Foundation season two wrapped up in September 2023—a thrilling, thoroughly entertaining outing that improved upon season one in many ways. Will that trend continue for the third season of Apple TV+‘s Isaac Asimov adaptation? It seems highly likely considering the teaser and first-look images the streamer just shared, along with a premiere date: July 11.
Despite some behind-the-scenes duty-shifting that saw David S. Goyer stepping back as showrunner, though he’s still very much involved with the series—as well as delays related to the 2023 Hollywood strikes and some budget concerns—season three still looks as large-scale and epic as the previous two.
Here’s the official description for the season: “Set 152 years after the events of season two, the Foundation has become increasingly established far beyond its humble beginnings while the Cleonic Dynasty’s Empire has dwindled. As both of these galactic powers forge an uneasy alliance, a threat to the entire galaxy appears in the fearsome form of a warlord known as ‘The Mule’ whose sights are set on ruling the universe by use of physical and military force, as well as mind control. It’s anyone’s guess who will win, who will lose, who will live and who will die as Hari Seldon, Gaal Dornick, the Cleons, and Demerzel play a potentially deadly game of intergalactic chess.”
Jared Harris stars as Hari, with Lou Llobell as Gaal and Lee Pace as the middle-aged (and hottest, duh) Cleon. Laura Birn is the crafty android Demerzel; Cassian Bilton and Terrence Mann play the younger and older Cleons, respectively. Rowena King also returns as the legendary mathematician Kalle.
New characters in season three—necessary due to that time jump, as well as the fact that a lot of folks did not survive season two—will be played by Cherry Jones, Brandon P. Bell, Synnøve Karlsen, Cody Fern, Tómas Lemarquis, Alexander Siddig, and Troy Kotsur.
Pilou Asbæk, a fan favorite from Game of Thrones, is playing the terrifying Mule—introduced in season two as more of a shadowy future promise—which feels like perfect casting.
Here are some first-look season three images, including our pal the Mule:
Foundation returns Friday, July 11 to Apple TV+. It’ll run 10 episode with a weekly rollout through September 12.
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