Everything Changes in Foundation Season 3

Apple TV+ has released the first trailer for the third season of Foundation, its high-concept, effects-driven adaptation of Isaac Asimov’s seminal science fiction series. Set to premiere on July 11, 2025, the new season, entitled The Mule Rises, will be released weekly through September 12. Each season of Foundation features 10 episodes, with the first and second seasons premiering in 2021 and 2022, respectively.

Since Foundation‘s debut in 2021, the series has largely eschewed the events of Asimov’s novels (chronologically the first of which was written in 1951), taking far more liberties with the source material in terms of setting and narrative arcs. As a result, Foundation‘s storytelling has become episodic in structure, with entire seasons skipping decades or even centuries. Season 1 leapt ahead 138 years from its conclusion to the events of season 2, which was entirely preoccupied with the Second Crisis.

Essentially a mid-point or turning point in the series’ interpretation of Asimov’s original work, the Second Crisis was a period of looming war between the Foundation and the galactic Empire that was engaged in a feud over territory, resources, and political power. The Foundation, after having radicalized its approach to spreading influence among worlds, had weaponized the persuasive use of religion in a campaign of propaganda to further its agenda. The Second Crisis also introduced the “Mentalics,” a cloistered colony of gifted psionically-minded individuals with a shared, mysterious past.

Jumping 152 years ahead of the end of season 2, the third season’s events are set to occur during what’s known in Asimov’s Foundation mythos as the Third Crisis. Apple TV+ has officially described the next chapter in the ongoing series as follows:

“The Foundation has grown strong and widespread since the First Crisis, and the once all-powerful Cleonic Dynasty is on the verge of collapse. Warred on by internal strife and the demands of a failing society, the two remaining great powers are drawn together by desperation and impending extinction. A warlord is on the horizon, and he wields an army unlike any other. The Mule will soon walk the Earth, wielding an unimaginable power and a singular mission. First, he’ll control minds. Then he’ll command an empire. And in time, the galaxy will kneel before him.”

In the trailer, the venerable Hari Seldon (Jared Harris) ominously intones, “Centuries ago, when we predicted the fall of the galaxy, the Foundation was created to save humanity. But the coming darkness was always the turning point.” The scene cuts to Gaal Dornick (Lou Llobell) grimly warning her audience, “We’re out of time.”

The trailer’s antagonist is the mysterious The Mule (Pilou Asbæk), a mercenary warlord with the psychic ability to control the minds of the people around him. “I can turn enemies into allies. Hate into love,” he eerily demonstrates. “It only takes a little nudge.” The trailer is rife with explosions, space battles, crumbling cities, and brutal violence, as the Empire and the Foundation seem to grow weaker and weaker before the Mule’s approach.

Lee Pace, Cassian Bilton, and Terrence Mann all return as the genetically engineered clones of the Emperor, Brother Day, Brother Dawn, and Brother Dusk, respectively. Harris and Llobell also return as Foundation preeminent psychohistorian Hari Seldon and Foundation ally Gaal Dornick. Laura Birn also returns as the Foundation-supporting humanoid robot and covert operator Eto Demerzel.

Season 3 also notably expands the show’s cast. Alexander Siddig (Beowulf, House of Saddam, Outlander) joins as Dr. Ebling Mis, a devout follower of Hari Seldon and autodidact “psychohistorian” in his own right. Siddig is described as being “passionate and scholarly,” and some of his scenes were filmed even before those from season 2. Troy Kotsur (CODA, Justified, The Leftovers) also joins the cast as the telepathic leader of a planet of psychics known as Preem Palver.

Also joining the series in the third season are Cherry Jones (9-1-1: Lone Star, Lincoln, Hidden Figures) as Foundation diplomat Quent; Brandon P. Bell (Marvel’s Moon Knight) as Han Pritcher; Synnøve Karlsen (A Real Emotional Girl, The Stand) as Bayta Mallow; Cody Fern (Godzilla vs. Kong, Trust, The Curse of Crystal Head) as Toran Mallow; Tómas Lemarquis (You, The Walking Dead, Legion) as the eccentric Magnifico Giganticus; Yootha Wong-Loi-Sing (Outlander) as Song; and Leo Bill (Snatch, Act of the Apostles) as Mayor Indbur.