — which has defined me for so long. I don’t know where to start, but I should play somebody decidedly sane.”

For more from Claire, head to THR.com.

Claire Danes sits on stage while participating in the Homeland panel during Showtime’s portion of the TCA Winter Press Tour on Monday (January 13) in Pasadena, Calif.

The Emmy-winning actress was joined on the panel by her co-star Mandy Patinkin. They unveiled the trailer for the show’s final season, which will premiere on February 9.

The final season of Homeland finds Carrie Mathison (Danes) recovering from months of brutal confinement in a Russian gulag. Her body is healing, but her memory remains fractured – which is a problem for Saul (Patinkin), now National Security Advisor to the newly ascendant President Warner (Beau Bridges). The top priority of Warner’s young administration is an end to the “forever war” in Afghanistan, and Saul has been dispatched to engage the Taliban in peace negotiations. But Kabul teems with warlords and mercenaries, zealots and spies – and Saul needs the relationships and expertise that only his protégé can provide. Against medical advice, Saul asks Carrie to walk with him into the lion’s den – one last time.

Watch the trailer now!

The trailer for the final season of Homeland is finally out!

In the upcoming season eight, Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) is recovering from months of brutal confinement in a Russian gulag; her body is healing, but her memory remains fractured – which is a problem for Saul (Mandy Patinkin), now National Security Advisor to the newly ascendant President Warner (Beau Bridges).

The top priority of Warner’s young administration is an end to the “forever war” in Afghanistan, and Saul has been dispatched to engage the Taliban in peace negotiations.

But Kabul teems with warlords and mercenaries, zealots and spies – and Saul needs the relationships and expertise that only his protégé can provide. Against medical advice, Saul asks Carrie to walk with him into the lion’s den – one last time.

Homeland Season 8 will premiere Sunday, February 9th, 2020 on Showtime at 9/8c.

Claire Danes‘ husband Hugh Dancy is joining Homeland for the show’s eighth and final season!

Hugh will star as John Zabel, a savvy Washington consultant who joins the White House as a new foreign-policy advisor to the President and a formidable opponent to Saul Berenson (Mandy Patinkin).

He will have a multi-episode arc on the final season, which will debut later this year.

Here’s a synopsis of the final season, which finds Carrie Mathison (Danes) recovering from months of brutal confinement in a Russian gulag. Her body is healing, but her memory remains fractured – which is a problem for Saul, now National Security Advisor to the newly ascendant President Warner (Beau Bridges). The top priority of Warner’s young administration is an end to the “forever war” in Afghanistan, and Saul has been dispatched to engage the Taliban in peace negotiations. But Kabul teems with warlords and mercenaries, zealots and spies – and Saul needs the relationships and expertise that only his protégé can provide. Against medical advice, Saul asks Carrie to walk with him into the lion’s den – one last time.

Homeland is officially ending after its eighth season.

Showtime executives confirmed that the upcoming season will be its last, but it is not a cancellation.

“Alex Gansa will be bringing his show to its proper conclusion. I can’t say how much it has meant to the acceleration of our brand and for me personally: It was the first series I greenlit,” Showtime president David Nevins said during the 2018 Summer TCA Press Tour.

He added, “Alex and Claire [Danes] talked about this last season. Alex brought it in and Claire has been the mainstay. But the two of them finally made the decision.”

Earlier this year, Claire also confirmed the show’s ending.