THE EXPANSE has kicked into high gear for season three of the Syfy series. After the shocking revelation in last season’s finale, the Roci crew’s shambles as a war breaks out in all sides. After receiving positive reviews from fans and critics alike, THE EXPANSE is just starting on the good stuff. Cas Anvar, who plays hotshot pilot Alex Kamal, chats with us on what fans may expect in the new season.

CV: How does it feel getting into season three of THE EXPANSE?

Cas Anvar: We’re really excited! Season three has turned out to be the best of all the seasons we’ve done. We already premiered the first episode and episode one has got a 100 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes, which is a big deal for us because apparently anything over 80 is great so to get 100 percent feels really good. It means fans like it, the press likes it, and it means what we felt we had achieved is actually being appreciated by the viewers.

CV: There is a whole lot going on in the third season with this impending war from all sides both externally and internally. Where do we go with the season of THE EXPANSE as it progresses?

CA: We start season three with everyone going to war so that’s where we’re going. Earth, Mars, and the Belt are going to war and the question is: How is that war going to resolve? Who’s going to win and make it out? What side are we going to pick?

CV: Where do you fall under all that?

CA: Roci crew is pretty much a neutral body. We’re a mixed group of Martians, Earthers, and Belters. We’ve always remained, for the most part, neutral. Obviously, each one of us has our own personal opinion, but every decision we make is as a group. We vote on it and it’s a very democratic system.

What Naomi did at the end of season two was in breach of that policy, so that has thrown a wrench into the works. I’m less worried about where we fall in the war and more worried if our families are going to survive.

CV: With the opening of season three, how much of an impact will the war have on the Rocinante crew in THE EXPANSE?

CA: Naomi was a core member of our team. Her morality and leadership skills define a lot of what the Roci crew was all about. On a personal note, Amos used her as his guide star and she was his moral compass. There’s the relationship between her and Holden, which is broken. The trust has broken on many different levels so there’s no way that that’s going to repair itself overnight.

CV: What can we expect with Alex Kamal this season?

CA: Alex has been through a lot in the past two seasons and he’s growing a lot. He went from being just a glory bound bus driver as he called himself to one of the most fierce and skillful fighter pilots in the system. He takes that responsibility very seriously and he really seems to have found his home and family.

There’s nothing more important to him right now than his family and so he’s going to fight for it and do whatever he can to preserve it. The forces at play are bigger than he is and he’s dealing with an interstellar war, a family that is shattered, and his whole team is coming apart in the seams. He’s just one man and he’s the glue that binds them together but he’s not sure that he knows if he can pull this off.

Since he’s grown so much and the things his family is going through, he’s starting to reflect back on the man he was and his real family back home on Mars. As you saw in episode one, he’s doing things now that he’s never had the courage to do. He’s contacting them, reaching out to them, talking to them, confessing, and facing his failures. As a man, husband, father, and Martian, he’s facing those failures. That’s only something that a man who’s able to reflect on himself and actually has strength can do. I think we’re going to see more as Alex evolves.

CV: It seems you have grown as well in your performance. How much have you changed after getting to play Alex for these past three seasons?

CA: I think there’s a lot that’s going on in Alex that reflects in the performance. Alex, when he started, was a misfit, a loner, and not very secure. He didn’t know who or what he was and didn’t know his place in the universe was. Once he sat his butt down in the seat of the Roci, he started to recognize what his identity really was, who he was, and what he was meant to do. Once you come through that epiphany as a man, a lot of things start to fall into place, you plant your feet on the ground, and you start to find yourself. With that comes confidence, security, and roundedness that lead to ease as a human being.

I think what you watched in the past three seasons, you’ll see Alex ease into himself a lot more even when the shit hits the fan and when our fats are in the fryer. He’s going to become the warrior that he will become. Alex is no longer that inexperienced, scared, and insecure transport pilot freaking out in the Donnager jail cell. He’s now the serious military-trained fighting warrior with a cool head, a clear objective, and a focus on what needs to get done.

CV: The show has been receiving praise since the first season. With season three, it has even more positive reactions from fans and critics. Did you expect this type of response going into THE EXPANSE?

CA: I was expecting that this was going to be a high concept, intelligently written, and complex show. My expectations were that it was going to take a little bit of time for it to build up momentum because it needed to hit a core audience of hardcore science fiction fans, science fans, and those people and the press who were going to spread the word. Much like Breaking Bad, which had a small audience until the third season and then everyone started to talk about it and boom, it blew up on the Internet.

I feel that’s what’s happening right now, season one and two were very positive but not it’s starting to blow up. We just got our 100 percent ranking on Rotten Tomatoes so that says something after three years. Now everyone is coming up to me at the cons has seen the show and know it inside and out. We are getting a lot more recognition.

CV: Did any of the fans of the books reached out to you and the cast regarding the show?

CA: We have a lot of fans from the books that are extremely happy with the show’s adaptation. We have the writers of the novels, the James S. A. Corey team; they are in the writing room when we’re putting the adaptation together. They are writing episodes of the script so we have a great monitor to make sure we maintain the integrity of the books going into the show. The response for the show has been great. They even like it when we make changes. The changes that we make they love.

CV: Have you always been a fan of the science fiction and fantasy genre because most of the work you’ve done has been in that category?

CA: As an actor, you don’t get to choose what you do. You basically take the work that comes your way and you audition for everything. I’m lucky enough that I’m a fan of the sci-fi genre and have been able to be successful in that genre. I just happen to be the nerdy little science geek boy that has been able to do the roles that he loves to do.

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Don’t forget to tune into THE EXPANSE every Wednesday at 9PM on Syfy.