Christina Wolfe as Cat Brandice, Paul Leonard Murray as William Trust in THE ARK – Season 2 – “Failed Experiment” | ©2024 Syfy/Aleksandar Letic/Ark TV Holdings, Inc./Electric Entertainment

THE ARK is now in its second season Wednesday nights on Syfy. The series, created by Dean Devlin, is set one hundred years in the future, when humanity is fleeing the Earth in “Ark” spaceships, seeking more habitable planets.

In Season 1, something wakes the voyagers on Ark 1 from their cryogenic sleep over a year before they reach their intended destination. The senior crew are killed in the disaster, and the Ark itself is badly damaged. Erstwhile Lieutenant Sharon Garnet (Christie Burke) winds up in charge.

Over the course of Season 1, Garnet forms a tentative alliance with Evelyn Maddox (Jelena Stupljanin), who captains another, still-intact Ark. The cooperation, such as it is, is shattered in the Season 2 opener, when many of Maddox’s key officers opt to join Garnet on her damaged ship rather than remain under Maddox’s tyrannical rule.

Where will everything go from here?

Devlin also produced and wrote features including STARGATE and INDEPENDENCE DAY, executive produced the series LEVERAGE, LEVERAGE: REDEMPTION, THE LIBRARIANS, THE OUTPOST, and created the series ALMOST PARADISE. THE ARK showrunner Jonathan Glassner is Devlin’s fellow executive producer; he had also been showrunner and Devlin’s fellow EP on THE OUTPOST, and his other credits include developing for television, show-running and executive-producing STARGATE SG-1.

Devlin and Glassner get on a Zoom call to discuss THE ARK. Two weeks later, they’re at a party, hosted by Syfy’s parent company NBC/Universal, for the Television Critics Association (TCA) summer press tour. This exclusive interview combines both of those conversations.

It turns out that Devlin and Glassner are much less adrift than their main characters when it comes to the trajectory of Season 2.

Creator Dean Devlin and executive producer Jonathan Glassner at Wondercon 2023 for Season 1 of the Syfy series | ©2023 Syfy/David Yeh

Glassner says they had a rough idea of where Season 2 could go even during Season 1. “At the end of Season 1, we did not know if we were renewed or not yet, so we wrote it in a way that it could act as a conclusion, because Maddox shows up to potentially rescue them, but also to open up all sorts of doors to a new storyline, which, luckily, we got to do.”

Performances and the way some scenes turned out helped shape Season 2, Devlin notes. “Without a doubt. The thing is, we started off with these characters on paper. We found actors that we thought, ‘Oh, they’d be great in these parts.’ But then, when we actually saw actors like Christie bring so much more to the part than we had imagined, it inspired us.

“And so, again, plot-wise, yeah, we knew what the story we wanted to tell. But the story with the characters, what we saw on the screen informed us, and then we thought, ‘You know what? We could push this farther. We could do more with this character than we thought, because we’ve got an actor who can handle it.’ It’s been really exciting to be part of that process, where you’re really informed by the actors, you’re informed by how the directors approach the scenes, and we were informed by how the fans reacted to the show. Their enthusiasm told us when we were going in the right direction – and when we weren’t,” he adds with a laugh.

What kinds of reactions were viewers having? Devlin thinks that people may wrongly believe the audience feedback is about specific ways they want to story to go. “It’s never something like that. But you could always tell what they wanted to feel. And what they really seemed to be responding to is what was the most important thing to us, which is, we wanted to do a show about the human spirit. And every time we leaned into it, the audience loved it. That was the thing that they wanted. They wanted that uplifting feeling.

“We live in a time where most shows are really dark, really edgy, and suddenly, we were offering a very different menu item. And to see them embrace that inspired us to say, ‘All right, what other stories can we tell that really can illustrate that, and push our characters in directions that are surprising?’”

How many seasons do Devlin and Glassner have planned out for THE ARK?

“We only go one season at a time,” says Devlin. “I’m not a believer in [planning too far ahead for] multi-seasons, because then it all becomes about your writing, and you’re missing out what the actors are bringing, and the surprises that happen on set. And it’s really one season at a time, with an idea of what we want to do in the next season, but then we wait until that season starts, we put together the writers’ room and start brainstorming.

“So, we usually start off at the beginning of the season and think about where we want to go, but then we’re very much into watching the dailies and seeing the actors, and he,” indicating Glassner, “directs a bunch of episodes.”

“We have some pretty good ideas where we’re going in Season 3,” Glassner elaborates, “if we get a Season 3.”

What is the interaction like between the actors and the writers’ room? Do the actors have input into their characters?

Glassner relates, “It’s not as much as I wish it were, because they’re in Serbia, and the writers are here in the States, and the time difference is massive. So, it makes it a little bit more of a challenge. Christie reaches out often. Actually, all of them reach out often on email, and hopefully we can respond fast enough before they shot what they’re questioning.

