Season 1

The first season of TNT's dystopian thriller television drama series Snowpiercer was picked up for a season order on January 2018. Whilst the season was scheduled to debut May 31, 2020, TNT brought forward the release date to May 17, 2020, arising from the increase in consumer demand following the outbreak of COVID-19.

The first two episodes were released on Netflix on May 25, 2020. The season was available on January 1, 2021 on HBO Max.

Synopsis

Set more than seven years after the world has become a frozen wasteland, Snowpiercer centers on the remnants of humanity, who inhabit a gigantic, perpetually-moving train that circles the globe. Class warfare, social injustice and the politics of survival play out in this riveting television adaptation.

Cast and characters

Main

Guest

Rowan Blanchard as Alexandra Cavill
Miranda Edwards as Lights
Benjamin Charles Watson as Brakeman Fuller

Recurring

Crew

Season 1 Crew

Writers:
Graeme Manson
Tina de la Torre
Donald Joh
Hiram Martinez
Aubrey Nealon
Chinaka Hodge • Benjamin Legrand
Jacques Lob • Lizzie Mickery • Jean-Marc Rochette

Producers:
Graeme Manson • James Hawes • Marty Adelstein • Bong Joon-ho • Dooho Choi • Becky Clements • Scott Derrickson • Matthew O'Connor • Lee Tae-hun • Park Chan-wook • Josh Friedman • Ben Rosenblatt • Lizzie Mickery • Aubrey Nealon • Mackenzie Donaldson • Semi Chellas • Hiram Martinez

Directors:
James Hawes • Sam Miller • Helen Shaver • Frederick E.O. Toye • Everardo Gout

Episodes

Image	Episode Information
	"First, the Weather Changed" Airdate: May 17, 2020 Episode / Series Number: 01 / 01 Directed by: James Hawes Written by: Josh Friedman & Graeme Manson
Snowpiercer, the Great Ark Train, has kept the last remnants of humanity alive for almost seven years. A rigid class system maintains order, with First Class holding power over workers, while a condemned Prison Class struggles to survive in the Tail. Now, a grisly murder is stoking class division, so Melanie Cavill, the powerful head of hospitality, deputizes a dangerous rebel to help solve the killing — Andre Layton, the world’s only surviving homicide detective.
	"Prepare to Brace" Airdate: May 24, 2020 Episode / Series Number: 02 / 02 Directed by: Sam Miller Written by: Donald Joh
Layton uses his new position as train detective to investigate the murder while gathering intel for the revolution on the side. Meanwhile, Melanie faces a resource crisis, with potentially drastic consequences for the entire train.
	"Access Is Power" Airdate: May 31, 2020 Episode / Series Number: 03 / 03 Directed by: Sam Miller Written by: Lizzie Mickery
Layton descends into Snowpiercer's black market with Till, searching for both the killer and a valuable commodity for his revolution. Melanie stages a prize fight to distract the passengers from mounting class tension.
	"Without Their Maker" Airdate: June 7, 2020 Episode / Series Number: 04 / 04 Directed by: Frederick E.O. Toye Written by: Hiram Martinez
A shocking twist in the murder investigation brings Layton and Till's manhunt to a cat-and-mouse climax, but Layton is getting too close to Melanie's big secret, which may prove the most dangerous game of all.
	"Justice Never Boarded" Airdate: June 14, 2020 Episode / Series Number: 05 / 05 Directed by: Frederick E.O. Toye Written by: Chinaka Hodge
Tensions between Third Class and First Class are boiling as Melanie stages the trial of the Snowpiercer killer. Third Class threatens a work stoppage, demanding representation on the jury, and Melanie makes a fateful decision about which side to favor.
	"Trouble Comes Sideways" Airdate: June 21, 2020 Episode / Series Number: 06 / 06 Directed by: Helen Shaver Written by: Aubrey Nealon & Tina de la Torre
Hiding out with help from his allies, Layton lays track for revolution. Meanwhile, an engineering emergency threatens every soul on Snowpiercer, and Melanie is the only one who can save them.
	"The Universe Is Indifferent" Airdate: June 28, 2020 Episode / Series Number: 07 / 07 Directed by: Helen Shaver Written by: Donald Joh
On a divided Snowpiercer, Melanie intensifies her search for Layton (Daveed Diggs). Meanwhile, Layton is weaponizing her secret, and Third Class faces a reckoning when he presents them with a choice.
	"These Are His Revolutions" Airdate: July 5, 2020 Episode / Series Number: 08 / 08 Directed by: Everardo Gout Written by: Tina de la Torre
Revolution has finally come, and Layton leads the lower classes forward in armed rebellion. Melanie’s house of cards collapses and she’s in danger of becoming the first casualty in the battle for control of Snowpiercer.
	"The Train Demanded Blood" Airdate: July 12, 2020 Episode / Series Number: 09 / 09 Directed by: James Hawes Written by: Aubrey Nealon
The rebel forces are on the ropes when a dangerous foe defects to their side. They hatch a final plan to take control of Snowpiercer once and for all, but it comes at a grave moral cost, and just may destroy them all.
	"994 Cars Long" Airdate: July 12, 2020 Episode / Series Number: 10 / 10 Directed by: James Hawes Written by: Graeme Manson
In the revolution's aftermath, Layton struggles to govern the shell-shocked survivors. Melanie finally makes peace with her demons, only to realize the biggest threat to their survival is right over her shoulder.

