Orphan Black Adds Michelle Forbes And Delivers A Bunch Of Season Two Plot Details

By Brent McKnight | Published

This article is more than 2 years old

Michelle ForbesBBC America’s critical breakout sci-fi series Orphan Black may not be back for season two until April, but that’s not going to stop us from getting excited about the second round. Season one was fantastic, and introduced the world to star Tatiana Maslany, who frequently played multiple clones, all with their own distinct personalities, all on screen at the same time, without missing a beat. The show is worth watching for her acting gymnastics alone, but it doesn’t hurt that the story has a nice, dark, tech-noir thing going on. Co-creator Graeme Manson hopes to build on the promise and momentum of their freshman outing, and is putting together to pieces to do just that, including new cast member Michelle Forbes and unveiling plot secrets.

According to TV Line, Forbes is the most recent addition to the ever growing cast of Orphan Black. She is recently off turns in Chicago Fire, True Blood, and AMC’s The Killing, which keeps getting cancelled, but just won’t die. Reportedly she has signed on for multiple episodes, though whether that means a single arc or as an ongoing piece of the continuing series, remains to be seen. Either way, she has been called in “integral part” of the upcoming plot. Forbes will play Marian Bowles, described as “a powerful new player at the Dyad Institute with a birds-eye view on the war between Sarah and Rachel.”

Regardless of her character, you can be sure that Forbes will bring some of her trademark toughness to her role, and it sounds like she’ll be a kind of no-nonsense business woman who doesn’t take any shit, especially not from a bunch of uppity clones. Forbes joins other season two newcomers Michiel Huisman from World War Z, Patrick J. Adams (Suits), and Peter Outerbridge and Ari Mullen, both veterans of Nikita.

When Orphan Black returns on April 19, the ten-episode run picks up immediately where the season one finale left off. BBC America recently showed off the opening scene. Here is the description from THR:

After discovering that her daughter Kira and Mrs. S were kidnapped, a frantic Sarah finds herself talking to Rachel, who makes an unsuccessful attempt at bringing Sarah back in to sign over her life. A bloody diner fight ensues between two mysterious men, the diner owner and Sarah. Following the scene, brief glimpses at the season ahead included a standoff between Rachel and Sarah, as well as Rachel recruiting Paul for help.

In addition to showing off a bit of new footage for reporters, Manson, Maslany, and co-star Jordan Gavaris also imparted a ton of new plot details that clue you in on what to expect on season two.

Orphan Black plans to “take some risks” with the premise, and “push what we did in the first season,” according to Mason. Given what they’ve already done, that’s a bold statement.

Right now, there’s no set number of clones floating around out there in the world. Manson says it won’t be a clone-of-the-week scenario, but there are definitely more to meet. Before each is introduced, however, they sit down with Maslany to make sure each one is fully developed before they hit the screen. Watching the finished product you appreciate this attention to detail. Though clones, each one is a well-rounded individual.

We know that Cosima fell ill at the end of season one, and that ailment will continue to have “heartbreaking” effects into season two. Her sickness will link up to the larger overall mystery of the series, and Cosima herself “performs as a great story function” moving forward.

With all of the clones running around, it’s easy for Felix (Gavaris) to fade into the background, but don’t expect that to continue. While he was a vital part of the story, season two intends to “establish him outside of the clones and as an individual.” Though he’ll come into his own, given the hard road ahead, the relationship between Felix and Sarah is also in for a rough go.

Alison’s high-strung, soccer-mom lifestyle will also be thrown into upheaval. Even more than it already has been, that is. Mason indicates that she’ll be wracked with guilt over not saving Aynsley, and that the pressure is going to weigh even more heavily on her than it already does.

You can bet that this isn’t all that’s in store for us during season two of Orphan Black. They have an overarching three-year plan in place, and all of these, and even more surprises, figure into their ultimate endgame.