'Foundation' Season 2 trailer teases 'despair, death and destruction' for Apple TV+'s epic space drama

Just in time to beat the heat and those inevitable summer doldrums, the 10-episode sophomore season of Apple TV+'s stellar sci-fi series "Foundation" is set to soar into our corner of the universe, and now we've just been gifted a new expanded trailer packed with explosive space combat and a brutal battle on the horizon.

"Foundation" kicks off its upcoming turbulent plotline with a smooth time-skip 100 years into the future following the fractured events seen in the debut season's November 2021 climax. The prestige series' ambitious scope is led by the riveting, multifaceted performances of Emmy Award nominees Jared Harris ("Fringe," "Morbius") and Lee Pace ("Halt and Catch Fire," "Guardians of the Galaxy").

Executive producer David S. Goyer ("The Crow," "Blade," "Dark City," "The Dark Knight Trilogy") has mined legendary sci-fi author Isaac Asimov's classic "Foundation" books for this epic saga that chronicles the fateful throes of a dying galactic empire and a force of freedom fighters trying to ease the pain of a long dark period by applying a complex process of experimental psychohistory.

Promotional art for "Foundation" Season 2. (Image credit: Apple TV+)

Here's Apple TV+'s official synopsis:

"More than a century after the season one finale, tension mounts throughout the galaxy in 'Foundation' season two. As the Cleons unravel, a vengeful queen plots to destroy Empire from within. Hari, Gaal and Salvor discover a colony of Mentalics with psionic abilities that threaten to alter psychohistory itself. The Foundation has entered its religious phase, promulgating the Church of Seldon throughout the Outer Reach and inciting the Second Crisis: War with Empire. 

"The monumental adaptation of 'Foundation' chronicles the stories of four crucial individuals transcending space and time as they overcome deadly crises, shifting loyalties and complicated relationships that will ultimately determine the fate of humanity."

Asimov's "Foundation" stories were initially presented in "Astounding Science-Fiction" magazine in 1942, prior to those sweeping tales and novellas being rounded up in a trilogy of seminal  novels beginning in 1951, acting as an inspirational star guiding future science fiction writers, artists and filmmakers.

Interstellar chaos reigns in "Foundation" Season 2. (Image credit: Apple TV+)

Besides Pace and Harris, other actors headed back for "Foundation" Season 2 are Laura Birn, Cassian Bilton and Terrence Mann, in collaboration with talented newcomers that include Isabella Laughland (Brother Constant), Kulvinder Ghir (Poly Verisof), Ella-Rae Smith (Queen Sareth of Cloud Dominion), Holt McCallany (Warden Jaegger Fount), Rachel House (Tellem Bond), Nimrat Kaur (Yanna Seldon), Ben Daniels (Bel Riose), and Dimitri Leonidas (Hober Mallow).

"Foundation" is delivered for Apple from Skydance Television and shepherded by showrunner/executive producer David S. Goyer beside Alex Graves, David Ellison, Dana Goldberg, Bill Bost, Robin Asimov and Marcy Ross as co-executive producers.

Apple TV+'s "Foundation" Season 2 arrives beginning on Friday, July 14, 2023.

Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: community@space.com.

Jeff Spry
Contributing Writer

Jeff Spry is an award-winning screenwriter and veteran freelance journalist covering TV, movies, video games, books, and comics. His work has appeared at SYFY Wire, Inverse, Collider, Bleeding Cool and elsewhere. Jeff lives in beautiful Bend, Oregon amid the ponderosa pines, classic muscle cars, a crypt of collector horror comics, and two loyal English Setters.