''For All Mankind'' is an American

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...

television series created by Ronald D. Moore, Matt Wolpert and Ben Nedivi and produced for

Apple TV+ Apple TV is a digital media player and microconsole developed and marketed by Apple Inc. It is a small network appliance hardware that plays received media data such as video and audio to a television set or external display. Since its secon ...

. The series dramatizes an alternate history depicting "what would have happened if the global

space race The Space Race was a 20th-century competition between two Cold War rivals, the United States and the Soviet Union, to achieve superior spaceflight capability. It had its origins in the ballistic missile-based nuclear arms race between the tw ...

had never ended" after the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

succeeds in the first crewed

Moon landing A Moon landing is the arrival of a spacecraft on the surface of the Moon. This includes both crewed and robotic missions. The first human-made object to touch the Moon was the Soviet Union's Luna 2, on 13 September 1959. The United S ...

ahead of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The title is inspired by the

lunar plaque The Lunar plaques are stainless steel commemorative plaques measuring attached to the ladders on the descent stages of the United States Apollo Lunar Modules flown on lunar landing missions Apollo 11 through Apollo 17, to be left permanently on t ...

left on the moon by the crew of

Apollo 11 Apollo 11 (July 16–24, 1969) was the American spaceflight that first landed humans on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and lunar module pilot Buzz Aldrin landed the Apollo Lunar Module ''Eagle'' on July 20, 1969, at 20:17 UTC, an ...

, which reads in part "We Came In Peace For All Mankind". The series stars an ensemble cast including

Joel Kinnaman Charles Joel Nordström Kinnaman (; born 25 November 1979) is a Swedish-American actor and model who first gained recognition for his roles in the Swedish film '' Easy Money'' and the ''Johan Falk'' crime series. Kinnaman is known international ...

Michael Dorman Michael Dorman (born 26 April 1981) is a New Zealand actor, best known for his starring roles as NASA astronaut Gordo Stevens in the Apple TV+ original science fiction space drama series ''For All Mankind'' and as John Tavner in the comedy-dram ...

, Sarah Jones,

Shantel VanSanten Shantel VanSanten (born July 25, 1985) is an American actress and model. As a model, she has been featured in the magazines ''Teen Vogue'' and '' Seventeen''. On television, she played the role of Quinn James in the CW teen drama series '' One ...

Jodi Balfour Jodi Balfour (born October 29, 1986) is a South African film and television actress, known for her role as Gladys Witham in the Canadian television drama series ''Bomb Girls'' and Ellen Waverly Wilson in the Apple TV+ space drama series '' For Al ...

, and Wrenn Schmidt.

Sonya Walger Sonya Walger (born 6 June 1974) is a British actress who also holds American citizenship. She had starring roles in the short-lived sitcoms ''The Mind of the Married Man'' (2001–2002) and ''Coupling'' (2003) before landing her role as Penny W ...

, and Krys Marshall. Cynthy Wu, Casey W. Johnson and Coral Peña joined the main cast for the second season, while

Edi Gathegi Edi Mūe Gathegi (born March 10, 1979) is a Kenyan-American actor. He appeared as recurring character Dr. Jeffrey Cole (aka "Big Love") in the television series '' House'', as Cheese in the 2007 film ''Gone Baby Gone'', Laurent in the films ''Twi ...

joined in the third. The series features historical figures including

astronauts

Neil Armstrong Neil Alden Armstrong (August 5, 1930 – August 25, 2012) was an American astronaut and aeronautical engineer who became the first person to walk on the Moon in 1969. He was also a naval aviator, test pilot, and university professor. ...

Buzz Aldrin Buzz Aldrin (; born Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr.; January 20, 1930) is an American former astronaut, engineer and fighter pilot. He made three spacewalks as pilot of the 1966 Gemini 12 mission. As the Lunar Module ''Eagle'' pilot on the 1969 A ...

, and

Michael Collins Michael Collins or Mike Collins most commonly refers to: * Michael Collins (Irish leader) (1890–1922), Irish revolutionary leader, soldier, and politician * Michael Collins (astronaut) (1930–2021), American astronaut, member of Apollo 11 and Ge ...

Mercury Seven The Mercury Seven were the group of seven astronauts selected to fly spacecraft for Project Mercury. They are also referred to as the Original Seven and Astronaut Group 1. Their names were publicly announced by NASA on April 9, 1959; these sev ...

astronaut

Deke Slayton Donald Kent "Deke" Slayton (March 1, 1924 – June 13, 1993) was a United States Air Force pilot, aeronautical engineer, and test pilot who was selected as one of the original NASA Mercury Seven astronauts. He went on to become NASA's fir ...

, rocket scientist

Wernher von Braun Wernher Magnus Maximilian Freiherr von Braun ( , ; 23 March 191216 June 1977) was a German and American aerospace engineer and space architect. He was a member of the Nazi Party and Allgemeine SS, as well as the leading figure in the develop ...

