In season two of The Institute, which premieres tonight on MGM+, in the aftermath of their escape from Dennison, Luke Ellis (Joe Freeman) and his friends, with the help of Tim Jamieson (Ben Barnes) and Wendy (Hannah Galway), try to find a way to shut down the Institutes for good, while staying off their radar. Meanwhile, the Director enlists a new ally to help with their cause, tech billionare Nolan Reeves (Alfie Allen), while Sigsby (Mary-Louise Parker), who’s also on the run, works to find a way back to the Institute’s good graces.

Stars Barnes and Freeman recently spoke with SciFi Vision about the second season of The Institute, including how Tim and Luke respond to being on the run and the importance of trust within their group. Freeman discussed the value of discovering the story without knowing future developments, while Barnes explored Tim’s protective instincts, his growing attachment to the children, and his disagreements with their approach to fighting back.

The following interview contains spoilers for episode 208

In Outlander: Blood of My Blood, when Murtagh (Rory Alexander) returns from battle, although Grace (Ruby Fubara) tells him that she has a seven-year bond with the Cameron family, he wants to pursue a relationship with her. The two of them sneak away to steal some time together and become intimate. However, in episode eight, Grace learns that John Cameron intends to take her to his sugarcane plantation in the West Indies.

Alexander and Fubara spoke recently with SciFi Vision about Murtagh and Grace's relationship in the series, including the risks their characters face as their feelings deepen. Alexander discussed Murtagh's struggle between duty and love, his impulsive attempts to prevent Grace from being taken to the West Indies, and the sincerity of his marriage proposal. Fubara explored Grace's growing willingness to acknowledge her feelings while recognizing the dangers of acting on them. Both actors also discussed the preparation and trust behind their characters' intimate scenes.

Based on the play by showrunner and writer Kat Sandler, the supernatural horror series Yaga follows private investigator Charlie Rapp (Noah Reid), who is sent to the small coastal town of Whittock, British Columbia, to look into the disappearance of college student Henry Park (Hudson Williams), a billionaire heir to a fishing empire. There he partners with Carson (Clark Backo), a smart local detective who at first thinks Henry is just a privileged kid off having fun. Their investigations lead them to the charismatic and calculating university professor Katherine (Carrie-Anne Moss), who has a taste for younger men, as well as the mysteries surrounding Henry and his lookalike roommate, Logan (also Williams), and a series of suspicious characters, hidden secrets, and ancient magic.

Recently, Sam Krochmal spoke with SciFi Vision about playing the character of police officer Billy in the series. Krochmal recalled why the role felt so personally familiar from the audition, his research into the original play and the legend, and his effort to avoid making Billy a stereotypical police officer or comic device. He also discussed learning from fellow cast members, the differences between stage and screen performances, viewers' theories about Logan and Henry, and the kinds of roles he would like to tackle next.

In the film Vampire Carnival, directed by David Charbonier and Justin Douglas Powell, a young woman (Nell Verlaque) named Gemma, grieving after her father’s death, is drawn to a mysterious traveling carnival that suddenly appears in her town. Sparking a romance with a stranger (Alvise Rigo) and lured in by the dramatic scenes and promise of escape, she discovers the carnival is a gateway to an underground world of vampires, where they feed on human despair and emotion rather than blood. Among them are Toussaint (Jason Isaacs), the leader of the vampire family, and Eric (Kieron Moore), her troubled former boyfriend, whose desire for revenge threatens the carnival’s fragile order. As Gemma becomes further trapped in the seductive world, she must confront her own trauma she’s been running from if she has any hope of escape.

Directors Powell and Charbonier and star Moore recently spoke with SciFi Vision about making their carnival-set film, including the directors' approach to sharing responsibilities and Moore's portrayal of Eric. Powell explained the technical challenges of shooting in the House of Mirrors, while Charbonier discussed staging the carnival and the importance of emotional storytelling. Moore described preparing for the role through artwork, filming a demanding stage performance and working on a fight with Isaacs. The three also discussed the competing demands of both action and quieter character scenes.

In I See the Demon, after seeing a strange object floating in the sky, Lucy (Alexis Zollicoffer) comes home to a surprise birthday party thrown by her boyfriend, Ellis (Noah Kershisnik), and her friends. When they start to ask her about her day, she realizes she has no memory of anything that happened. Ellis, their friend Billy (Dave Martinez), and the others tell her not to worry and just to relax, but as the night unfolds, more unsettling things start happening that only she seems to notice. As time goes on, Lucy must separate reality from illusion and who of her friends she can actually trust all while she is forced to deal with long forgotten trauma.

Zollicoffer, Kershisnik and Martinez recently spoke with SciFi Vision about the film, including the deception, complicated relationships and questions of control at the heart of the story. Zollicoffer and Kershisnik discussed building trust offscreen to portray a relationship filled with tension and uncertainty, while Martinez explained the challenge of balancing the humanity and programming behind his character without revealing too much. The three also discussed filming intense physical scenes, how their characters’ struggles reflect the larger theme of confronting personal demons, and more.

