Orphan Black: Echoes Cast, Plot, Teaser Trailer And More Details

When "Orphan Black" ended in 2017, fans of the Tatiana Maslany-led sci-fi series were sad to say goodbye to all their favorite clones. But a couple of years later, Variety broke the news that AMC and the original series producers were talking about a new show set in the same world. Months passed, and fans kept their fingers crossed. Now, their patience is being rewarded: Spin-off series "Orphan Black: Echoes" is officially headed our way.

Diehard fans are probably full of questions regarding this new outing. Who is starring in the series? When will it take place? What aspect of this fictional universe will it focus on? The answers to some of these questions currently remain murky. Others, however, do not. Eager to head back into this wild world of sci-fi strangeness? Then stick with us. We've got all the details you need on "Orphan Black: Echoes."

"Orphan Black" was a global hit throughout its 2010s run, reflecting its multi-national origins. Produced and shot in Canada with a Canadian crew and starring a primarily Canadian cast, it aired on Canada's Space cable network, and in the United States on BBC America, the stateside offshoot of the U.K.'s state-run British Broadcasting Corporation. BBC America is a joint venture of the BBC and the U.S.-based AMC Networks, operator of specialty cable networks including AMC, IFC, and Sundance TV, which all have programming prominently featured on the company's streaming wing, AMC+.

The long-promised "Orphan Black" spinoff, "Orphan Black: Echoes," will thus be available on a variety of platforms upon its debut. Episodes will air on AMC and BBC America, and be available for on-demand streaming to AMC+ subscribers. But while the "where" is locked down, the question of "when" is still up in the air. According to AMC Networks, "Orphan Black: Echoes" will premiere sometime in 2024.

In April 2022, when AMC Networks announced it had ordered a new show set inside the then-dormant "Orphan Black" universe, it gave viewers a scene-setting taste of what to expect. According to a plot synopsis released by AMC to Entertainment Weekly, "Orphan Black: Echoes" will explore similar themes as "Orphan Black," like the effect of technology on human nature. "Set in the near future," the synopsis reads, "the new 'Orphan Black' takes a deep dive into the exploration of the scientific manipulation of human existence. It follows a group of women as they weave their way into each other's lives and embark on a thrilling journey, unraveling the mystery of their identity and uncovering a wrenching story of love and betrayal."

A year and a half later, a short trailer revealed a few more details about the story and set-up of "Orphan Black: Echoes." Viewers glimpse a woman named Lucy, who has received some sort of medical treatment and must put together what happened to her. Her path will cross that of the sinister Darros Foundation, and its crusading but conflicted neuroscientist.

Krysten Ritter, already a veteran of moody sci-fi TV as the titular superhero on Marvel's "Jessica Jones," stars on "Orphan Black: Echoes" as protagonist Lucy. Her likely adversary is Darros. Head of aggressive modification technology company the Darros Foundation, he will be played by James Hiroyuki Liao, recent co-star of Hulu's "The Dropout." Darros' steely neuroscientist Eleanor will be played by Rya Kihlstedt of "One Mississippi."

Reed Diamond, best known for his work on procedural dramas including "Bones," "The Shield," "The Mentalist," and "Homicide: Life on the Street," is set to play Tom, a former military tough now working as the Darros Foundation's head of security. Rounding out the cast are Keeley Hawes ("Bodyguard") as an unnamed scientist, Amanda Fix ("High School") as wealthy teen Jules, and Avan Jogia ("Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City") as Lucy's boyfriend Jack.

While it's set in the same elaborate fictional universe as "Orphan Black," spin-off "Orphan Black: Echoes" is credited as an original creation of writer-producer Anna Fishko. Prior to "Echoes," on which she'll also serve as showrunner, writer, and executive producer, Fishko wrote scripts for memorable and innovative science fiction dramas including "Colony," "Fear the Walking Dead," and "The Society." Joining Fishko in the writers room is fellow "Fear the Walking Dead" scribe Alex Delyle, "The Society" writers' assistant Julian Camillieri, "Servant" producer Amy Louise Johnson, "Suits" writer Sharyn Rothstein, and John Fawcett. 

Fawcett, who co-created the original "Orphan Black" and directed multiple episodes of the original series, will direct a certain quantity of "Orphan Black: Echoes" episodes. He will also serve as an executive producer alongside "Orphan Black" overseers David Fortier and Ivan Schneeberg.

On October 12, 2023, AMC Networks unveiled the very first look at "Orphan Black: Echoes" in the form of a brief teaser trailer. Viewers are introduced to a mysterious woman, who awakens on a couch. Even with the prompting of someone who appears to be a scientist, she has no recollection of her name or the year. That's understandably distressing, as is the pink goop caked under her fingernails. The looming scientist tells her it's the result of a "procedure." 

What kind of procedure? Some quick flashes of bloody instruments, scientific experimentation, and futuristic lab facilities, plus knowledge of the original "Orphan Black" series, imply she's been enlisted against her will in a cloning operation. A chyron nudges audiences further along this line by claiming this new series is "a completely unique copy of the original" — a wry reference to the sci-fi premise of "Orphan Black." The trailer also includes glimpses of a technologically advanced city of tomorrow, grave desecration, the amnesiac woman running out of a lab, and other women who just might be clones. It's clear from the trailer that "Orphan Black: Echoes" will focus on these characters' fight to find out who they are and why they exist, which seems to involve bodies in giant tubes covered in pink goop.

"Orphan Black: Echoes" will see release some time in 2024, which makes for a seven-year gap between the final season of the "Orphan Black" main series and the beginning of this new show. In anticipation of the spin-off, interested fans might want to watch (or rewatch) the entirety of "Orphan Black." This is an easy proposition in the age of streaming. As the 2013-to-2017 series aired in the United States on BBC America, the entire run of the show is presently available on AMC+.

Those who don't subscribe to the AMC+ streaming service can purchase episodes of "Orphan Black" by the piece or by the season. While Amazon Prime allows viewing of "Orphan Black" with a seven-day free trial of AMC+ as an add-on, installments may be bought outright. One episode in standard definition costs $1.99, while a high definition version comes in at $2.99 and an ultra high-definition take costs $3.99. On a per-season basis, SD runs $16.99, HD is $25.99, and UHD costs $38.99.