At MegaCon in Orlando this past week, Jason Isaacs opened up about the sudden end of ‘The OA.’ When a fan asked how not following the show’s five-season plan felt, he explained with praise to the creators Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij:
“They built all the foundations, and then they let all of the actors flesh it out, and that’s why I think there’s not been anything like it. I’ve never seen anything like that show. I really adored it, and, by the way, although it was canceled after Season 2, they have all five seasons in their head. And if you saw Season 2, you know, where we left it, we can pick it up anytime; we’d be willing to if we get a chance.”
Jason Isaacs Part In The Series
In ‘The OA,’ Isaacs played Dr. Hunter Aloysius Percy, aka Hap. Throughout two seasons, Hap became the antagonist for Prairie Johnson (Marling) and other people he kidnapped for experiments.
The actor took over the character from a ‘Hungarian poet,’ who couldn’t speak English well, and started filming as soon as he got the role. About the shaping of his part, he shared:
“I went almost straight from the airport to Grand Central Station to the first scene where I met the character. They’ve been living with this thing for years. They’ve written it on spec, meaning no one commissioned them, nor developed it, nor gave them notice, all from their brain fully formed. And I got there, and I said, I was just thinking one thing about this guy, and Zal interrupted, and he said, ‘Listen, you already know him better than we do. Follow your guts.’ Which is such a beautiful, a brave piece of direction.”
Wishes For The Netflix Show’s Return
Leaving the role of Hap was tough for Isaacs, who previously revealed ‘sobbing’ upon finding out about the cancellation. On the topic of possibly reviving ‘The OA,’ he remained open to the idea, telling Yahoo:
“Never say never. We left it; we could always go back to where we left it. It’s had the most profound effect on people around the world; tens of millions of people watched it and loved it.”
His words went on:
“You know, people did the movements outside [Netflix] headquarters, and they did it at the Louvre, they did it at Trump Tower and stuff, and still inside the industry, and with journalists, it’s the thing they want to talk about most always. People come up to me, and they say, ‘Can you tell Brit Marling she’s a goddess?’ I say, ‘I will,’ and they go, ‘No, I mean a real goddess, I practice white magic, and she’s a goddess.’”
Despite a strong fan reaction to the show’s cancellation in 2019, including campaigns like #SaveTheOA and #TheOAisReal, plus a petition on Change.org, there has been no official move to bring back the show yet.
