From H.G. Wells’ initial story, to Steven Spielberg’s major motion picture, to Howard Overman’s recent vision, it’s clear that audiences can’t get enough of the exhilarating War of the Worlds setting! This week, and under the title of Invasion, Apple TV will add to this diverse, legendary anthology with their modern twist on this classic Sci-Fi narrative! Told through complex characters based all over the world, this is a relentless retelling perfectly suited for a TV series format. Holding up the decorated navy seal segment as Trevante Cole in Afghanistan is Shamier Anderson (Stowaway/Awake/John Wick: Chapter 4)! STARBURST talks with the man himself to discuss the characteristics of Trevante, what Invasion was like to be a part of, and MUCH more!”

STARBURST: How familiar were you with the sci-fi story of The War of the Worlds before entering the project? Do you have any memories of it?

Shamier Anderson: Yeah, I was young when the Tom Cruise movie came out, but I was definitely familiar. Obviously, Tom Cruise is a legend. I’d be lying to you if I said that I did not watch that movie 1001 times before getting this job. It’s cool.

How would you describe your character Trevante Cole to someone that hasn’t seen the show, and how would you say that he fits into the show altogether?

Trevante is somebody who is very complex. He is a Navy Seal, and a decorated military veteran.  He has been in Special Forces for a very long time. He has a very complex past, a rich past, and he is from Florida. Not to give away too many spoilers, but this is a coming of age story for him. He starts to understand himself as this show evolves. It’s important to say that there’s a parallel and similarity with mankind, when something happens to us, that’s when we start to wake up to certain things. Certain things are awakened. We see that in Trevante’s journey in this series. Regardless of the sci-fi, extra-terrestrial elements, regardless of if you like Navy Seal/Military movies or not, this is a human experience that you get to feel through Trevante’s lens, and that’s what made me fall in love with him, and this character.

The characters in the show are based all over the world, so other than an alien invasion, what would you say really connects them all? Is there something in particular that they all have in common?

Something in particular that they all have in common is fear, let’s start with that. Everybody is scared of what’s going on. I think it’s clear as day that everybody is in fear of what is going on, but there’s also a wanting for love and understanding. I think that’s something that we see throughout. Everything is rooted in love, even down to the kid’s storyline. Billy Barratt’s character wanted to be liked. I think that’s something that’s a very interesting through-line that makes this story palatable, universal to those who may not be familiar to this genre.

Also, by having the story told from multiple locations all across the globe, what do you think that does for the show itself? We got a sense of realism from it being told this way.

Yeah! One of my favourite films is Babel by Alejandro G. Iñárritu, I love that film; I think it’s incredible. Along with Crash as well, and the different perspectives. I love those types of films, they get me excited. By doing this approach the creators at Apple TV have brought marketability to the show. They’ve been able to go into different territories. I love that they are unapologetic, I love that in the Japanese storyline; we’re just with the Japanese folks. We’re in their world, with their culture, and their language. When we’re in London we hear their rhetoric, their slang. When you’re with Trevante, with his seals, and his buddies, you’re in that shorthand. You get to see, from a fly on the wall point of view, the audience so to speak, gets to be immersed in these different perspectives throughout the series. Which also opens up our mind as the viewer, to be able to see that we are a lot more connected than we think. We are not so different, despite, race, creed, language, and those types of things. I love stories and shows like that, as it really offers another perspective outside of your own.

With a combination of modern warfare and The War of the Worlds influences, I was wondering what kind of research you did when it came to approaching your character?

I did a lot of research. A lot, more than you know! I actually went to school for criminology. I wanted to be a police officer at one point in time before I got the acting bug. So law enforcement, and understanding policy, those things were really fascinating to me growing up. So I just had an interest already, at the forefront, approaching this part. But I had to understand the nuances of playing somebody in Special Forces. It was important for me to work with a gentlemen by the name of Remi Adeleke, who is an ex-Navy Seal, and an incredible human being. He has an incredible story. He was brought on board, and he put me through boot camp, from the training, to the psychophysical aspect, to just being a Seal, and what it meant to be a Seal. That was really important to me, in my process. As we got to set, I wanted to maintain a lot of that training, so I would be up earlier before everybody else, I would be on set before everybody else, I’d be working out; I’d be sleeping in the desert. I’d be doing all of these things that would inform my character, and help me with the process. All of it was rooted in anxiety to be honest, it wasn’t me trying to be pretentious, or trying to be like this ‘actory’ person, it was just, I didn’t want to fuck up. So to speak. So that was where that came from, but also, giving the role justice and understanding that this is important to a lot of people, who serve currently today.

At this point audiences have seen a few versions of The War of the Worlds. Can you elaborate a bit more on what else makes Invasion stand out from what has come before it?

We pay respects, and we give respects to those incredible films, because they’re all singular in their approach, and I don’t think it’s even a conversation as they’re in their own lane. However, I think what makes Invasion different is this ensemble. I think this ensemble is different, and the fact that we’re telling the story in 2021. The fact that I’m a part of this ensemble cast, which I’m really proud of, being a Canadian boy from Toronto, which is really cool. But I think understanding the younger perspective, which I think is really cool, I’m a big fan of Billy and India, and that storyline. I just think that there are a lot of elements in this version of The War of the Worlds. Everyone may think it’s the same thing, but it’s definitely its own beast. This version offers a fresher perspective.

Also, what were Simon Kinberg and David Weil like to collaborate with, and what do you think they have brought to Invasion overall?

Those two guys are titans! I definitely felt like a fly in a cup of milk, with those two beasts. To be able to work with those two is just like, “Wow!” Andrew Baldwin, our show-runner, who is on the ground, he was the ultimate collaborator. I mean, I’ve shot a lot of films and TV shows, and this one takes the cake when it comes to the collaborative aspect of this show. Allowing me to bring my nuances, ingredients to this guy, along with supporting their ideas, and them supporting mine, it was just amazing. I look forward to hopefully doing more Invasion with them, or more shows with them. This was one of the best experiences in my life, truly.

Obviously you worked on Stowaway recently as well, so I did want to ask, what do you enjoy so much about working in a sci-fi setting/story?

I just love the green screens! Ha, no, it just happened to be that way. I don’t seek these things out, and say that they have to be sci-fi. I just like great stories that are entertaining with great actors, that’s just pretty much it. If something happens next week, and it’s like “Hey, we’re doing this comedy that makes sense!” then I’ll do the comedy. If sci-fi makes sense for the next ten years, then let’s do some sci-fi. However, for me, it’s just great stories. I just love great stories.

Invasion is currently streaming on AppleTV+.