''The Expanse'' is an American

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed be ...

developed by Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby for the Syfy network, and is based on the series of novels of the same name by

James S. A. Corey James S. A. Corey is the pen name used by collaborators Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck, authors of the science fiction series ''The Expanse''. The first and last name are taken from Abraham's and Franck's middle names, respectively, and S. A. ar ...

. The series is set in a future where humanity has colonized the

Solar System The Solar System Capitalization of the name varies. The International Astronomical Union, the authoritative body regarding astronomical nomenclature, specifies capitalizing the names of all individual astronomical objects but uses mixed "Solar ...

. It follows a disparate band of protagonists—

United Nations Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, an ...

member Chrisjen Avasarala (

Shohreh Aghdashloo Shohreh Aghdashloo ( fa, شهره آغداشلو, ; née Vaziri-Tabar (); 11 May 1952) is an Iranian and American actress. Following numerous starring roles on the stage, she made her film debut in '' Chess of the Wind'' (1976). Her next two fi ...

), police detective Josephus Miller (

Thomas Jane Thomas Jane (born Thomas Elliott III; February 22, 1969) is an American actor. He is known for appearing in the films Padamati Sandhya Ragam (1987), ''Boogie Nights'' (1997), '' Deep Blue Sea'' (1999), '' The Punisher'' (2004), '' The Mist'' ( ...

), ship's officer James Holden ( Steven Strait) and his crew—as they unwittingly unravel and place themselves at the center of a conspiracy that threatens the system's fragile state of cold war, while dealing with existential crises brought forth by newly discovered alien technology. ''The Expanse'' has received critical acclaim, with particular praise for its visuals, character development and political narrative. It received a Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation and three Saturn Award nominations for Best Science Fiction Television Series. Syfy cancelled the series after three seasons. Amazon later acquired the series, producing three more seasons, with the sixth and final season premiering on December 10, 2021.

Series overview

Setting

Hundreds of years in the future, humanity has colonized the

. The three largest powers are the United Nations of

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

and

Luna Luna commonly refers to: * Earth's Moon, named "Luna" in Latin * Luna (goddess), the ancient Roman personification of the Moon Luna may also refer to: Places Philippines * Luna, Apayao * Luna, Isabela * Luna, La Union * Luna, San Jose Roma ...

, the Martian Congressional Republic on

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...

, and the Outer Planets Alliance (OPA), a loose confederation of the

asteroid belt The asteroid belt is a torus-shaped region in the Solar System, located roughly between the orbits of the planets Jupiter and Mars. It contains a great many solid, irregularly shaped bodies, of many sizes, but much smaller than planets, c ...

and the moons of

Jupiter Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass more than two and a half times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined, but slightly less than one-thousandth t ...

and Saturn.

Season 1

Chrisjen Avasarala, a United Nations executive, works to prevent war between Earth and Mars. Ceres police detective Joe Miller is sent to find a missing young woman, Julie Mao. The space-freighter ''Canterbury'' and the Martian Navy flagship ''Donnager'' are destroyed by unknown stealth ships. James Holden, Naomi Nagata, Alex Kamal and Amos Burton survive both attacks and escape in the ''Tachi'', a Martian gunship. They rename the ship ''Rocinante'', which becomes the main setting of the series. The crew of the ''Rocinante'', with Miller's help, investigates and eventually discovers a biohazard that kills off most of the humans on the asteroid

Eros In Greek mythology, Eros (, ; grc, Ἔρως, Érōs, Love, Desire) is the Greek god of love and sex. His Roman counterpart was Cupid ("desire").''Larousse Desk Reference Encyclopedia'', The Book People, Haydock, 1995, p. 215. In the ear ...

, including Julie.

Season 2

The crew of the ''Rocinante'', along with members of the OPA, attack the station responsible for the biohazard on Eros. Learning that it is an extra-solar bio-weapon known as the protomolecule, they attempt to destroy Eros. Miller becomes trapped there and dies when it crashes into Venus. Martian Marine Bobbie Draper fights an inhuman figure on Ganymede and later, during peace talks between Earth and Mars, becomes a protégé of Avasarala. The crew tries to help a father, Prax, find his daughter. In the process, they encounter and kill a figure akin to the one that Draper fought, now known as a "protomolecule hybrid", developed by Jules-Pierre Mao. A research ship, sent to Venus to investigate the crash of Eros into the planet, is stopped dead in the atmosphere and dismantled by the protomolecule.

Season 3

The UN declares war, as Earth and Mars send science vessels to investigate what is happening on

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never f ...

. Political tensions soar as the OPA is recognized as the government of the Belters and Prax is reunited with his daughter. The protomolecule forms the Ring, a structure which takes an orbital position beyond Uranus, and all three governments race to send their ships through. After a Belter racing ship slingshots through the Ring at high speed, the ring believes the high speed humans and objects to be dangerous and activates defenses that threaten humanity. Through Holden, a projection of Miller tries to shut off the defenses of the ring and convince the protomolecule that humanity is not a threat.

