119 Fun Facts About The Expanse

On which network did The Expanse premiere in December 2015?

Syfy called it its most ambitious series to date.

Which streaming service revived the show after Syfy cancelled it?

Fans flew a #SaveTheExpanse banner over Amazon Studios during the campaign.

After how many seasons did Syfy cancel the series?

Amazon then made three more, ending with season 6.

Under what pen name are the source novels written?

James S. A. Corey is a pen name built from the two authors' middle names, James and Corey; it first appeared on the 2011 debut novel.

Who are the two authors behind the pen name?

Franck had worked as a famous fantasy author's personal assistant.

Whom do the letters S. A. in the pen name refer to?

The name was also meant to sound like a 1970s space opera writer.

What is the title of the first novel in the series?

Leviathan Wakes (2011) opened the series and was nominated for the 2012 Hugo Award for Best Novel.

What is the title of the ninth and final novel?

It was released on November 30, 2021, weeks before the final season.

Which Hugo category did the complete set of novels win in 2020?

The Expanse won the Hugo Award for Best Series in 2020, after being a finalist in the category's first year, 2017.

Who plays James Holden?

Strait had played Warren Peace in Sky High.

Who plays Naomi Nagata?

Dominique Tipper, a British actress raised in Limehouse, East London, plays Naomi Nagata across all six seasons.

Who plays Amos Burton?

Chatham later co-hosted the official aftershow with Ty Franck.

Who plays pilot Alex Kamal?

Cas Anvar plays Alex Kamal, the Rocinante's Martian pilot, whose drawl comes from the Mariner Valley settlers.

Who plays detective Joe Miller?

Critics mourned the loss of his wonderful hats when the character left in season 2.

Who plays Chrisjen Avasarala?

Shohreh Aghdashloo, an Iranian-American actress with an Oscar nomination and an Emmy, plays Chrisjen Avasarala, the UN's foul-mouthed power broker.

Who plays Martian marine Bobbie?

Frankie Adams, a Samoan New Zealander born on Savai'i, plays Bobbie from seasons 2 to 6.

Who plays Camina Drummer?

Cara Gee plays Drummer, who rises from Tycho's head of security to a Belter faction leader fighting Marco; Gee voiced her again in a 2023 prequel video game.

Who plays Marco?

Keon Alexander plays Marco Inaros, introduced in season 4 and promoted to the main cast for season 5.

What is the name of the ice hauler destroyed at the start of the series?

The Canterbury, the ice hauler Holden serves on, is destroyed by a stealth ship in the pilot; Mars is blamed, pushing the system toward war.

What was the Rocinante called when it was a Martian gunship?

The Tachi, a Martian Navy corvette, becomes the Rocinante after Holden's crew escape aboard it and change its transponder.

Which Martian flagship is destroyed by stealth ships in season 1?

The Donnager, the Martian flagship that picks up Holden's crew, is destroyed by stealth ships in season 1; Shed Garvey is decapitated by a railgun round in the battle.

Whom is Miller hired to find in season 1?

Julie Mao, heiress of the Mao-Kwikowski shipping fortune, is the missing woman Miller is hired to find; she had secretly joined the OPA.

On which dwarf planet is Miller a detective?

Star Helix Security polices the station there.

Which asteroid station's population is wiped out by the biohazard in season 1?

Eros station's population is wiped out in the season 1 outbreak; Julie Mao dies there alone in a hotel room before it spreads.

What does the OPA stand for?

OPA stands for Outer Planets Alliance, a loose coalition of Belter factions; Fred Johnson and Anderson Dawes lead rival wings of it.

What is the name of the government on Mars?

Mars is governed by the Martian Congressional Republic, whose navy (the MCRN) fields ships like the Donnager; its culture is militaristic and terraforming-focused.

What are inhabitants of the asteroid belt called?

Belters are the inhabitants of the asteroid belt; low gravity gives them tall, thin bodies and they speak their own creole.

What is the alien bio-weapon at the centre of the story called?

The protomolecule, an alien agent launched toward Earth billions of years ago, was found frozen on Phoebe, a moon Saturn captured before it could arrive.

Into which planet does Eros finally crash?

Eros crashes into Venus after Miller persuades Julie Mao, now merged with the protomolecule, to steer it away from Earth.

Which ship is commandeered to try to knock Eros into the Sun?

The Nauvoo, the generation ship under construction at Tycho, is launched at Eros to push it into the Sun; Eros dodges, revealing it is being steered.

Which religious group built the generation ship Miller uses against Eros?

Miller visits its temple before proposing the plan.

Where does Bobbie's squad get massacred by an inhuman figure?

Ganymede is the scene; falling orbital mirrors also devastate the moon's farms, and Bobbie goes on to become Avasarala's protégé during Earth–Mars peace talks.

Whose company creates the hybrid soldiers?

