After a three-year hiatus, The Orville finally returned for its third season last month. But unlike its first two seasons which aired on Fox, season 3 of the sci-fi dramedy is streaming as a Hulu original series with the subtitle New Horizons.
Why did The Orville change its name?
In a recent interview with Collider, series creator Seth MacFarlane revealed where the idea of adding the subtitle New Horizons to the show’s original title The Orville came from.
“Adding a subtitle was actually Dana Walden’s idea,” said MacFarlane, who was referring to the Chairman of Disney General Entertainment Content. “And I thought it was a really good one. That’s my boss over at Disney who I’ve worked with and been friends with for a long time. That was her idea. And I thought it was kind of cool because it’s not a reboot, it’s a continuation, but it was just enough to tell the audience that we’re expanding a little bit. That the scope is bigger. The show is more ambitious. It’s going to feel more like a movie. It’s maybe going to feel a little more special.”
MacFarlane, who also stars as Captain Ed Mercer in the series in addition to producing, writing, and directing the show, noted that adding the subtitle “seemed appropriate” because it’s been a few years since The Orville has been on the air and it’s the first season to premiere on Hulu.
While MacFarlane added that the name change is “not that big a difference,” he said that it was an idea that he likes.
What makes season 3 different from the first two seasons?
Ahead of season 3’s debut, MacFarlane said that the visual effects of the new season are way better that those of the past two seasons.
“Certainly, on a visual level, the visual effects work this year is, I think, comparable to anything I’ve seen on TV, particularly as the season goes on,” MacFarlane told ComicBook.com. “The team just did a hell of a job on all this stuff and I think people are going to be really shocked at the scope of this thing as the season progresses.”
MacFarlane added that season 3 has superior storytelling compared to seasons 1 and 2, as episodes of the new season are not constrained by a time limit that network shows strictly abide by.
“From a storytelling standpoint, it’s much better for me because the biggest issue I have with, particularly, the prevalence of streaming programming, there’s some talented writers working on network dramas, but the problem is that you have to cut everything down to exactly 43 minutes,” MacFarlane said. “That’s not how storytelling works. It doesn’t.”
He continued, “Not every story wants to be the same length and if you have a scene that’s playing really great, that’s emotional and you take your time with it. and it really makes the audience feel something, you may have to cut something down that really should not be cut down. Now, there’s a discipline, at the same time, on the other side of things. You don’t want to indulge yourself to the point at which you’re boring your audience. But for a show like this, to be able to be cinematic and to take the time to set the mood is something you just can’t do on a network because you’re just so constrained by that time limit, and that, to me, more than anything else was the most satisfying thing about the move.”
The Orville season 3 synopsis
Set 400 years in the future, The Orville: New Horizons finds the crew of the U.S.S. Orville continuing their mission of exploration as they navigate both the mysteries of the universe and the complexities of their own interpersonal relationships.
The Orville season 3 cast
Aside from MacFarlane, The Orville season 3 also stars Adrianne Palicki (Commander Kelly Grayson), Penny Johnson Jerald (Doctor Claire Finn), Scott Grimes (Lieutenant Gordon Malloy), Peter Macon (Lieutenant Commander Bortus), J Lee (Lieutenant Commander John LaMarr), Mark Jackson (Isaac), Chad L. Coleman (Klyden), Jessica Szohr (Lieutenant Commander Talla Keyali), and Anne Winters (Ensign Charly Burke).
The Orville season 3 release date
The Orville season 3 premiered on Hulu on June 2nd, with one new episode dropping on the streamer every Thursday. The 10-episode season is set to conclude on August 4th.
The Orville season 3 trailer
