The Ark's Samantha Glassner on Untrustworthy Kelly: "She is Human Like Everyone Else on That Ship"

The Ark is approaching the end of its first season, but the show has introduced some new characters on Ark One.

Samantha Glassner plays Kelly, the mysterious lone survivor from Ark Three.

Kelly got introduced on The Ark Season 1 Episode 7.

Her storyline continued briefly on The Ark Season 1 Episode 8, but her character got overshadowed by William and Helena Trust's entrance on the ship.

Check out the interview below! This interview has been edited for clarity.

What was it like working on a science fiction show?

It was incredible. I loved working on The Ark. To start with, the sets are incredible.

The first day I walked on set, I stepped into a fully built spaceship, which I'm a bit of a nerd.

I thought it was so cool looking at all the technology they built. Every aspect, the detail was so specific. It was incredible.

Did you have any trouble acclimating to the space? Either because you joined halfway through the season or otherwise?

I don't know if there was any acclimation to the set specifically. I booked the role and was in Serbia about five days later, so it was a quick turnover. So when I was first on set, I was still jetlagged! I was still processing what was happening, and I was on the show, in a spaceship, with a new character.

That may have been a bit jarring initially, but I had the most incredible and supporting cast and crew. Everyone was checking in on me from the moment I got there and asked me how I was doing and if they could help or run lines. They helped me acclimate quickly. It ended up being a smooth transition, which was terrific.

So Kelly joins in around the same time when two other polarizing characters join in, Mr. and Mrs. Trust. Could you discuss how the Trusts on the ship affect Kelly's overall goal? She's hiding more than she's letting on.

I don't want to reveal any spoilers for future episodes!

Kelly and Angus get close on The Ark Season 1 Episode 8. Did you become close with Ryan Adams as well?

Ryan Adams is wonderful. We immediately hit it off and became pretty good friends. Same with Stacey Reed (Alicia), she's also in a few of the scenes from episode eight.

We were kind of like the younger group in the cast, so we did a lot of hanging out together on the weekends. Ryan and I did become very good friends; it was very natural.

We also bonded over the fact that we were both still new to the industry, and this was our first big job. We shared similar nerves and everything, and we were both very good about reassuring each other and working through everything together, which was lovely.

Ryan is so talented and so smart. We had so much fun rehearsing and discussing the scenes with the director. I couldn't have asked for a better scene partner.

Episode 7 introduced Kelly, while the following introduced the Trusts. Will we see Kelly back in the spotlight soon?

I also don't want to reveal anything here either! Kelly continues to play an essential role on the show. I'll give you that. You'll see what I mean!

When joining a Sci-fi show, it's grounded in the real world, as this is all based on Earth falling apart. How did you ground your character in the real world when you're set on a spaceship for the whole character's arc so far?

I think a lot of it was trying to focus on the relationships between Kelly and the other characters. Focusing on the humanity of the situation. Of the Arks in general, the fact that the earth is dying and that everybody is trying to figure out "what do we do?"

They're trying to start over somewhere new, and I think that's a very human experience at its core: Survival. What happens when the world is suddenly no longer liveable? I think trying to ground myself in that and thinking about things like climate change. Maybe this will happen down the line, and hI thought about how scary that is.

One of the most powerful scenes was when Kelly described the Earth when she left. How did you prepare for that kind of emotional scene?

I think it was trying to make it as authentic in my head as possible. A lot of that in my prep was placing people in my personal life that I love in those situations in my mind.

So talking about the fires in another place and trying to imagine people in my life that I love being in those situations made the terror and trauma very real. It made it feel more like I was describing something personal to me.

Would you say it was a hard scene to shoot?

I think having that be a scene in my very first episode and talking to a space full of others, with the camera on the crane, there was a moment I walked in, and I was like, 'oh wow, we've got a lot of extras and a lot of crew!' It was a bit intimidating when I first walked in.

I did a lot of preparation. It got a lot easier once I processed the set and the magnitude because I felt very connected to Kelly in that scene. We were all fortunate to have actors around us who genuinely reacted to what I was saying and were so talented.

It made it easy for me to continue because it registered to me that the words impacted people. But yes, it was a difficult scene. It was a huge moment for my character in the first episode, so there was some pressure.

Would you say it humanized her?

Yes. 100%. That is something that I was nervous about going into that scene was making her feel human as she was giving this awful information to people about their loved ones. To show that she is a human being.

But yeah, we're not sure about her or who she is, but she is human like everyone else on that ship.

She's distraught over her home, earth, being destroyed and that her loved ones are probably dying. It centers and humanizes her, showing unsure audiences: okay, she is a human being. It lets them see her in a vulnerable position.

What most are you looking forward to/loving with fan reactions?

Honestly, it's been so cool for me to see the predictions and the thoughts on Kelly.

I know where the story goes, and I know a lot more about her than has been revealed so far, so just getting to see fans picking apart her dialogue and hearing all the different ideas people have about her has been cool and exciting as an actor.