It’s been five years since audiences said goodbye to the belovedNetflixseriesThe OA, when it was unceremoniously canceled after two seasons in August 2019. Ending on a massive cliffhanger,The OAhas lived on in the hearts and minds of many fans who still hope that they can one day get the closure they need.This includes star Brandon Perea, who played Alfonso “French” Sosa in the series, and is set to take on Mother Nature this weekend alongside Glen Powell in the new filmTwisters.
Speaking withThe Hollywood Reporterahead of his new disaster flick, Perea touched onThe OA, revealing that he’s one of those peoplewho doesn’t believe that the series is truly over. Perea thinks the series might one day see a triumphant return to finish the story that Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij started back in 2016. Perea says that if the time comes, he’ll definitely be on boardto pick up where things left off.
“I’m one of those peoplethat has a feeling it’s not over. I think they have a way to continue the story, which I have no idea about, but I’m down and I’m willing to be a part ofThe OAwhenever it’s time to come back around. It just feels like there are some chapters that we’ve got to close that aren’t closed yet. We have this weird feeling, and Zal is very hopeful.”
Zal would be the aforementioned Zal Batmanglij, who first worked with star and co-creator Brit Marling on the short filmThe Recordist. From there the two formed a partnership, collaborating on the featuresSound of My VoiceandThe East. For Perea, he saysit’s Batmanglij’s assurance the series will returnthat gives him hope for the future ofThe OA.
“He’s not even hopeful; he just seems very sure of himself. So that gives me assurance as well where I’m like, ‘You know what? I feel like we will [finish].’ So I carry that same hope, and I’m not surprised by it at all. Those two [Batmanglij and Marling] are warriors, man.”
Dealing with themes of time travel, grief, re-birth, agency, and friendship (to name just a few),The OAwas a dense and complex series with a mythos that was still in its infancy when it was canceled. In addition to Perea and Marling, the series starred Emory Cohen, Patrick Gibson, Jason Isaacs, Ian Alexander, Brendan Meyer, and Phyllis Smith as an unlikely group of people brought together by the mysterious Prairie (Marling). Together, they navigate Prairie’s mission while at the same time dealing with their owninternal struggles of faith.
Ending on a massive cliffhanger that saw Homer (Emory Cohen) being shot by Hap (Jason Isaacs),The OAwent meta,breaking the fourth wallto travel into our dimension, which left Homer trapped in Steve’s (Patrick Gibson) body. It’s crazy, we know, but it’s part of what madeThe OAsuch a unique series that was undoubtedly before its time, and perhaps turned some viewers off with a bewildering plot that was planned for a five-season run. This made its cancellation all the more heartbreaking, however, as loyal audiences who were invested in something fresh were left hanging, and perhaps feeling a little jaded towards the powers-that-be who took their beloved series away.
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While Perea doesn’t believeThe OAis truly over, neither do Batmanglij and Marling, who spoke withSalonlate in 2023 and pointed to shows likeTwin Peaksas an example of canceled favorites that eventually made a return.
“Shows do come back. Twin Peaks came back at some point, so maybe there will be a time where the climate of the industry reaches a place where that flower can grow again in the garden.”
One can only hope that at some pointThe OAwill be as lucky asTwin Peaks, but until the official word comes down that the series has been revived, we’ll keep engaging in some intense finger tutting to help will its return into existence.
