Shows like The Affair don't come around often. It wasn’t just the perspective-shifting "Part 1" and "Part 2" gimmick that hooked people; it was the raw, almost uncomfortable chemistry between four people who seemed determined to ruin their own lives. When you look back at the cast of the affair series, you aren’t just looking at a list of actors. You’re looking at a masterclass in casting people who could play both the hero and the villain in the exact same scene, depending on whose memory we were currently living in.
It’s been years since the finale aired on Showtime, yet the discourse around Dominic West, Ruth Wilson, Maura Tierney, and Joshua Jackson hasn’t really cooled off. Why? Because the show was messy. The behind-the-scenes drama was just as loud as the on-screen infidelity. And honestly, the way the cast shifted over five seasons tells a story of creative ambition clashing with real-world tension.
The central four: A volatile chemistry
At the heart of it all were Noah Solloway and Alison Lockhart. Dominic West brought a specific kind of "likable jerk" energy to Noah. You wanted to root for him because he was a struggling writer, but then he’d do something so ego-driven that you’d want to reach through the screen. West has a history of playing these morally grey men—think Jimmy McNulty in The Wire—but Noah Solloway felt more intimate, and therefore more hated.
Then there was Ruth Wilson. Her portrayal of Alison was devastating. Alison wasn't just "the other woman"; she was a mother drowning in grief after the loss of her child. Wilson played her with this brittle, glass-like quality. In Noah’s POV, she was a temptress in a yellow dress. In her own POV, she was a woman barely holding onto her sanity. That’s the brilliance of the cast of the affair series—they had to play multiple versions of themselves.
Maura Tierney (Helen Solloway) and Joshua Jackson (Cole Lockhart) were the "wronged" spouses, but the show refused to let them stay victims. Tierney, who eventually won a Golden Globe for the role, played Helen with a sharp, sarcastic edge that masked a deep sense of abandonment. She wasn't just a housewife; she was the pillar that Noah kicked out from under the house.
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Joshua Jackson’s Cole might be the most tragic figure in the whole run. He was the rugged, salt-of-the-earth Montauk local who just wanted his family back. Jackson’s performance was so grounded it often made the Noah/Alison drama feel flighty and self-indulgent by comparison. You felt his anger. You felt his dirt-under-the-fingernails reality.
The departure that changed everything
You can't talk about the cast of the affair series without talking about the "Ruth Wilson situation." If you watched the show in real-time, you remember the confusion during Season 4. Suddenly, Alison was gone. Dead.
It wasn't just a plot point. It was a shock to the system. Wilson left the show under a cloud of mystery, later hinting at a toxic work environment and issues with how she was asked to perform certain scenes. Sarah Treem, the showrunner, had a different perspective. It was a "he said, she said" situation in real life, which is ironically the very foundation of the show’s narrative structure.
When Wilson left, the show lost its anchor. Joshua Jackson left shortly after. Season 5 had to pivot hard, bringing in Anna Paquin as an adult version of Joanie (Alison and Cole’s daughter) in a futuristic timeline. Some fans loved the sci-fi-lite pivot; others felt it was a desperate move to keep a show alive that had already lost its pulse.
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Supporting players who stole the spotlight
- Julia Goldani Telles (Whitney Solloway): She played the eldest Solloway daughter with a ferocious, bratty intensity that eventually blossomed into one of the show's most complex redemption arcs.
- Sanaa Lathan (Janelle): Introduced later as a love interest for Noah, she brought a much-needed outside perspective to the Solloway chaos.
- Catalina Sandino Moreno (Luisa): As Cole's second wife, she had the thankless job of playing the woman trying to compete with a ghost. She was brilliant at showing the insecurity of being a "replacement."
The Montauk of it all
The setting was practically a cast member itself. Montauk wasn't just a backdrop; it was a character that aged and changed. In the beginning, it was this foggy, romanticized escape. By the end, it was a gentrified playground for the rich, mirroring how the characters' lives had been stripped of their original meaning.
The show did something rare. It stayed with these people for decades. By the series finale, we see an elderly Noah Solloway, still in Montauk, still grappling with the wreckage he caused. It’s a haunting image.
Why the performances still matter
Most dramas about cheating are boring. They’re one-sided. The Affair worked because the actors understood the assignment: nobody is the villain in their own story. When Noah looks at Helen, she’s cold and demanding. When Helen looks at herself, she’s just trying to keep four kids alive while her husband loses his mind.
This requires a level of ego-stripping from the actors. They had to be okay with looking "wrong" or "ugly" in someone else's flashback. Dominic West was particularly good at this. He didn't mind being the guy you wanted to punch.
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What to watch next if you miss the cast
If you’re looking to see these actors in other high-stakes environments, there are a few clear winners. Maura Tierney is incredible in American Rust. Joshua Jackson proved he’s still a leading man in the Fatal Attraction series and Dr. Death. Ruth Wilson went on to do His Dark Materials, where she plays a much more powerful, menacing figure.
Actionable insights for a rewatch
If you're planning to dive back into the series or watch it for the first time, don't just watch the plot. Watch the subtle shifts in the cast of the affair series during the perspective changes.
- Pay attention to the clothes. In Noah's version of the first meeting, Alison is wearing a short, yellow dress. In Alison's version, she's wearing a modest uniform and looks exhausted.
- Listen to the dialogue differences. The exact same conversation will happen twice in one episode, but the tone and the "who said what" will shift. It reveals how the characters see themselves as more heroic than they actually are.
- Watch the background. The show uses the scenery to tell you whose mind you are in. Noah’s world is often brighter and more "cinematic," while Alison’s is grittier and more isolated.
- Track the kids. The Solloway children—Whitney, Martin, Trevor, and Stacey—act as a barometer for the parents' mistakes. Their growth (and trauma) is the most consistent timeline in the show.
The show isn't perfect. The final season is a bit of a wild swing. But the performances—especially the core four—remain some of the best work on television from the 2010s. They captured the specific, quiet agony of making a choice you can never take back.
If you want to understand modern television's obsession with "unreliable narrators," this is where you start. The actors didn't just play roles; they played memories. And memories are always a little bit lies.