Severance creator Dan Erickson has surprised fans by including a voice cameo from Keanu Reeves in the sci-fi series’ long-awaited second season.
The dystopian drama, which follows Adam Scott’s character Mark at his job as a macrodata refiner after having his personal memories “severed” from his work life, resumes after an uprising among the staff at Lumon Industries.
To demonstrate to workers Lumon cares about their wellbeing, the company plays a video called “Lumon is Listening” where a cartoon version of the office building – voiced by Reeves – assures them all is well.
Speaking to Collider about the decision to use the quickly recognisable voice of the Jon Wick star for the Lumon building, Erickson explained it was important the voice of the building felt comforting to the viewer.
“All I can say is that he talked about a couple of different people for that role,” he said. “We always wanted it to be somebody that people have certain associations with, but also, it had to be a very warm presence.”
Erikson explained: “The Lumon building is very friendly in the context of this video, and there’s a friendliness to that particular voice and a heart to that particular voice.”
It comes shortly after social media users were shocked by the Severance cast being told about the death of director David Lynch during a live interview with Andy Cohen for SiriusXM’s Radio Andy.
Lynch developed a singular style known for unsettling visuals, stream-of-consciousness storytelling, and kitsch soundtracks and was credited with being the first “populist” surrealist.
Reacting to the news, Patricia Arquette – who starred in Lynch’s 1997 film Lost Highway and plays Harmony Cobel in Severance – said: “He really was incredible…There’s nobody like him.”
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Meanwhile, Adam Scott agreed with Cohen that Lynch’s influence could be seen throughout Erikson’s series.
“We owe a huge debt to…Blue Velvet, Mulholland Drive…. Lost Highway is incredible. Elephant Man,” he said of the artistic influence. “It goes on and on.”
The Independent’s Annabel Nugent called season two of Severance “strange, stylish and totally engrossing” in her five star review of the series’ latest instalment.
“Severance easily could’ve buckled under the weight of its conceit, but has been held together by the very human connections at its heart,” she wrote.
“Thankfully, it is still one of the best shows on TV – certainly, one worth rushing home from the office to watch.”
The first episode of Severance season two is available on Apple TV+. The following nine episodes will be released on Fridays until the series finale on March 21, 2025.