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

Administrator

Thomas Paine Thomas Paine (born Thomas Pain; – In the contemporary record as noted by Conway, Paine's birth date is given as January 29, 1736–37. Common practice was to use a dash or a slash to separate the old-style year from the new-style year. In th ...

, NASA flight director

Gene Kranz Eugene Francis "Gene" Kranz (born August 17, 1933) is an American aerospace engineer who served as NASA's second Chief Flight Director, directing missions of the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo programs, including the first lunar landing mission, Ap ...

U.S. senators The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

Ted Kennedy Edward Moore Kennedy (February 22, 1932 – August 25, 2009) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Massachusetts for almost 47 years, from 1962 until his death in 2009. A member of the Democratic ...

and Gary Hart, along with

U.S. presidents The president of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States, indirectly elected to a four-year term Term may refer to: * Terminology, or term, a noun or compound word used in a specific context, in pa ...

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

and

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

. ''For All Mankind'' premiered on November 1, 2019, and was renewed by

in October 2019 for a second season, which premiered on February 19, 2021. The second season was critically acclaimed, and nominated for the

TCA Award for Outstanding Achievement in Drama The TCA Award for Outstanding Achievement in Drama is an award given by the Television Critics Association. Winners and nominees Multiple wins 4 wins * ''The Sopranos'' 3 wins * ''The Americans'' (2 consecutive) * '' Homicide: Life on the Stree ...

. In December 2020, ahead of the second-season premiere, the series was renewed for a third season, which premiered on June 10, 2022. In July 2022, the series was renewed for a fourth season.

Premise

In an alternate timeline in 1969, Soviet cosmonaut Alexei Leonov becomes the first human to land on the

Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...

. This outcome devastates morale at NASA, but also catalyzes an American effort to catch up. With the Soviet Union emphasizing diversity by including a woman in subsequent landings, the United States is forced to match pace, training women and minorities who were largely excluded from the initial decades of U.S. space exploration. Each subsequent season takes place ten years later, with season 2 taking place in the 1980s, season 3 taking place in the 1990s, (and as revealed in the season 3 finale) season 4 taking place in the 2000s. Ronald D. Moore explained how history had been different in the series: "

Sergei Korolev Sergei Pavlovich Korolev (russian: Сергей Павлович Королёв, Sergey Pavlovich Korolyov, sʲɪrˈɡʲej ˈpavləvʲɪtɕ kərɐˈlʲɵf, Ru-Sergei Pavlovich Korolev.ogg; ukr, Сергій Павлович Корольов, ...

was the father of the Soviet space program; in our reality, he died during an operation in Moscow (in 1965) ... And after that point, their Moon program really never pulled together.... Our point of divergence was that Korolev lives, ... and he made their Moon landing happen."

Cast and characters

Main

as Edward "Ed" Baldwin, one of NASA's top astronauts, based on

Apollo 10 Apollo 10 (May 18–26, 1969) was a human spaceflight, the fourth crewed mission in the United States Apollo program, and the second (after Apollo8) to orbit the Moon. NASA described it as a "dress rehearsal" for the first Moon landing, and ...

commander Thomas P. Stafford. *

as Gordon "Gordo" Stevens (seasons 1–2), an astronaut and Ed's best friend, based on Apollo 10's lunar module pilot

Eugene Cernan Eugene Andrew Cernan (; March 14, 1934 – January 16, 2017) was an American astronaut, naval aviator, electrical engineer, aeronautical engineer, and fighter pilot. During the Apollo 17 mission, Cernan became the eleventh human being t ...

. * Sarah Jones as Tracy Stevens (seasons 1–2), Gordo's wife who later also becomes an astronaut as one of "Nixon's Women". *

as Karen Baldwin (seasons 1–3), Ed's wife who later owns the Outpost Tavern, a bar usually visited by NASA astronauts. *

as Ellen Wilson (née Waverly), an astronaut and member of "Nixon's Women" who later becomes

Administrator of NASA The Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the highest-ranking official of NASA, the national space agency of the United States. The administrator is NASA's chief decision maker, responsible for providing clarity to ...

, a Senator and President of the United States in 1992 Presidential Election. * Wrenn Schmidt as Margo Madison, a NASA engineer who was mentored by

, based on Frances Northcutt. *

as Molly Cobb (seasons 2–3; recurring season 1), an astronaut and member of "Nixon's Women", based on

Jerrie Cobb Geraldyn M. Cobb (March 5, 1931 – March 18, 2019), commonly known as Jerrie Cobb, was an American aviator. She was also part of the Mercury 13, a group of women who underwent physiological screening tests at the same time as the original Mer ...

