David S. Goyer explains Apple TV+’s Foundation season 2

Foundation, the smash hit epic story from storyteller David S. Goyer, based on Isaac Asimov’s award-winning stories is back. The 10-episode second season of “Foundation,” starring an acclaimed ensemble cast led by Emmy Award nominees Jared Harris and Lee Pace, as well as rising stars Lou Llobell and Leah Harvey, will premiere globally on Apple TV+ on Friday, July 14 with the first episode, followed by new episodes weekly every Friday through September 15. Skydance Television produces the Apple Original drama for Apple TV+. 

Season two of “Foundation” picks up more than a century after the season one finale, with tension rising across the galaxy. An angry queen plans to undermine the Empire from within as the Cleons disintegrate. Hari, Gaal, and Salvor come into a colony of Mentalics with psychic abilities that threaten to change the course of psychohistory. The Foundation has reached its religious phase, spread the Church of Seldon across tk’n’j’johe Outer Reach and sparking the Second Crisis: war with the Empire. The epic dramatization of “Foundation” follows the experiences of four pivotal individuals as they endure terrible crises, shifting loyalties, and tangled relationships that will ultimately determine humanity’s fate. 

Season two of “Foundation” also stars returning cast members Laura Birn, Cassian Bilton, and Terrence Mann and introduces new characters and stars, including Isabella Laughland (‘Brother Constant’), Kulvinder Ghir (‘Poly Verisof’), Ella-Rae Smith (‘Queen Sareth of Cloud Dominion’), Holt McCallany (‘Warden Jaegger Fount’), Rachel House (‘Tellem Bond’), Nimrat Kaur (‘Yanna Seldon’), Ben Daniels (‘Bel Riose’), and Dimitri Leonidas (‘Hober Mallow’). 

Cox: David, we are a century after season one. Where did you want to take us in season two?  
Goyer: Well, first of all, I think the entry point for season two is an easier entry point than season one. We’ve kind of gotten done with all the exposition and everything. You remember at the end of season one, we had Hari Seldon walk out of the Vault and basically tell them that the next crisis was going to involve war with Empire. And in the simplest terms, that’s what the season is about, and this is the issue at hand. The Foundation has flourished, and Empire regards them as a threat, and they are coming for them.  

Cox: Is there going to be anything that you think will shock viewers this season compared to season one?  
Goyer: I think people are going to be shocked that we didn’t rest on our laurels a lot. You know, a lot of people would say, “Do what we did in season one, but like 10% bigger.” Some bodies are gonna drop in season two. These are unexpected times and some unexpected places. I think season two is much more emotional than season one. It’s funnier and more shocking in the right places.   

Cox: As a writer, when you were writing out season two. What journey did you want to take the audience on?  
Goyer: When it came to season two, even the instance with the Cleons was a really crazy construct. And so I wanted to get even sort of more perverse with that. Just have people go, “Oh, my gosh, I can’t believe they did that.” You know that we explore a lot of issues of religion and the intersection between science, religion, and faith in the way that those things can be weaponized. I think that’s really topical, and a lot of things like that are happening today. That was something that was in the book, so I was really excited to dig into that.   

I was excited now that Gaal and Salvor have met, and we can explore that weird relationship without having it play out the way audiences might think it would. 

You know, we met Hari Seldon in season one, and he was kind of prophetic and aloof. And now I wanted to kind of dig into his backstory and his inner life. And just the way we begin the season with a black-and-white scene with a really broken-down and battered Hari Seldon. I think it’s just not what the audience members would have expected.   

And I’m hoping to broaden the audience. I’m hoping to bring in people who say, “Oh, no, I don’t like science fiction, but I like this.”  

Cox: I have one minute left with you before you go. When it comes to season two, how would you describe it using one word or phrase?  
Goyer: Can I use two?  
Cox: Yes  
Goyer: EPIC and EMOTIONAL