Season 4

A land rush to other star systems with habitable worlds begins, with thousands of planets accessible via the Ring's wormholes. Refugee ships from the Belt and overcrowded Earth are stopped at the gateway. A ship runs the blockade, and the crew of the ''Rocinante'' are sent through the portal to investigate the situation on the exoplanet, called ''Ilus''. The settlers have been joined by an officially backed scientific expedition with private military support, leading to frequent violence between the two groups. The crew fails to ease tensions and decides to find out what is happening on the planet and where the previous civilization has gone. With the help of Miller, Holden reactivates an ancient structure, setting off a chain of cataclysmic events. Efforts to terraform Mars wane as habitable worlds are available.

Season 5

A deadly conspiracy threatens Earth, as the crew of the ''Rocinante'' pursue personal missions while their ship is in dry dock at Tycho Station. Draper and Avasarala investigate the Martian military's ties to a growing threat from a rogue faction of Belters. Marco Inaros, the rebel leader, assembles a Belter fleet and attacks Earth with stealth-shielded asteroids.

Season 6

Holden and the crew of the ''Rocinante'' fight alongside the Combined Fleet of Earth and Mars to protect the Inner Planets from Marco Inaros and his Free Navy. The combined fleet, allied with the ships of Camina Drummer and other Belter forces, defeats Marco and the Free Navy by antagonizing an unknown alien presence. On a distant planet, a young colonist discovers animals that can resurrect her dead sibling.

Cast and characters

Main

as Joe Miller/The Investigator (seasons 1–2; special appearances seasons 3–4), a Belter detective on Ceres assigned to find Julie Mao * Steven Strait as James Holden, the Earther executive officer on the ''Canterbury'', later the captain of the ''Rocinante'' *

Cas Anvar Cas Anvar ( fa, کاس انور; born 15 March 1966) is a Canadian actor and writer known for the SyFy/Amazon Prime Video science fiction television series ''The Expanse''. Early life Born in Regina, Saskatchewan, to Iranian parents and raised i ...

as Alex Kamal (seasons 1–5), the Martian pilot of the ''Canterbury'', later the pilot of the ''Rocinante'' *

Dominique Tipper Dominique Jade Tipper (born 24 June 1988) is a British actress, dancer and singer-songwriter. She rose to prominence in her role as Naomi Nagata, the engineer in the SyFy/ Amazon Prime Video science fiction television series '' The Expanse''. ...

as Naomi Nagata, a Belter engineer of the ''Canterbury'', later the engineer of the ''Rocinante'' * Wes Chatham as Amos Burton, an Earther mechanic of the ''Canterbury'', originally from Baltimore; later the mechanic of the ''Rocinante'' *

Paulo Costanzo Paulo Costanzo (born September 21, 1978) is a Canadian actor. He is best known for playing Aximili-Esgarrouth-Isthill (Ax) in the TV series '' Animorphs'', the roles of Rubin Carver in the comedy film ''Road Trip'', Alexander Cabot in '' Josie a ...

as Shed Garvey (season 1), the ''Canterbury''s medical technician * Florence Faivre as Juliette "Julie" Andromeda Mao (seasons 1–2; special appearance season 3), the missing daughter of business tycoon Jules-Pierre Mao * Shawn Doyle as Sadavir Errinwright (seasons 1–3), UN Undersecretary of Executive Administration *

as Chrisjen Avasarala, UN Deputy Undersecretary of Executive Administration, later UN Secretary-General * Frankie Adams as Roberta "Bobbie" W. Draper (seasons 2–6), an MMC (Martian Marine Corps) gunnery sergeant *

Cara Gee Cara Gee (born July 18, 1983) is a Canadian film, television, and stage actress. She is known for her roles in the television series ''Strange Empire'' and '' The Expanse''. She is described by Forbes as "one of the most prominent indigenous wome ...

as Camina Drummer (seasons 4–6; recurring seasons 2–3), Tycho Station's Belter head of security, later the leader of the rebel faction opposing the Free Navy * Keon Alexander as Marco Inaros (seasons 5–6; recurring season 4), a Belter faction leader, later head of the Free Navy * Jasai Chase Owens as Filip Inaros (seasons 5–6; guest season 4), Marco and Naomi's son, currently working for Marco *

Nadine Nicole Nadine Nicole Heimann (born September 15, 1983), known professionally as Nadine Nicole,"Working Girl." ''Soap Opera Digest''. November 30, 2015. pg. 45. is an American actress. Personal life Nicole was born in Rochester, Michigan, to a German fat ...

as Clarissa Melpomene Mao (seasons 5–6; recurring season 3; guest season 4), Jules-Pierre Mao's elder daughter who initially seeks revenge against Holden, later a crew member on ''Rocinante''

Recurring

Introduced in season 1

* Chad L. Coleman as Fred Lucius Johnson, "the Butcher of Anderson Station" (seasons 1–5), a UNN colonel-turned-leader of the OPA on Tycho Station * Andrew Rotilio as Diogo Harari (seasons 1–3), a young Belter from Ceres in the OPA * Martin Roach as Michael Souther (seasons 1–3), a UNN admiral *

François Chau François Chau (born October 26, 1959) is a Cambodian American actor. He is known for his roles as Dr. Pierre Chang in ABC's ''Lost'', Quick Kick on '' G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero'', Dr. Chang in the film '' 21 & Over'', The Shredder in '' ...

as Jules-Pierre Mao (seasons 1–3), the owner of Mao-Kwikowski Mercantile * Athena Karkanis as Tavi Muss (season 1), Miller's former partner at Star Helix Security *