. *Krys Marshall as Danielle Poole (season 2–present; recurring season 1), an astronaut and member of "Nixon's Women". *Cynthy Wu as Kelly Baldwin (née Hanh Nguyen, before adoption) (season 2–present), a scientist and Ed's and Karen's adopted daughter. *Casey W. Johnson as Danny Stevens (season 2–present), an astronaut and Gordo's and Tracy's son. **Jason David and Mason Thames as young Danny Stevens (recurring season 1) *Coral Peña as Aleida Rosales (season 2–present), an undocumented immigrant who is fascinated by space and later gets mentored by Margo. **Olivia Trujillo as young Aleida Rosales (recurring season 1) *

as Dev Ayesa (season 3–present), the founder of Helios Aerospace, a private space company with the goal to reach

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury (planet), Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Mars (mythology), Roman god of war. Mars is a terr ...

before NASA and the Soviet Union.

Recurring

* Chris Bauer as

(season 1) *

Colm Feore Colm Joseph Feore (; born August 22, 1958) is a Canadian actor. A 15-year veteran of the Stratford Festival, he is known for his Gemini-winning turn as Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau in the CBC miniseries '' Trudeau'' (2002), his portrayal of G ...

(season 1) *

Eric Ladin Eric Steven Ladin (born February 16, 1978) is an American actor. Early life and education Ladin studied at the USC School of Dramatic Arts. Career Ladin has guest starred as William Hofstadt on multiple episodes of the AMC show ''Mad Men'' a ...

(season 1) *

Michael Harney Michael John Harney is an American actor of film, television, and theater. He is best known for starring on the Netflix original series ''Orange Is the New Black'' as Corrections Officer Sam Healy. In 2019, he had a recurring role in the Apple TV ...

as Jack Broadstreet (season 1), a news anchor. *Dan Donohue as

Thomas O. Paine Thomas Otten Paine (November 9, 1921 – May 4, 1992) was an American engineer, scientist and advocate of space exploration, and was the third Administrator of NASA, serving from March 21, 1969, to September 15, 1970. During his administratio ...

(seasons 1–2) *

Arturo Del Puerto Arturo del Puerto is an American actor known for his roles on '' Fear the Walking Dead'', '' Chicago P.D.,'' ''Ride Along 2'', and the Apple TV+ original science fiction space drama series '' For All Mankind.'' Biography Del Puerto is half Puer ...

as Octavio Rosales (seasons 1, 3), an undocumented Mexican immigrant who settles in Houston with his daughter Aleida. *Ben Begley as

Charlie Duke Charles Moss Duke Jr. (born October 3, 1935) is an American former astronaut, United States Air Force (USAF) officer and test pilot. As Lunar Module pilot of Apollo 16 in 1972, he became the tenth and youngest person to walk on the Moon, at ag ...

(season 1) *

Rebecca Wisocky Rebecca Wisocky (born November 12, 1971) is an American actress. Best known for her role as Evelyn Powell in the Lifetime comedy-drama series ''Devious Maids'' (2013–16), as of 2021 she is starring as Hetty Woodstone on the CBS sitcom ''Ghosts' ...

as Marge Slayton (season 1) *Meghan Leathers as Pam Horton, a barkeeper and later a poet. *

Chris Agos Chris Agos is an American actor. Agos played Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin in the Apple TV+ original science fiction space drama series ''For All Mankind'', ASA Steve Kot in '' Chicago PD'' on NBC, Eliot McGantry in ''Boss'' on Starz, and has ...

(season 1) *

Ryan Kennedy Ryan Kennedy (born December 6, 1982) is a Canadian actor and model. He is best known for his role "Travis Hollier" in the 2006 TV series '' Whistler'' and "Jake Harrow" in The CW 2010 TV series ''Hellcats''. Kennedy has also played Apollo 11 a ...

(season 1) *

Noah Harpster Noah Harpster is an American actor, writer, producer and director. He is best known for his role of Remy on Tig Notaro's '' One Mississippi'', and writing, producing and acting on ''Transparent'', for which he won a Peabody Award, and was nomina ...

as Bill Strausser, a Mission Controller. *Nick Toren as Tim 'Bird Dog' McKiernan (seasons 1–2), a Mission Controller. *Daniel Robbins as Hank Poppen (season 1), a Mission Controller. *Dave Power as astronaut Frank Sedgewick (season 1; guest season 2), the Command Module Pilot of Apollo 15. *

Spencer Garrett Spencer Garrett (born September 19, 1963) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles in the films '' Air Force One'' (1997), '' 21'' (2008), '' Public Enemies'' (2009), ''All the Way'' (2016), and '' The Front Runner'' (2018). He is th ...

as Roger Scott (season 1; guest season 2), a news anchor. *Teddy Blum and Tait Blum as Shane Baldwin (season 1), the son of Ed and Karen Baldwin. *William Lee Holler (season 1), Zakary Risinger (guest season 1) and David Chandler (seasons 2–3) as Jimmy Stevens, the younger son of Gordo and Tracy Stevens. *Teya Patt as Emma Jorgens, MSC receptionist in season one and Margo's new assistant in season two. *Krystal Torres as Cata (season 1), one of Aleida's and Octavio's roommates in Houston. *

Nate Corddry Nathan Harris Corddry (born September 8, 1977) is an American actor and comedian best known for his roles as Adam Branch on ''Harry's Law'' and for his role as Gabriel in the first two seasons of '' Mom''. He has also guest starred on series suc ...

