'Strikingly relevant' sci-fi epic fans say is a 'masterpiece' is finally back for season 3
Apple TV+'s captivating sci-fi spectacle, Foundation, has triumphantly returned for its third season, boasting a narrative more pertinent to our times than ever before.
Drawing inspiration from the celebrated works of Isaac Asimov, this expansive series is set tens of thousands of years into the future. In this galaxy-spanning empire, clones derived from the original Emperor Cleon—played by Lee Pace, Cassian Bilton, and Terrence Mann as Brother Dawn, Day, and Dusk—hold dominion.
The plot thickens as the brilliant mathematician Hari Seldon, portrayed by Jared Harris, develops the science of psychohistory, enabling him to predict a catastrophic fall of the Empire that would usher in an era shrouded in darkness.
Seldon enlists the help of another mathematical prodigy, Gaal Dornick (Lou Llobell), to establish the Foundation, a cosmic consortium with a critical mission: to salvage human enlightenment and knowledge.
In this season, their alliance encounters an unprecedented adversary—the Mule (Pilou Asbæk) —a Mentalic and mercurial warmonger who wields the power to manipulate others' will, reports the Mirror.
Season three underlines the timeless essence of classic sci-fi sagas, demonstrating how tales set eons away can strike a chord with contemporary societal dilemmas.
Comments from the ensemble cast echo this sentiment, including those of Brother Dusk actor Mann, who disclosed to Express Online along with other media: "What happens in Foundation, for all three seasons, mirrors exactly what's happening in the world in any given country, or continent, or city, or home, or family, or town.
"That part of humanity doesn't change, the dysfunctionality of families, they're there and we love them and that kind of storytelling has been here as long as the written word."
Bilton, who plays Brother Dawn, echoed this sentiment, highlighting the show's relevance to the current state of the world. "I think the show this season, more than other seasons, has a very confronting relevance to the world we're living in right now.
"What we explore this season is the idea that power ultimately shouldn't be held by one individual for too long."
"There are elements of the Cleons' rule that are borderline fascistic, they are essentially autocrats. They're, for all intents and purposes, not democratically elected. They're clinging to power, even though that wouldn't be the right thing for them or anyone else.
"You see across the entire Foundation universe the implications of that, and none of it's good. It really is war."
Furthermore, the introduction of the Mule brings new themes that resonate eerily with today's digital landscape. Bilton pointed out the parallels between the Mentalic element and the influence of social media on our daily lives.
"Of course it is a science-fiction idea but, I think with the rise of social media and its influence on the way in which we carry out our daily lives and the choices that we make being informed by the time we spend on our phones has echoes in what the Mule is able to do," he explained.
"It's not so much that he has a very strong army of people with weapons, but he can get in the minds of people. What you're seeing now, both with the rise of AI and the proliferation of social media globally, is people have a shortcut into your attention and your mind.
"Capitalism has taken over every single land mass in the world and now the thing it's coming for is the real estate of your mind.
"That's echoed in the Mule so I do think there's a striking relevance this season to the world we're living in."
Fans have lauded the show as "magnificent and majestic" and hailed it as a "groundbreaking adaptation" of Asimov's classic works, so be sure to carve out time for this impressive sci-fi series soon.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mirror
3 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Corrie star Alan Halsall looks in love as he attends Jack P Shepherd's wedding with new girlfriend
Coronation Street actor Alan Halsall looks the picture of happiness as he walks hand in hand to Jack P Shepherd's wedding with new love Ellie Dolan Coronation Street star Alan Halsall looked like the cat that's got the cream as he proudly walked into Jack P Shepherds wedding ceremony hand in hand with his new girlfriend. The 42 year old father of one, looked dapper in a light grey suit which he teamed with a pale blue shirt and a yellow tie. Meanwhile, his new girlfriend Ellie Dolan opted for a sunshine yellow floor length summer dress which she teamed with a pair of gold heels and matching bracelet. The couple have been reportedly dating since May this year. And by attending the Celebrity Big Brother winner's wedding, it looks as though their budding romance appears to be going from strength to strength. At the time, a source explained to the Mirror: "Alan is really happy. Ellie is a great girl and they have lots of common. And she gets on so well with Sienna, which is so important to Alan. Sienna is his world." Alan and Ellie reportedly met at the Marriott Worsley Park Club, where Ellie works and Alan holds a membership. Alan is a fan favourite since he joined the ITV soap playing Tyrone Dobbs in 1998. And he has had a number of high profile relationships with his fellow co-stars prior to meeting Ellie. The actor has a daughter with Lucy-Jo Hudson who starred in the soap as Katy Harris. The pair tied the knot in 2009 but sadly split in 2018. The following year he started dating another co-star, this time it was Tisha Merry. The couple dating for five years before calling time on their relationship last year. Alan recently revealed that alongside being a father and an actor on a demanding soap, he also made the decision to undergo a body transformation. The star took on the challenge alongside his co-star Colson Smith, who has shed 10 st. And this included attending the gym three times a week, a strict diet and 2.5k on the treadmill, time on the rowing machine and cross trainer. In 2019, he told The Sun: "I've transformed a little bit myself and people have seen that. I like to come [to the gym). I have a pre-workout meal, I work out, then I have a post-workout meal or a swim and a steam." He has also combined his gym sessions with yoga that takes place in a heated room, also known as Bikram yoga. This is designed to expel toxins in the body through sweat.
