Gearing up for Season Three (Possible Spoilers)

[Jan]

Interesting article in Deadline:

http://deadline.com/2017/03/sense8-netflix-cast-new-deals-options-had-expired-season-3-renewal-1201955448/

EXCLUSIVE: Season 2 of Netflix’s sci-fi drama series Sense8, from Lana and Lilly Wachowski and J. Michael Straczynsk, is set to debut on May 5, almost two years after the first season premiered on June 5, 2015, a year and nine months after the series was renewed for a second season, and eight months after Season 3 wrapped its marathon filming in more than a dozen locations across four continents.

Because of the show’s lengthy pre-production, production and post-production, I hear the options on the cast were up months ago, and Netflix let them lapse. Keeping a large ensemble cast like Sense8, which counts 15 regulars, including the title 8, is expensive as talent holding fees add up over time.

As Season 2 episodes are being edited, I hear Netflix recently reached out to the core cast with offers for new contracts to make them available for a potential third season. I hear about half of the eight leads have closed deals, and the rest are in negotiations. Insiders are optimistic that all would come back. I hear under the new pacts, which include Season 3 provisions, the cast would be on hold until June, so Netflix will likely make a renewal decision by then. Given the trouble the Internet network is going through to secure the cast, it is logical to assume that Netflix is probably high on a potential third season.

That is daring, to let the options lapse!

ETA: Just noticed they misspelled JMS' name. Not sure that's any better than so many that don't mention him at all. - it's fixed now.

[sense8ional]

Great news, although I don't quite understand how did this happen since their contracts were supposedly for 5 years in the first place? Am I not understanding how this works?

edit I guess it has to do with this "Keeping a large ensemble cast like Sense8, which counts 15 regulars, including the title 8, is expensive as talent holding fees add up over time."

The article also mentions Andrews will return at best in a guest starring position if Insinct goes to series, but I don't think that's a problem given his limited screen time in the first two seasons (from following the S2 production) anyway.

[Jan]

Great news, although I don't quite understand how did this happen since their contracts were supposedly for 5 years in the first place? Am I not understanding how this works?

edit I guess it has to do with this "Keeping a large ensemble cast like Sense8, which counts 15 regulars, including the title 8, is expensive as talent holding fees add up over time."

This was something B5 fans learned a lot about during the kerfuffel with Claudia Christian.

The actors almost certainly would have a contract for all five seasons *but* each season has a pick-up date. If the contract isn't picked up by that date, the actors are free to take/look for other work and the original terms would need to be negotiated again.

I don't know what the original pick-up date might have been and Deadline didn't seem to know, either.

[sense8ional]

Thanks for the clarification!

[babylonlurker]

This is indeed interesting.

[Jan]

Since it's fairly certain that folks will be wondering about renewal for season 3...oh, probably around 12:05 AM Pacific time on May 5, ...and the WGA Contract runs out as of May 1 ... and the WGA members are voting right now whether to authorize a strike if talks aren't successful...

I asked JMS:



Let's hope talks are successful! The parties come back to the table on the 25th and that doesn't exactly leave a lot of time.

[Jan]

No strike, thank goodness.

http://deadline.com/2017/05/wga-strike-averted-tentative-deal-film-tv-contract-amptp-1202081121/

[sense8ional]

Yayyyyyyyyy!

[babylonlurker]

No strike, thank goodness.

http://deadline.com/2017/05/wga-stri...tp-1202081121/

<Phew> ! That's a relief ..

[sense8ional]

Riemelt interview: http://www.premiere.fr/Series/News-S...e-plus-de-sexe

Does Sense8 end after season 2? Or is a season 3 possible?

I can not tell you if the end of season 2 is definitive ... But I can tell you that we all want to continue. And season 3 is already under discussion.

[sense8ional]

http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/features/sense8-season-2-netflix-release-date-max-riemelt-wolfgang-lana-wachowski-a7715936.html

A third season is looking extremely likely. Do you think this series could last for a while? The perfect number would be eight, right?

Ha. Could be, could be. I don't know if that would be necessary. I don’t know what the storylines will be like. Maybe my character dies? Who knows? It looks really good. Lana is telling me there's a lot more potential.