as Larry Wilson, a NASA engineer and Ellen's eventual husband. *Dan Warner as Air Force General Arthur Weber (season 1), military liaison to NASA. *

Lenny Jacobson Lenny Jacobson (born June 11, 1974) is an American actor best known for his recurring role as Wayne Cobb in the Apple TV+ original science fiction space drama series '' For All Mankind.'' Life and career Born and raised in Holyoke, Massachusetts, ...

as Wayne Cobb (seasons 1–2; guest season 3), Molly's pot-smoking artist husband. *

Edwin Hodge Edwin Martel Basil Hodge (born January 26, 1985) is an American actor. He is recognized for portraying Dante Bishop in ''The Purge'' film series, and is the only actor to appear in all of the first three films. Early life Hodge was born on Jan ...

as Clayton Poole (season 1), Danielle's first husband. *Tracy Mulholland as Gloria Sedgewick (season 1), the wife of Frank Sedgewick. *

Wallace Langham James Wallace Langham II (born March 11, 1965) is an American actor. He is best known for playing the role of Phil the Head Writer on ''The Larry Sanders Show''. He has also played the roles of David Hodges on the crime drama television series '' ...

as Harold Weisner (season 1), the NASA administrator in the Ted Kennedy administration. *Leonora Pitts as Irene Hendricks (seasons 1–2), the first woman

Flight Director Flight controllers are personnel who aid space flight by working in such Mission Control Centers as NASA's Mission Control Center or ESA's European Space Operations Centre. Flight controllers work at computer consoles and use telemetry to mon ...

. *

James Urbaniak James Christian Urbaniak (born September 17, 1963) is an American character actor. He is best known for his roles as Simon Grim in three Hal Hartley films: '' Henry Fool'' (1997), '' Fay Grim'' (2006) and '' Ned Rifle'' (2014), Robert Crumb in ...

as Gavin Donahue (season 1) *

Megan Dodds Megan Lynne Dodds is an American actress. She played Kate in the 2006 series ''Not Going Out'', alongside Lee Mack and Tim Vine, and has appeared in the series '' Spooks'', '' House'', ''Detroit 1-8-7'', and '' CSI: NY'', and the films '' Ever A ...

as Andrea Walters (season 1; guest season 2), a news anchor. *

John Marshall Jones John Marshall Jones is an American actor, best known for portraying Floyd Henderson on The WB sitcom ''Smart Guy''. He is currently the spokesperson for Pizza Hut. Career Since 2021, Jones has had a recurring role as U.S. Air Force General Nel ...

as Air Force General Nelson Bradford (season 2; guest season 3), military liaison to NASA. *

Michael Benz Michael Benz (born ) is an English-American actor. Early life and education Benz was born in England to American parents Thomas and Margaret Benz. He attended The American School in London before graduating from Georgetown University in 200 ...

as Gary Piscotty (season 2), the pilot of Pathfinder. *

Michaela Conlin Michaela Conlin (born June 9, 1978) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Angela Montenegro on the Fox crime procedural comedy-drama '' Bones'' which she played from 2005 to 2017. She also known for her recurring roles in t ...

as Helena Webster (season 2), a Marine pilot and astronaut. *

Tim Jo Tim Jo (born April 20, 1984) is an American television and film actor, he is most famous for playing "Reggie Jackson" on the ABC comedy, '' The Neighbors''. Early life and education Jo was born in Dallas in 1984. As a child, he appeared as a ...

as Steve Pomeranz (season 2) *

Charlie Schlatter Charles Thomas "Charlie" Schlatter (born May 1, 1966) is an American actor who has appeared in several films and television series. He is perhaps best known for playing Dr. Jesse Travis, the resident student of Dr. Mark Sloan (played by Dick Van ...

as Paul Michaels (season 2), a news anchor. *

Linda Park Linda Park (born July 9, 1978) is a South Korean-born American actress, best known for her portrayal of communications officer character Hoshi Sato in the television series '' Star Trek: Enterprise''. Early life Park was born in South Korea and ...

as Amy Chang (season 2), a news anchor. *

Scott Michael Campbell Scott Michael Campbell (born August 14, 1971) is an American actor, writer, producer and director. Campbell is best known from his roles in ''Brokeback Mountain'', ''Push'' and '' Flight of the Phoenix''. Among the roles he has played (many of ...

as Alex Rossi (season 2; guest season 3), commander of Jamestown Moon Base in 1983. * Kayla Blake as Dr. Kouri (season 2), doctor on Jamestown Moon Base in 1983. *Ellen Wroe as

Sally Ride Sally Kristen Ride (May 26, 1951 – July 23, 2012) was an American astronaut and physicist. Born in Los Angeles, she joined NASA in 1978, and in 1983 became the first American woman and the third woman to fly in space, after cosmonauts ...