Daily Mirror
3 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
The K's Jamie Boyle issues urgent warning over music venues closing
The closure of grassroots music venues is threatening to derail the British music industry, warns The K's frontman Jamie Boyle ahead of a landmark performance at Hillsborough Stadium Indie band The K's admit it's harder for unsigned bands as grassroots venues face further closures. The band from Earlestown, located between Manchester and Liverpool are today playing The Sarah Nulty main stage at Tramlines Festival in Sheffield, enjoying the recent release of their second album, Pretty On The Internet. 'We're well excited,' said frontman Jamie Boyle. Speaking to the Mirror from Hillsborough Stadium, he went on to add: 'As soon as we finished our first album, our minds were set on the second.' Last year, their debut album reached Number Three, being beaten by Beyoncé and The Libertines. But should their album get to number one, what would it mean for the band? 'It means everything to us. We'd love it. We said yesterday when we did our album release show, there's still one box I haven't ticked for my first album campaign, as amazing as it was but to finally tick that box and get that Number One accolade to our name. 'But regardless, as long as we keep doing what we're doing for a living, making music we love, that's all that matters but a Number One, would be that cherry on the top.' Prior to the record being released, four tracks racked up an impressive four million streams, something the band struggled to get their heads around. 'I think when you see it on paper, you don't even think about it until you have to,' said guitarist Ryan Breslin. He added: 'It's unfathomable the number itself, you see it on paper and then you sit down and think how many people know these songs, it's crazy. I don't think you can actually visualise that community, so all that put into context, it's class. 'As long as people keep listening, as long as everything keeps going down so well, we'll keep doing what we're doing, hopefully it stays that way for a while.' However, they admit that during the creation of the record, they learned to mainly focus on nothing but the album process. 'Don't let anything cloud our vision,' they added. But having worked their way up the industry for the past decade, bassist Dexter commented: 'It's been a lot of hard work over the past ten, seven years. It's been quite hard work. Obviously we're getting to these stages, it's kind of like the fruits coming out of the trees now. It has been hard work but it's served us well.' More recently, the band have launched a pop-up shop in their hometown to celebrate the release of their album, with Ryan admitting it was 'cool' to meet the people who have supported them over the years and seen their rise to success. He went on to add: 'The streams on Spotify, it's hard to kind of comprehended when you've got 100 people still in a shop buying your albums. Yeah, it's a good feeling.' Living between Manchester and Liverpool has been a huge help for the band. 'You get more doors open for you when you live between massive music scenes. There are more venues on your doorstep, which is why it's such a shame. See so many closing doors on a lot of the venues that we started off playing aren't there anymore. Theres a lot of focus on keeping them open now which I hope succeeds.' One of the venues the band have played the most was The Leadmill, Ryan said: 'There's just something in the water.' Speaking about their set at Tramlines, drummer Nathan said: 'We can't wait I think was an extra buzz as well obviously, because we just dropped the album. So I think it's just going to be a little extra special on stage for us and for the fans as well.' Jamie added: 'I think it's going to be f**king mint. I think it's going to rock.'
Daily Record
5 hours ago
- Daily Record
Manhattan-sized object spotted in space 'could be alien spacecraft heading to attack Earth'
A draft scientific paper has proposed that the object, 3I/ATLAS, might be alien technology and could make a surprise attack on our planet An object the size of Manhattan could potentially be a hostile alien spacecraft set to attack Earth in November, according to a worrying recent study. Earlier this month, experts confirmed the sighting of a rare interstellar visitor, only the third ever detected, speeding through our Solar System at an incredible pace. The comet is known as 3I/ATLAS, and was formerly referred to as A11pl3Z. A draft scientific paper published on Tuesday suggests that the object might actually be extraterrestrial technology planning a surprise attack on our planet. The researchers propose that the object's orbit is such that it would allow an intelligent alien craft to approach Earth undetected. The report alleges that when it reaches its closest point to the Sun in late November, the object will be concealed from Earth's view, enabling it to execute a covert high-speed manoeuvre to decelerate and remain in the Solar System, secretly preparing for an attack. Scientists note that 3I/ATLAS follows an unusual trajectory that brings it very close to planets like Venus, Mars, and Jupiter, an event highly unlikely to occur by chance, with less than a 0.005 per cent probability, reports the Mirror. One of the authors of the paper, which has yet to undergo peer review, is Avi Loeb, a renowned Harvard astrophysicist recognised for his controversial research and outspoken views on the search for extraterrestrial intelligence. He gained widespread attention for suggesting that the 2017 interstellar object 'Oumuamua might be an artificial probe created by an alien civilisation, based on its unusual acceleration and shape His co-authors are Adam Hibberd and Adam Crowl from the Initiative for Interstellar Studies in London. The authors emphasise that their paper is a theoretical exercise rather than a reflection of their personal beliefs. They state: "This paper is contingent on a remarkable but, as we shall show, testable hypothesis, to which the authors do not necessarily ascribe, yet is certainly worthy of an analysis and a report." However, the authors warn: "The consequences, should the hypothesis turn out to be correct, could potentially be dire for humanity, and would possibly require defensive measures to be undertaken (though these might prove futile)." The study further adds: "The hypothesis is an interesting exercise in its own right, and is fun to pursue, irrespective of its likely validity." The celestial body, now officially named 3I/ATLAS (), is thought to originate from a distant star system and is hurtling through space at speeds exceeding 60 kilometres per second. The object was initially detected on July 1 by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) survey telescope located in Río Hurtado, Chile. It's estimated that 3I/ATLAS measures between 10 and 20 kilometres across, although it could appear smaller if it's largely made up of reflective ice. Last month, a Scottish teenager was left stunned after spotting a 'UFO' in the skies over Midlothian. Kyle Jackson, 16, and his two pals saw the mysterious floating object overhead at around 11.10pm on Friday, June 6. The trio were walking near Newbattle High School in Easthouses, just outside Edinburgh, when they looked up and were left gobsmacked by what they saw. Kyle said the round and "completely silent" black object appeared to be moving below the clouds at speeds faster than a plane. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'.