Jared Harris Jared Francis Harris (born 24 August 1961) is a British actor. His roles include Lane Pryce in the AMC television drama series ''Mad Men'', for which he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Seri ...

as Anderson Dawes (seasons 1–2), the OPA's Ceres liaison *

Jay Hernandez Javier Manuel Hernandez Jr. (born February 20, 1978), known professionally as Jay Hernandez, is an American actor and fashion model. After making his television debut in NBC's '' Hang Time'', Hernandez made his film debut opposite Kirsten Dunst ...

as Dmitri Havelock (season 1), Miller's Earther partner at Star Helix Security *

Lola Glaudini Lola Glaudini (born November 24, 1971) is an American actress. She is best known for her portrayal of Elle Greenaway on CBS's ''Criminal Minds'' and for her role as Deborah Ciccerone-Waldrup on HBO's ''The Sopranos''. Early life Glaudini was ...

as Shaddid (season 1), captain of Star Helix Security's Ceres detachment *

Kevin Hanchard Kevin Hanchard (born July 4, 1974) is a Canadian actor, best known for his roles as Det. Arthur Bell in ''Orphan Black'' and Inspector Sematimba in ''The Expanse''. Hanchard currently appears as Superintendent Joseph Donovan in ''Hudson and Rex. ...

as Sematimba (season 1), a detective on

* Daniel Kash as Antony Dresden (seasons 1–2), Protogen's head of biological research *

Brian George Brian George (born 1 July 1952) is a British actor. He is best known for his roles as Pakistani restaurateur Babu Bhatt in ''Seinfeld'' (1989–1998), the Indian gynecologist father of Raj Koothrappali in ''The Big Bang Theory'' (2007–2019 ...

(seasons 1–2; guest, season 6) and

Michael Benyaer Michael Benyaer is a Canadian-American actor. He is best known for his roles as Bob in the Canadian CGI series ''ReBoot'' and Hadji Singh in season one of ''The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest''. On playing Hadji, Benyaer stated, " eis one of the ...

(season 4) as Arjun Avasarala, Avasarala's husband *

Greg Bryk Gregory Michael Bryk (born 19 August 1972) is a Canadian film and television actor. He has appeared in numerous films and television series and is best known for his reoccurring roles in '' ReGenesis'' (2004–2008), '' XIII: The Series'' (2 ...

as Lopez (season 1), an MMC lieutenant assigned to the Martian Congressional Republic Navy (MCRN) ''Donnager'' *

Elias Toufexis Elias Toufexis is a Canadian actor. He has played characters on television and in video games, mostly in science fiction and fantasy genres. Career Acting Toufexis acted in small television roles at first, eventually playing Morton in the m ...

as Kenzo Gabriel (season 1), a Davila Aerospatiale spy on Tycho Station * Jean Yoon as Theresa Yao (season 1), captain of the MCRN ''Donnager''

Introduced in season 2

* Nick E. Tarabay as Cotyar Ghazi (seasons 2–3), a security professional working for Avasarala *

Terry Chen Terry Chen (born February 3, 1975) is a Canadian film and television actor. Early life Chen was born in Edmonton, Alberta, to Taiwanese and Chinese parents originating from Taiwan (father) and mainland China (mother). After primary and secondary ...

as Praxideke "Prax" Meng (seasons 2–3; guest, season 6), a botanist from Ganymede * Leah Jung as Mei Meng (seasons 2–3), Prax's daughter * Ted Atherton as Lawrence Strickland (seasons 2–3), a pediatrician on Ganymede * Jonathan Whittaker as Esteban Sorrento-Gillis (seasons 2–3), the

UN Secretary General The secretary-general of the United Nations (UNSG or SG) is the chief administrative officer of the United Nations and head of the United Nations Secretariat, one of the six principal organs of the United Nations. The role of the secretary-g ...

Byron Mann Byron Mann is a Hong Kong-American actor of film and television. His best-known roles include Ryu in '' Street Fighter'', Silver Lion in '' The Man with the Iron Fists'', Wing Chau in ''The Big Short'', Admiral Augusto Nguyen on ''The Expanse'' ...

as Augusto Nguyễn (seasons 2–3), a UNN admiral *

Mpho Koaho Mpho Koaho () is a Canadian actor. He portrayed Anthony on the TNT science fiction series ''Falling Skies'' (2011–2015) and was also a series regular on the Teletoon action adventure ''MetaJets'' (2011) and the BBC America science fiction com ...

as Richard Travis (season 2), an Earth-born MMC private assigned to the MCRN ''Scirocco'' * Carlos Gonzalez-Vio as Paolo Cortázar (season 2; guest, seasons 5–6), a Protogen scientist * Peter Outerbridge as Martens (season 2), an MCRN captain and chaplain assigned to the MCRN ''Scirocco'' * Sarah Allen as T. Hillman (season 2), an MMC private assigned to the MCRN ''Scirocco'' * Dewshane Williams as L. Sa'id (season 2), an MMC corporal assigned to the MCRN ''Scirocco'' * Conrad Pla as Janus (season 2), an UNMC colonel assigned to the UNS ''Arboghast'' * Ted Whittall as Michael Iturbi (season 2), a UN scientist assigned to the UNS ''Arboghast'' *

