Prime Video dropped two new episodes of Upload season 3 on Friday, October 27 and will continue to do so until the season finale on November 10. Nathan has spent his time as a Download attempting to hide the lingering side effects from Nora, but the final moments of “CyberDiscountDay” ensure that he can no longer keep her in the dark. Desperate to help the man she loves, Nora takes Nathan to visit the only doctor who may be able to save his life.
Tom Marshall serves as the director for the third and fourth episodes of Upload season 3. In addition to directing shows such as Ted Lasso and Space Force, Marshall also has several writer and producer credits. Robbie Amell leads the Prime Video show’s ensemble cast as Nathan alongside Andy Allo, Kevin Bigley, Allegra Edwards, Zainab Johnson, and Owen Daniels also starring.
Screen Rant exclusively interviewed Tom Marshall about what the show’s unpredictability could mean for Nathan, Aleesha’s new romance with Karina, and working in Upload’s futuristic environment.
Tom Marshall Talks Upload Season 3
Screen Rant: What stood out to you about Upload and made you want to get involved in season 3?
Tom Marshall: In a world where there are lots of sitcoms and shows that are very much set in the real world and are very much about real people’s lives and everyday struggles, Upload, for me, very much delivers on being a sci-fi and a comedy. It delivers on both in that respect, but also has these very three-dimensional real characters. It delivers on its promise. That’s what I always liked about it. It sets up this crazy world. It very much feels like the creators behind it thought, “What’s the craziest things we can do with this concept that we’ve promised?” You have people’s heads exploding and eyelids disappearing. You have avatars of teenage boys turn into fully-grown women. Every episode gives you crazy things that you wouldn’t get in most other sitcoms.
What excited you about working on 303 and 304, specifically?
Tom Marshall: Having watched the show, and then finding out I was going to do it, it was a bit tantalizing to think of what world and environments I would get to build from the ground up for my episodes. It delivered. Just in my two episodes, we got to build some sets from scratch, whereas, a lot of sitcoms you film in apartments. We got to build call centers from the future. We got to build shared living environments. It’s like a windowless prison with 30 people living on top of each other in pods that are no bigger than coffins.
And then we got to do a sort of beta 1.0 version of Lakeview that was scary and full of glitches and was the abandoned version of this Lakeview that we’ve seen for two seasons. It just felt crazy that for two episodes worth of TV, I got to put my stamp on so many different environments as a director. That type of stuff looks great on camera straightaway. It feels like you’re shooting some little mini movies. You get a lot of bang for your buck. I was really pleased with what I got to have fun with.
Nathan reunites with his mom, and Nora becomes a part of the family quite easily. What did you want to show about how they all interact together?
Tom Marshall: The big thing that we talked about was that Nathan has been in Lakeview for two seasons now, and we’re finally getting to see him download and be back in the real world again. We talked a lot about remembering what the real world would be like, and real-life interactions and real-life relationships, and feeling tired again. Nathan’s been in Lakeview for all of this time where sleep is sort of automated, and you can go to sleep at the touch of a button. Suddenly, he has to get to sleep himself and wake up at terrible times.
He’s having to sleep with his mom and his mom’s new lover in the same bed. What’s it like when you’re in heaven for so long, and then you have to come back to the real world and deal with real-world problems and real people? Nathan’s mom’s new boyfriend is not anyone you would want your mom to end up with. So it was all that stuff. It’s that phrase, “Be careful what you wish for.” All of this time, Nathan has wanted to be human again and be with Nora, but it was fun seeing him struggle with all the very real realities of that.
My favorite moment from both episodes is when Aleesha tries to teach AI Guy how to chew. I have to know — was it hard for you guys to get through that scene?
Tom Marshall: I’m so glad you mentioned that. I think that’s pound-for-pound the funniest moment in my block. Just seeing AI Guy struggling to eat cheese is the most laugh-out-loud moment. I don’t know how much common knowledge this is, but as a director, you have your pass. You see the work, you work with the editor, and then it’s sort of handed off to the producers and all the grownups. The next time you see it is, often, when it’s out there on TV. I’d indulged that moment quite a bit, thinking they would cut some seconds off that.
I think, if anything, they added more. They obviously loved the cheese eating as much as I did. We really went for it. But so much of that is just Owen. I’m such an Owen fan. It was just making sure we had enough takes of that and committed to it. With all the jazzy things happening, I just knew that that was going to be one of the funniest moments in the show. We had a good time shooting it, and we spent a good few takes perfecting what it would look like if AI Guy tried to eat little cheese cubes.
I’m sure you shot out of order, but given how abruptly 303 ends, were you glad that you were able to dive right into 304 and pick that story back up?
Tom Marshall: Completely. There was talk of me jumping into season 2, but I couldn’t do it in the end. That was only going to be the finale of last season. This was much better. You sort of felt like across the two episodes it was a real journey. The things that we promised in episode 3, I then got to follow up with in episode 4. Even though it was just two episodes, it did feel like getting to shoot a little movie. I read some of the stuff that’s to come in the season, and there are a few things in particular, like, “Wow, I would have liked to do that, as well.” But I was really pleased with what I got to do. Now I get to watch it as a fan. I get to see how the rest of the series pans out as a fan. I can’t wait to see it as well as having worked on it.