Jules-Pierre Mao's Protogen engineers the protomolecule hybrid soldiers at a secret facility on Io, using children with an immune disorder taken from Ganymede.

What is botanist Prax searching for in season 2?

Prax (Terry Chen) is hunting for his daughter Mei, taken from Ganymede by her pediatrician; Amos ends up shooting the doctor so Prax does not have to.

Beyond which planet's orbit does the Ring form?

The Ring settles beyond the orbit of Uranus after the protomolecule structure launches itself from Venus; Earth, Mars and the OPA race to send ships to it.

What triggers the Ring's defences in season 3?

The racer is decelerated to a near stop instantly, killing the pilot.

What name is given to the projection of Miller that appears to Holden?

The Investigator is the protomolecule construct wearing Miller's face; it uses Holden to find out what killed the Ring builders.

How many habitable planetary systems does the Ring network open up?

The Ring hub opens gates to about 1,300 other systems (1,373 in the novels); the rush to settle them drives seasons 4 to 6.

What is the exoplanet at the centre of season 4 called?

Ilus to the Belter settlers, New Terra to the Earthers; a ship ran Drummer's blockade to reach it, and Avasarala sent the Rocinante to investigate.

Which Torchwood actor plays RCE security chief Murtry in season 4?

He shoots Amos's fingers off in "Saeculum".

Which novel is season 4 almost entirely adapted from?

Season 4 adapts Cibola Burn, the fourth novel, with Bobbie's Mars subplot drawn from the novella Gods of Risk.

What does Marco use to attack Earth in season 5?

Earth's Watchtower satellites are only switched on after the first strikes.

What does Marco call his rebel Belter fleet?

Marco Inaros calls his rebel fleet the Free Navy and, after the rocks strike Earth, proclaims Belter sovereignty over the outer planets and the ring gates.

Whose son is Filip Inaros?

Marco and Naomi's son; Jasai Chase-Owens plays him, and Naomi spends most of season 5 trying to reach him.

Who assassinates Fred on Tycho?

The traitor also helps steal Tycho's alien sample.

Which crew member dies of a stroke during the season 5 finale?

Alex Kamal suffers a stroke from the sustained high-G burn as he and Bobbie race the Razorback to rescue Naomi in the season 5 finale.

What does Naomi inject herself with before leaping out of an airlock in season 5?

Naomi injects hyper-oxygenated blood so she can survive a short unsuited jump across vacuum from the Pella to the rigged ship Marco parked nearby.

What is the name of the ship Marco rigs as a trap for the Rocinante?

The Chetzemoka was the ship Naomi bought for Filip; Marco rigs it to lure and destroy the Rocinante with a faked distress call in Naomi's voice.

Where do Amos and Clarissa commandeer a suborbital shuttle in season 5?

At Lake Winnipesaukee, a wealthy New Hampshire enclave, Amos and Clarissa take an abandoned mansion's suborbital shuttle and bring its left-behind staff along.

Whom is Amos visiting in prison when the asteroids hit Earth?

They climb a service ladder to the scorched surface together.

Which crime boss from Amos's home city is an old friend of his?

Erich, a crime boss in Amos's home city, grew up with him; Amos leans on him so his late foster mother Lydia's partner can keep her house.

What does the alien world in the season 6 subplot get called?

Laconia, the colony world seized by a rogue Martian fleet, hosts the season 6 subplot adapted from the novella Strange Dogs.

What do the "strange dogs" do for young Cara?

The strange dogs bring Cara's dead brother Xan back to life; he returns with pitch-black eyes and an altered manner, as in the novella Strange Dogs.

How is Marco finally defeated?

Naomi's plan wakes the entities just as Marco's fleet reaches the Ring.

What post is Holden elected to at the end of the series?

Holden is elected president of the Transport Union, accepts on condition Drummer is vice-president, then resigns at once so that she becomes president.

How many parents does James Holden have?

James Holden has eight parents: a co-op of five fathers and three mothers who combined their DNA and raised him on a farm on Earth.

What is the first name of Chrisjen Avasarala's husband?

Arjun Avasarala, a poet and professor played by Brian George, is Chrisjen's husband and her confidant through the early seasons.

What is OPA leader Fred's grim nickname?

Fred Johnson is the Butcher of Anderson Station: as a UN Marine colonel he stormed the station and killed its Belter occupiers, children included, their surrender never reaching him.

Which Mad Men and Chernobyl actor plays OPA liaison Anderson Dawes?

Jared Harris, Lane Pryce in Mad Men and Valery Legasov in Chernobyl, plays Anderson Dawes, the Ceres OPA leader.

Who plays Belter pirate turned Behemoth XO Klaes Ashford?

Strathairn has an Oscar nomination for playing a famous newsman.

What is the Behemoth renamed once it controls the Ring space?

