‘Gen V’s Mysterious New Villain Actor Reveals Season 2 Is “Grabbing the News by the Throat”

From superhero cameos to character deaths, the second season of Gen V started with a bang! One of the most intriguing additions to the hit spinoff was a chilling new antagonist played by Midnight Mass alum Hamish Linklater. Cipher, also known as Dr. Gold, took over as Godolkin University’s head dean following Indira Shetty’s demise — but while his villainous nature is clear, there’s still much to learn about his powers, the truth behind his mysterious past and his shocking connection to Marie Moreau (Jazz Sinclair).

Almost immediately, Cipher begins his work reshaping the supe-filled campus as he uses competition and fear tactics to gain control over the students while openly professing that supes are superior to humans. Like The Boys, Gen V has been fearless when it comes to its use of political satire, often discussing themes of corporate greed and corruption of those in power, as well as identity, mental health and trauma. In an interview with Polygon, Linklater said he hoped the messages of Season 2 would be “received topically” by fans.

“The idea that one group of people is superior to another group of people should be in comic books and history books. It should not be in our newspapers.”

Discussing his choice of projects, both currently and in the past, the 49-year-old said he wanted to participate in shows which “use genre for the greater good,” noting that Gen V is “grabbing the news by the throat and saying ‘We’re a part of this story too, especially for young people’ and I think that’s just thrilling.”

Michele Fazekas, who serves as co-showrunner, also told the outlet that they were “so happy” to have Linklater join the cast and bring their new villain to life.

“We knew we wanted somebody who felt different than Dean Shetty. We wanted somebody who kept our characters guessing and always uncertain, and is always unpredictable. Hamish is so good at that. It’s like, ‘I know you’re a bad guy. I don’t know why you’re a bad guy. I don’t know what your agenda is. You’re just weird.’”

‘Gen V’ Isn’t Hamish Linklater’s First Time Playing a Mysterious Antagonist

Hamish Linklater as Father Paul in Mike Flanagan’s Netflix series, ‘Midnight Mass’.
Netflix

Linklater is no stranger to dark and complex roles that are filled with twists and turns, and he’s played a number of antagonists throughout his career. Perhaps most famously, he brought the charismatic Father Paul Hill to life in Mike Flanagan’s Netflix hit Midnight Mass. As he reminisced about his time filming the show, he revealed that he’d be interested in teaming up with Flanagan again in the future — despite playfully jesting that the filmmaker wouldn’t return his calls.

“I’ve only worked with him once. It’s weird that he’s broken his rule of always using the same people over and over again just for me. His writing is fantastic. That company of actors is spectacular.”

Release Date

September 28, 2023

Network

Prime Video

Directors

Nelson Cragg, Clare Kilner, Philip Sgriccia, Sanaa Hamri, Shana Stein, Steve Boyum

Writers

Craig Rosenberg

• Jaz Sinclair

  Marie Moreau

• Lizze Broadway

  Emma Meyer / Little Cricket

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