In the penultimate episode of Apple TV+'s sci-fi series Pluribus, protagonist Carol shares an intimate moment with her hive-mind handler Zosia after months of isolation. Stars Rhea Seehorn and Karolina Wydra explored the emotional depth of this development in a TVLine video interview. The episode highlights Carol's vulnerability and questions the authenticity of Zosia's affections.
The eighth episode of Pluribus, the freshman season of Apple TV+'s sci-fi series, aired on Friday and marks a turning point for Carol, played by Rhea Seehorn. Isolated from the hive-mind collective known as the Others, Carol has resisted their attempts to integrate her. In this installment, she bonds with Zosia, portrayed by Karolina Wydra, through activities like playing card games, hiking trails, and visiting a rebuilt version of her old diner where she used to write.
Despite her wariness, Carol accuses Zosia of trying to "knock me off course" and declares, "Someone has to put the world right, even if it means you all leave me again." The tension breaks when Zosia initiates a kiss, which Carol reciprocates, leading to them ending up in bed together.
Seehorn explained Carol's shift in the interview, noting her character's psychological toll from isolation: "I think Carol was very, very psychologically broken from the isolation period," leaving her with "the horrific thought that this will be her life forever, unless she makes a change." She highlighted Carol's pre-existing attraction to Zosia and a deeper need for companionship: "We all need people. I need some kind of companionship."
On whether Carol would have kissed first, Seehorn said, "I'm not sure that she would have initiated it," leaving room for interpretation on Zosia's motives. She added that Carol is exhausted from resistance: "Am I just gonna keep swimming against the current until I'm just dead?"
Wydra described Zosia's consistent kindness toward Carol, questioning the kiss's origins: "Is Zosia really falling for Carol? ... Or does it come from a place of: Oh, these people have the highest emotional intelligence in the world, and they can see that Carol is suffering?"
Post-intimacy, Carol inquires about Zosia's pre-hive-mind favorite food, learning it's mango ice cream from childhood. Writer and executive producer Gordon Smith pondered the philosophy: "Are you your memories? Is your consciousness reducible just to your memories?" Wydra noted a glimpse of the original Zosia: "Zosia did have to detach herself from the collective mind and go into the memory of who she once was."
The episode delves into themes of isolation, connection, and identity within the hive-mind narrative.