(season 2) *Alex Akpobome as Paul DeWeese (season 2) * Daniel David Stewart as Nick Corrado (seasons 2–3), an astronaut on Jamestown Moon Base in 1983, later an astronaut for Helios. *Connor Tillman as Vance Paulson (season 2), head of the Marine detachment at Jamestown. *Zac Titus as Charles Bernitz (seasons 2–3), a "Moon Marine" and later a conspiracy theorist against NASA. *Andre Boyer as Jason Wilhelm (season 2), a "Moon Marine". *Chris Cortez as Steve Lopez (season 2), a "Moon Marine". *

Jeff Hephner Jeffrey Lane Hephner (born June 22, 1975) is an American actor, best known for the role of Jeff Clarke, first on the NBC television series '' Chicago Fire'' and then on its sister show, ''Chicago Med''. More recently, he co-starred with Jennifer ...

as Sam Cleveland (season 2; guest season 3), Tracy's second husband and Karen's business partner *

Piotr Adamczyk Piotr Aleksander Adamczyk (; born March 21, 1972) is a Polish film, television, voice and theatre actor. He is known for portraying pianist and composer Frédéric Chopin in the biographical film ''Chopin: Desire for love'' (2002), Pope John Pau ...

as Sergei Nikulov (seasons 2–3), initially a Soviet engineer on the Apollo–Soyuz team. *Josh Duvendeck as Nathan Morrison (season 2), an astronaut on the Apollo-Soyuz mission. *Alexander Sokovikov as Rolan Efimovitch Baranov (seasons 2–3), initially a Soviet cosmonaut and later astronaut. *

Sean Patrick Thomas Sean Patrick Thomas is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Derek Reynolds in the 2001 film ''Save the Last Dance'' and as Jimmy James in '' Barbershop'' (2002), '' Barbershop 2: Back in Business'' (2004), and '' Barbershop: The Ne ...

as Corey Johnson (season 3), Danielle's second husband. *Justice as Isaiah Johnson (season 3), Corey's son and Danielle's step-son. * Jorge Diaz as Victor Diaz (season 3), the husband of Aleida Rosales. *Madeline Bertani as Amber Stevens (season 3), the wife of Danny Stevens. *Sahana Srinivasan as Nuri Prabakar (season 3), Margo's new assistant. *

Lev Gorn Lev Gorn (russian: Лев Горенс; born 1971 in Stavropol) is a Russian-born American stage, film, and television actor. He is best known for his role as KGB officer Arkady Ivanovich Zotov in ''The Americans''. Later, he had a recurring rol ...

as Grigory Kuznetsov (season 3), a Soviet cosmonaut on the Mars 94 mission. *Vera Cherny as Lenara Catiche (season 3), the new director of the Soviet Space Organisation, Roscosmos. *Patricia Mizen as Janice Haan (season 3), a reporter. *Hailey Winslow as Karla Dunn (season 3), a reporter. *Ken Rudulph as Edward Kline (season 3), a news anchor. *John Hartmann as

Richard Truly Richard Harrison Truly (born November 12, 1937) is a retired vice admiral in the United States Navy, a former fighter pilot, engineer, astronaut, and was the eighth administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) fro ...

(season 3) *Tiago Martinez as Javier Diaz (season 3), the son of Aleida Rosales. *

Randy Oglesby Thomas Randell Oglesby (born 1949) is an American actor, best known for his recurring role as Degra on '' Star Trek: Enterprise''. He is also known for his other ''Star Trek'' roles, including captain Trena'L in the '' Star Trek: Enterprise'' epi ...

as Governor Jim Bragg (season 3), Ellen's vice president. *

Jessica Tuck Jessica Tuck is an American actress, best known for her performances on television as Megan Gordon Harrison on the ABC soap opera ''One Life to Live'', Gillian Gray in the CBS drama series ''Judging Amy,'' and as Nan Flanagan on the HBO series ...

as Christine Francis (season 3), a news anchor. *Cheyenne Perez as Heather (season 3), a Helios employee. *

Larry Sullivan Lawrence Edward Sullivan, Jr. (born September 10, 1970) is an American actor. Among his prominent roles is that of Robert, Will's ballet dancing boyfriend, on the NBC television series ''Will & Grace''. The episode was the show's first ever ho ...

as Ryan Bauer (season 3), a news anchor. *Allison Dunbar as Jenna Leigh (season 3), a news anchor. * Robert Bailey Jr. as Will Tyler (season 3), an astronaut on Sojourner. * Taylor Dearden as Sunny Hall (season 3), a conspiracy theorist who meets Jimmy Stevens. *Stewart Skelton as Dick Gephardt (season 3) *

Pawel Szajda Pawel B. Szajda ( pl, Paweł Szajda ; born January 13, 1982) is an American screen and stage actor. He is best known for his roles in '' Under the Tuscan Sun'', ''Generation Kill'', '' Tatarak,'' and as Soviet cosmonaut Alexei Poletov in the thi ...

