‘Alien: Earth’ Star Sydney Chandler on Why Hybrid Wendy Is the ‘Most Complex Yet Simplistic Character’

Alien: Earth is close to landing on FX and Hulu, but before fans dive into the latest corner of this franchise’s universe, the stars are acquainting viewers with the Earth dwellers set to cross paths with the Xenomorph and other alien species.

Alien: Earth, from Fargo creator Noah Hawley, is set in the year 2120, during which Earth is governed by five corporations: Prodigy, Weyland-Yutani, Lynch, Dynamic, and Threshold. And while humans still seem to be at the forefront of these corporations, it is the cyborgs (humans with both biological and artificial parts) and synthetics (humanoid robots with artificial intelligence) that are tasked with their bidding.

But protagonist Wendy (Sydney Chandler) is something different, a hybrid (humanoid robots infused with human consciousness). “She’s dealing with being a child in an adult body, and so she’s probably the most complex yet simplistic character I’ve ever played because her mindset is so crystal clear versus mine [where] I think I overthink everything,” Chandler tells TV Insider. “And so being able to jump into a character like that, and kind of wear her shoes, was really fun.”

Patrick Brown / FX

Wendy is the first hybrid from the Prodigy Corporation, and as she grows to understand her strengths, she finds herself torn between the family she once knew and the duty she has to her new friends and teammates.

As for striking the balance between playing a child’s consciousness in an adult body, Chandler reveals, “Wendy is very much a blank page. You can’t research a hybrid. I feel like Noah was able to create a very layered, grounded character. As far as balancing the two, it really depended on who I was acting with on the day and in what scene,” Chandler says in response to our question posed during the show’s press conference.

Chandler lauds her colleagues, noting, “You know, every actor would bring a different color to the work, which would kind of give me more information [about] who I am playing. It was kind of a collaboration of finding Wendy that way. But I would have this image of, you know, two magnets kind of pressing up against each other, and you just can’t get them to touch as far as the mind, which is known, and this body, which is
unknown territory.”

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“It’s kind of like what’s in the middle — what’s that void? — is what she’s seeking,” Chandler adds, saying, “And a lot of that has to do with Alex Lawther over here. Great guy,” she notes, gesturing towards her costar who plays Hermit, Wendy’s brother, a tactical officer and medic who will do whatever it takes to protect his sister after their unexpected reunion in the series.

Meanwhile, Ceesay plays cyborg Morrow, who is on a very specific mission as an employee of Weyland-Yutani Corporation. Described as a “stone-cold, tough bastard,” Morrow has dedicated his life to the mission, which involves delivering valuable cargo. “I think deep down he wants to be all machine but isn’t, and feels maybe a little bit apologetic about the fact that he is part human in his mind,” Ceesay shares. “But one of the main things I’ll say about Morrow is that, in this series, [he’s] an iPhone 1 in a world of iPhone 20s, so he’s really compensating for that.”

And as Ceesay puts it, Wendy is “the iPhone 25, which we don’t even know exists.” In other words, along with humans and aliens, there’s a new hierarchy forming among synthetics, cyborgs, and hybrids. Don’t miss how they handle the alien outbreak on Earth when Alien: Earth arrives, and stay tuned for more as the show unfolds.

Alien: Earth, Series Premiere, Tuesday, August 12, 8/7c, FX and Hulu