It has been a wild third season of For All Mankind and we’ve still got one more episode to go! Last episode we saw what came in the aftermath of the landslide on Mars, including a few new faces like Lee Jung-gil (C.S. Lee), the North Korean astronaut ( theorized by many fans would appear. But back on Earth, tensions are rising as Margo Madison (Wrenn Schmidt), definitively in too deep with the Soviets as their erstwhile spy, is no longer as under the radar as she believes. Throughout the season, her protégé Aleida Rosales (Coral Peña) has been trying to figure out who is the mole who gave the Soviets her designs and after a careful process of elimination (as well as some insane red string theory boards) she might have figured it out.

We caught up with Wrenn Schmidt about Margo’s journey this season, including Margo’s blossoming relationship with Sergei (Piotr Adamczyk) and what it was like to actually explore the romance more.

Speaking with Schmidt about Margo and Sergei’s mutually beneficial relationship, Schmidt said:

“I think it’s a really interesting storyline for Margo, especially because I feel like it kind of dovetails with a lot of the foundational stuff for Margo in Season 1 with von Braun. I think in her discovering what von Braun did during World War II, she kind of made a promise to herself that she’d never, in a very black and white way, choose science and discovery over human lives. And that, in a lot of ways, pushes her in Season 2 to share information that she’d never share otherwise with Sergei.

“Along with that [decision] comes this relationship with someone who understands her position like no one else can because he’s in a similar position. Given that he’s both beholden to politics, but also really only wants to be about the science. I don’t know, I think in some ways, they’re the only two people that can understand what the opposite one is going through, because it’s such a specific job. I think the romance component kind of sneaks up on her, because they very easily connect through the science, and they very easily connect through sharing important information. In an ideal world, scientists share what they know in order to make progress, before before the invention of the atom bomb that was just kind of a given with science. I think they both really enjoy that.

for all mankind wrenn schmidt
Credit: Apple TV+

“Margo finally gives into something that she’s probably been wanting to see what would happen for the longest time. Then of course, we all know, very quickly that comes back to bite her and I think that’s also really interesting, because, yet again, she’s put it in an impossible position. Do I choose the safety of all of this important information that could potentially be used to devastating effect or do I let this other person die? I really love it when writers put you in a position in which you have to make impossible decisions as a character. I think it’s really fun to play.”

When it comes to Aleida and Margo’s changing relationship, Schmidt talked about being excited for the antagonism between the two characters, feeling that it reflected Margo’s own relationship with Wernher von Braun (Colm Feore), Margo’s mentor.

for all mankind
Credit: Apple TV+

“I think with the history of what Margo went through with von Braun, it’s an even richer storyline to explore. She can see Aleida’s point of view, and his at the same time. I think holding space for both of those while having a conversation, even in some scenes that you haven’t seen yet, it’s really interesting to play because you can just tell there’s so much that’s there that’s unspoken, that they don’t have time to even get into because of what’s going on. It’s a lot of fun when things get that complicated and interesting between characters.”

With that teaser we are definitely excited for the finale to the season. The show has never held back when it comes to taking big swings and it doesn’t look like Season 3 will be any different.

The Season 3 Finale of For All Mankind streams on Apple TV+ August 12, 2022.

1 COMMENT

  1. Loved the finale, as I did the previous two seasons’ finales. Margo’s final Newton call to Sergei was heart-breaking. I wonder what is Margo’s job in 2003? The 2 deaths were unexpected, but well-written and acted. I’ve got to imagine this is the end for Ellen’s and the Stevens’ arcs, but who knows. Ed would be 71 in 2003, and Dani 59 if that’s what’s next. This is my favorite current series by miles. I wish comic books were written like this, structured for a big payoff in the final pages.

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