Lou Llobell on Foundation, treasures from set and fandom culture.

Foundation actress Lou Llobell talks working on series three, going incognito on the r/Foundation page and her Peckham recommendations.

It’s 9am in LA and Foundation actor Lou Llobell is currently chatting to me over a Zoom call.

“I think it's probably the best season yet,” Lou remarks on the release of the latest series of Foundation.

At the time of speaking we’re a few episodes into Series 3 of the hit sci-fi show, Foundation. The show is based off of Issac Asimov’s stories of the same name, an extensive franchise depicting humans occupying planets all under the rule of the Galactic Empire spawned from a single DNA known as Brothers Day, Dawn and Dusk. 

Lou plays the antithesis to these rulers, her character is Gaal Dornick, a young woman from the planet Synnax; which is suffering from the devastating effects of rising sea levels. Gaal is a math prodigy and is taken under instruction by Hari Seldon (Jared Harris), whose purpose is to preserve humanity. 

She is a force to be reckoned with, well written and calculated. Underestimated her entire life and three series deep she’s really coming into her own as a forerunner in the race to save humanity. 

For Lou, Foundation is a breakout role, she joined the cast, series one, in her early-twenties and considers herself “lucky” having spent six years on a set, “that has taught me more than I've ever thought I would ever learn in my entire career.”

“Sometimes it can be hard as an actor, to feel confident, you know, because you get so many no’s, you do so many auditions and you get a fraction of what you put yourself out there for. So, I've really grown a lot, and so has my character.”

“Like a farm girl coming to the big city.”

She sees similarities in Gaal’s character development with her own career, “she's just grown so much. She was kind of naive and lost in this world, this universe that was opened up to her, and it was all very new, and everything was thrown at her, and she doesn't know where she's going and was a deer in headlights. Like a farm girl coming to the big city.” 

But with every series Gaal has grown and now we see, “an edgier side to her, like a darker side. She has to make tough decisions, but for the greater good, basically.”

Lou had returned to set and had to pick up new combat skills, weaponry training and got back to being on wires, which she loves. The work is intense and at times physically demanding. The production films across multiple countries and sets, something Lou is used to as someone who has “been traveling my whole life”. 

Born to a Zimbabwean mother and Spanish father, Lou sounds fond as she explains that Foundation has given her more chances to travel to “places I would have never gone to, like Poland.” Foundation has also taken Lou and the wider cast to Prague, the Canaries and Germany, but Prague has remained a constant base across the series both past and present. She also continually praises her fellow co-stars and the crew which help to bring Foundation to life. 

Seeing the VFX added to the series is a moment which always takes Lou’s breath away. She respects the “beauty” of the editing process and takes the time to tell me about the work which was “something that was just a vision at the beginning” goes on to become a “beautiful evolution of art.” 

“The Reddit thread for this season is hilarious. I am obsessed with it.”

And how does Lou perceive the show and her character through social media? 

“The Reddit thread for this season is hilarious. I am obsessed with it. Like it's so funny. They're shipping my character, and Dawn (played by Cassian Bilton), and I just found out they called it Dawnnick, a blend of Dawn and Gaal’s surname, Dornick… Like the whole thing is just so great.” She laughs as we discuss how Reddit has shaped so much of fandom culture over the last few years, particularly in extensive series’ such as Foundation. 

But social media isn’t without its downsides and Lou is open in the fact that she has encountered misogynoir in playing Gaal. In the original text Gaal is a young man and in the Apple TV+ series Gaal is played by Lou Llobell, a mixed woman. 

“It’s an adaptation.” Lou says matter of factly, “Like gender swapping, that got people annoyed and I’m like, “What are we doing? Why is that the important thing here?” But then they’re still watching it, so…” she trails off. 

It is clear the fandom is a place that Lou can find plenty of joy in once she cuts out the negative noise. She tells me that she’s obsessed with the fact that the fans have taken to calling Lee Pace’s character, Brother Day, “Brother Dude” in light of his chilled personality. 

She’s not that bright-eyed 24-year-old who entered the first series and is focused on her craft and making sure her legacy is rooted in honouring Foundation’s amazing storytelling and breathtaking cinematography. 

“That's what I love about film and TV. It's so collaborative, there's so many cogs that everyone has to do their bit so that you can do yours.” 

Lou is also a firm believer in continuity, which can often be hard to log in extensively complex series which is filmed with large breaks (a reason she cites as to why she’d struggle to take anything with her from set after a wrapping for a series). 

But it also means that after several years of living in the world of Foundation she doesn’t want to veer too heavy from the script despite living as Gaal for so many years. 

“This is the one job that I don't mess about. Because it's so genre specific, with specific terminology. I just don't want to get it wrong. So I pretty much stick to the script.” She tells me matter of factly. 

But on the last day of Foundation ever, what’s Lou taking with her? 

“I mean, you want to take a Prime Radiant (a super computer and holographic projector), but I think there's only like, three real ones, the heavy ones. That's on my mind to keep but like, some of her (Gaal’s) boots and pieces of clothing would be great. But then I'm also like, when would I wear them?”

Perhaps Lou can take some of Gaal’s outfits home to Peckham. It’s been her base for the past seven years. She’s a fan of the popular Hi-Fi bar/restaurant Jumbi, the Camberwell Arms and is "obsessed" with Taca Tacos, who have “the best birria tacos you’ve ever had”. 

She tells me that the tacos in LA are also to be admired strongly, she laughs as she explains how she’s only been in LA for four days and for three of them she’s visited taco trucks local to her. 

Lou’s taco routine is definitely not adopted while she’s shooting as Gaal. While she doesn’t diet necessarily, she does maintain a level of fitness while on set. A peanut butter KitKat Chunky that she can split into four. “They’re like my little treat. I love it.” 

We talk about her downtime now that the press tour is wrapping and she has more free time on her hands. She likes to separate herself, like most actors I’ve spent time with, and finds great joy in time with loved ones, gymming and spending time “finding beaches and being near to the sea.”

We wrap by speaking on all the films Lou has to catch up on seeing. I share my love of horror films, she lets me know that one of her upcoming projects is a horror. That excites me, I can see her making the transition easily. A trajectory that is steady and well-thought out. 

And finally the most important question, who’d she’d play if she wasn’t playing Gaal; “Brother Dude”, she laughs. And something for future casting directors, she loves 90s to early 2000s romcoms, “they should make a comeback.” 

On Gaal’s future? 

“Hopefully I get to finish that arc, because we kind of leave the end of this season, no spoilers, but like, this season kind of doesn't get nicely tied up, you know? So it would be great to be able to have an opportunity to kind of round her off in some way in future seasons, if we get them.” 

As of September 2025, it has been reported that Foundation has been renewed for a fourth series. 

Foundation Series 1 - 3 is available to stream now via Apple TV+.

Credits:

Photography: Ejatu Shaw

Styling: Sarah Harrison at The Wall Group 

Hair: Kieron Lavine at The Visionaries Agency 

Makeup: Sara Hill at The Wall Group

Look 1 (green background)

Jacket, all The Frankie Shop

Belt, Toteme

Shoes, Malone Souliers

Look 2 (pink background)

Corset, Staud