Hugh Dillon Hugh Dillon (born May 31, 1963) is a Canadian singer and actor who is the lead vocalist of rock band Headstones. He is also a film and television actor; his notable roles include Mike Sweeney in '' Durham County,'' Ed Lane in '' Flashpoint'' an ...

as Sutton (season 2), an MCRN lieutenant assigned to the MCRN ''Scirocco'' *

Jeff Seymour Jeff Seymour is an American-Canadian actor. He is most noted for his role as Kamal Azizi in the Canadian television drama series '' The Eleventh Hour'', for which he won the Gemini Award for Best Actor in a Drama Series at the 18th Gemini Awards i ...

as Pyotr Korshunov (season 2), the former MCR Minister of Defense * Rachael Crawford as J. Peñano (season 2), an MCRN admiral

Introduced in season 3

David Strathairn David Russell Strathairn (; born January 26, 1949) is an American actor. Known for his leading roles on stage and screen, he has often portrayed historical figures such as Edward R. Murrow, J. Robert Oppenheimer, William H. Seward, and John Do ...

as Klaes Ashford (seasons 3–4), a Belter pirate-turned-executive officer of the OPAS ''Behemoth'' *

Elizabeth Mitchell Elizabeth Mitchell (born Elizabeth Joanna Robertson) is an American actress known for her lead role as Juliet Burke on the ABC drama mystery series ''Lost'' (2006–2010). Mitchell also had lead roles on the television series '' V'' (2009–2 ...

as Anna Volovodov (season 3; guest, season 6), a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...

pastor and speech writer * Brock Johnson as Grigori (season 3), a former acquaintance of Ashford's aboard the OPAS ''Behemoth'' * Chris Owens as Kolvoord (season 3), a science officer aboard the UNN ''Thomas Prince'' *

Genelle Williams Genelle Williams (born February 18, 1984) is a Canadian actress who is best known for her roles as Kim Carlisle in ''Radio Free Roscoe'', as DJ in '' The Latest Buzz'', and as the innkeeper Leena in '' Warehouse 13''. Career Acting in high scho ...

as Tilly Fagan (season 3), a socialite aboard the UNN ''Thomas Prince'' who befriends Anna *

Anna Hopkins Anna Hopkins (born February 12, 1987) is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her role as Lilith in Freeform's original series ''Shadowhunters'' and documentary filmmaker Monica Stuart in ''The Expanse''. Early life and education Hopkins ...

as Monica Stuart (seasons 3, 5–6), an Earther journalist filming a documentary on the ''Rocinante'' * Jaeden Noel as Katoa Merton (season 3), Mei's friend * Raven Dauda as Nono Volovodov (season 3), Anna's wife * Brandon McGibbon as Elio "Cohen" Casti (season 3), Monica's technical crewman and camera operator * Ari Millen as Stanni Kulp (season 3), a Savage Industries electrician assigned to the UNN ''Thomas Prince'' * Paulino Nunes as Hank Cortez (season 3), a priest aboard the UNN ''Thomas Prince'' * Sabryn Rock as Riko Oshi (season 3), a MMC private assigned to the MCRN ''Xuesen'' * Hamed Dar as Jed Trepp (season 3), a MMC private assigned to the MCRN ''Xuesen'' *

Atticus Mitchell Atticus Dean Mitchell (born 1993) is a Canadian actor and musician. He is best known for his roles as Benny Weir in the television film ''My Babysitter's a Vampire'' and series of the same name, and Gabe in the film ''Radio Rebel''. Early life ...

as Sinopoli (season 3), a MCRN ensign who served aboard the MCRN ''Kittur Chennamma'' *

Natalie Lisinska Natalie Lisinska (born 11 January 1982) is a British-Canadian actress. Lisinska was born in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England and grew up on Vancouver Island in British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmo ...

as Shaffer (season 3), a lieutenant aboard the UNN ''Agatha King'' who is loyal to Souther * Morgan Kelly as Mancuso (season 3), a lieutenant aboard the UNN ''Agatha King'' who is loyal to Souther *

John Kapelos John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

as Ren Hazuki (season 3), a Savage Industries electrician assigned to the UNN ''Thomas Prince'' * Yanna McIntosh as Chandra Lucas (season 3), captain of the MCRN ''Askia'', later captain of the MCRN ''Xuesen'' *

Krista Bridges Krista Bridges (born 4 November 1968) is a Canadian actress. She has appeared in more than eighty films since 1988, and received a Genie Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress at the 13th Genie Awards in 1992 for '' The Shower''."The Genie ...

as Sandrine Kirino (seasons 3, 6), captain of the MCRN ''Hammurabi''

Introduced in season 4

Burn Gorman Burn Hugh Winchester Gorman (born 1 September 1974) is an English actor and musician. He is known for his roles as Owen Harper in the BBC series ''Torchwood'' (2006–2008), Phillip Stryver in ''The Dark Knight Rises'' (2012), Karl Tanner in the ...

as Adolphus Murtry (season 4), chief of security for Royal Charter Energy (RCE) aboard the ''Edward Israel'' *

Lyndie Greenwood Lyndie Greenwood (born June 6, 1983) is a Canadian actress best known for her recurring role of Sonya on The CW's '' Nikita'' and being a series regular cast member of FOX's '' Sleepy Hollow,'' playing the role of Jenny Mills in 2013. In 2019, s ...