as Alexei Poletov (season 3), a Soviet cosmonaut on the Mars 94 mission. *Larry Clarke as Bill McGann (season 3), a news anchor. *Amol Shah as Adarsh Sethi (season 3), an astronaut for Helios. *Anne Beyer as Louisa Mueller (season 3), an astronaut for Helios. *

Nick Boraine Nicholas Boraine (born 14 November 1971) is a South African actor. Life and education Boraine graduated from the University of Witwatersrand in 1994 with an Honours Degree in Dramatic Art. In March 2011, he joined Global Arts Corps as Associ ...

as Lars Hagstrom (season 3), an astronaut for Helios. *Mandy Levin as Sandy Bostik (season 3), an astronaut for Helios. *Ayinde Howell as Benjamin Harmon (season 3), an astronaut for Helios. *William Cowart as Hal (season 3), a conspiracy theorist. *Goran Ivanovski as Dr. Dimitri Mayakovsky (season 3; guest season 2), a Soviet cosmonaut on the Moon and Mars 94 mission. *Ilza Ponko as Isabel Castillo (season 3), a Cuban cosmonaut on the Mars 94 mission. *Blair Hickey as Richard "Dicky" Hilliard (season 3), the co-founder of Helios Aerospace.

Guest

Jeff Branson Jeffrey Dale Branson (born March 10, 1977)"Catching up with....Jeff Branson". ''Soap Opera Digest''. July 8, 2013. p. 45. is an American actor. He is known for his role as Ronan Malloy on ''The Young and the Restless'', Jonathan Lavery on '' Al ...

(season 1) *Steven Pritchard as

Pete Conrad Charles "Pete" Conrad Jr. (June 2, 1930 – July 8, 1999) was an American NASA astronaut, aeronautical engineer, naval officer and aviator, and test pilot, and commanded the Apollo 12 space mission, on which he became the third person to ...

(season 1) *

Saul Rubinek Saul Hersh Rubinek (born July 2, 1948) is a German-born Canadian actor, director, producer, and playwright. He is widely known for his television roles, notably Artie Nielsen on ''Warehouse 13,'' Donny Douglas on ''Frasier'', Lon Cohen on ''A N ...

Charles Sandman Charles William Sandman Jr. (October 23, 1921 – August 26, 1985) was an American Republican Party politician who represented Cape May County in the New Jersey Senate from 1954 to 1966 and represented southern New Jersey in the United States H ...

(season 1) *Cass Buggé as Patty Doyle (season 1), one of "Nixon's Women". *

Brian Stepanek Brian Patrick Stepanek (born February 6, 1971) is an American actor. He is known for his role as Arwin Hawkhauser on the Disney Channel Original Series ''The Suite Life of Zack & Cody'' and Brian on ''Brian O'Brian''. He was also a Sector Seve ...

as Shorty Powers (season 1) *

Matt Battaglia Matteo Martin "Matt" Battaglia (born September 25, 1965) is an American producer, actor and former American football linebacker. Football career Battaglia played college football at the University of Louisville. Battaglia played at Louisville a ...

as John Glenn (season 1) *

Stephen Oyoung Stephen Oyoung is an American actor and voice actor. He is best known for portraying Mister Negative, Martin Li / Mister Negative in the 2018 video game ''Spider-Man (2018 video game), Spider-Man''. Biography Oyoung became interested in acting a ...

as Harrison Liu (season 1), an astronaut. *

Mark Ivanir Mark Alexandrovich Ivanir ( he, מארק איווניר; uk, Марк Олександрович Іванір; russian: Марк Александрович Иванир) is a Ukrainian-born Israeli actor known for his character roles on America ...

as Mikhail Mikhailovich Vasiliev (season 1), a Soviet cosmonaut. *Bjørn Alexander as

Wubbo Ockels Wubbo Johannes Ockels (28 March 1946 – 18 May 2014) was a Dutch physicist and astronaut with the European Space Agency who, in 1985, became the first Dutch citizen in space when he flew on STS-61-A as a payload specialist. He later becam ...

(season 2) * Garrett Reisman as a fictionalized version of himself (season 2), a shuttle pilot. Reisman also serves as a technical consultant on the show. * Nikola Djuricko as Stepan Petrovich Alexseev (season 2), a cosmonaut on the Apollo–Soyuz mission. *Alexander Babara as Radislav Semenovich Orlov (season 2), a cosmonaut on the Apollo-Soyuz mission. *Dustin Seavey as

Lee Atwater Harvey LeRoy "Lee" Atwater (February 27, 1951 – March 29, 1991) was an American political consultant and strategist for the Republican Party. He was an adviser to US presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush and chairman of the Repub ...

