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Foundation Season 3: Everything We Know About Cast News, Production Delays and More
Apple TV+ is the laying the Foundation for an ambitious third season, and TVLine is here to make sure you’re all caught up before then.
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Adapted from Isaac Asimov’s influential novels, the sci-fi series follows the journeys of four crucial individuals “transcending space and time as they overcome deadly crises, shifting loyalties and complicated relationships that will ultimately determine the fate of humanity,” per the official synopsis.
Season 2, which took place more than a century after the events of the Season 1 finale, saw tension mount throughout the galaxy as the Cleons unraveled and a vengeful queen plotted to destroy the Empire from within. Meanwhile, Hari, Gaal, and Salvor found themselves among a colony of Mentalics with psionic abilities that threatened to alter psychohistory itself. Plus, the Foundation entered its religious phase, with the Church of Seldon circulating throughout the Outer Reach and inciting the Second Crisis: war with Empire.
Series co-creator David S. Goyer (The Sandman, Constantine) executive-produces alongside Bill Bost, Jane Espenson, Leigh Dana Jackson, Roxann Dawson, David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, Matt Thunell and Robyn Asimov.
Where did Foundation Season 2 leave off?
Brother Day’s efforts to destroy Terminus and snuff out the Foundation ultimately cost him his life. After General Rios refused his order to send the Imperial fleet to the faraway planet, ship navigator She-Bends-Light complied but then triggered a sequence that destroyed most of the Cleon’s battleships upon arrival. Unbeknownst to Day, the Spacer — a species of perfectly engineered humanoids — had struck a deal with Hober to side with the Foundation in exchange for their freedom. Day was then killed after a scuffle with Rios, and everyone aboard the remaining ships accepted their doomed fate as the blast took out Terminus along with anything in its trajectory.
Brother Constant, however, survived by escaping in a safety pod and later reunited with the Foundation, who were believed to be dead but found shelter within the Vault. You see, Hari had always planned to sacrifice Terminus to start a new Foundation.
Elsewhere, Demerzel developed human emotions, including blistering resentment towards the Cleons after thousands of years in their service. She secretly plotted to kill them all — admitting she was behind Day’s assassination attempt earlier in the season — to establish a new governing body. She murdered Brother Dusk and Enjoiner Rue and went for Brother Dawn and Sareth, who announced Day’s death to the galaxy before evading the killer robot. Sareth later revealed that she was pregnant with Dawn’s child, who threatened the current regime as a natural heir to the Cleons’ throne.
With all three clones out of action, Demerzel was forced to decant a new Dawn, Day and Dusk at once. But she also possessed the Prime Radiant — a storage device containing all of Hari’s research and predictions about the future — which will come in handy later on.
Meanwhile, the Mentalics celebrated their liberation from Tellem only to watch in horror as she took hold of a child’s mind to try and assassinate Gaal. Salvor, however, took the bullet aimed for her mother and died in her arms. Upon Tellem’s death, Gaal and Hari entered a deep cryo-sleep, readying themselves to take on a future threat.
Jumping 152 years ahead, we saw The Mule ranting about his need to kill Gaal, establishing himself as Season 3’s potential big bad.
Who is The Mule in Foundation?
The Mule is a powerful and monstrous Mentalic who rises to prominence in the future with the intent of conquering the galaxy. In Season 3, he’ll be played by Game of Thrones alum Pilou Asbæk.
Mikael Persbrandt portrayed the character in Season 2, briefly appearing in Gaal’s vision in which he brought destruction to the Foundation and nearly strangled her to death. He popped up again at the very end of the season vowing to kill Gaal.
“When Asimov created [the Mule], it was a character that flipped the whole table over,” series co-creator David S. Goyer previously told TVLine. “When the Mule enters the story properly in Season 3, that’s completely what he does… As crazy as the end of Season 2 is, Season 3 is even crazier. You haven’t seen anything yet.”
Who are the new characters joining Foundation Season 3?
The Apple TV+’s upcoming third season has added a bevy of series regulars, including Troy Kotsur (CODA) as Preem Palver, the leader of a planet of psychics; Alexander Siddig (Shantaram, Gotham) as Dr. Ebling Mis, a self-taught psychohistorian and diehard Hari Seldon fan; and Pilou Asbæk (Game of Thrones) as Warlord aka The Mule.
Additionally, Cherry Jones (Succession) will step in as Foundation Ambassador Quent, along with Synnøve Karlsen (Bodies, Medici) and Cody Fern (American Horror Story) as Bayta and Toran Mallow, who in the books were a newlywed couple searching for the Second Foundation in the hopes of stopping The Mule, and Brandon P. Bell (Dear White People) as Han Pritcher, a loyal servant of The Mule.
Meanwhile, Tómas Lemarquis (Bladerunner 2049) will play Magnifico Giganticus, known in the books as a fugitive and The Mule’s former court jester; Yootha Wong-Loi-Sing (Really Love, Love Is) will take on the role of Song; and Leo Bill (Becoming Elizabeth) will portray Terminus’ ineffective Mayor Indbur.
Why was Foundation Season 3 delayed?
Foundation initially began production on Season 3 in 2023, then paused amid last year’s dual actors and writers strikes. Production was set to resume in February, but was then delayed a second time due to “issues with budgeting and physical production,” per our sister site Deadline. Filming picked back up on March 6.
What happened to Foundation’s showrunner?
Before Foundation resumed production on Season 3 in March, co-creator David S. Goyer stepped back from his duties as showrunner but held onto the title. While executive producer Bill Bost — who helped develop the show — will now oversee production, Goyer remains creatively involved, executive-producing and contributing scripts, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Does Foundation Season 3 have a release date?
A release date for Foundation Season 3 has not yet been set.
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