Small Prophets, which premiered recently on Apple TV, comes from BAFTA Award-winning creator, writer, and director Mackenzie Crook. The six-episode season follows eccentric Michael Sleep (Pearce Quigley), who works at a DIY store and lives an ordinary life, though he hopes for the day his darling Clea, who disappeared seven years ago, will return. When Michael visits his dad, Brian (Sir Michael Palin), he sends him to look for his old alchemy recipe. Although skeptical, Michael follows the recipe and begins growing homunculi, magical spirits that can predict the future, hoping they can tell him whether he’ll ever see his lost love again. Meanwhile, he forms an unlikely friendship with his young coworker, Kacey (Lauren Patel), as they bond over their mutual dislike of store manager Gordon (Crook). Eventually, Kacey becomes involved in Michael’s unusual endeavor, having questions for the homunculi of her own.

Crook and Quigley recently spoke with SciFi Vision about the series, from Crook's years-long development of an idea inspired by medieval alchemy to Quigley's longstanding working relationship with the creator. Quigley discussed working with Patel and their on-screen rapport, while Crook described balancing his responsibilities writing, directing and performing in the series, as well as designing the unsettling homunculi before puppet makers adapted his sketches.

The prequel to the Friday the 13th franchise, Crystal Lake, follows Pam Voorhees (Linda Cardellini), a single mother who is unable to shake her grief after her son, Jason, tragically drowned in the town lake almost a year ago. When two strangers come to town digging into Pam’s past, it sets into effect a disturbing chain of deaths, leaving everyone to wonder who Pam Voorhees really is.

Danielle Kotch, who plays the part of Claudette, the girl who was supposed to be watching Jason when he drowned, spoke with SciFi Vision about playing the role on Crystal Lake, her love of horror, and the preparation behind the series' 1970s setting. She discussed revisiting the Friday the 13th films, finding the vulnerability beneath Claudette's abrasive behavior, learning the period's speech and physicality, and filming the fight scenes and the demanding boathouse sequence. Kotch also reflected on the cast, the practical challenges of playing dead, and roles she hopes to tackle next.

The penultimate episode of season two of Dark Matter premiered Friday on Apple TV. Based on the New York Times bestseller by Blake Crouch, the series is about the possible ways your life might have been different if you made different choices, and how the choices you choose to make shape the person you become. In season one, physicist Jason Dessen (Joel Edgerton) was abducted and dropped into an alternate version of his life by another version of himself. After making his way through a myriad of different realities via the Box, he eventually makes his way back to his own universe and his family.

The alternate version of Jason did not only kidnap another Jason, however, but also his friend Ryan (Jimmi Simpson) from the same universe. In season two, Ryan joins forces with Amanda (Alice Braga) as they travel through different realities, searching for a cure to a deadly virus they encountered along the way. In the ninth episode of the season, the two arrive in World X, where Ryan and Amanda are finally reunited with Jason. Their reunion also brings them together with Blair (Amanda Brugel), who proposes a way to shut down the Boxes permanently, potentially putting an end to travel between realities.

Simpson recently spoke with SciFi Vision about playing multiple versions of Ryan in the series, including scenes in which the characters interact with one another. He discussed the technical process of working with stand-ins, the differences between the Ryans’ emotional and intellectual strengths, and why the low-tech environment of World X appeals to him personally.

In the most recent episode of Outlander: Blood of My Blood, while the MacKenzie men return from Sheriffmuir without Dougal (Sam Retford) and Maura (Bobby Rainsbury) is left contemplate her husband’s uncertain future, unbeknownst to all Brian and Murtagh launch a daring rescue.

Recently Retford and Rainsbury spoke with SciFi Vision about Dougal and Maura's changing relationships in the series. Retford discussed filming Dougal's physical ordeal in episode six, the consequences of Brian (Jamie Roy) risking himself to rescue Dougal, and the tension between Dougal's Jacobite convictions and his desire to prove himself. Rainsbury talked about Maura's feelings and fears while Dougal is at war, her complicated bond with Ellen (Harriet Slater), and where Maura's loyalties lie as the Grants and MacKenzies find themselves on opposite sides.

New episodes of Outlander: Blood of My Blood stream Fridays on the STARZ app and all STARZ streaming and on-demand platforms.

The most recent episode of Outlander: Blood of my Blood, “Forgive Me, Father,” which premiered on Friday and was directed by Emer Conroy, features the Battle of Sheriffmuir, between the Jacobites and the loyalists, where men on both sides collide as they fight for their lives for the future of Scotland. Meanwhile, Julia (Hermione Corfield) has her own battle as she fights to protect her child.

Conroy recently spoke with SciFi Vision about directing a major battle as well as intimate confrontations in the series. Conroy discussed accomplishing the Battle of Sheriffmuir in four days, distinguishing the Jacobite and Crown forces through camera techniques, and directing the more personal fight between Julia and Seema (Lauren McQueen), driven by a mother’s fear for her child’s safety. She also reflected on filming quieter scenes and the character moments that stayed with her.

New episodes of Outlander: Blood of My Blood stream Fridays on the STARZ app and all STARZ streaming and on-demand platforms.