(season 2) *

Tony Curran Tony Curran is a Scottish actor who has appeared in '' Underworld: Evolution'', ''Doctor Who'', ''Roots'', and the Netflix historical epic '' Outlaw King''. He appears in the Marvel Cinematic Universe film '' Thor: The Dark World'' (2013) as Bo ...

as Clarke Halladay (season 3), a Scottish astronaut. *Heidi Sulzman as Sylvie Kaplan (season 3), an astronaut. *John Forest as Jeremy Zielke (season 3), a White House employee. *

C. S. Lee Charles Seung-hee Lee (; born December 30, 1971), known professionally as C. S. Lee, is an American actor and comedian. He is perhaps best known for playing sex-obsessed forensics analyst Vince Masuka on the Showtime drama series ''Dexter''. ...

as Lee Jung-Gil (season 3), a North Korean cosmonaut.

Historical and real world figures in archive footage

Tom Brokaw Thomas John Brokaw (; born February 6, 1940) is an American retired network television journalist and author. He first served as the co-anchor of ''The Today Show'' from 1976 to 1981 with Jane Pauley, then as the anchor and managing editor of '' ...

Frank Borman Frank Frederick Borman II (born March 14, 1928) is a retired United States Air Force (USAF) colonel (United States), colonel, aeronautical engineer, test pilot, businessman, and NASA astronaut. He was the commander of Apollo 8, the first missio ...

Scott Carpenter Malcolm Scott Carpenter (May 1, 1925 – October 10, 2013) was an American naval officer and aviator, test pilot, aeronautical engineer, astronaut, and aquanaut. He was one of the Mercury Seven astronauts selected for NASA's Project Mercury ...

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (born October 1, 1924) is an American politician who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he previously served as th ...

* Kurt Cobain *

Gordon Cooper Leroy Gordon "Gordo" Cooper Jr. (March 6, 1927 – October 4, 2004) was an American aerospace engineer, test pilot, United States Air Force pilot, and the youngest of the seven original astronauts in Project Mercury, the first human spa ...

Mikhail Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet politician who served as the 8th and final leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...

Gus Grissom Virgil Ivan "Gus" Grissom (April 3, 1926 – January 27, 1967) was an American engineer, pilot in the United States Air Force, and member of the Mercury Seven selected by National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) as Project Mercur ...

* Gary Hart *

Jeane Kirkpatrick Jeane Duane Kirkpatrick (née Jordan; November 19, 1926December 7, 2006) was an American diplomat and political scientist who played a major role in the foreign policy of the Ronald Reagan administration. An ardent anticommunist, she was a lo ...

Henry Kissinger Henry Alfred Kissinger (; ; born Heinz Alfred Kissinger, May 27, 1923) is a German-born American politician, diplomat, and geopolitical consultant who served as United States Secretary of State and National Security Advisor under the presid ...

Tom Lehrer Thomas Andrew Lehrer (; born April 9, 1928) is an American former musician, singer-songwriter, satirist, and mathematician, having lectured on mathematics and musical theater. He is best known for the pithy and humorous songs that he recorded in ...

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

Jim Lovell James Arthur Lovell Jr. (; born March 25, 1928) is an American retired astronaut, naval aviator, test pilot and mechanical engineer. In 1968, as command module pilot of Apollo 8, he became, with Frank Borman and William Anders, one of th ...

John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

Jonathan Pollard Jonathan Jay Pollard (born August 7, 1954) is a former intelligence analyst for the United States government. In 1987, as part of a plea agreement, Pollard pleaded guilty to spying for and providing top-secret classified information to Israel. H ...

Wally Schirra Walter Marty Schirra Jr. (, March 12, 1923 – May 3, 2007) was an American naval aviator, test pilot, and NASA astronaut. In 1959, he became one of the original seven astronauts chosen for Project Mercury, which was the United States' f ...

Alan Shepard Alan Bartlett Shepard Jr. (November 18, 1923 – July 21, 1998) was an American astronaut, naval aviator, test pilot, and businessman. In 1961, he became the second person and the first American to travel into space and, in 1971, he beca ...

* George Shultz *

Margaret Thatcher Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. S ...

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of Pe ...

* Alex Trebek

Episodes

Season 1 (2019)

Season 2 (2021)

Season 3 (2022)

Production

Development

According to Ronald D. Moore, the idea of the show came about during lunch with former NASA astronaut Garrett Reisman, when they discussed the possibility of an alternate history in which the Soviets reached the Moon before the Americans. On December 15, 2017, it was announced that Apple had given the production a one-season series order. The series was created by Ronald D. Moore, Matt Wolpert, and Ben Nedivi. Maril Davis serves as executive producer alongside Moore, Wolpert, and Nedivi. Production companies involved with the series include

Sony Pictures Television Sony Pictures Television Inc. (abbreviated as SPT) is an American television production and distribution studio. Based at the Sony Pictures Studios complex in Culver City, it is a division of Sony Entertainment's unit Sony Pictures Entertainme ...

and

Tall Ship Productions Ronald Dowl Moore (born July 5, 1964) is an American screenwriter and television producer. He is best known for his work on '' Star Trek''; on the re-imagined '' Battlestar Galactica'' television series, for which he won a Peabody Award and a ...

