Exclusive: Abubaker Salim Talks Playing Father In Ridley Scott’s Raised By Wolves
Now playing on HBO Max is executive producer Ridley Scott’s sci-fi series Raised by Wolves.
The series centers on two androids tasked with raising human children on a mysterious virgin planet. As the burgeoning colony of humans threatens to be torn apart by religious differences, the androids learn that controlling the beliefs of humans is a treacherous and difficult task.
Abubakar Salim (Fortitude) plays Father, an android whose devotion to his human children is matched only by his devotion to Mother. Father is a considerably less complex model than Mother, but thanks to his wisdom and patience, he is no less important to the family’s survival. Like many human fathers, Father wants to be funny — especially in the eyes of Mother — but it’s a skill he often struggles with. What he is good at is always being there when you need him.
In 2018, Salim was nominated for a BAFTA Games Award for Best Perfomer for his role as the main protagonist Bayek on Ubisoft’s ASSASSIN’S CREED ORIGINS. On British television, Salim starred in the period drama JAMESTOWN as well as a recurring role in the Sam Mendes produced BBC/Amazon series INFORMER. He also played a leading role in the mini-series FORTITUDE for Sky opposite Dennis Quaid.
BlackFilmandTV.com spoke exclusively to Salim about his role and working with Amanda Collins.
What attracted you to the series?
Abubaker Salim: It was one of those things where it was an opportunity which I remember reading the script for and thinking this is this is something that is never going to go to someone like me in this kind of world Ridley Scott. Like it's not it's not going to happen, but I want it. The fact that it did happen, from actually getting the role and pushing for it and everything was such a test of commitment. It was just it was one of those roles which I just couldn't let slip. And I just gave my all my all in.
Was this something that you audition for it? Or did they come out to you for it?
Abubaker Salim: No, I auditioned for it. It was something that my manager threw at me. I was in LA at the time just doing meetings. This was after like a small show that I did out here in England. And they threw this at me and it was right before I was going to go back home to the London. This was before the world was ending, by the way. Then I auditioned for it and I sent it through and my managers and my agents came back saying, “that's a really, really interesting take.” I think they were a bit surprised. They thought that this was a Buddha doing his thing and they were just going to send it through because I'm sure everyone went up for this role.
But it's funny, as soon as I landed in the UK, I had a call from my agent saying that Ridley wants to meet me. Literally the second round was just me talking to him for like 45 minutes, just about the role, about the character and about the world. Five rounds later, after trying to find out what this character was and who it was, I think Ridley was on my side in regards of playing the character, but it was convincing the other execs and also trying to see what you could do with Father and push with him. And then yeah, and I realized I had the part I was in South Africa. I was surrounded by crew in this latex suit with blue eyes, ginger hair, and it just dawned on me like, this is mine.
How would you describe Father?
Abubaker Salim: He is this flawed, loving, like individual who, even though he is this incredibly technologically advanced creation, he is still quite naive and new and fresh. Father really is something that it's it's more to do with the fact that he's learning what it means to be a father, to be a parent and to be empathetic. Can androids be empathetic? Can they feel? That's what is so fascinating about him. He knows where he belongs and then you compare that to something like what Amanda delivers. With mother, she is this being who can not only take care of her children, but literally destroy an ark. What else can father do? I think that's the journey that Father goes through it. He's not only discovering what it means to feel and what it means to be himself, but he's also discovering what his place is in regards to this new world that they are founding.
How did you develop to make Father more human outside of what's on the page?
Abubaker Salim: I'm a massive nerd. I watch a lot of sci-fi. I play a lot of video games. That's my jam so when it comes to influences and pieces of work, a lot of it comes from games and gaming and pulling their takes in regards to the sci-fi worlds and fantasy worlds. I've said it before but a big influence was Detroit: Become Human which explores the idea of androids and can they feel and that game really influenced that idea of where father might be
How was working with Amanda Collins?
Abubaker Salim: Brilliant. Amanda's one of the greatest actresses I've really ever worked with in the sense of that she's so open and welcoming in the fact that you can just fall about and make mistakes, and it's all good. She creates this environment that allows you as an actor to play. There's no sense of ego. There's no sense of what number are you on the call sheet, there's none of that. It's literally just serving the scene and serving the piece and doing what you got to do. There's something quite magical about that. It's ever so rare that you ever get to work with someone who is so open to just making mistakes, that you can actually really go bold with it and make bold, crazy decisions.
Was it ever daunting for you knowing you’re one of the leads of a Ridley Scott series?
Abubaker Salim: Terrifying. Like, really terrifying. But at the same time, it's really inspiring because they said yes. So they saw something in me. They saw that I could do this. When Ridley says that I can do this, and this guy's been been been around for years, you feel like, “okay, maybe I can do this.” That really helps and that really solidifies that feeling of going for it.
What's interesting about this series is that race is not a factor in some ways. You're playing a character. But it's not determined that he's Black or African American or anything else. He's just a character.
Abubaker Salim: That's what's so wild and so beautiful and so terrifying. This role could have been anybody and that's the thing. I'm the believer of the fact that a lot of the time when people write stories, they write from their own experiences. They write the heroes that they might look like them, or be like them. Aaron Guzikowski is a white guy who has written this story about androids and about this kind of futuristic sci-fi world. Tell me how many like futuristic sci-fi worlds have you ever seen a black protagonist or a white female protagonist? Do you know what I mean? And to then be in a Ridley Scott production that is a sci-fi and, and being a black man in this world. And not even having that as a as a factor. It is a dream. It's like one of the things where this doesn't this doesn't define me. I'm in a world with this doesn't define me and it's beautiful. And the fact is that not once is it ever mentioned in this show with any of the characters. It's just accepted. It just is. It's about being human. It's about being the characters of who you are. And that is what is so beautiful about this show. It's so liberating.
What did you take away from this as you go on to other projects?
Abubaker Salim: It inspired me and given me the the strength to think that I can do anything I want. It's really given me this feeling of confidence in myself in the sense of the stuff that I want to do. And it's also just humbled me in the in the way in that, yes, I've worked on this incredible show with incredible people and seeing the way in which they behave in this environment. There's no ego and that's what I really loved and really taken from it and solidify for me is that I want to be working on projects and stuff. And also be the person who's on projects, where no ego, none of that is involved. It’s all about playing and it's all about having fun, and it's all about telling a good story.