Foundation Season 2's Jared Harris on Whether Hari Seldon Is a Hero or Villain (Exclusive)

By Jamie Lovett

Jared Harris enjoys science fiction, telling us he "loved Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica, both versions, obviously Star Wars" during our discussion at the Foundation Season 2 virtual press junket. "I enjoy the ability that sci-fi has to speak to a condition that exists in the present world as an analogy or through metaphor, so it's received a little easier if you like." He's become a familiar face to sci-fi fans thanks to his roles on series like Fringe and The Expanse, and he plays Hari Seldon, one of the most important characters in the history of American science fiction, in Apple TV+'s Foundation series.  That sci-fi background may have helped prepare him for playing multiple versions of Hari in Foundation Season 2, as Seldon has had himself killed off and uploaded his consciousness in the form of multiple hologram avatars.

"It was very deliberate that we make sure that there were two clear, distinct versions of the character," Harris says of keeping the different Hari Seldons straight in his performance. "That was part of the discussions, that it came down to the way that he looked, the way that he appeared, the way he was wearing and everything, down to what the characters knew and what they didn't know, because obviously neither character actually knows everything, which is one of the things that we slowly grappled with, which is to get away from the idea that the character knows everything. Otherwise, they become very remote, and they're not accessible as humans in that sense. There has to be vulnerability about them."

But is Seldon the hero of Foundation, or a villain? He set out to minimize the dark age that will follow Empire's fall, but now he's set himself up as a god, and even his closest allies accuse him of being a controlling egomaniac. We put the question to Harris.

"That'll be up to [showrunner David S. Goyer] to reveal, but my approach is, until otherwise notified, he's somebody who is embarked on, a noble goal and prepared to use questionable means to achieve that goal," Harris says. "He's allowed himself to become a figure of worship and is probably starting to enjoy it."

What is Foundation Season 2 about? How to watch:

According to the official synopsis for Foundation Season 2, "More than a century after the season one finale, tension mounts throughout the galaxy in Foundation season two. As the Cleons unravel, a vengeful queen plots to destroy Empire from within. Hari, Gaal and Salvor discover a colony of Mentalics with psionic abilities that threaten to alter psychohistory itself. The Foundation has entered its religious phase, promulgating the Church of Seldon throughout the Outer Reach and inciting the Second Crisis: war with Empire. The monumental adaptation of Foundation chronicles the stories 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."

Foundation Season 2 features returning stars Jared Harris as Hari Seldon, Lee Pace as Brother Day, Lou Llobell as Gaal Dornick, Leah Harvey Salvor Hardin, Laura Birn as Eto Demerzel, Cassian Bilton as Brother Dawn, and Terrence Mann as Brother Dusk. It also introduces newcomers to the series, including Isabella Laughland, Kulvinder Ghir, Ella-Rae Smith, Holt McCallany, Rachel House, Nimrat Kaur, Ben Daniels, and Dimitri Leonidas. David S. Goyer is Foundation's showrunner.

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Foundation returned for its second season on Friday, July 14th. New episodes debut on Apple TV+ on Fridays.

Editors note: This interview was conducted prior to the SAG actors' strike.

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