Severance is a kaleidoscope of mysteries within mysteries, and even creator Dan Erickson isn’t sure who knows what right now. In an interview with ComicBook ahead of the Season 2 premiere, Erickson praised his cast for keeping all the secrets straight in their heads. He said that each actor has different information about the story and what’s coming next – which sounds, ironically, like the severance process that keeps the show’s main characters living double lives, with two different personas for inside and outside of work that never cross over with one another. Or, at the very least, are never really supposed to cross over with one another. So how does that process work for a major TV production?
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As Dan Erickson explains, a combination of behind-the-scenes logistics and acting process dictate who gets to know what about the future plans for Severance.
“It’s really case-by-case, and it’s funny — I try to respect each actor’s process, and some of them like to know everything, some of them like to know a lot less,” Erickson said. “We have a couple of actors who are also executive producers on the show, and those guys, I think, tend to know a little bit more. Others, especially on a show like this where you have two different versions of the character and each knows things that the other doesn’t know, I think they could get in their head if they also, in addition to having to keep track of that, knew what was going to happen 10 steps down the road.”
“I think there are two actors who sort of know more or less what the end game is, but that’s it,” Erickson concluded. As the showrunner mentioned, two actors also serve on the show as producers: Adam Scott and Patricia Arquette. There’s also Ben Stiller, who is an executive producer and director on the show, but also has an uncredited voiceover role as Kier Eagan. There’s no telling how important that role might become as the show goes on – maybe eventually requiring Stiller to appear onscreen.
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Severance is a sci-fi thriller centering around a biotech company called Lumon Industries — a cult-like organization founded by Eagan (the character Stiller voiced). The company has developed a procedure that splits the mind of the patient, and they use it to create two separate personas: one for inside work and one for the outside world. They call these “innies” and “outies,” meaning each actor is playing two different versions of the same character. The resulting web of secrets is a marvel to behold, but as Erickson points out, it’s also an incredible balancing act for the performers themselves.
Severance Season 1 was a breakout success, leaving a huge impression on fans, critics, and award-season voters. There’s a lot of pressure on Season 2 to live up to the hype. It premieres on Friday, January 17th on Apple TV+ and airs week-to-week, concluding on March 21st.
