'Resident Alien': Sara Tomko who plays Asta already thinking about Season 2 possibilities for Syfy alien dramedy
An alien crashlands on Earth and must pass himself off as small-town human doctor Harry Vanderspeigle. Arriving with a secret mission to kill all humans, Harry starts off living a simple life. But things get a bit rocky when he’s roped into solving a local murder and realizes he needs to assimilate into his new world. This is what ‘Resident Alien’, Syfy’s upcoming science-fiction dramedy, is all about.
The show is an adaption of a comic book series of the same name and is being helmed by Chris Sheridan. The show stars, among others, Alan Tudyk of ‘Firefly’ fame, and Sara Tomko, a film and theater actor best known for her roles in 'Once Upon a Time' and 'Sneaky Pete'. Tomko, a fan of ‘Queen’s Gambit’ and ‘Love Island’, spoke to MEA WorldWide in an exclusive interview and gave us more insight into the show and her character.
The show, which she initially felt was like “E.T. grew up and made some mistakes”, left her “delightfully surprised”. As per the actor, the show has “lots of laughing, unexpected sentimental moments, and superb writing”. Tomko, speaking about the source material, said, “I was drawn in by the incredible art of Steve Parkhouse and I’m excited for fans to see some of those exact images come to life in Season One. I was especially intrigued because I thought Asta (her character) looked just like me!”
Having read the comics, Tomko says that as far as loyalty goes, “Chris Sheridan does an incredible job of respecting Peter’s original vision while updating the TV show with a well-rounded, diverse cast and thinking outside the box,” adding, “The dramedy we have on-screen is not far off from the dramedy we have surrounding us these days in real life ala who are you, you’re different than me, you look different, you think different, people tell me to be afraid of you, but should I be, really?” She said, however, “we are not mirroring too many specifics of the comic book story aside from [Dramatic Music] Murder!”
While the first season is yet to drop, Tomko is already stoked about the possibilities the future of the show holds. “You know, there’s a volume of the comic book that happens in New York where Harry (Tudyk) finds another alien on this planet, and I told Chris we should definitely mirror that volume at some point in the series. He agreed, saying maybe we can, one day, in a different season.”
Asta Twelvetrees, she says, is a wonderfully complex character who is a fighter in every sense. “She is a strong ally to those she loves but she has a hard time trusting people, specifically men, especially men who come into her workplace and take over as if they own the place and act like a fool.”
Asked whether her character would suspect Harry, Tomko says that Asta is “super suspicious” of Harry but at the same time finds something comforting about him. In the comics, Asta’s father, a Mohawk shaman, mistakes Harry for a visiting spirit instead of an alien. Dan Twelvetrees (Gary Farmer), she says has a sixth sense about Harry. “He doesn’t see him as a visiting spirit, he just knows he doesn’t like his energy. He doesn’t trust him,” she says.
Tomko further says, “[Dan] is not playing a ‘Mohawk Shaman’ like in the comic book but he is playing a wise, calm, intuitive man who wants nothing to do with this Harry character,” adding that Dan and Asta have a complicated relationship.
Speaking both as a colleague and a ‘Firefly’ fan, Tomko says, “Alan is a comedy legend... The dynamic between him and his wife (in the show) was actually my favorite part.” She adds, “If you thought you knew what Alan was capable of, sit back and enjoy the ride, the quirkiest, weirdest, most lovable Alan is sure to come.”
Aside from ‘Resident Alien’, Tomko has other stuff going on. “My fiancé, TJ Pederson, and I have a production company called In The Pocket Productions. We were actually premiering our first film in 2018 on the same night I got the call about Asta,” says Tomko.
“We are currently working on an arthouse horror film that TJ is busy writing with the plans to go into production in 2022 barring any more pandemic scares. I am on hold at the moment with any other projects because it’s still pretty unsafe to work but, also, we’re waiting to see if we’ll get picked up for Season Two (crossing fingers and toes and alien tentacles),” she says.
'Resident Alien' premieres on SyFy on January 27, 2021.