“We try to explain things back and forth,” Glassner continues, “and if something makes them uncomfortable, we’ll make a change. So, there’s an interplay. Not as much as if we were in the office upstairs next to the stage, but as much as we can.” Like Devlin, Glassner feels they are fortunate to have an adept and versatile cast. “It’s amazing to me – sometimes I’ll watch dailies and I’ll suddenly realize, ‘That line really sucked, but he or she really made that work,’” he laughs.

Given that THE ARK shoots in Serbia, and Glassner is sometimes on the ground there directing episodes, are there any issues with a language barrier?

Reece Ritchie as Lt. Spencer Lane, Stacey Read as Alicia Nevins in THE ARK – Season 2 – “Failed Experiment” | ©2024 Syfy/Aleksandar Letic/Ark TV Holdings, Inc./Electric Entertainment

Surprisingly few, Glassner replies. “Most Serbians under a certain age speak English, because it’s required in their schools. Over a certain age, a little less, but our crew is just fantastic. So, they don’t need a lot of communication, because they do it right the first time.”

On the flip side, there aren’t too many locations or objects in Serbia that resemble what one might find on a futuristic interstellar craft.

Devlin explains that THE OUTPOST, set in a fantasy realm, worked wonderfully in Serbia. “It was easy for them to recreate a medieval world. But with a sci-fi show like THE ARK, you can’t go to the costume store and buy costumes. You can’t go to the props store and buy props. You have to make every single thing. And a lot of stuff they have to make is made out of plastic. And that’s not a big thing in Serbia,” he laughs. “So, there was a big learning curve, and they’re just amazing, that they embraced it, and they did it, and we’re grateful.”

Glassner observes, “We originally started shooting there because of THE OUTPOST, because we needed castles and stuff that they actually have. But then, when that show ended and this show started, we said, ‘We love the crew, we love the facilities, why leave?’ So, we just stayed.”

Devlin has LEVERAGE: REDEMPTION going in New Orleans and THE LIBRARIANS: THE NEXT CHAPTER filming, like THE ARK, in Serbia. He and the ALMOST PARADISE team are waiting to hear about whether or not there will be a Season 3; that series shoots in the Philippines.

How does Devlin deal with so many different production companies, countries, and time zones?

“I’m actually getting better at jet lag. A couple years ago, I was really bad with the jet lag. It would put me out for days. But I think I’ve figured out how to do it now.”

THE ARK – Season 2 Key Art | ©2024 Syfy//Electric Entertainment

What are the different satisfactions that Devlin gets out of each of those shows?

“Each one brings something very special,” Devlin says. “To get to have all of these characters back on LEVERAGE, it’s like a family reunion. So, every time I get to do an episode of that, it’s like a gift. I was so sad when it was originally canceled, and I was determined to bring the show back, and it took me ten years, but I finally got it back. And the fact that it’s been this giant hit has just been super-satisfying.

“ALMOST PARADISE is special for me because I’m half-Filipino, and I’ve never really done anything that explored that part of my life, and so to get to go do a show in the Philippines and show a different side of it. Most people, when they think of the Philippines, they think of poverty porn. But there’s beautiful culture there, and great resorts, and a whole other part of their culture. So, we get to shine a light on that, which is very special.

Tiana Upcheva as Eva Markovic, Christie Burke as Sharon Garnet, Pavle Jerini? as Felix Strickland, Richard Fleeshman as Lt. James Brice in THE ARK – Season 2 – “Hoping For Forever” | ©2024 Syfy/Aleksandar Letic/Ark TV Holdings, Inc./Electric Entertainment

“THE ARK – as you probably know, my mom [Pilar Seurat] was on the original STAR TREK [as Sybo in the episode “Wolf in the Fold”]. So, for me to finally get my spaceship show is, again, a dream come true. So, we love doing that. And then, same with THE LIBRARIANS: THE NEXT CHAPTER. Getting to do a new version of THE LIBRARIANS is just really special. That show kind of built my company, and to get to reinvent it, again, is like a dream come true.

What would Devlin and Glassner most like people to know about Season 2 of THE ARK?

Per Devlin, “Well, I think if you liked Season 1, you’re going to love Season 2. We really step up our game in every way, and– we’re embracing some really interesting science-fiction concepts this year. The effects are bigger and better, the sets are bigger and better. In every way, we try to really lift our game.”

“Yeah,” Glassner agrees. “Last season, started off with none of the characters knew each other, and it was just disaster after disaster after disaster to get themselves going. This season, they’re already friends, they’re not bickering about anything, and they have an end goal that they intend to make. And so, it’s much more hopeful.”

Related: THE ARK:  – Actress Christie Burke gives the scoop on Season 2 – Exclusive Interview

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Article: THE ARK:  Creator Dean Devlin and showrunner Jonathan Glassner give the scoop on Season 2 of the Syfy series – Exclusive Interview

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