Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for the Foundation Season 2 finale.
The Big Picture
- Lee Pace’s portrayal of Brother Day in Foundation is captivating and nuanced, showcasing his ability to bring a complex character to life.
- Pace’s physicality adds another layer to his performance, as his chiseled physique and imposing presence highlight Brother Day’s power and authority.
- Pace’s chemistry with his co-stars, particularly in his interactions with android Demerzel and future wife Sareth, creates palpable tension and adds depth to the series.
Lee Pace can do it all: quirky piemaker, grudgy alien villain, perfectly cold elf, among many characters in the genre. In Foundation, he masters the art of portraying Brother Day, a centuries-old cloned version of Cleon, the ruler of the Galactic Empire. Based on Isaac Asimov’s intergalactic saga, Foundation is one of Apple TV+’s best series. There’s quality, yes, but there’s also sensuality. Pace is firm yet attractive, ruthless yet charming, and makes middle-aged look fabulous. It’s very understandable he was the casting choice to bring to life a perfectly engineered individual, and the series takes advantage of this – showing off his slick and thick hair, putting him in outfits that highlight his toned arms, and being shown shirtless and sweaty – when the plot allows it, not just gratuitously. It might distract from the series’ complex plot, but it’s worth the rewinding.
Who Is Brother Day In ‘Foundation’?
Foundation creators David S. Goyer and Josh Friedman take the lore established in Asimov’s books and use it to craft a vision of their own of this eon-spanning saga. Their successful attempt to cover thousands of years of story involves creating three versions of the same person who are always present. It all starts with Cleon I (Terrence Mann), ruler of the Galactic Empire. To ensure the endurance of his rule and make it everlasting, he establishes a genetic dynasty, creating clones of himself in three stages of his life – Brother Dawn (Cassian Bilton) is his young version, Brother Dusk (Mann as well) is his older version, with Pace embodying the middle-aged Brother Day. While Cleon does exist in the Foundation book series, he doesn’t establish the genetic dynasty as a way to keep ruling.
The series shows the rule of different Cleons, in its fourth century now, focusing on Cleon XII, XIII, and XVII. The start of the series sees Cleon XII facing a terrorist attack that brings them to the brink of war, while the predictions of Hari Seldon (Jared Harris) through psychohistory threaten to destabilize the Galactic Empire. Thus, he exiles Hari along with mentee Gaal Dornick (Lou Llobell) to the far reaches of the galaxy, where they’ll establish the Foundation as a means to restore humanity in case Hari’s apocalyptic predictions come true. Cleon XIII takes an Empire in shambles and tries to correct the ways of his predecessor. He focuses on upstaging himself in the Luminist’s faith, particularly by going on a journey through the desert in which he supposedly ends up having a vision of the sacred flower of that religion, rendering the genetic dynasty as the legitimate ruler of the Galactic Empire. Jumping all the way to Cleon XVII, he’s now determined to end the genetic dynasty by marrying Queen Sareth I (Ella-Rae Smith) to have offspring and pass the ruling through them.
Why Does Lee Pace Play Brother Day So Well?
So, Brother Day is a fierce and ruthless character who is determined to achieve what he sets out to do. In comes Lee Pace to take over the duty of giving life to this extremely appealing character who has one main goal: staying in power. Through Brother Day, Pace gives a campy performance that relies on his exaggeration of attitudes and mannerisms. But this is not just for the sake of being eccentric, it comes from a place of the character wielding such a power and with a deep-rooted sense of immortality. His introduction as Cleon XVII in the sophomore season’s first episode shows him having steamy sex with human android Demerzel (Laura Birn), only for an assassination attempt to take place moments later. In it, we’re blessed with a nude-fighting scene between Brother Day and an unnamed assailant – and honestly, who cares who he is? We’re just thankful this happened without Brother Day dying – because moments later, we’re blessed again with a restored Brother Day demanding a robe so his “manhood isn’t flapping around!” The man could have died while having sex with an android (which would be a serious scandal in the Empire) and his biggest concern was not flashing his junk.
Since Season 1, Pace balanced his acting as a ruthless ruler with being an imposing physical presence. His robe outfits highlight his chiseled physique, his toned arms, and his towering height. When in his journey through the desert, Pace was at the peak of being a belly button-less, perfectly-engineered specimen, with curls for days, and he must have a notion of it. Season 2 shows him being truly in love with android Demerzel, while also being charming enough to reel in Sareth as his future wife. Pace has a palpable tension with each and everyone of the actors he interacts with in Foundation, whether it’s sexual or not – and there’s only so much we can do to avoid screaming “just kiss already!” at the TV. Probably his shining jerk moment is in the second season’s final two episodes where, after ordering the annihilation (and his orders are to be followed) of planet Terminus, the Foundation’s venue, he goes into a hand-to-hand combat with Bel Riose (Ben Daniels) His cockiness shows he doesn’t really care about anyone – probably just a bit about himself. He even tauntingly shouts how he loves it, only to end up being space by Bel, ending his time and rule as Brother Day for Cleon XVII.
Pace has stated he just acts what’s written for him, but he truly understands how broken and internally deformed the character of Brother Day is. While Dawn is a bit more hopeful and Dusk sees life in a different light, Day is the one who perceives himself as the prime moment of Cleon who has to make the tough decisions. It’s clear Goyer and Friedman intended for this to be the nuance each actor was to bring to their interpretation of the same person, and Pace makes the most of it, being an absolute win for storytelling and for us, the thankful audience. With the plot twist revealing Demerzel simultaneously activated the three Cleon clones, it’ll be exciting to see the next incarnation of Brother Day in Season 3. Foundation just finished airing its second season, with all the episodes being now available to stream on Apple TV+.
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Khushi Patel is a science fiction author who lives in Austin, Texas. She has published three novels, and her work has been praised for its originality and imagination. Khushi is a graduate of Rice University, and she has worked as a software engineer. She is a member of the Science Fiction Writers of America, and her books have been nominated for several awards.
