Apple TV+ has carved out a niche for itself in the waning days of the streaming wars as the service for people who love thought-provoking adult science fiction. We've already had new seasons of Silo and Severance so far this year, with the premiere season of Murderbot on the way. And now we know which sci-fi series will take up the baton once Murderbot airs its finale: Foundation, the original heavy hitter of Apple's sci-fi shows.
Today, Apple TV+ released the first teaser trailer for Foundation season 3. And I've gotta say, it looks visually stunning:
Pilou Asbæk takes what he wants in Foundation season 3
Foundation is an interesting show in Apple's arsenal. It's based on the iconic Foundation books by Isaac Asimov, one of the grandfathers of modern science fiction, and is about a mathematician named Hari Seldon who predicts the downfall of the Galactic Empire and gathers an organization of thinkers (the Foundation) to devise a way for some knowledge survive the coming dark age. The show hasn't stuck that closely to the books, but it's certainly had some high points, such as the mind-bending finale of season 2.
Season 3 is making the bold choice to jump ahead in time by more than a century, where it sounds like the beginning of the end is finally getting underway. Here's the official description:
"Set 152 years after the events of season two, The Foundation has become increasingly established far beyond its humble beginnings while the Cleonic Dynasty’s Empire has dwindled. As both of these galactic powers forge an uneasy alliance, a threat to the entire galaxy appears in the fearsome form of a warlord known as “The Mule” whose sights are set on ruling the universe by use of physical and military force, as well as mind control. It’s anyone’s guess who will win, who will lose, who will live and who will die as Hari Seldon, Gaal Dornick, the Cleons and Demerzel play a potentially deadly game of intergalactic chess."
There are a few fun tidbits in there: the Cleons are the clone emperors of the Galactic Empire; at any given time, there's a young man Cleon, an adult Cleon, and an elder Cleon, all of whom verbally spar about what's best. The most ambitious of the lot is the adult Cleon, who's played by Lee Pace. He often comes up with diabolical schemes, when he's not too busy strutting his stuff:
We're also introduced to "The Mule," a warlord destined to bring about the end of the empire. The Mule first appeared in season 2, where he was played by Mikael Persbrandt. In season 3 he'll be played by Pilou Asbæk, best known for his time as Euron Greyjoy on Game of Thrones. The trailer puts a lot of focus on the Mule, so I'd expect him to feature heavily in season 3. As always, Asbæk seems to be having a grand time leaning into the chaos his character causes.
This will be an interesting year for Foundation. There was a shake-up behind the scenes shortly after the show was renewed for its second season, with showrunner David S. Goyer stepping back after reportedly clashing with Apple over the show's budget. He still technically retains the showrunner title and is involved in the series, but executive producer Bill Bost reportedly took over some of his duties. The exact details of how this effected Foundation aren't clear yet, but hopefully it all worked out for the best for the season ahead.
Foundation season 3 premieres July 11, 2025 on Apple TV+. That also happens to be the day that Murderbot airs its season finale. Apple wants to make sure you've got plenty of sci-fi to watch in the months ahead!
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h/t The Verge