Production

Development

In November 2016, the series was ordered to pilot along with backup scripts by TNT with Josh Friedman to serve as showrunner.^[1] May 17, 2017, it was announced that Scott Derrickson would direct the pilot written by Friedman.^[2] The pilot was picked up to series in January 2018, a year after it was picked up to pilot.^[3] Graeme Manson was appointed to replace Friedman as showrunner the following month^[4], after he exited the project due to "creative differences" with the network in January.^[5] In May 2019, it was announced that the series would air on TBS instead of TNT for a Q2 2020 release, and that a second season had already been ordered by the network. In September 2019, the decision to change networks was reversed, with the series once again set to air on TNT.^[6] On January 19, 2021, ahead of the second season premiere, TNT renewed the series for a third season.^[7]

Casting

In May 17, 2017, it was announced that Daveed Diggs was cast as Layton Well.^[2] The following month, Jennifer Connelly and Mickey Sumner landed the other lead roles of Melanie Cavill and Bess Till.^[3]^[8] In June, it was announced that Annalise Basso as LJ Folger, Sasha Frolova as Pixi Aariak, Alison Wright as Ruth Wardell, Benjamin Haigh as Fergus McConnell, Roberto Urbina as Javier De La Torre, and Katie McGuinness as Josie McConnell joined the cast.^[9]^[10]^[11] In August, it was announced that Susan Park had joined the main cast as Jinju.^[12] In September, Lena Hall was cast as Sayori.^[13] In January 2018 it was also revealed that Sheila Vand and Sam Otto had been cast in then-undisclosed roles as series regulars.^[14] In August, Iddo Goldberg and Jaylin Fletcher were added as series regulars in the roles of Bennett Knox and Miles.^[15]^[16]

Casting for a number of recurring roles were also announced during the month of August, including Steven Ogg as Pike, Timothy V. Murphy as Nolan Grey, Happy Anderson as Henry Klimpt, Jonathan Walker as Big John, and Aleks Paunovic as Bojan Boscovic.^[17]^[18]^[19] In September, Shaun Toub and Kerry O'Malley were added to the recurring cast as Terence and Lilah Folger.^[20]^[21] In October, Aaron Glenane was cast as The Last Australian alongside Fiona Vroom as Miss Gillies, both in recurring roles.^[22]

Filming

The site My Entertainment World, which logs the production information of television pilot episodes, has unveiled that the series will start filming in Mid-March of 2017, according to Omega Underground.^[23] By September 25, pilot director Scott Derrickson indicated that production for the series had officially commenced.^[24] Whilst the season was scheduled to debut May 31, 2020,^[25] but TNT brought forward the release date to May 17, 2020, arising from the increase in consumer demand following the outbreak of COVID-19.^[26]

Marketing

Showrunner Graeme Manson, Jennifer Connelly, Daveed Diggs, Alison Wright, Mickey Sumner, Lena Hall and Steven Ogg attended the 2019 San Diego Comic-Con International, they were joined by executive producers Marty Adelstein and Becky Clements of Tomorrow Studios to promote the series and debut its first official trailer.^[27] TNT announced on January 15, 2020, during Television Critics Association that the series will arrive at the WarnerMedia cable outlet at 9 p.m. Sunday, May 31.^[25]

Release

Broadcast

The series debuted on TNT in the United States on May 17, 2020, while Netflix aired the series globally outside of the United States and China.^[28] Huanxi Media Group is set to broadcast the first two seasons exclusively in China, after WarnerMedia handed the series a second season.^[29]

Trivia

The first season was brought forward fourteen days due to the increasing demand from consumers regarding COVID-19.
Across the Atlantic, the show is not airing on Netflix
- The first two episodes dropped on Monday 25 May on Netflix, with one coming every Monday from then on.
Though in the story Snowpiercer is 10 miles long, with 1,001 cars. ^[30]
- Production designer Barry Robison and his art department built 18 cars on four stages.^[30]
  - Including the engine; a hydroponic gardening car; first- , second- and third-class dining cars; a sushi restaurant with an undersea element; and the “chains” car, which resembles an Asian night market.^[30]
We learn at the very end of this second Snowpiercer episode that there are about 3,000 people onboard the train, Tailies included.