as Elvi Okoye (season 4; guest, season 6), a biologist working for the RCE * Rosa Gilmore as Lucia Mazur (season 4), a medical technician on Ilus * Patti Kim as Carol Chiwewe (season 4), a Belter leader * Kyla Madeira as Felcia Mazur (season 4), a Belter refugee * Steven McCarthy as Jakob Mazur (season 4), a Belter refugee * Dayle McLeod as Leelee (season 4), a thief on Mars *

Jess Salgueiro Jess Salgueiro is a Canadian actress, known for her roles in '' The Boys'', '' Workin' Moms'', '' The Expanse'', ''Letterkenny'' and ''Orphan Black''. Salgueiro is set to appear in a starring role in the Netflix show ''Tiny Pretty Things'', based ...

as Chandra Wei (season 4), corporate security officer * Zach Smadu as Fayez Sarkis (season 4), a scientist aboard the ''Edward Israel'' * Kolton Stewart as David Draper (season 4), Bobbie's nephew * Lily Gao as Nancy Gao (seasons 4–5), a candidate for UN secretary-general *

Paul Schulze Paul Schulze (born June 12, 1962) is an American actor. He is known for appearing in ''The Sopranos'', ''Nurse Jackie'', '' 24'' (2002–2004), and '' The Punisher'' (2017), and his films roles in ''Panic Room'' (2002), and ''Rambo'' (2008). C ...

as Esai Martin (season 4), a corrupt police officer on Mars

Introduced in season 5

* José Zúñiga as Carlos "Bull" de Baca (season 5), chief of security on Tycho Station * Michael Irby as Felix Delgado (season 5), a UN admiral *

Sugith Varughese Sugith Varughese (born 25 April 1957) is an Indian-born Canadian writer, director and actor. Background Born in Cochin, Kerala, India into a Syriac Saint Thomas Christian family ("Varughese," also sometimes spelled "Varghese" and "Verghese" an ...

as David Paster (season 5), a high-ranking UN official * Brent Sexton as Cyn (season 5), an old friend of Naomi *

Bahia Watson Bahia Watson (born May 15, 1992) is a Canadian actress and playwright, best known for her recurring role as Brianna/Oferic in the television series ''The Handmaid's Tale''. She grew up in Carman, Manitoba, the daughter of a Canadian father and a ...

as Sakai (season 5), chief engineer on Tycho station * Oluniké Adeliyi as Karal (season 5), a henchman in the Inaros faction * George Tchortov as Leveau (season 5), a Tycho officer who assists Holden * Sandrine Holt as Oksana Busch (season 5), a member of Drummer's crew * Samer Salem as Josep (seasons 5–6), a member of Drummer's crew * Vanessa Smythe as Michio (seasons 5–6), a member of Drummer's crew *

Lara Jean Chorostecki Lara Jean Chorostecki is a Canadian actress known for her role as Fredricka "Freddie" Lounds in the American psychological thriller–horror television series ''Hannibal'', and as Sergeant Krystina Breeland on the critically acclaimed Canadian se ...

as Emily Babbage (season 5), a Martian lieutenant * Somkele Idhalama as a Tycho Engineer (season 5), helping Holden pursue the Zmeya * Jacob Mundell as Erich (season 5), a childhood friend of Amos in Baltimore *

Tim DeKay Timothy Robert DeKay (born June 12, 1963) is an American actor. He starred in the USA Network series '' White Collar'' (2009–2014) Early life Tim DeKay was born June 12, 1963, to Jim DeKay and Jill Vaughn in Lansing, New York, where he and ...

as Emil Sauveterre (season 5), a Martian admiral

Introduced in season 6

* Gabriel Darku as Yoan, friend of Filip *

Conrad Coates Conrad Coates (born July 12, 1970) is a British-born Canadian actor and teacher. He is best known for his roles as Morgan in '' The Dresden Files'' and in '' Degrassi: The Next Generation'' as Jimmy Brooks' father. Biography Early life Coate ...

as Sidiqi, a UNN admiral * Ted Dykstra as Gareth, an aide to Chrisjen Avasarala * Emma Ho as Cara, young girl colonist on Laconia * Ian Ho as Xan, young boy colonist of Laconia * Daniel Jun as Gary, Cara and Xan's father * Dianne Aguilar as Dot, Cara and Xan's mother * Stuart Hughes as Liang Walker, a Free Navy captain *

Kathleen Robertson Kathleen Robertson (born July 8, 1973) is a Canadian actress, producer, writer and showrunner. She is best known for her roles as Kitty O' Neill in the Starz, Golden Globe winning series Boss, Hildy Mulligan in TNT's Murder in the First, Tina Edi ...

as Rosenfeld Guoliang, second-in-command to Marco Inaros * Jo Vannicola as Nico Sanjrani, administrator of Ceres Station * Dylan Taylor as Winston Duarte, former Martian admiral on Laconia * Vieslav Krystyan as Owain, Belter on Ceres with a cat * Joe Perry as Tadeo, repair technician onboard the ''Pella''

Production

Development

''The Expanse'' is based on the novel series of the same name by

, a pen name of the authors Daniel Abraham and

Ty Franck Ty Franck (born May 18, 1969) is an American novelist, screenwriter, and television producer. He is best known for co-authoring ''The Expanse'' with Daniel Abraham under the pseudonym James S. A. Corey, as well as '' Game of Thrones: A Telltal ...