The Behemoth becomes Medina Station, parked inside the Ring hub; Drummer commands it at the start of season 4 as custodian of the gates.

Which UN undersecretary secretly conspires with Julie's father?

Sadavir Errinwright, UN Undersecretary of Executive Administration, secretly backs Jules-Pierre Mao's protomolecule project; Shawn Doyle plays him for three seasons.

Under what alias does Clarissa Mao sneak aboard the UN fleet in season 3?

Clarissa poses as Melba Koh, an electrochemical technician on the UNN Thomas Prince; she sabotages the Seung Un and frames Holden for it.

Who plays Methodist pastor Anna Volovodov?

Mitchell is best known as Juliet on Lost.

What was the Rocinante temporarily renamed to hide in season 3?

Pinus Contorta, the Latin name of the lodgepole pine, is the name the crew gives the Rocinante to avoid pursuit early in season 3.

What do Alex and Bobbie rename the Razorback in season 5?

Alex and Bobbie rename the Razorback the Screaming Firehawk in season 5, honouring the fans who campaigned to save the show.

What stunt did fans crowdfund during the #SaveTheExpanse campaign?

Fans crowdfunded a plane towing a #SaveTheExpanse banner over Amazon Studios in Santa Monica; Wil Wheaton and Patton Oswalt backed the campaign.

Which astronaut lent his name to the save campaign?

Danish ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen publicly backed #SaveTheExpanse in 2018, alongside Patton Oswalt and Wil Wheaton.

Who developed the TV series and wrote the pilot?

Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby developed the series and wrote its pilot; the pair were Oscar-nominated for the Children of Men screenplay.

Which Marvel film did the show's developers co-write?

Their Children of Men script earned an Oscar nomination.

Which showrunner holds a PhD in applied physics and engineering?

Naren Shankar earned a PhD in applied physics from Cornell, then started in television as a science consultant and writer on Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Which long-running CBS crime drama did Shankar also co-run?

Naren Shankar was a showrunner on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation for several seasons; he also worked on Farscape and three Star Trek series.

Who created the Belter language for the show?

Linguist Nick Farmer created the Belter creole for the show, building it from English, Spanish, German, Chinese and other languages the Belt's settlers would have brought.

What is the Belter language called in Belter itself?

Belters call their language Lang Belta; it is an English-based creole with Spanish, German, Chinese, Slavic and other influences.

Where was the series filmed?

The series was shot in Toronto, at Pinewood Toronto Studios, with season 1 filmed from late 2014 into 2015.

Which production company financed and produced the series?

Alcon Entertainment, through its Alcon Television Group, financed and produced the series across all six seasons, first for Syfy and then for Amazon.

Where is Breeder, the studio that made the title sequence, based?

Breeder, the design studio behind the title sequence, is based in Brisbane, Australia; critics compared its wordless opening to the Game of Thrones map.

Who composed the show's score?

Clinton Shorter, also the composer of District 9, scored the show; Lisbeth Scott sings the title theme.

From which language did singer Lisbeth Scott draw the title theme's lyrics?

Lisbeth Scott wrote the title theme's lyrics in Norwegian, apologising on Facebook to Norwegian speakers for any grammatical errors.

How many Hugo Awards for Best Dramatic Presentation did the show win?

Out of six nominations; the wins were for the season 1, 5 and 6 finales.

What is the title of the series premiere?

Dulcinea, the series premiere, is named for Don Quixote's idealised lady, just as the Rocinante is named for his horse.

Who directed the first two episodes?

Terry McDonough directed the first two episodes and the season 1 finale, Leviathan Wakes, which won the show's first Hugo Award.

Which cast member directed the season 5 episode "Mother"?

His character had been dead for three seasons by then.

How many viewers watched the premiere, the show's most-watched episode?

The premiere drew 1.19 million viewers on Syfy, the show's linear high, even though the episode had been posted online three weeks earlier.

How many episodes did the series run?

Season 6 was only six episodes long.

Where was the pilot first screened, in July 2015?

The pilot was first screened at San Diego Comic-Con in July 2015, five months before the Syfy premiere; io9's reviewer said she was 'blown away'.

What was the industry's shorthand description for the show when Syfy ordered it?

Trade press billed the show as 'Game of Thrones in space' when Syfy ordered it in 2014 after a bidding war.

In The Expanse, which fusion engine, capable of continuous acceleration, opened the Solar System to human colonisation?

The Epstein Drive, a fusion engine able to produce continuous acceleration; season 2 shows its Martian inventor Solomon Epstein testing it.

Where is Amos originally from?

Amos grew up in Baltimore; season 5 sends him home after the death of Lydia, the woman who raised him.

Where do Holden's co-op parents live?

Holden's co-op parents farm in Montana; Avasarala visits his mother Elise there in season 1 to understand what drives him.

