Warning: Spoilers Ahead
There is a new mini-series titled Ascension coming to Syfy in November that we all should be excited about. The premise is a ship (named Ascension, thus the title) is sent in 1963 on a century-long mission to seed a new space colony with a group of men, women and children to insure the survival of the human race. But, when a woman is mysteriously murdered on the ship, everyone begins to seriously question the true nature of their mission.
The stars of the series are Brian Van Holt (Cougar Town, The Bridge) as the ship’s captain William Denninger; Tricia Helfer (Battlestar Galactica) as the captain’s very manipulative wife; Viondra Denninger, Al Sapienza (The Sopranos, Person of Interest); and Andrea Roth (Rescue Me) as the ship’s head doctor Juliet Bryce. Van Holt and Helfer are joined by Tiffany Lonsdale as Chief Astronomer Emily Vanderhaus; Jacqueline Byers as her daughter Nora Bryce; PJ Boudousque as Nora’s love interest; James Toback and Ryan Robbins as Safety Officer (and Emily’s husband) Duke Vanderhaus.
We were able to chat with EP Levens and the cast this weekend at SDCC to learn more about the series and we are even more excited now. This isn’t just a group of people on their way to a new space colony. This is a century-long trip, and so, the ship is essentially transformed into a mini-society. The ship itself is massive with the set piece itself five stories high. All of the cast said that the set is more elaborate than those one would expect for a feature film. All aspects of the ship were designed to mimic real cities and there is even a real beach on the vessel. There are societal classes on the ship, with the elite/assholes (as Levens put it himself!) on the upper deck and the ordinary, working-class people on the lower deck. All marriages are arranged and you are allowed to have children only when the “birth computer program” says you can. This is all done to insure the population on the ship stays under control and it is enforced with birth control.  This truly sounds like an amazing show.
But, don’t take my word for it! Â Check out our press room interviews, and see for yourself!
Ascension premieres November 14th on Syfy.
VIDEO
Executive Producer Philip Levens
Tricia Helfer as Viondra Dellinger
Brian Van Holt as Captain William Dellinger, the leader of the ship but one with a dark past
Al Sapienza as Councilman Rose, a man who is having an affair with the Captain’s wife in hopes of taking over the ship
Official Trailer
PHOTOS
All photos credited to Mary Powers/TV Goodness.
1 Comment
Leave a Reply
Catching Up with Ted Lasso and Previewing Season 2
[Warning: General spoilers ahead.] The not so dirty little secret about how I approach a new series is that I sometimes make a call based on the headspace I’m in at the time. It’s been a minute since I’ve picked up a show after the first season and then binge…
Interview: Henri Esteve on Grown-ish Season 3
An interview with Henri Esteve, who plays Javi on Freeform’s Grown-ish. He talks about his season three experience.
For All Mankind Season 2: Talking with Wrenn Schmidt, Krys Marshall, Jodi Balfour, and Sonya Walger [Exclusive]
[Warning: General spoilers ahead.] One of the hooks of For All Mankind is that it’s very much a story about the women of NASA. In Season 2, we explore the journeys of the women in the program, either through their own service or through their family affiliations. Four of those…
Rosy McEwen Talks The Alienist: Angel of Darkness Season Finale [Exclusive]
[Warning: Spoilers for the season finale episodes.] How’s everyone after that finale? I will freely admit I got a little misty in episode eight as John told Sara why he loved her, and later that he wanted her despite what he might forfeit, and then at the end when he…
Rosy McEwen Talks The Alienist: Angel of Darkness [Exclusive]
Hands down, one of the best surprises of The Alienist: Angel of Darkness is that the serial killer this season has been front and center alongside the cast as a fully-formed character. We’ve watched Libby Hatch devolve from a prim, mild-mannered nurse to a woman in a rage hell-bent on…
The Alienist: Angel of Darkness Relationship Recap: John and Sara
[Warning: Spoilers for “Belly of the Beast” and “Memento Mori”] If you’ve read me for a while (thank you!), you know two things — I lean way, way in on the characters I adore and I loathe love geometry arcs. So, I’m torn about where we are and where we…
Louriza Tronco Talks The Order Season 2 [Exclusive]
[Warning: Spoilers ahead for Season 2.] The Order’s second season is dark yet delightful entertainment on many levels, and one of its biggest sources of joy and snark is the sassy Gabrielle Dupres. Last season, she was assertive and deadly and fairly annoyed with the world. This season, she’s been…
Previewing Netflix’s Virgin River
[Warning: General spoilers ahead.] Full disclosure: I have a Netflix account for my Mom, but I’m not a regular viewer. If I get a heads up on something, I’ll go look for it, but I don’t have a wander across its offerings, which, as I understand it, is how most…
Final Thoughts From the Killjoys Team [Exclusive]
This is the day of the week I’d normally hit you up with a Killjoys preview, but now that we’ve put the series to bed and released Team Awesome Force into the wild, I have one more treat for you–some final thoughts excerpted from my conversations with the Killjoys folks….