, who also serve as writers and producers for the show. The first novel, ''

Leviathan Wakes ''Leviathan Wakes'' is a science fiction novel by James S. A. Corey, the pen name of American writers Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck. It is the first book in the ''Expanse'' series, followed by ''Caliban's War'' (2012), ''Abaddon's Gate'' (2013) ...

'' (2011), was nominated for the

Hugo Award for Best Novel The Hugo Award for Best Novel is one of the Hugo Awards given each year for science fiction or fantasy stories published in, or translated to, English during the previous calendar year. The novel award is available for works of fiction of 40,000 ...

and

Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel The Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel is one of the annual Locus Awards The Locus Awards are an annual set of literary awards voted on by readers of the science fiction and fantasy magazine '' Locus'', a monthly magazine based in Oaklan ...

. On September 4, 2013, ''The Expanse'' was optioned for television by Alcon Television Group. On April 11, 2014, Syfy announced a straight-to-series commitment to a television adaptation of the book series, and ordered the production of 10 one-hour-long episodes for the first season. On that date Syfy President Dave Howe commented: "''The Expanse'' is epic in scale and scope and promises to be Syfy's most ambitious series to date". Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby wrote the pilot and served as writers and showrunners alongside

Naren Shankar Narendra "Naren" Kanakaiah Shankar (born April 1, 1964) is an Indian American writer, producer and director of several television series. He is co-showrunner of the Amazon Prime series ''The Expanse''. He was also co-showrunner on the long-runni ...

. Terry McDonough was revealed to be directing the first two episodes of the series in October 2014. In May 2015, before the first season aired, writing commenced for a second season, which was ordered in December 2015. The second season of ''The Expanse'' premiered on February 1, 2017. On March 16, 2017, ''The Expanse'' was renewed by Syfy for a 13-episode third season to air in 2018. Four digital comics based on the books and tying into the television series have been published by

ComiXology Iconology Inc., d/b/a ComiXology (styled comiXology), is a cloud-based digital distribution platform for comics owned by Amazon, with over 200 million comic downloads . It offers a selection of more than 100,000 comic books, graphic novels, and ...

. The first focuses on the origin of James Holden and was released February 1, 2017. The next three, highlighting the origins of other characters are: Naomi Nagata, released April 19, 2017; Alex Kamal, released May 24, 2017; and Amos Burton, released July 12, 2017. The show's title sequence was animated and directed by Australian studio Breeder and its VFX team.

Cancellation and renewals

Alcon Entertainment Alcon Entertainment, LLC is an American film production company, founded in 1997 by film producers Broderick Johnson and Andrew Kosove. Since its establishment, Alcon Entertainment has developed and financed films that are ultimately distribut ...

produces and finances the series. It sold three seasons to Syfy, which canceled the series in May 2018. Fans protested the cancellation, gathering over 100,000 signatures for an online petition. They lobbied

Amazon Studios Amazon Studios is an American television and film producer and distributor that is a subsidiary of Amazon. It specializes in developing television series and distributing and producing films. It was started in late 2010. Content is distributed th ...

and

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fi ...

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the fourth season and a crowdfunding campaign paid for an airplane to fly a "#SaveTheExpanse" banner around Amazon Studios. Celebrities including

Wil Wheaton Richard William Wheaton III (born July 29, 1972) is an American actor. He portrayed Wesley Crusher on the television series '' Star Trek: The Next Generation'', Gordie Lachance in the film '' Stand by Me'', Joey Trotta in '' Toy Soldiers'', ...

George R. R. Martin George Raymond Richard Martin (born George Raymond Martin; September 20, 1948), also known as GRRM, is an American novelist, screenwriter, television producer and short story writer. He is the author of the series of epic fantasy novels ''A Song ...

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and

Andreas Mogensen Andreas Enevold Mogensen (born 2 November 1976) is a Danish engineer and ESA astronaut who is best known for being the first Dane to fly in space as part of the European Space Agency's iriss program. Mogensen has also been involved in a number of ...

supported the campaign. Amazon Prime Video picked up the series for a fourth season, which was released on December 12, 2019. In July 2019, Amazon renewed ''The Expanse'' for a fifth season, which premiered on December 15, 2020. Ahead of the fifth season's release, Amazon renewed the series for a sixth and final season, on November 24, 2020. Filming started in late January 2021. However, the authors of the novels and writers on the series, Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck, have stated that they view season 6 as a "pause" rather than a conclusion and that Alcon Entertainment "is very committed to the IP", Alcon's Andrew Kosove and Broderick Johnson said that they are "considering all kinds of interesting possibilities". On October 8, 2021, it was announced that the sixth and final season would premiere on December 10, 2021.

