Imani Pullum Discusses Topa’s Journey on ‘The Orville’ [Interview]

Before joining the cast of The Orville: New Horizons, Imani Pullum wasn’t sure what to expect from the Star Trek-inspired science fiction series. She wasn’t very familiar with Star Trek, nor was she well versed in the world of sci-fi television.

For Pullum, playing Topa has exceeded any and all expectations. Her character has a fascinating and inspiring story that has stirred conversations.

The Orville takes place 400 years in the future on the U.S.S Orville spaceship and parodies the Star Trek franchise. While many plot points might seem over-the-top and humorous, there are a lot of serious elements to the show.

I recently spoke with Pullum about what she thinks of the show, her character, and whether or not she got to meet Dolly Parton. 

Topa’s story has been one of the more serious aspects of The Orville this season, resonating well with our current society.

On The Orville Season 3 Episode 5, “A Tale Of Two Topas”, Topa suffers mentality when he learns he was actually born as a girl. There’s an over-arching theme of gender dysphoria and the resulting conflicts of mental health and parental relationships that ensue, making the storyline modern and very prominent.

I asked Pullum what her impressions were when she first read the script for the episode. “I think the first thing was that I was just super shocked because it’s super a Topa-heavy episode,” she said.

“I also was just so impressed with the writing and I thought it was just a beautiful story that I was excited to be able to do it.”

Pullum’s currently a student at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. She got her start as a multi-talented performer on Broadway, playing Young Nala in Disney’s The Lion King. She has loved working on a different project, a sci-fi show with undertones of inclusion and change.

“I think the most exciting thing for me is that it is a sci-fi show, which is a realm that I wasn’t super familiar with before working on The Orville, so the fact that this was just going to be something totally different than anything I’ve ever done was really exciting for me. I’m happy I got the opportunity to do it.”

After The Orville Season 3 Episode 5, “A Tale Of Two Topas,” aired, Pullum was surprised by the outpour of support she got from fans of the show. She received many positive messages that touched her.

“I’ve received such beautiful messages from a bunch of different people about how Topa has been a great representation of their experience. [It’s] something that I would have never expected, but it’s a beautiful thing to hear. It’s really exciting for me.”

“One of the sweetest messages that I saw in my DMs was from a dad. He was saying that he and his wife were expecting a baby girl, and he was talking about how much the episode means to him,” Pullum said. “I was so happy to see that. I went to a panel and there was a mom there who had told me that she and her son watched the episode together and that it really has helped connect them. I thought that was beautiful as well.”

There are some heavy moments in The Orville Season 3 Episode 8, “Midnight Blue,” including a torture sequence filled with violence. I wondered how Pullum prepared to play Topa in those difficult scenes.

She said she didn’t want to mentally prepare herself ahead of time because she wanted to see how she felt in the moment. Interestedly enough, her make-up really helped her get in the head space for the torture scenes since she could see how painful the marks looked on her.

Topa’s a young teenager whose “coming of age” is at the forefront of much of The Orville‘s plot. Pullum plays a character who’s gone through a lot in just a couple of episodes. She said, “I hope that she gets to grow up and experience being a teenage girl because it’s really fun being a teenage girl!”

As for meeting Dolly Parton? Unfortunately, Pullum didn’t get to meet the music legend when Parton made a cameo appearance.

“They [the crew] flew to Tennessee to see her and film the [show]. It’s so exciting; I love Dolly Parton. I think she is just the coolest. Seeing her in the episode — it was so exciting. And then all the little Easter eggs, like when they were dancing around the fire, the song that’s playing is “Jolene,” but a different version. I just thought it was so cool and exciting.”

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*Featured image credit: Dana Patrick

The Orville is currently streaming on Hulu.

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