Salvation (TV series) explained

Composer:	John Paesano
Country:	United States
Language:	English
Num Seasons:	2
Num Episodes:	26
Camera:	Single-camera
Runtime:	43 minutes
Network:	CBS

Salvation is an American suspense drama television series,^[1] that premiered on July 12, 2017.^[2] The series was originally announced as being developed in September 2013,^[3] but received its straight-to-series 13-episode order in October 2016.^[4] On October 18, 2017, CBS renewed the series for a 13-episode second season, which premiered on June 25, 2018.^{[5] [6]} On November 20, 2018, CBS canceled the series after two seasons.^[7]

Premise

The show centers on the discovery of an asteroid that will impact the Earth in just six months, highlighting the attempts to prevent it and its worldwide ramifications. The show looks at how different individuals and groups of people react to the impending doom.^[1]

Cast

Main

• Santiago Cabrera as Darius Tanz,^[8] a billionaire scientist who is the founder and CEO of Tanz Industries and a pivotal player in the United States' defense against the impending asteroid. Darius briefly serves as the Vice President of the United States before becoming president after President Mackenzie's assassination.
• Jennifer Finnigan as Grace Barrows,^[9] the Pentagon press secretary, later senior advisor to President Mackenzie and later President Tanz; she has an intimate relationship with Harris Edwards, Deputy Secretary, and later, Secretary of Defense, and works with Darius to prevent the asteroid collision.
• Charlie Rowe as Liam Cole,^[10] a student at MIT and later Darius' protégé; he is one of the first people outside the government to predict the asteroid's impending collision with Earth. He, his MIT professor and mentor Malcolm Croft and Darius work together on an EM drive for a gravity tractor they hope to use to change the asteroid's course.
• Jacqueline Byers as Jillian Hayes,^[10] a science fiction writer from Boston who becomes involved with Liam and is later chosen by Darius to pick 160 survivors to leave Earth if the asteroid collision cannot be stopped.
• Rachel Drance as Zoe Barrows (season 1; recurring season 2), Grace's daughter
• Shazi Raja as Amanda Neel (season 1),^[11] an investigative reporter who is searching for the truth about Darius' and the government's secrets. After learning about the asteroid, Amanda is assassinated before she can publish the story.
• Ian Anthony Dale as Harris Edwards,^[12] a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy who now serves as the United States Deputy Secretary of Defense and is one of the few people in Washington, D.C. who knows of the asteroid's impending impact. He is described as a skilled operative but an even better bureaucrat. After his superior is fired, he is promoted to Secretary of Defense.
• Ashley Thomas as Alonzo Carter (season 2),^[13] a detective with the D.C. police who is investigating the disappearance of Claire Rayburn
• Melia Kreiling as Alycia Vrettou (season 2),^[13] a brilliant computer scientist, former protégé of Darius Tanz, and member of RE/SYST, leading an international group of captive scientists to come up with a plan to prevent the asteroid collision

Recurring

• Dennis Boutsikaris as Malcolm Croft, a professor at MIT and Liam's mentor^[14]
• Erica Luttrell as Claire Rayburn,^[15] Senior Adviser and later White House Chief of Staff to President Monroe Bennett.
• Tovah Feldshuh as Pauline Mackenzie, the President of the United States
• Josette Jorge as Karissa (season 1), Darius' assistant
• Sasha Roiz as Monroe Bennett, the vice president, and later president, of the United States
• Mark Moses as Hugh Keating, Grace's father and former CIA agent
• Brian Markinson as Randall Calhoun (season 1), the United States Secretary of Defense who is later fired by President Mackenzie and replaced by Harris Edwards.
• Jeffrey Nordling as Daniel Hayes (season 1), Jillian's father and a bookseller
• John Noble as Nicholas Tanz,^[14] Darius' uncle and Chairman of the Board of Directors at Tanz Industries.
• Raven Dauda (season 1) as Harris' secretary
• Autumn Reeser as Theresa (season 1),^[16] aka Tess, Darius' first love
• André Dae Kim as Dylan Edwards (recurring season 1, guest season 2), Harris' son and a member of the hacker organization RE/SYST
• Taylor Cole as Fiona Lane (guest season 1; recurring season 2), a bartender with whom Harris Edwards has an affair, but who later is revealed to have a connection to Darius' plans to save humanity
• Madison Smith as Nate Ryland (season 2), a co-worker, a later friend, of Jillian's in the White House
• Jonathan Silverman as Roland Kavanaugh (season 2),^[17] the White House Counsel
• Anjali Jay as Dr. Rosetta Stendahl (season 2),^[13] an old friend of Darius' and a brilliant scientist. She joins Darius and leads the project to prepare a rail-gun intended to help divert the asteroid.
• Luke Arnold as Bass Shepherd (season 2), the spiritual leader of Children of Planet Earth (COPE), a support group that Jillian joins
• Manoj Sood as Dr. Chandra (season 2), an international specialist in Orbital Dynamics and General Purturbation Theory
• James Lesure as Trey Thompson (season 2), a two-term congressman and former NASA pilot who is later named Vice President under Tanz.

