Entertainment
Apple TV’s Sci-Fi Masterpiece Is Officially Digging Deeper Into the Books With This Unexpected Season 3 Casting
Rejoice, sci-fi fans — Apple TV, in an elegant little hat-trick maneuver, has simultaneously announced Silo Season 3’s summer premiere date, dropped an enigmatic trailer, and introduced multiple new faces to the show’s already impressive roster. The official press release confirms that Season 2’s last-minute additions, Jessica Henwick and Ashley Zukerman, have boarded Season 3 as series regulars, with Jessica Brown Findlay (Downton Abbey), Laura Innes (ER), Reed Birney (House of Cards), Matt Craven (A Few Good Men), Morven Christie (Grantchester), and Colin Hanks (FX’s Fargo) joining them in undisclosed roles.
Although the streamer doesn’t specify who the newcomers play, based off the context provided by the promotional images, it’s safe to assume they exist in the “Before Times” era that Henwick confirmed (in a Collider exclusive) will play out alongside Silo’s original, far-future timeline. If showrunner Graham Yost‘s dystopian drama continues to follow the overall shape of Hugh Howey‘s book trilogy, then these characters are either responsible for the silo’s creation or exist right on the outskirts — and still find themselves dragged into its harrowing, conspiratorial orbit.
‘Silo’s Second Book Explains How the Apocalypse Happened
Without venturing too deep into the spoiler waters, Howey’s second book, Shift, doubles as a sequel following Juliette Nichols’ (Rebecca Ferguson) next steps after returning to her silo and a prequel divulging the events behind Earth’s cataclysmic destruction. Daniel Keene (Zukerman), the Georgia congressional representative introduced alongside Henwick’s journalist Helen Drew in the final minutes of Season 2’s finale, becomes one of Shift‘s point-of-view characters. After he’s approached by the distinguished and powerful Senator Thurman, Daniel joins a classified project called the Containment and Disposal Facility, or CAD-FAC, a sophisticated subterranean repository for radioactive waste.
Believing he’s contributing to world safety, Daniel applies his architectural degree to the underground facility’s design. Aside from Daniel and Thurman, the initiative’s core leaders include Erskine and Victor, who hold their motivations close to their chests. When the nuclear bombs of mutually assured destruction fall, all four CAD-FAC creators shelter inside the silo. It’s only then, with Earth devastated beyond compare, that Daniel learns his partners’ ruthless intentions, why the attacks occurred, and the project’s actual name — World Operation Order Fifty (its acronym, W.O.O.L., sneakily calls back to book one’s title, Wool).
Forget ‘Silo,’ One of the Most Bonkers Sci-Fi Thrillers Ever Made Is Free to Stream in May
‘Silo’ will return for Season 3.
Are ‘Silo’s New Cast Members Tied to the Past?
Since Birney and Matt stand side-by-side in the images, it stands to reason they’re tackling Erskine and Victor, respectively. Innes, meanwhile, has every appearance of a competent, scheming politician holding the world in the palm of her hand. As for how Findlay, Christie, and Hanks relate to the books’ remaining vital characters, since Christie stands in a political office area, she might be Thurman’s daughter, Anna (who, for added drama, also happens to be Daniel’s ex-girlfriend).
The same logic applies to Findlay’s costume. Daniel’s sister, Charlotte, is a former naval officer, and Findlay’s jacket and baseball cap all but confirm she’s either active in or retired from that profession. Although Hanks stands near Henwick, his contribution is more ambiguous to the point of speculation; his role could subtly connect to the books or be invented for the show’s purposes. When it comes to Silo‘s slippery nature, there’s only one guarantee: book-reading fans and show-only viewers alike should brace themselves for the mind-melting scale that awaits.
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