Which Martian moon does Earth destroy in retaliation for the Phoebe strike?

Earth's navy destroys Deimos, Mars's smaller moon, in retaliation for Mars destroying Phoebe; the strike splits opinion in Bobbie's squad.

Which Protogen scientist does Miller execute on Thoth Station?

Dresden had just argued he should be allowed to continue his work.

Whom does Naomi secretly give the Rocinante's alien sample to?

Naomi secretly hands the Rocinante's protomolecule sample to Fred Johnson in season 2, believing the Belt needs the same leverage Earth and Mars have.

Which UN research ship is dismantled in Venus's atmosphere?

It is taken apart in an expanding spherical pattern.

Which UN flagship does Cotyar destroy with its own nuke to contain the protomolecule?

Cotyar, already infected, triggers the UNN Agatha King's nuclear self-destruct in season 3 so the protomolecule aboard the flagship cannot spread.

Whom does Drummer's tribunal acquit in season 4, to keep the OPA united?

Marco Inaros is acquitted by the OPA tribunal in season 4 to keep the factions united, although he had hijacked the Sojourner and killed its crew.

Why is Holden immune to the eye-blinding organisms on Ilus?

Holden's anticancer medication, taken since his heavy radiation dose on Eros, happens to kill the eye-infecting organisms; Elvi uses it to cure the others.

Who wins the UN Secretary-General election against Avasarala in season 4?

Gao dies when an asteroid strikes near her plane in season 5.

What does Bobbie do for a living at the start of season 4?

Discontented, she ends up working for a Martian gang.

Where does Naomi finally meet her son in season 5?

Naomi finally meets Filip on Pallas Station in season 5; her old friends Cyn and Karal are there and help take her to Marco's ship.

Which Martian admiral sells warships to Marco's fleet?

Admiral Emil Sauveterre, played by Tim DeKay, is the Martian officer funnelling warships to Marco's fleet; Alex and Bobbie uncover the scheme in season 5.

Where does Marco declare the capital of the Belt in season 6?

He then strips it bare and abandons it to the Inners.

Which ship coordinates the asteroid strikes in season 6?

Its data core reveals every rock aimed at Earth.

What weapons does Marco's fleet mount on the Ring Station?

Marco's fleet mounts Laconian railguns on the Ring Station; they shred an MCRN strike force before Holden's team knocks them out in the finale.

Which studio co-developed the 2023 Expanse video game with Deck Nine?

Telltale Games and Deck Nine made The Expanse: A Telltale Series (2023), a prequel with Drummer as executive officer of the scavenger ship Artemis.

Which comic series continues the story after season 6?

The Expanse: Dragon Tooth, a 2023 BOOM! Studios comic, fills the thirty-year gap between Babylon's Ashes and Persepolis Rising.

Aghdashloo earned an Oscar nomination for which 2003 film?

Aghdashloo was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for House of Sand and Fog (2003), playing Nadi; she later won an Emmy for HBO's House of Saddam.

Which Marvel antihero did Jane play in a 2004 film?

Thomas Jane played Frank Castle in The Punisher (2004) and voiced the character again in the 2005 video game.

Strathairn was Oscar-nominated for playing which broadcaster?

Strathairn played Edward R. Murrow in Good Night, and Good Luck (2005), which dramatised Murrow's on-air clash with Senator McCarthy.

Which Hunger Games character did the actor who plays Amos also play?

He appeared in both Mockingjay films.

On which soap did Frankie Adams play Ula Levi?

Frankie Adams played Ula Levi on Shortland Street, New Zealand's long-running hospital soap, before The Expanse.

Where was Cas Anvar born?

Cas Anvar was born in Regina, Saskatchewan, to Iranian parents who then raised him in Montreal.

In which 2006 horror film did Steven Strait play warlock Caleb Danvers?

Steven Strait led The Covenant (2006) as Caleb Danvers, the eldest of four warlock descendants at a Massachusetts prep school.

Which Caribbean island is Tipper's father from?

Dominique Tipper's father is from Dominica and her mother is English; she trained as a dancer as a child in East London.

Who narrates the audiobooks of the novels?

Jefferson Mays, a Tony-winning stage actor, narrates all nine Expanse novels in audiobook form.

Which franchise novel, Honor Among Thieves, did the authors also write?

Random House published it in 2014.

Which fantasy author employed Ty Franck as a personal assistant?

Martin later backed the campaign to save the TV show.

What was Ty Franck originally building The Expanse's world as the setting for?

Ty Franck first built the world as the setting for an MMORPG pitch; when that failed it became a tabletop RPG campaign, and player Daniel Abraham suggested novels.

Who is the Martian defector who becomes High Consul of the Laconian Empire in the later novels?

Duarte uses the protomolecule on himself to become essentially immortal, and his daughter Teresa is his heir.