Episodes

Season 2 (2018)

Production

The first season was filmed in Toronto, Ontario.^[18] The show relocated to Vancouver, British Columbia for its second season.^{[19] [20] [21]}

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the series has an approval rating of 47% based on 17 reviews, with an average rating of 5.75/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Neither remarkably bad nor impressively well-made, Salvation is stereotypical summer television – a low-stakes diversion that may pass the time well enough for undemanding audiences without ever being particularly memorable along the way."^[22] On Metacritic, the series has a score of 48 out of 100, based on 18 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".^[23]

Ratings

Season 2

Awards and nominations

Year	Ceremony	Category	Nominee(s)	Result
2017	The Joey Awards	Best Recurring Principal or Guest Star Actor in a TV Series Age 13 Years & Over	André Dae Kim		^[24]
2018	Saturn Awards	Best Science Fiction Television Series	Salvation		^[25]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Nellie . Andreeva . CBS Orders 'Salvation' Summer Suspense Drama Series Produced By Alex Kurtzman . . October 20, 2016 . May 23, 2017.
2. Web site: Nellie . Andreeva . CBS Sets Summer Premiere Dates For 'Big Brother', 'Salvation', 'Zoo' & 'Candy Crush' . . March 16, 2017 . May 23, 2017.
3. Web site: Nellie . Andreeva . Alex Kurtzman, Bob Orci & Peter Lenkov Sell Drama To CBS With Writer Matt Wheeler . . September 6, 2013 . May 23, 2017.
4. Web site: Oriana . Schwindt . CBS Orders Suspense Thriller 'Salvation' for Summer Premiere . . October 20, 2016 . May 23, 2017.
5. Web site: Salvation Renewed for Season 2 at CBS . October 18, 2017 . October 18, 2017 . Ausiello . Michael . TVLine.
6. Web site: CBS Sets Summer Premiere Dates For 'Big Brother', 'TKO' & 'Salvation' Season 2. Pedersen. Erik. Deadline Hollywood. May 22, 2018. May 22, 2018.
7. Web site: Otterson. Joe. 'Salvation' Canceled at CBS After Two Seasons. Variety. November 20, 2018. November 20, 2018.
8. Web site: Nellie . Andreeva . 'Salvation': Santiago Cabrera To Star In CBS Summer Drama Series, Juan Carlos Fresnadillo To Direct . . February 16, 2017 . June 6, 2017.
9. Web site: Nellie . Andreeva . Jennifer Finnigan To Star In CBS Summer Drama Series 'Salvation' . . February 7, 2017 . June 6, 2017.
10. Web site: Denise . Petski . 'Salvation': Charlie Rowe & Jacqueline Byers Join CBS Summer Suspense Drama Series . . February 2, 2017 . June 6, 2017.
11. Web site: Patrick . Hipes . 'Salvation': Shazi Raja & Rachel Drance Join CBS Summer Series . . February 28, 2017 . June 6, 2017.
12. Web site: Denise . Petski . 'Salvation': Ian Anthony Dale Joins CBS Summer Drama Series . . February 14, 2017 . June 6, 2017.
13. Web site: 'Salvation': Melia Kreiling & Ashley Thomas Cast As Regulars In Season 2 . Deadline Hollywood . Petski . Denise . February 12, 2018 . February 12, 2018.
14. Web site: 'Salvation' Season 1, Episode 6 Spoilers: John Noble Appearing As Darius' Father? . . August 4, 2017 .
15. Web site: Denise . Petski . 'Salvation' Casts Erica Luttrell; Carter Redwood Joins 'The Long Road Home' . . April 7, 2017 . July 12, 2017.
16. Web site: Wednesday's TV highlights: 'Suits' on USA . Ed . Stockly . August 29, 2017 . Los Angeles Times.
17. Web site: Salvation Adds Jonathan Silverman for Season 2, Brings Back Taylor Cole . Mitovich. Matt Webb. TVLine. April 3, 2018. April 3, 2018.
18. Web site: Salvation's Jennifer Finnigan Nerds Out Over CBS' 'Fun' Killer Asteroid Drama: 'It's My Favorite Show I've Ever Done' . Mitovich . Matt Webb . . July 11, 2017 . July 11, 2017.
19. Web site: Filming in Vancouver: DC's Legends of Tomorrow, The Good Doctor, Spontaneous, and Salvation . Takeuchi . Craig . insidevancouver.ca . March 5, 2018 . March 5, 2018.
20. IanAnthonyDale . Ian Anthony Dale . 975091436768051200 . Proof it's not always adversarial. #teamharrius #salvation salvationcbs @ Vancouver, British… . March 17, 2018 . March 17, 2018.
21. MyVancouver . TourismVancouver . 970765998121979904 . Filming In Vancouver: DC's Legends of Tomorrow, The Good Doctor, Spontaneous, and Salvation . March 5, 2018 . March 5, 2018.
22. Web site: Salvation: Season 1 (2017) . . September 7, 2018.
23. Web site: Salvation: Season 1 reviews . Metacritic . August 9, 2017.
24. Web site: 2017 Nominations. July 15, 2018. The Joey Awards. January 14, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180114034709/http://www.joeyawards.com/2017-nominations. dead.
25. Web site: 'Black Panther,' 'Walking Dead' Rule Saturn Awards Nominations . McNary . Dave . . March 15, 2018 . March 15, 2018.
26. Web site: Salvation: Season One. December 19, 2017. July 15, 2018. Amazon.com.
27. Web site: Salvation Season 1. July 15, 2018. Releases.
28. Web site: Salvation: Season One [4 Discs] [DVD]]. December 19, 2017. July 15, 2018. Best Buy.