Trevante Ward is about to fight a war — just not the one he expected. In Invasion, Apple TV+’s new series from producer Simon Kinberg, the soldier finds himself in the middle of Afghanistan when Earth receives some extraterrestrial visitors. In fact, he becomes the first character in Invasion‘s ensemble to make a close encounter and then live to tell the tale. Now, knowing the threat he faces, he must do whatever it takes to get home to his estranged — but beloved — family.
Speaking to CBR, Invasion star Shamier Anderson broke down his approach to Trevante and the many faces he wears to survive. He described Trevante as the next step up from his fan-favorite Wynonna Earp character Agent Dolls and promised Trevante is just as badass as he is sensitive and vulnerable. He also recalled the day he met Sam Neill on set, revealed what it was like to film in the deserts of Morocco and teased the “incredible” final moment of the season finale.
CBR: Introduce me to Trevante Ward. If you had to introduce him to your friends, what would you tell them about him?
Shamier Anderson: I would say, after meeting Trevante Ward, I’d be like, “That guy’s awkward!” [laughs] I would say, “Trevante Ward is interesting.” He has a lot of gravitas, but is still hard to read. He smiles in your face, and then he’s crying behind the scenes. He’s kind of an interesting guy! But at the core of it, he’s sensitive. He’s vulnerable. I’d say he’s badass. Don’t mess with him, because if I’m laughing about him with you right now, he’d be like, “Hey! I’m a Navy SEAL! I’ll benchpress you!” But the core of it, he’s a really kind man.
Which aspect of Trevante’s character do you relate to the most and why?
There are a few aspects of Trevante that I relate to, but one of the main ones is his love for his family. When the series evolves, you start to realize he has such a love for his family, to the point where he can’t even articulate it. It’s something how I feel about my family, is how much I care about them and how much I want to protect them and fight for them. Yeah, that’s kind of the similarity that I with Trevante.
From what we see of Trevante in the first three episodes, he wears a couple different faces depending on the people he’s with. How does he balance his approach to all these different worlds he’s a part of?
I think that’s a part of his job of being a Navy SEAL is being able to adapt. You have to be able to adapt really quickly, and I think being able to adapt very quickly requires him to put on different faces. Through that, he probably loses himself with these characters he has to play in these different situations.
To his benefit, it’s a great skill to have when you’re active on war, but then, when you leave war, it’s like what do you do when you’re at home, and you’ve got to face yourself? That’s why Trevante is on this journey of having to face himself throughout the series, amidst all the chaos of an alien invasion. I think that’s what makes the show so dynamic and interesting.
You’re no stranger to science fiction and fantasy. What does the genre allow you to do with the character, that perhaps you couldn’t with a regular drama?
I mean, I get to look at green screens and green balls. I call it my Godzilla face. I’ve got to have that Godzilla face, when you see Godzilla. I mean, it’s cool, because you have to push the boundaries a little bit. You get to really push the imagination, which you don’t get to do that much in drama or biopics or period pieces, because you’re kind of stuck in the confines and the story, but this one, the sky’s the limit — clearly, it has the invasion aspect, but that’s a little about sci-fi and these types of genres.
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For our Wynonna Earp fans out there, how would you compare Trevante to Agent Dolls?
Shout out all Earpers, first and foremost! Love you dearly. Miss you all. We should have a Twitter party. I’m not that good at that stuff — a Twitter party. But I hope you guys watch this show because you’re gonna love it.
If you love Dolls, you’re gonna love Trevante. Well, both Agent Dolls and Trevante are similar because they’re both law enforcement. So clearly I keep playing roles where there’s a law enforcement element. However, Agent Dolls has a special place in my heart, for a lot of people and for myself, but Trevante is like a 2.0 version of Agent Dolls, and I’m excited for people to see that.
Invasion filmed all over the world. What was it like to film your role out in the middle of the desert?
It was definitely an experienced being in the desert. It was hot, a lot of sand everywhere — and I mean everywhere. [laughs] But it was great! I took it with a smile on my face because I got to travel the world, filming this role, filming this part, and being able to tell the story authentically. Sometimes, it’ll be in a studio the entire shoot. So I’m happy that I was able to really be on location and being able to take in all the elements.
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Where did you film exactly, and how did that impact your approach to the character?
Yeah, for sure. I’ll be cagey with my response as to that impact — a bit of some spoilers — but I will say I was in Morocco and I filmed there. Just know the show takes place in Japan, New York, London, Morocco and wherever else they take us. We’ll see if Trevante gets to go into those other worlds, some of those places.
There’s one moment in particular that stood out to me, being the Frozen singalong in the caravan. Tell me a little more about getting in touch with your inner Elsa and what that says about Trevante as a character.
Trevante doesn’t take himself so seriously, not too seriously. Trevantae has a softer side. Trevante had a kid, and Trevante watched Disney movies at one moment in time. It just goes to show how much color this man has a person. He’s not just a straight cut military SEAL, who’s on a mission. You know, he’s has dimension. He has depth. He’s a human.
That’s why I think that song was so important. As to the experience, we all had so much fun, to the point where it got out of hand and we were dancing in the truck. Then our Navy SEAL specialist… came in and said, “That’s not authentic. You’re still on a mission. This isn’t a karaoke bar. Chill out.” [laughs]
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What’s one of your favorite memories from set? Something that stood out to you about your experience on the series?
A memorable day on set was when I was filming one scene in particular. It wasn’t really about the scene or the experience. I saw in the corner of my eye this silver fox, and I said, “That guy looks really familiar.” They called cut, and I looked over to the monitors and it was Sam Neill. I was like, “Wow, Dr. Grant! It’s the Dr. Grant!”
I walked over to him, gave him a hug, got a picture — so freaking cool! I was filming that whole day, and he said to me, “You want to go to dinner, Shamier? I’d like to go to dinner with you.” And I went, “[sigh] I’m filming all night. Let’s go tomorrow.” And he was like, “I’m flying out tomorrow.”
So, because I was filming, I don’t have a chance to have dinner with Dr. Grant, but that was a cool experience because I was a kid that watched Jurassic Park and to be able to see the man himself was just like, “Wow!” And Jungle Book. The Jungle Book, which he was in.
What’s a moment or scene you just can’t wait for audiences to see?
Something in the show that I’m excited for folks to see, that I’m excited for folks to see, is the season finale, last episode, the last frame in the last minute before they roll the credits. That’s the moment you have to wait for. So you have to watch the entire series for that moment. That is going to be an incredible moment.
Invasion’s first three episodes are now streaming on Apple TV+. New episodes become available every Friday.
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