When last we spoke of the Wachowskis and J. Michael Straczynski's upcoming Netflix series Sense8, it was to tell you that the ambitious Netflix series would be shooting in UK, Seoul, Mumbai, Nairobi, Berlin, Mexico City, San Francisco and Chicago, and that the show would focus on eight people scattered around the globe who are connected by a shared violent vision.  We previously had a description of those eight central characters, but today the actual cast has been revealed.  The principal actors will be Brian J. Smith, Tuppence Middleton, Aml Ameen, Doona Bae, Miguel Silvestri, Tena Desae, Max Riemelt, and Jamie Clayton.  Hit the jump for just who they might be playing, the rest of the 14-member cast, and more plot details.

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As we previously reported, the eight main characters will feature “a closeted Mexican telenovela hunk, an Icelandic party girl, a German safe-cracker, a Korean businesswoman, an African bus driver and a transgender American blogger. Perhaps most intriguing, though, are Jonas, an apparently magic African-American who appears to all of the “visionaries,” and his evil counterpart, Mr. Whispers.”  Deadline further reports that  Naveen AndrewsDaryl HannahFreema AgyemanAlfonso HerreraErendira Ibarra, and Terrence Mann will fill out the cast.  You can probably figure out a bulk of the characters and their associated actors based on their nationality alone, but no definitive casting assignments or images have been released just yet.

Here's how Straczynski explained the plot:

“The series follows eight characters around the world who, in the aftermath of a tragic death, find themselves linked to each other mentally and emotionally. They can not only see and talk to each other as though they were in the same place, they have access to each other’s deepest secrets. Not only must they figure out what happened and why and what it means for the future of humanity, they must do so while being hunted by an organization out to capture, kill or vivisect them.”

Despite it's globe-trotting nature, this actually seems like a more restrained project for the Wachowskis.  There's no voyage across time or intergalactic space, but rather a more Earth-based, contemporary take on what it means to be human.  Though their recent films have had a difficult time finding audiences, perhaps the foray into the digital domain will serve them better.  Look for the 10-episode run of Sense8 on Netflix next year.

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