After its premiere season, Ark has amassed quite a following, with many excited for what’s next.
As a show that does an excellent job of setting itself apart from the space odyssey formula, it’s no wonder viewers will support whatever the series creators have planned for their viewers.
TV Fanatic got the inside scoop from showrunners Dean Devlin and Jonathan Glassner, as well as stars Christie Burke, Stacey Reed and Ryan Adams.
Grab your spacesuits and helmets because we’re about to reveal some intergalactic details about Ark Season 2!
The ending of Season 1 left many characters’ lives hanging in the balance. What factors do you use to decide who makes it? Are these factors purely plot-related?
Dean: Oh, that’s easy. We just killed everyone.
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We just said they were all dead. No, no, no, we won’t do that. We believe responsibility must have real consequences.
It can’t be just, oh, everything is fine. We’re into season two and let’s pretend this didn’t happen.
So this has real consequences for the characters, the ship, and the plot. It’s not easy to make these choices because, you know, we love everyone on the show.
But I think in order for a show like this to work, for the stakes to be high in any episode, you have to know that anyone can die.
Is this something you hide from the cast between seasons?
Dean: Well, we don’t know ourselves. You know, we have to take some time. I’ll let Jonathan answer that question.
Jonathan: Yeah, first of all, we had to get a pickup truck to know we were going to do this.
But, you know, it was a challenge to make that decision, especially on a show where we love all the characters and the cast.
We had to make it completely based on the plot and where each character was going.
We know everyone’s character arcs, and some have less of them than others. So, unfortunately, they’re the ones we have to leave. It always hurts because like I said, we really love everyone.
It’s a challenge to even do that, to even bring it up. But, you know, the ship was hit pretty hard at the end of last season. If no one gets hurt or killed or anything, it’s a real scam.
Joshua: Yes, you have to make those tough decisions.
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After so many catastrophic events, the characters are much different than they were at the start of season one. Already?
Jonathan: Oh, yes, there are some big changes.
We’re introducing some new characters to the show, and that in itself will bring new characters into the picture, which will change everything.
But they also happen to know something about some of our crew members that the rest of our crew members don’t know, and neither do our viewers.
When these things are revealed, there will be some big changes, some big surprises.
Joshua: It sounds like there are a lot of exciting things coming.
Christy, with Lt. Garnett fully emerging as the respected leader of Ark One, she already has a lot on her plate. But can she breathe and have a lighter moment, whether it’s comedy or romance?
Christie: Absolutely. Absolutely.
What I’m really excited about for viewers and fans of the show to see in season two is that not only do we get to see her be the incredible leader she always is, but she also gets to have a deeper relationship.
That’s all I’m going to say because I don’t want to spoil anything.
Are there aspects of her that you wish were stronger in season 2, such as her leadership, compassion, or calm demeanor in a crisis?
Christie: I think what I really let the audience see is her emotion.
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I think, like in season one, she’s wearing armor because she doesn’t know these people that well, so in season one we see the cracks slowly start to appear in her armor.
Now that she’s in the family, I think we can really see how hard those decisions are for her when she truly cares about these people.
So I think we get to see a lot of different shades of Garnet’s emotional existence, and I’m excited for audiences to see that.
Joshua: I’m definitely one of those viewers because I’m excited to see where she’s going with everything she’s accomplished.
Christie: I think in season one, she was a clone, and in season two, she’s a human. Great to see this.
Dean, last year you said that Ark wasn’t a show about laser beam battles with strange aliens, but in the season two trailer, an animatronic monster could be seen. Will Ark introduce new alien species? If so, will Lieutenant Garnett be heading towards her own Ripley experience?
Christie:Listen, I’m very scared of aliens. Okay, let me get it out there. That’s all I have to say.
Dean: I think the thing is, we can explore some very different sci-fi ideas, you know, so that we’re not just the disaster of the week that we’ve been in the past.
I think when we introduce some elements that we haven’t done before, we’ll do it in a way that fits the tone of our show.
So, we’re never going to just switch gears and suddenly become Star Wars.
You know, that’s not who this show is. But we do want to continue to expand on what you can see on the show and what conceptual ideas we can explore.
Jon did a great job of steering the show in a direction that I didn’t expect that really told us there was a lot of life in this show.
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There are many directions we can take.
That’s the foundation of it, the foundation of its characters is strong, and it allows for some storytelling that our audience is really not expecting.
I think they’ll be excited.
Joshua: Yes, I would definitely say that “Ark” is different from other science fiction stories that audiences have come to expect.
At the end of season one, Lt. Garnett and Maddox reached an unexpected truce, but the relationship seemed tenuous at best. How stable is this unlikely partnership?
Jonathan: You should be prepared for Maddox’s cold, calculating nature. This is indeed the answer. She, in her own little sick mind, wanted to help us.
But because she sees the world in such a morbid way, her idea of helping isn’t exactly Garnet’s idea of helping.
It’s like taking them apart and putting them together at the same time.
Joshua: I won’t trust her as long as I can lose her. OK still have a question.
Was there a scene or episode that was particularly challenging without going beyond “space science”? Will this season improve the staff’s working knowledge and understanding of space?
Jonathan: This is a really tough thing to do. You know, we try to stay. I think that’s what you’re trying to say.
We try to stay scientifically grounded. But the truth is, this is a show about characters, adventure, and fun, not actual science.
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So, the whole show was a challenge in that regard because we wanted it to feel possible.
But we don’t limit ourselves to, you know, like certain things will never happen.
I hope this answers your question.
Dean: I think the tricky thing about our show is that we’re not a grounded show.
But we were also less than three feet off the ground.
You know, so we try to find that sweet spot where we’re off the ground enough so that we can make compelling, interesting stories, but not so off the ground that it feels goofy and goofy.
So far, we seem to have hit the sweet spot, at least for viewers who enjoy the show.
Joshua: Yeah, I’m definitely part of the audience.
Well, thank you very much for answering my question. I’m so excited for the next season of The Arc and I hope you all have a great day!
Jonathan: Thanks.
Dean:Nice to talk to you, Joshua.
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It was so fun to hear about the different aspects of creating an exciting season of the Syfy series Ark.
But we won’t stop there, because as viewers know, the Season 1 finale left too many cliffhangers.
One of the characters, fan-favorite Angus, is put into a particularly dangerous situation where his life is in danger.
Ryan Adams and Stacey Reed were kind enough to give us as much information as they allowed, but you don’t have to take our word for it.
Check out the interview below to see how excited these two actors are about bringing their characters back to the small screen!
With such a great cast and talented producers at the helm, Ark Season 2 is primed and ready for another exciting series!
You can watch episodes airing on Syfy and Peacock.
Were you surprised by some of the answers about the characters and their fates?
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What are you most looking forward to in the new season?
Let us know in the comments below and join us again as we review Season 2 of Ark!