Michelle Lovretta Talks Wrapping Up Killjoys [Exclusive]
[Warning: Spoilers for the series finale.] To quote Miss Jackson, “That’s the end?” Yes, friends, it is. And like I promised you, everything would be, was, and is alright. I went to the Killjoys source, series creator Michelle Lovretta, who wrote the last episode, to break down that delicious finale….
What They Said: Three Revealing Conversations from Survivor’s Remorse “Closure”
WARNING: Spoilers for Survivor’s Remorse “Closure” The latest episode of Starz’s Survivor’s Remorse featured conversations that showed characters really digging deep into their thoughts, emotions and motivations.
Two Takes: The Catch “The Knock-Off”
Who can you trust? If this episode of The Catch was any indication, the answer is just about nobody. Betrayal was running rampant as Felicity (Shivani Ghai) arose from the dead to seduce-con Margot, Gretchen (Maria Thayer, Gotham, The Mindy Project) played gold-hearted Alice 2.0 before swindling Ethan, Tessa jumped…
What They Said: Top 3 Quotable Moments from Preacher “El Valero”
Both Quincannon and Jesse refuse to give up on what they each think is rightfully theirs. While Jesse is struggling to face the consequences of his actions, Quincannon has laid his past demons to rest and is hellbent on moving forward and putting Annville on the map again. Despite a…
What They Said: Favorite Quotes from Supergirl “Worlds Finest”
Oh, Supergirl. That ending was cold. But I can’t hate on you because the latest episode has quickly become one of my favorites.
What They Said: Top 4 Quotable Moments from Black Sails “XXIII”
The dialogue in “XXIII” is phenomenal. It’s always a fun ride when Black Sails carries its viewers along without giving them the chance to catch their breath. When an episode moves at this unforgiving pace, there is no chance for a breather nor is there a respite from the information…
What Lucifer Said: Favorite quotes from Supernatural “O Brother, Where Art Thou?”
Supernatural episodes are almost always funny but thanks to the dialogue and a certain man speaking said dialogue, I laughed a lot during “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” You know, when I wasn’t busy fearing for Sam’s life or wondering what in the world was going on with Dean and…
What They Said: The Flash, “Legends Of Today” and Arrow, “Legends Of Yesterday”
Two nights of Arrow + The Flash = what more could we ask for?! I don’t know what it is about blending these shows, but I can’t help but feel that every time they come together, they somehow become greater than the sum of their parts. And that’s saying a lot…
What they Said: Top 4 Quotable Moments from Graceland “Little Bo Bleep”
Shoot outs. Fake outs. And long-awaited revelations. “Little Bo Bleep” was a jam-packed episode that wrapped up some loose ends and totally frayed others. Â It finally gave us one Sarkissian in jail and pulled back the curtain on Briggs’ master plan, but it also set up Jakes for a world…
What They Said: Favorite Quotes from Poldark “Part 4”
“What have I told you, I don’t require my wife to crochet and sip tea, but I do require her to remember she’s not a beast of burden.†No, I’m not talking about The Rolling Stones! I have to admit though, just for a second, the lyrics popped into my…
The story line is great, and my Grand Daughter Amanda Thomson has one of the lead parts. I bet you dont have a psychic aboard the Space ship,would be fun, ask Amanda about her Zany Nanny and her predictions kepp up the great work should be a great show Wendy Thomson