Frequent flyers can add “Manifest” to the unnerving list of shows they shouldn’t watch before boarding a plane, much like “Lost” or “The Wilds”.
The high-concept drama follows the passengers and crew of Montego Air Flight 828. After a rocky and turbulent flight, they arrive at their destination…only more than five years have passed since their departure. Even more mind-boggling is that nobody on the plane has grown a day older, but their friends, families and fiancés have all aged.
Josh Dallas, who previously portrayed the dashing Prince Charming for several seasons on “Once Upon A Time”, plays Ben, one of the travellers. Along with a handful of survivors, Ben seeks to understand their freaky set of circumstances and the supernatural baggage that comes with it. The 42-year-old actor joked that the immediate appeal to boarding “Manifest” was “a lot less leather
and capes” than his former Charming gig.
“‘Manifest’ was a story similar in tone to something like ‘Once’, where it was a really big idea, but it was hung on these very real people going through something extraordinary,” Dallas tells ET Canada. “That’s what hooked me. The way Ben moves through the world was compelling to me, and very different from Prince Charming.”
“Prince Charming has a very open view of the world and the people in it,” he adds. “Ben is more closed off. This experience that he has gone through, this thing he’s trying to figure out, is opening the world up to him. Ben and Charming are sort of opposites in that way.”
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Ben may not be Charming 2.0, but the two share one commonality: Family. Ben’s top priority revolves around his wife Grace [Athena Karkanis], teenage daughter Olive [Luna Blaise], son Cal [Jack Messina] and sister Michaela [Melissa Roxburgh]. Charming also always put his household first. Dallas is married to his “Once” co-star Ginnifer Goodwin and they have two sones together. So, he can relate to that unwavering love and devotion.
“All ideas and facets of family and what that means… and for Ben going through what he is going through with his family and with his children and with his wife – my life experience can only enhance the immediacy of trying to protect them in this situation,” Dallas says. “That’s all you really want to do. You want to protect them and make sure they are safe and happy and move through life. Especially your children, that they can grow up and become productive and happy humans. That’s all you can ask for. You will do whatever you can to protect them. Ben certainly will.”
Some actors demand their showrunner detail major spoilers and revelations in advance. Others, such as Dallas, prefer being left in the dark. He believes the element of surprise informs his character because “Ben is figuring it out as he goes along.”
“Ben’s reactive to whatever comes in front of him,” reasons Dallas. “That only helps me, as an actor, not knowing. Hopefully, it gives a more genuine reaction from me. It keeps me on my toes and, hopefully, keeps me in the moment.”
That means every script becomes a page-turner for Dallas. And “Manifest”’s sophomore finale culminated on one doozie of a cliffhanger. The tail fin of Flight 828 was discovered in the waters off the coast of Cuba. That’s not even possible considering Ben and company safely landed in the craft and later witnessed it destroyed. When “Manifest” returns tonight, that development will force Ben and Saanvi [Parveen Kaur] to take a deep dive into the wreckage pulled from the ocean.
“What is it? How did it get it there?” Dallas asks “We all saw that plane explode on the tarmac in New York City. What does that mean? Was that not the plane? Are the passengers not the passengers? Or are they something else entirely? The big question is what happened to them? But the big question for them, particularly this season, is ‘Who am I? If I’m not human, or have I been
resurrected, what does that mean? Where did I go? What am I now? I know what I was before, but what does this make me now? How much do we need to take care of each other in order to figure that out?’”
Serialized shows tease and tantalize with plot twists and turns. Such narratives, however, tend to string audiences along without ever delivering satisfying payoffs. Dallas promises that will not be the case with “Manifest”.
“For a genre show, and our particular story, it’s really important that we give some answers along the way, which I think we do,” Dallas reports. “We give a lot of information throughout season three. I’m filming the finale right now. This season is not only heart-pounding, it’s heartbreaking and it’s exciting. It’s been incredible to film this season. We give answers to a lot of things. But just because you get an answer, doesn’t mean that you don’t get a question. More questions are important, too, to keep the mystery going. Look, if we solved everything, the show would have been over by now.”
“Manifest” tackles heavy themes such as second chances and redemption. Everyone on the plane landed in one piece, giving them a different perspective on life. In addition, by listening and responding to the strange phenomenon dubbed “callings” – these inner impulses, visions and voices that they experience – Ben and the other passengers have accomplished a lot of good. Does that mean this weird occurrence is the worst thing that’s ever happened to them, or, quite possibly, the best?
“That’s also a question that Ben and all the passengers are searching for,” says Dallas. “Is this a blessing or is this a curse? Are we in some kind of purgatory at the moment or is this some land of enlightenment, where we do have a chance at redemption? That is something Ben is deeply searching for. I don’t know the answer to that question, to be honest. He’s still trying to figure it out.”
“Right now, as we open this third season, we have the idea of the death date [the specific day you die] and if you follow the calling, you survive,” he continues. “That will turn Ben into a big believer. That idea will push him along on this journey to spread the word among his fellow passengers. But not everyone is going to be ready, or willing, to get on board with that idea. That will push Ben into being more obsessive than he’s been and ultimately in an extremely dark place this
season.”
Most individuals would think twice before jetting off anywhere after shooting disturbing airplane sequences. Dallas maintains that nothing phases him anymore.
“I’ve had some pretty serious flight turbulence,” Dallas concludes. “But now that we’ve filmed turbulence on ‘Manifest’ and the way we have to act in that kind of turbulence that we have seen in callings… the turbulence I have experienced in real life has been nothing compared to this.”
Season 3 of “Manifest” premieres April 1.