Nathan’s been hiding his nosebleeds from Nora, so she’s been living in this bubble thinking everything might actually be okay. Once that changes, what did you want the energy between them to feel like going forward?
Tom Marshall: One of the common pitfalls, almost, like, clichés when you have a will they/won’t they, is once you get them together, it’s sort of dull, right? In any show. Whereas, with Upload, I just think it’s totally different because they’re competing against the afterlife. They’re competing against life and death and technology. There are a few things going on this season. Nathan has finally been downloaded, but you’ve got this ticking clock of death, and the potential of a head exploding with the relationship. The thing with Upload is that might happen.
In any other show, you think, “Yeah, the main character’s head is not going to explode,” whereas, with Upload, you’ve set up this thing of multiple versions of people, people are Uploads and Downloads. What I love about Upload is the idea that his head might explode at any minute is very viable. We definitely, in terms of how the guys performed, wanted to get that across. The fact that there were certain truths not told, and the wall was sort of pulled over Nora’s eyes to an extent, it’s sort of good, in a way, having had this relationship across technology between Nathan and Nora.
All of a sudden, they’re dealing with some very real-world problems that every couple has. We sort of leaned on that a bit as well. It’s amazing to be face to face with the real human again, but real humans come with baggage and flaws. Another element Nathan had a lot of fun with is that he’s developed a bit of weight. He’s got a bit of a belly on him. The dream man’s back, but he’s almost like the analog version of what Nora has been used to. There’s a lot to play with in this season and a lot that I think will keep the story fresh and engaging for all the fans.
These episodes introduced a new romance for Aleesha. What did you want the audience’s first impression of that relationship to be?
Tom Marshall: She ends up with a woman, and I asked the question, myself, to Greg, thinking I might have missed something in previous seasons. “Did we set up that she’s bi or that she’s interested in women in previous episodes?” This is direct from Greg. I wish I could say stuff this intelligent. It was this idea, this notion, that in the near future, it’s literally not worth mentioning what your preference is. The preference is just anyone who catches my eye. It felt cool, like we were saying something.
But we’re pretty much there now, right? In terms of how fluid people’s sexualities are. It’s very much in that vein of things. In Upload, we’ve set up a world where people are having sex with technology so often, that the fact that she maybe dates some girls once in a while, probably wouldn’t get mentioned. It wouldn’t be a thing for anyone involved. We had a lot of fun with that. I just loved that whole story strand as well. It was screentime well-deserved, I felt.
How did you approach the relationships between backup Nathan and Ingrid versus the real Nathan and Nora?
Tom Marshall: We talked a lot. It was me and Robbie, as well, a lot of the time. We’d talk about the Lakeview version of Nathan having that spring in his step that comes from almost being in a honeymoon period again. He’s got this newfound appreciation for Ingrid, and it’s like he’s in the honeymoon period. He has that unmistakable glow of someone in the middle of a honeymoon period and a reappreciation for Lakeview. Like, actually, this is sort of okay, right? In contrast to real Nathan struggling with that little bit of weight and being tired again and being hungry again. We have him literally scavenging for food when he’s been living off the Lakeview eat-what-you-want spreads.
So all those sort of very real world things are taking its toll and contrast the Nathan in Lakeview. In the real world, we would put the extra bit of makeup on him that made him look a bit more tired, a bit paler, and a bit sweatier. All those things help build what essentially becomes a rivalry. That’s what’s so genius about it. Real world Nathan very much becomes jealous and threatened by himself, which is what’s so genius about Upload. It becomes this weird sort of love triangle where you’ve got two versions of the same people. All that went into setting up this will they/won’t they and have the audience guessing which version Nora is going to end up with, which I think is a lot of fun.
About Upload Season 3
Upload is a sci-fi comedy series from Emmy-winning writer Greg Daniels (The Office, Parks and Recreation, King of the Hill), set in a technologically advanced future where holographic phones, self-driving vehicles, AI assistance, and 3D food printers are the norm. And, forget about dying – instead, you’ll be “uploaded” to a virtual reality afterlife, and enjoy all the comforts of a world-class resort. Provided you can afford it.
In Upload Season Three, we pick back up with Nora and freshly downloaded Nathan as they navigate their relationship, while racing to stop the mysterious conspiracy that threatens to destroy millions of lives. Can they shut down Freeyond, and finally have a real life together? Or is it just a matter of time until Nathan’s head explodes? Meanwhile, in Lakeview, a backup copy of Nathan has been activated and Ingrid’s not about to let this second chance at love slip away. Back in the real world, Aleesha rises through the ranks of Horizen by managing AI education, and falls into a new romantic relationship. And Luke, all alone in Lakeview, is forced to come up with the funds to pay for his stay in paradise, driving him to work in The Grey Zone.
Check back for more interviews with the Upload season 3 crew:
- Executive Producer/Director Jeff Blitz
- Director Dave Rogers
- Director Alberto Belli
- Director Sarah Boyd
- Production Designer Rachel O’Toole
Prime Video will release two new episodes of Upload each Friday until the season 3 finale on November 10.
