Sense8 cast says it's not just a sci-fi show
They wrote the show together with J. Michael Straczynski, best known for the long-running sci-fi series Babylon 5. But while there's a definite element of unusual goings on, Sense8 isn't really tied to the sci-fi genre. We got the chance to ask about how sci-fi the show is when we spoke to stars Tuppence Middleton and Daryl Hannah recently. And the answer, not surprisingy, is fairly complex.
"I think it really bridges so many different genres," says Hannah, a veteran of genre features like 1982 classic Blade Runner. "Because there’s obviously a thriller aspect, comedy, fantasy..." It's a big and dense show with a lot going on, and it's also likely that it would appeal to audience members who might not be so interested in something with a sci-fi label.
English actress Middleton - who features in the Wachowski's movie Jupiter Ascending - takes up the thread. "I think it’s really easy to box it in and say it’s a sci-fi because the Wachowskis have made it and they have a history with sci-fi but I think it’s really not that."
In some ways, that's also down to the way the show was shot, on location and with minimal obvious effects work. "I think all of the… supernatural effects, they weren’t green screen", continues Middleton. "It was all camera trickery and it was us ducking out of shot and doing this and that. It was great old fashioned filmmaking."
Sense8 absolutely does have a science-fiction premise - the linking of eight minds around the world after a terrible event - but it is very grounded in the way it takes that idea and explores the effect it has on a range of ordinary people. Arguably, that set up is at the very heart of the best sci-fi, not about the technology or the effects but powerful ideas and themes which resonate with anyone.
Read our series review here.
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