[sense8ional]

http://www.indiewire.com/2017/05/sense8-season-2-sao-paolo-gay-pride-lito-coming-out-1201813247/

EP Grant Hill on Season 3:

Are they talking about a Season 3? “We’re sort of just getting into that really,” Hill said. “It’s always there at the back of your mind. We would like to do a Season 3, and we’re keeping everything in place until that’s decided. Netflix has been very supportive, but it’s always complicated. We’re a reasonably expensive show and we’re always pushing a little bit further. You set the bar — then you want to jump over it a little bit higher.”

And since it's in the same article, details on how the Sao Paolo shoot wasn't planned(!) and just happened mid-production(!!):

However, visiting Sao Paolo and filming at the actual parade wasn’t the original plan. While in pre-production, there had been discussion about making Pride happen, schedule-wise “it just didn’t come into alignment,” Hill said. That was until halfway through production, when some things had shifted in the schedule — two days before the parade was scheduled to begin, Lana realized that the dates might now work.

And fortunately, one of the show’s location managers had already done some basic preparation for potentially making it happen: “He did the due diligence and made the contacts, and so we had a way in. And Lana said, ‘Let’s just go for it.'”

Then, the sprint began: “We sent down a production person a day and a half before we were due to be filming, and then we finished here in L.A. that night, and flew overnight down there. We had eight or 10 hours on that float in the procession in which to stage all the stuff that we had — which of course we hadn’t rehearsed.”

WHAAAAAAAAAAT

That also implies all the later "that Sao Paolo speech!" references we get in subsequent episodes, were rewrites? That explains a lot about Lana's on-set/plane/everywhere rewrites, if they took gambles like that, haha.

[chromate]

Looks like season 3 might be the last? I'm not sure how legit or trustworthy this article is though. I wonder if that 9 million cost per episode thing is true. I think I read the same somewhere else, but the source was completely unreliable. Hopefully the decision about the renewal within 2 weeks is true. But no mention of JMS? And does this mean Lily won't be returning? A 2019 debut sounds just about right though, with pre-production/writing/prep taking about 5-6 months, filming for 7-8 months next year and then 5-6 months post-production.

Anyways, with the way the finale had concluded, it makes me think the budget will be much smaller than season 2. Though knowing Lana/JMS with how we will probably not really know which direction they will take the story, it could be the other way around.

http://www.portaleunerd.com.br/sense-8-produtor-fala-sobre-3-temporada/

"At this time the series has not yet been renewed, unofficially. Sense8 is a very expensive project, because of all the traveling " , said Malerba when asked if we have a 3rd season. "Each episode has an average cost of 9 million, about twice what it cost to make the first season. However, there is a willingness of both, Netflix as Lana, to make a third season, and this is a good starting point. In part, it will depend on the budget available in relation to the project the director will present - and the creator - for possible new episodes. "

"Not all actors have already signed for a new season and among them even some of the 8 protagonists. We are working, we are moving forward.

However, according to him, the decision should be taken as soon as possible. "It will all be decided within two weeks of May 05. However, the third season will easily be the last, due to the complex nature of the series and why Lana is virtually alone in the creative part, not a simple thing. In the first season, there was her sister together, but she is now completing her transition process, so she took some time off herself. However, Lana Wachowski is already writing the third season, to be ready if it is renewed. "

Finally, the producer said that if the third season happens, the filming should start only next year and debut in 2019.

[sense8ional]

Great interview. Original link: http://newsflix.altervista.org/sense...o-della-serie/

JMS will likely return as writer/co-creator, in informal speeches he is often omitted because this is a filmmaker/director heavy series.

Lilly, not returning, I wouldn't be surprised, as she has said she wants to retire eventually.

What I want is a better translation of "facilmente la terza stagione sara l ultima", which is auto-translated to "Easily the third season will be the last". Does it mean "it could easily be the last", perhaps? Which means, maybe, maybe not? Or "it will definitely be the last"? Or "it will likely be the last"?

Someone that knows Italian here?



edit The interview was conducted by fan group "Sense8ItaliaNetflix": https://www.facebook.com/Sense8ItaliaNetflix

It is 99.999% legit because here is producer Roberto Malerba talking to them: https://www.facebook.com/Sense8Itali...1269559379397/

Malerba has been working with the Wachowskis for 12 years now, since V for Vendetta: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0539378/

[JoeD80]

Pretty sure the story was worked out for five seasons, so crossing my fingers for that.