With the SAG-AFTRA strike now over, we were finally able to catch back up with all of the stars from Prime Video's acclaimed sci-fi comedy series Upload, and in our first interview, we sat down with Kevin Bigley ("Luke Crossley"), Zainab Johnson ("Aleesha Morrison-Downey"), and Owen Daniels ("A.I. Guy") to get all the details about what transpired in that twisty-turvy finale, including that big moment between Luke and Aleesha.
In addition to breaking down that long-awaited kiss, we also learn more about what went behind A.I. Guy's journey this season, developing the relationship between Luke and Aleesha across three seasons, whether Luke may ever consider leaving Lakeview, and a whole lot more.
Watch and/or read on for our full interview with stars Kevin Bigley, Zainab Johnson, and Owen Daniels below, and please remember to SUBSCRIBE to my YouTube channel for more exclusive content!
ROHAN: Kevin and Zainab, considering it took so much build-up, I have to start by asking you about that big finale moment where Luke and Aleesha finally kiss. What were your thoughts on that moment and building this relationship over the course of these three seasons?
OWEN: I can take this one if you guys want.
KEVIN: Yeah, I want Owen to answer it.
OWEN: Well, you know, we were told to share the room, so I just want to make sure I get this out of the way - I think, Kevin, you should take it. I was gonna go in a different direction.
KEVIN: I think I speak for Z, actually, very candidly, that we are very, both of us, are kind of wary of how far this relationship will go, ust because it's like, I don't know, it's such a working friendship on the show. They're crossing into territory that, for a potential season four, that I don't think either of them would be ready for, and it would be such a unique and weird relationship. I wonder how the dynamics would actually work, but yeah, we were building to it, so we had to do something.
ZAINAB: I think we gave the fans - definitely the fans that are rooting for Luke and Alicia just to get together already - I think we gave them just like a tiny little treat, you know, to fire them up, but, you know, Alicia, from the very beginning was always like, no, it doesn't make sense. She always cautioned Nora, you know, from any sort of romantic relationship with an upload, and so I personally think that while I love the friendship that Alicia and Luke are building, it'll be a journey for Alicia to get there.
KEVIN: Yeah, it's kind of one of those things that I think is a little bit beyond, like it's just a different thing, it's not a Nathan and Nora situation. It’s something far weirder.
OWEN: It’s the carnival mirror funhouse version of the Nathan and Nora relationship.
ROHAN: Owen, since you're both a writer and actor on the show, what was it like starting to see AI Guy become a little more human and find that unexpected friendship with Ingrid? And, where could he go next?
KEVIN: I’ll take this one, Owen.
OWEN: Yes, please. *laughs* Ingrid being the foil for him, like his friend, yeah, I think that Ingrid and AI Guy have so much in common, which I think is why we kind of wrote them getting closer this season. They're both kind of alone, and nobody understands them, and they're both trying to become human, or more human, in their own ways, and I think that it's funny because the two people who have that same story are now friends, and then she invited him to her wedding at the end of the season, and that was really beautiful.
So, I don't know what's going to happen with AI Guy in season four, let's hope we get that soon, but I don't know how human he's gonna get. It could be freaky weird how human he gets, I don't know, maybe he gets more human than anyone.
KEVIN: Than you?
OWEN: I know, maybe he gets more human than me.
KEVIN: Is that possible?
OWEN: Maybe I just won't be able to write him anymore, because we'll have Chat GPT write his scenes to make him more human, I don't know, but that's where I think that relationship could go. That's why I like that relationship and why I think it's similar.
ROHAN: Zainab, I've seen your comedy, and can see how much you seem to vibe off the energy of a live audience, which is something you can't really do on a show like this. Where do you find that same sort of energy when performing your scenes on Upload? And/or what kind of challenges did those more intimate, romantic scenes present to you?
ZAINAB: I mean, season three was new challenges for me because certain parts of Aleesha’s growth is having intimacy scenes, you know, intimate scenes, and, you know, people don't know this, but I don't like Kevin at all. *laughs*
KEVIN: They know it now!
ZAINAB: But it has been, you know, a journey like, I'll never forget in season one, I was saying a line the way I wanted to say it, and the way I thought was best comedically, and I remember Greg Daniels coming to me and saying, ‘I respect your comedic sensibility, but the line is like this for a reason.’ And, I think that crystallized everything for me. Upload is very different than my stand up, and I really do enjoy the differences in being able to do both.
OWEN: You know, what's amazing about Zainab though, and Kevin is when they perform - something cool about them is that I feel like all the best actors, or the best performers that I've gotten to work with or write for, they're really open to hearing notes, because they're super confident in themselves. They know they're amazing, like they know that they're good, and they know that what they're gonna give is great, so they're like, yeah, tell me how you would do it. Like, let's just get the best thing, and that's like them. That's Zainab and Kevin.
KEVIN: I have never taken a single note from Owen, and I never, ever will!
OWEN: Well, that's creatively speaking, but in other aspects of our friendship, he takes notes all the time, in cooking together, you took notes in cooking, we made Ratatouille, and you took my notes there. And, we made banana bread and you took my notes there, and we made pumpkin bread, and you did not take my notes there…
ZAINAB: Rohan, you better jump in, if you got some other questions, you better jump in.
ROHAN: Kevin, since we now know that the download process does work and that Download Nathan is going to be fine, could we see Luke possibly explore the possibility of being downloaded in season four?
KEVIN: It could be, I mean, I think that, especially as it seems like more and more of his friends are leaving Lakeview, you know, I think he would lose an aspect of what's special about him maybe, or what he feels is special about him is that he knows this world better than anybody knows it, that he can hack it all over the place, you know, and with Karina, and all that stuff with her job and all that, like what’s befallen Horizon, maybe he can get some of those cheats, he will always find a workaround, and the gray zone is maybe perhaps too enticing.
ZAINAB: But, you know what, Kevin, it was a scene between you and I that I loved this season - and why is the line escaping me - it's like you say, because they're not like us.
KEVIN: Yeah!
ZAINAB: Right? Luke will be okay. Luke is resilient.
KEVIN: He's always gonna be a pirate.
ZAINAB: Yeah, Luke is a pirate. Luke is going to find a way, and I think what was amazing about this season is having that stripped away, having sort of the things that made him initially cool to Nathan, having those things stripped away. I just look forward, you know, hopefully we get the chance to see how Luke adapts to this world and what new things he comes up with in place of you know, the things that are taken away from him.
KEVIN: Yeah, he’ll always be elusive. If he ends up in the real world, he'll find his way back to Horizon, to Lakeview, I'm sure.
Upload season three is now streaming on Prime Video!