Orphan Black: Echoes director John Fawcett says that the spinoff is a completely new concept

Orphan Black: Echoes promotional poster (Image via AMC)
Orphan Black: Echoes promotional poster (Image via AMC)

AMC has dived back into the cloneverse with Orphan Black: Echoes, almost seven years after the original show's premiere. Echoes premiered on June 23, 2024, to portray an ominous technological future dominated by 3-D printing technology and scientists bent on perfecting humanity.

Set in Boston in 2052, the series opens with a scientist played by Keeley Hawes who is experimenting with a new technology that can print human organs. She comes into contact with an amnesiac woman (played by Krysten Ritter) who has no memory of her past, and what ensues is a thrilling journey where a group of women weave their way into each other's lives and embark on unraveling the mystery of their identity.

Orphan Black: Echoes explores a variety of themes, like the metaphysics and ethical conundrums of scientific progress, which pushes viewers to question the boons and banes of scientific progress. To explore the themes and motivations of the show, Sneha Haldar from Sportskeeda engaged series executive producer and director John Fawcett in a conversation to learn more about the Orphan Black spin-off.


Orphan Black: Echoes shares DNA with the original series

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The original Orphan Black, which is a Canadian science-fiction thriller television series created by screenwriter Graeme Manson and director John Fawcett and starring Tatiana Maslany, focused on the moral and ethical implications of human cloning and its effect on human identity. Talking about how the spin-off is different from the original, Echoes director John Fawcett commented:

"I think when we set out, we talked about making a spinoff. It was always a discussion that the new show was going to be very different from Orphan Black. Nothing can really be the original Orphan Black because that show was special. Tatiana was special. It's very hard to...come out and make a show just like the original. So what we decided to do was do something that had a very different concept... a different feel."

While Orphan Black: Echoes may be very different in terms of storyline and plot, the main theme of the spinoff series is very similar to the original. Fawcett continued:

"It shares a lot of themes and DNA with the original show and characters. But it has a very different mystery at the center of it... and it has a very different science. It's got a very different sort of approach to the style, and the approach to the storytelling and mystery are quite different... so that we have a show that new people can come and enjoy. They don't need to see the original Orphan Black."

According to Fawcett, there will be a lot of Easter eggs to look forward to, and maybe even the return of some characters from the original show:

"I think that's very likely, yes. I don't want to spoil it for you, but yes... there is a very good chance that you will see characters from the original series."

Orphan Black: Echoes has something to look forward to for both fans of the original show as well as new viewers.


Is Echoes here to stay? Fawcett on a potential second season and the success of Orphan Black

John Fawcett has assured fans that Orphan Black: Echoes is not going to be a limited series, and there is a lot of scope for expansion of the storyline from the first season. According to him,

"This is definitely going to be an ongoing show. I mean, both Anna Fishko and myself have talked about multiple seasons and what the mystery of that would look like, and what the bigger story arc for a number of seasons would be. I think it's in everyone's interest to see the show expand and grow. You know, the first season is always challenging of a new show... I think we're just getting going. We really want to see this show grow, evolve, improve, get crazier. So we want to see multiple seasons of it."

Looking back upon the success of the original Orphan Black, Fawcett continued,

"The original was quite something to be a part of. I don't think either Graham Manson or myself or Tatiana had any idea of the level of success the show was going to have. We thought it was cool... we really... invested our heart and soul into that original show and thought and felt like it was great. But it was just so gratifying and kind of surreal to see so many people find the show and agree that it was amazing."

Orphan Black: Echoes made its debut last Sunday, June 23, 2024. It is a 10-episode series, and new installments of the series will air on AMC every Sunday.


Watch this space for more exclusives with Orphan Black: Echoes director John Fawcett.

Check out Apple TV+'s cutest new show HERE

Edited by Somava
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