Casting

In July 2014,

was cast as Joe Miller. In August 2014, Steven Strait and

's attachment to the series as James Holden, and Chrisjen Avasarala was announced. October of that same year,

, and Wes Chatham were cast as Naomi Nagata, Alex Kamal, Shed Garvey, and Amos Burton while Jonathan Banks and Jay Hernandez were announced to be guest starring in the series. One month later, Shawn Doyle was cast as Sadavir Errinwright, while Chad L. Coleman and

were cast in the recurring roles of Fred Johnson and Anderson Dawes, respectively. Frankie Adams was cast as Bobbie Draper for the second season in April 2016. On January 21, 2020, Keon Alexander,

, and Jasai Chase Owens (who portray Marco Inaros, Clarissa Melpomene Mao, and Filip Inaros, respectively), were promoted to the main cast for the fifth season. Later, Lily Gao was cast in a recurring role as Nancy Gao for the fourth and fifth seasons, a candidate for UN secretary-general. Additionally, Anvar did not return for the sixth and final season after receiving multiple sexual misconduct allegations.

Filming

Produced by Alcon Television and The Sean Daniel Company, principal photography on the first season started on October 29, 2014, in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

and concluded on March 27, 2015. The second season filmed between April 13, 2016 and September 12, 2016. Filming for season 3 began on July 12, 2017. In February 2019, cast member Lyndie Greenwood announced that the fourth season concluded filming. Filming for the fifth season began on September 23, 2019 and ended on February 21, 2020. Production on the sixth season took place between January 27, 2021 and May 7, 2021.

Title sequence

The title sequence of the series has been lauded by reviewers for its ability to elegantly and wordlessly convey important information about the worlds in which the series takes place. The title sequence was created by Breeder, a motion graphics design studio in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

, Australia. Drawing comparisons to the opening sequence of '' Game of Thrones'', Jason Morehead of ''Opuszine'' notes that not only does it depict the development of Earth's expansion into the solar system, it introduces the viewer to the political dynamics within the series. "Earth is the old guard, intent on controlling the system and her former colonies; technologically advanced Mars is driven to become a paradise; and the Belt is fighting to keep from being treated as a second-class citizen by both Earth and Mars." While the title sequence does change visually as the series progresses, the lyrics that accompany Clinton Shorter's title theme – written and performed by Lisbeth Scott – remain the same. Scott noted in a post on

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that her words were drawn from Norwegian, though she apologized for any errors in syntax, grammar and pronunciation.

Music

The show's soundtrack was composed by Shorter. The first season's soundtrack dubbed ''The Expanse Season 1 – The Original Television Soundtrack'', consisting of nineteen tracks, was released by Lakeshore Records, on May 20, 2016, via iTunes, and on May 26, 2016, via Amazon.

Genre and themes

The series has been described as a space opera by critics. Emily VanDerWerff of '' Vox'' describes the first season of the series to be a "blend of science fiction and noir-infused detective drama, with a backdrop of political intrigue". ''

Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character t ...

'' has referred to the series as a "sci fi noir mystery-thriller" and as

hard science fiction Hard science fiction is a category of science fiction characterized by concern for scientific accuracy and logic. The term was first used in print in 1957 by P. Schuyler Miller in a review of John W. Campbell's ''Islands of Space'' in the Novemb ...

. Prior to the series premiere, Mark Fergus spoke of the series's Western themes: "Everywhere is kind of back to the frontier rules so it gives us all that stuff back that we lost. Cellular technology. You can get a little more Western about it." The fourth season, according to the writers, also has " space Western vibes".

Release

The pilot episode was screened at

San Diego Comic-Con San Diego Comic-Con International is a comic book convention and nonprofit multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California since 1970. The name, as given on its website, is Comic-Con International: San Diego; but it is ...

in July 2015. In the United States, seasons 1 to 3 of ''The Expanse'' were broadcast by Syfy and streamed on Amazon Prime Video. In Canada, these seasons aired on

Space Space is the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually cons ...

and streamed on Crave. In New Zealand, these seasons aired on Sky. In all other countries where Netflix is available, seasons 1 and 2 were streamed until September 2018. On February 8, 2019, Prime Video took over exclusive distribution of the first three seasons worldwide in preparation for premier of the fourth season in 2019.

Reception

Critical response

Season 1

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, the first season has a score of 78% with an average rating of 7.1 out of 10 based on 46 reviews. The site's consensus states: "''The Expanse'' blends sci-fi elements and detective noir into a visually compelling whole, though it takes a few episodes for the story to capture viewers' intrigue." The first season received a rating of 65 out of 100 on

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

based on reviews from 23 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Reporting on the pilot screening,

io9 ''io9'' is part of Gizmodo media since 2015, and it began as blog launched in 2008 by Gawker Media. The site initially focused on the subjects of science fiction, fantasy, futurism, science, technology and related areas but over the years has ...

s Lauren Davis declared herself "blown away" by ''The Expanse'', appreciating its "incredible sense of scale" and its "deeply thought out future world that reflects on our present one, with high production values and characters who speak and act like real people". Max Nicholson of IGN characterized the pilot as "grim and dramatic", and a "''very'' dense hour of television", with the terminology and large cast sometimes difficult to follow for viewers unfamiliar with the novels, but highlighted the pilot's "gorgeous" visuals and effects reminiscent of '' Battlestar Galactica'', '' Dune'' and '' Firefly''. Writing for ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'',

Maureen Ryan Maureen "Mo" Ryan (born in 1966) is an American film and television critic, writer and reporter. From 2000 to 2018, she was a TV critic at the ''Huffington Post'' and the ''Chicago Tribune''. From 2015 to 2018, Ryan was the chief TV critic for ''V ...

was unimpressed by the first four episodes "awkwardly linking a series of somewhat muddled stories" and the series's stereotypical characters but credited it with tackling "issues of class, representation and exploitation" and a convincing design. At ''

Tor.com ''Tor.com'' is an online science fiction and fantasy magazine published by Tor Books, a division of Macmillan Publishers. The magazine publishes articles, reviews, original short fiction, re-reads and commentary on speculative fiction. From 20 ...

