The Big Picture

Two stars of Prime Video’s Upload, Zainab Johnson and Jeanine Mason, discuss their reactions to the shocking Season 3 finale in an interview with Collider. The finale left them stunned and they were in awe and disbelief, unable to decide which Nathan they wanted and who they wanted to serve, Nora or Ingrid. They also talk about their nerves during filming, with Johnson being particularly nervous during a scene involving intimacy between Aleesha and Karina. Mason discusses her nerves about joining the cast in a new season.

[Editor’s note: The following contains spoilers for Upload Season 3.]Prime Video’s Upload concluded Season 3 with a massive cliffhanger that left even two of its stars stunned. In an interview with Collider’s Steve Weintraub, Zainab Johnson and Jeanine Mason, who play Aleesha and Karina respectively, spoke about their reactions to the final episode.

Upload is Greg Daniel’s sci-fi comedy that explores the idea of digitized afterlives. In the third season, Nathan (Robbie Amell) is reunited with Nora (Andy Allo), and the pair go on a mission to reconnect families with the drives of those lost in the Freeyond scheme and assist in a class-action lawsuit against Horizen. Time is ticking to get Nathan uploaded before his head explodes, while back in Lakeview, things are heating up between other Nathan and Ingrid (Allegra Edwards). As for Aleesha and Karina, Aleesha is weirded out by Karina’s darker side, and while watching the trial, Karina’s nefarious behavior pushes Aleesha to consider breaking things off but must come up with a plan to do so without losing her job…or her life.

During their conversation, Johnson discusses which Season 3 scene made her the most nervous before stepping on set, and Mason shares her own nerves on joining the cast in a new season. They talk about their dynamic on and off set, if they would ever consider uploading themselves to an afterlife, and their reactions to seeing the Upload Season 3 finale. Check it all out in the video at the top of the article, or you can read the full transcript below.

Upload A man is able to choose his own afterlife after his untimely death by having his consciousness uploaded into a virtual world. As he gets used to his new life and befriends his angel (real world handler), questions about his death arise. Release Date May 1, 2020 Cast Robbie Amell, Andy Allo, Kevin Bigley, Zainab Johnson, Allegra Edwards, Owen Daniels Main Genre Comedy Seasons 3 Writers Greg Daniels
COLLIDER: I really want to start with I love the show, great season. I have a ton of questions, but for both of you, if someone has actually never seen anything you’ve done before, what is the first thing you’d like them watching and why?

JEANINE MASON: Oh, Steven. Great question. Oh god, do you have something, Zainab? You go. [Laughs]

ZAINAB JOHNSON: I think it might be the thing that got me cast on Upload, so I would definitely want people to watch my stand-up because I’m a stand-up comedian. I would want them to watch that first, but I would have to say that Upload is definitely a strong runner-up. I feel like people really love and support the character Aleesha, so I’m really proud to play her.

MASON: This is maybe a little out there, but my career started on a competition dance series called So You Think You Can Dance, and I spent so many years trying to bridge the gap into acting and being taken seriously as an actor, and now I’m at this place where I have to remind people that that’s where I started. I’m very proud of it. I would have never thought my career would have started in that way, but I love where I’m at, and I’m so grateful for it. So I hope people would start with that with that understanding of me and my work, and where I’ve come from. It informs where you are now. And I’m gonna agree with Zainab, and in second place, I want them to watch Season 3 of Upload. [Laughs]

JOHNSON: When Jeanine was first cast, Allegra, who plays Ingrid, she was like, “I love Jeanine,” and I was like, “Oh, how do you know?” And she was like, “Oh, have you seen her dancing? Have you seen?” Then as soon as we were on set together, I was like, “Allegra, I have a surprise.” [Laughs]

MASON: That was the best. She’s so sweet. I love her.

Which Scene Made Zainab Johnson Nervous?
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Speaking of Upload Season 3, when you think back on the filming of the season, what was the day that you had circled in terms of being really excited to film it or you were really nervous to film it?