. On October 5, 2018, it was announced that the series had been officially titled ''For All Mankind''. The series was renewed for a second season in October 2019. On November 19, 2020, it was announced that the second season would premiere on February 19, 2021. On December 8, 2020, ahead of the second-season premiere, Apple TV+ renewed the series for a third season. On July 22, 2022, Apple TV+ renewed the series for a fourth season.

Casting

In August 2018, it was announced that

, Sarah Jones,

, and Wrenn Schmidt had been cast in main roles and that

, and

would appear in a recurring capacity. On October 5, 2018, it was reported that

had been cast in a series regular role. On November 19, 2020, Cynthy Wu, Coral Peña and Casey W. Johnson had been cast in main roles for the second season. Also, Krys Marshall and

were promoted to the main cast for the second season. On December 16, 2020,

joined the cast in a supporting role for the second season. In June 2021, it was reported that

joined the season three cast as a series regular. In August 2022, it was reported that Daniel Stern joined the cast as a series regular for the fourth season. In September 2022,

Toby Kebbell Tobias Alistair Patrick Kebbell''Births, Marriages & Deaths: Toby is married to Arielle Wyatt. They got married in 2020 and they have one child together. Index of England & Wales, 1916–2005.''; at ancestry.com (born 9 July 1982) is an English ...

and Tyner Rushing joined the cast as series regulars for the fourth season. In November 2022, Svetlana Efremova joined the cast as a series regular for the fourth season.

Filming

Principal photography for the series commenced in August 2018 in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, California. In March 2019, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' reported that filming had concluded. The filming for the second season began on December 24, 2019. On August 17, 2020, production on second season resumed after the COVID-19 halt, and the final two episodes were filmed. Filming for the third season began on February 25, 2021 and concluded in mid-September 2021. Filming for the fourth season began in August 2022.

Release

The first season of ''For All Mankind'' premiered on

on November 1, 2019, and consisted of 10 episodes, releasing weekly until December 20, 2019. The second season premiered on February 19, 2021, and consisted of 10 episodes, releasing weekly until April 23, 2021. The third season premiered on June 10, 2022, and consisted of 10 episodes, releasing weekly until August 12, 2022.

Marketing

On February 11, 2021, ahead of the season two premiere, Apple released an

augmented reality Augmented reality (AR) is an interactive experience that combines the real world and computer-generated content. The content can span multiple sensory modalities, including visual, auditory, haptic, somatosensory and olfactory. AR can be de ...

iOS iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also include ...

application on the

App Store An App Store (or app marketplace) is a type of digital distribution platform for computer software called applications, often in a mobile context. Apps provide a specific set of functions which, by definition, do not include the running of the c ...

called ''For All Mankind: Time Capsule''. The application walks users through the decade-long gap between seasons one and two, showing the relationship between

astronaut An astronaut (from the Ancient Greek (), meaning 'star', and (), meaning 'sailor') is a person trained, equipped, and deployed by a human spaceflight program to serve as a commander or crew member aboard a spacecraft. Although generally r ...

s Gordo and Tracy Stevens, and their son Danny Stevens. At the

73rd Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards The 73rd Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards honored the best in artistic and technical achievement in American prime time television programming from June 1, 2020, until May 31, 2021, as chosen by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. The ...

, ''For All Mankind: Time Capsule'' won an award for Outstanding Innovation in Interactive Programming. For season two, Apple released a podcast titled ''For All Mankind: The Official Podcast'', produced in partnership with At Will Media, releasing every two weeks starting February 19, 2021. It is hosted by Krys Marshall, who plays Danielle Poole, and features behind-the-scenes looks and interviews with scientists, former astronauts, and the cast and crew of ''For All Mankind''. For season three, Apple released a companion video series titled ''The Science behind For All Mankind'' for corresponding episodes from season 3. It is hosted by Wrenn Schmidt, who plays Margo Madison, and has her explain and breakdown the scientific topics shown on the series.

Reception

Season 1

The first season of ''For All Mankind'' received generally positive reviews. The

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

reported a 74% approval rating with an average rating of 7/10, based on 54 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "Though it shoots for the Moon and falls somewhere in orbit, ''For All Mankind''s impressive vision of history has the potential for real liftoff if it leans into the things that set it apart instead of settling for more of the same."

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 65 out of 100 based on 22 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Season 2

On Rotten Tomatoes, the second season has a 100% approval rating with an average rating of 7.5/10, based on 22 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "''For All Mankind''s sophomore flight isn't without its hiccups, but compelling character work and a renewed sense of wonder make for thrilling viewing." On Metacritic, it has a weighted score of 75 out of 100 based on 7 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Season 3

On Rotten Tomatoes, the third season has an 100% approval rating with an average rating of 8.2/10, based on 30 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "''For All Mankind''s third season goes as far as Mars while maintaining a homey focus on its original ensemble, delivering another epic adventure with an intimate focus." On Metacritic, it has a weighted score of 84 out of 100 based on 15 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".

Accolades

Music

Season 1 Original Soundtrack

Season 2 Original Soundtrack

Season 3 Original Soundtrack

References

External links