Raised by Wolves Season 2: Kim Engelbrecht on her role as Decima

The accomplished South African actress Kim Engelbrecht spends her working time moving between filming sets in Europe, South Africa and Hollywood and most recently South Africa and Hollywood shook hands again in a deserted location somewhere on the outskirts of the Western Cape, where the second season of Raised by Wolves was filmed.

No stranger to sci-fi (and damn good at it) Kim Engelbrecht was cast in the major character role of Decima, a brilliant quantum engineer with a dark past and an android daughter. We caught up with Kim and chatted about what this role meant to her.

Inverse, a hugely popular online magazine under the millennials by far, covers technology, science, and especially culture. They regard Raised by Wolves as “Ridley Scott’s best science fiction since Alien… there is no TV series like this.” What in your opinion would support this statement?

Raised by Wolves is science fiction at its very best! Every episode leaves you in pure disbelief and at the same time makes you believe that the impossible is possible, once you are part of this world. It is an immersive escape from the real world.

You’re no stranger to sci-fi roles (Norma Banks in Dominion, Marlize DeVoe in The Flash), but what was it like acting in a super-dark murder mystery series (Reyka), and then almost immediately jumping headfirst into Raised by Wolves?

You just jump. It is always impossible until it’s done and that’s the beauty of this career. You prepare as much as possible. Then you just close your eyes and you give over to the process. Everyone is there to assist you. You’re never alone. If you have questions, the lines of communication are always open.

You tend to gravitate toward strong female roles. What did you learn from your character Decima in Raised by Wolves?

Decima is a brilliant quantum gravity engineer with a dark past. I loved that this is a bit of a redemption story. Decima is trying her best to have a real and meaningful relationship with her android daughter. At the same time she is trying to connect with Marcus, as he is the vessel for her to be closer to Sol’s light. Yet I appreciate her undeniable push to create a feeling of family with her android daughter and her spiritual conviction. It boils down to her sheer determination.

Take us through some of the themes from Raised by Wolves. Also, did you come across something new or different in terms of sci-fi since filming The Flash almost five years ago?

Science fiction gives you the opportunity to explore everything and see how science is applied to a fictional world. In the world that we know, robots are created to assist humans, but what happens if they had to live as humans and start raising human children?

This somewhat dystopian theme of robots and artificial intelligence and their interaction with their human counterparts is explored through my character, Decima, who is trying to raise a robot created in the image of her deceased daughter. It is the complete opposite of android Mother’s experience, which is that of an android raising human children.

Decima is trying her utmost best to foster a human connection with Vrille, perhaps over-compensating in her attempt to right the mistakes of her past but she might even be doing a better job than Mother. Vrille’s job is to assist Decima. Initially she is not a violent service model but as the episodes continue… Well, things don’t turn out as they were planned.

The really awesome thing about sci-fi is that I find myself constantly researching concepts that are foreign to me. With The Flash I was exposed to concepts I would have never had the guts to explore. With Raised by Wolves I am using a language I’ve never used before. If it were not for these shows I work on, I would not have been pushed out of my comfort zones.

Raised by Wolves feels like it draws a strong and obvious parallel with the biblical Garden of Eden and creation. Apart from this, what was the strongest theme or message that you personally took away from working on this series?

Raised by Wolves deals with so many important themes on a variety of levels. Family is an important theme – it raises all sorts of questions around parenting. It also deals with aspects around the building of a community. Furthermore, the show explores Issues of faith and spirituality – who do you fear or who do you follow when the going gets tough?

At Its core, it is also a story about survival, but most importantly for me, it is about finding your place, about belonging and about love. The beauty of Raised by Wolves is that It could mean something different to each of us.

You can also catch Kim Engelbrecht as Megan in the British action crime series Bulletproof, on Showmax.