JOHNSON: Oh, that’s very easy for me. Upload Season 3. I know that it’s out already—so everybody watch—but definitely, there’s a scene where there’s assumed intimacy between Aleesha and Karina, and Aleesha and Karina kiss. I was very, very nervous. I don’t know, you become aware of so many things. Like, “What do I look like when I kiss?” You know what I’m saying? You just think of things that you would have never. I wish that the thought was like, “Oh my god, like I’m so nervous to kiss a girl…” I just thought like, “What chapstick do I wear that day?” Just ridiculous stuff. The other characters, I had seen them working with the intimacy coordinators and things like that in seasons prior, and I knew that this was the most…I can’t remember what was cut or not, but we had to be in assumed nudity and that was all very new for me. So those were probably my most nervous moments on set this season.

MASON: Yeah. I’m a fan of Upload from before I got to be on the show, and I’m a fan of Zainab, and more so now, even since. I just went to the taping of her comedy special in Harlem with one of my good friends, and she’s a goddess. In real life, she is a goddess as much as she is on the screen. And I was so nervous that first day because she’s just got such a profoundly honest and grounded and calm energy, and I wanted to really attempt to match her where she is so effortlessly. So I was nervous. It’s nerve-wracking to be a new character on a new set always, but she has such a presence. I was so nervous that first day, and when I watched those scenes back from our first episode, I see my nervousness. I hope the audience doesn’t.

JOHNSON: Really?

MASON: You know how you just can’t fool yourself. But she made it so comfortable and inviting. It was lovely.

Would You Upload?
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One of the things I think resonates with people about Upload is that I think that at some point in the future, some form of this is going to be possible. Not this exact version, but some version. I’m sure you’ve been asked this before, but if you had the option of doing something like this, would you actually do it?

JOHNSON: Yeah, this is a very common question, and why wouldn’t it be, right? It is a deep question, and I believe at some point we probably will be faced with that. I’ve always said no. I’ve always said no because I’m also coming from, remember, Aleesha lost Dr. Caputo in Season 1. So I’m always like, “I’m gonna get somebody like Aleesha…” So, I typically say no, but I don’t know. Something about Season 3, there’s this ability to upload/download. I still don’t know, but I’m definitely moving away from the absolute no.

Sure.

MASON: I gotta think no, as well. I’m sure in reality I’d explore the option, but I don’t know. I’m kind of curious about what’s next [laughs], and I wouldn’t wanna lose the opportunity to explore that, too.

‘Upload’ Season 3 Reactions
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I’m curious, and this is gonna be obviously a spoiler question, but what did you both think about this Season 3 finale and where it all went?

JOHNSON: Okay, so before the public got it, and Jeanine couldn’t be a part of this because she’s not in LA, but Greg had most of the cast over to his theater. He had us over and we watched, and we watched in the way that we knew it would be released. So we watched every two episodes, and then we took a break and we got food, and we chatted. This was like a whole day thing. And I remember the finale…I couldn’t take it. I was laid out in the theater, and I couldn’t take it. And I also, for the first time, didn’t know which Nathan I wanted. I didn’t know if I wanted real-life Nathan or backup Nathan. I didn’t know who I wanted to serve, as Nora or Ingrid. I mean, as much as I knew what was coming, I still was in awe and disbelief.

MASON: 100%. I just watched it. Zainab, I meant to text you. The first time I read it, it’s an interesting thing being an actor where you see it on the page first, and it shocked me to my core. But I didn’t know where my allegiance was this time. I completely agree with you. Ingrid’s evolution, I did not expect her to win me over as much as she did where I am devastated if it’s not her Nathan. But then, Nora is my girl. It’s so complicated.

JOHNSON: Then it poses the idea, because if we think about it, we all have, let’s say, celebrity crushes, right? And it’s like, “Yeah, my celebrity crush is married, but if there was a way in the world where I could also have this person…” you know? That’s interesting but also scary. I found myself like, “Well, I mean, can’t we keep upload Nathan and backup Nathan? Can’t we just have both of them?” So even just thinking about that in the real world is kind of, I don’t know, scary to imagine.

MASON: 100%.

Upload Season 3 is available to watch on Amazon Prime Video in the U.S.

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