'', Justin Landon highlighted ''The Expanse''s "bold and unique cinematography" and its claustrophobic, discomforting set designs, as well as the "extremely faithful" characterization, but remarked that the

patois ''Patois'' (, pl. same or ) is speech or language that is considered nonstandard, although the term is not formally defined in linguistics. As such, ''patois'' can refer to pidgins, creoles, dialects or vernaculars, but not commonly to jargon o ...

spoken by the Belters, the natives of the asteroid belt, made the series difficult to follow.

Season 2

On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has a score of 95% with an average rating of 9 out of 10 based on 21 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads, "''The Expanse''s second season offers more of the show's excellent signature production values while increasing character development and politically thrilling narratives." On Metacritic, it has a score of 77 out of 100 based on 5 reviews. Writing for io9, Katherine Trendacosta noted how the show had become "shockingly prescient", insofar as many of the issues and ideas explored by ''The Expanse'' mirrored contemporary trends in global politics. Brian Tallerico, in "Why ''The Expanse'' Is the Best Sci-FI TV Show You're Not Watching" for ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'', praised the show for its contemporary political relevance and called its willingness to mix tones, and its protagonists, laudable. He summarized that at its core, ''The Expanse'' was all about people responding to fear – fear of the other, fear of the new, fear of inequality, fear of death. Writing for 13.7: Cosmos & Culture, a blog hosted by

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, astrophysicist Adam Frank praised the show and its writers for the scientific realism. He wrote that "more than any other TV space-themed show, it gets the science right".

Season 3

On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has a score of 100% with an average rating of 8.6 out of 10 based on 26 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads, "Building on earlier potential and extending character arcs throughout a solidly crafted third season, ''The Expanse'' continues to impress – and shows no signs of abating." Michael Ahr of ''

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'' said the series "wowed fans with its complex characters, its political intrigue, its attention to scientific authenticity, and its stunningly good visual effects, and with several more books in the series that inspired the show, there’s plenty more source material for the adaptation to explore in future seasons." Liz Shannon Miller of ''

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'' praised the performances of Coleman and Strait in the absence of the Joe Miller character, saying "In general, while the mid-Season 2 departure of Joe Miller (Thomas Jane) and his wonderful hats does leave a bit of a vacuum, the ensemble has coalesced nicely, with both established performers like Chad L. Coleman and relative newcomers like Strait settling into their roles." Speaking about the premiere, Kevin Yeoman said, "All in all ... season three begins by dramatically raising the immediate stakes of the story without drastically altering the dynamics of the show itself."

Season 4

On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has a score of 100% with an average rating of 9 out of 10 based on 34 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads, "Smart and thrilling as ever, ''The Expanse''s fourth season doesn't miss a beat, successfully navigating network changes without losing any of its rich character work or narrative complexities." The season received a rating 91 out of 100 on Metacritic based on reviews from 4 critics indicating "universal acclaim". Writing for ''Den of Geek'', Michael Ahr gave it a 5/5 review and wrote, "With its brilliantly crafted, multilayered plot, ''The Expanse'' season four proves itself worthy of Amazon's rescue in a nearly perfect season." Sadie Gennis of ''

TV Guide TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program listings information as well as entertainment and television-related news. The company sold its print magazine division, TV Guide Magazine LLC, in 2008. Corpora ...

'' also praised the fourth season, giving it a score of 4.5/5.

Season 5

On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has a score of 100% with an average rating of 8.7 out of 10 based on 32 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads, "''The Expanse''s many threads come to a head in an excellent fifth season that expertly capitalizes on everything that makes the show work while setting the stage for an epic final season." The season received a rating 82 out of 100 on Metacritic based on reviews from 5 critics indicating "universal acclaim".

Season 6

On Rotten Tomatoes, the season has a score of 95% with an average rating of 8.6 out of 10 based on 20 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads, "''The Expanse''s truncated final season honors the series' characters and themes with a graceful conclusion."

Ratings

Season four was the first season not to be broadcast on live TV and not get weekly viewership ratings. The season ranked fourth in most watched digital original in the United States in December 2019.

Accolades

Aftershow and podcast

Beginning December 16, 2020, Wes Chatham and

started hosting weekly programs that feature behind-the-scenes information about the series, first as ''The Expanse Season 5 Aftershow'' after each season's episode. Upon the conclusion of Season 5 (after the airing of the season 5 finale), they continued on Wednesdays as ''Ty & That Guy Podcast'', covering each series' episode, from ''The Expanse'' S1E1, additionally discussing their inspirations from

genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...

culture, and occasionally having guests both related and not to the series. ''The Expanse Season 6 Aftershow'' with Chatham and Franck, produced by

, was distributed by ''Amazon Prime Video'' and ''Ty & That Guy Podcast'' in video and audio formats.

References

External links

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''The Expanse''
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