Honestly, if you’re a fan of For All Mankind, you’ve probably spent the last few seasons wondering what the heck was actually going on inside the Soviet space program. We’ve seen Margo Madison navigate the cold, grey hallways of Roscosmos, and we’ve seen the cosmonauts occasionally popping up to beat the Americans to a milestone or two. But it always felt like looking through a keyhole. That’s exactly why Star City Apple TV is becoming such a massive deal for sci-fi nerds and history buffs alike.
It isn't just a side story.
It’s basically a total perspective flip. Apple TV+ officially announced this spinoff as a "propulsive, paranoid thriller," and while that sounds like marketing speak, the details we have so far actually back it up. Instead of the optimistic, "aim for the stars" vibe that NASA usually carries—even in the alternate timeline—this show is diving deep into the Iron Curtain.
What is Star City actually about?
The core premise of Star City Apple TV takes us back to the very beginning. Remember that "what if" moment in the original series pilot? The one where Alexei Leonov becomes the first human to step onto the lunar surface in 1969? That single event shattered the American ego and kept the space race alive for decades.
This series starts right there. But instead of watching the reaction in Houston, we’re inside the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center—the real-life "Star City" outside Moscow.
We are going to see the engineers, the cosmonauts, and most importantly, the intelligence officers who were basically breathing down everyone's necks. Showrunners Ben Nedivi and Matt Wolpert have been pretty vocal about the fact that it’s more dangerous on the ground than it is in orbit. It’s less about the glory of exploration and more about the sheer, terrifying cost of maintaining a lie of Soviet superiority.
The cast is looking stacked
We finally have some concrete names, and they aren't messing around.
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Rhys Ifans, who you probably know as Otto Hightower from House of the Dragon, is taking the lead. He’s playing the "Chief Designer." In real history, the Chief Designer was Sergei Korolev, a man whose identity was kept a state secret for years. Ifans has that perfect "exhausted but brilliant" energy for a role like this.
Then you’ve got Anna Maxwell Martin, a powerhouse from Line of Duty and Motherland. She’s playing Lyudmilla, the head of a KGB surveillance team. That right there tells you the tone. This isn't just about rockets; it's about who's listening through the walls.
The rest of the ensemble includes:
- Solly McLeod as Sasha, a cosmonaut who’s apparently a bit of a loose cannon.
- Alice Englert as Anastasia, an "untested" female cosmonaut.
- Adam Nagaitis (from Chernobyl) as Valya, a respected veteran.
- Priya Kansara as a scientist named Lakshmi.
It’s a huge, international cast. Filming happened largely in Vilnius, Lithuania, throughout 2025, which gave the production that authentic, brutalist Eastern Bloc aesthetic.
How it fits with the For All Mankind timeline
This is where things get a little tricky.
Initially, everyone assumed this show would do the "decade jump" thing that For All Mankind is famous for. You know, Season 1 is the 70s, Season 2 is the 80s, and so on. But recent updates from San Diego Comic-Con suggest the creators are pivoting.
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Instead of rushing toward the 2000s, the first season of Star City Apple TV is going to sit comfortably in the 1970s. They want to sit with the paranoia. They want to show how the Soviet Union actually changed the moment they "won" the race. It’s a slower burn.
"We didn't want it to function as a mirror of For All Mankind. We really wanted it to be its own show." — Matt Wolpert.
Basically, don't expect a shot-for-shot remake of the first series from a different angle. Expect a spy thriller that happens to have Moon landings in the background. Ronald D. Moore has confirmed there will be crossovers, so keep your eyes peeled for a younger Margo Madison or perhaps some familiar Soviet faces like a young Sergei Nikulov.
Why this spinoff matters right now
Let’s be real: the "other side" of the space race is usually depicted as a monolith of faceless villains in Western media. By focusing on the families and the risks taken by individual engineers, the show is trying to humanize the people who were essentially working under a magnifying glass.
There's also the technical side. In our real history, the Soviet N1 rocket—the one meant to go to the Moon—kept exploding. In this alternate timeline, they fixed it. Seeing how they "fixed" it (likely through extreme pressure and cutting corners) is going to be fascinating to watch.
What we know about the release date
As of early 2026, the show is deep in post-production. Visual effects for space shows take a ridiculous amount of time, especially with the high bar set by the parent series.
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The consensus among industry insiders and recent production leaks points toward a late 2026 release.
Apple TV+ has already added a placeholder for the series in their catalog, usually a sign that marketing is about to ramp up. It’s confirmed to be 10 episodes long, matching the structure of For All Mankind.
Actionable takeaways for fans
If you want to be ready for the premiere, there are a few things you can actually do rather than just waiting:
- Rewatch Season 1 of For All Mankind: Specifically, pay attention to the news broadcasts and the snippets about the Soviet moon landing. Those are the anchor points for this new series.
- Look up the real "Star City": Understanding the geography of the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center helps. It was a closed military town, literally deleted from maps for a long time.
- Watch the "Soviet POV" episodes: Specifically in Season 4, where the show spent significant time in Russia. It sets the visual and tonal groundwork for what the spinoff will likely look like.
Star City Apple TV is shaping up to be more than just a companion piece. It's a chance to see the "What If" universe through a much darker, much more stressed-out lens. If you liked the tension of The Americans mixed with the scale of Interstellar, this is probably going to be your next obsession.
Next Steps for Your Viewing Prep:
Check your Apple TV+ subscription status and ensure your "Up Next" queue is cleared for late 2026. In the meantime, dive into the history of the Soviet N1 rocket program to understand the real-world failures that this show is going to "alt-history" into successes.