Silo tells the story of what happens when humanity is forced to live underground for hundreds of years. Eventually, they start to question if they still need to be kept living in this way. When tragedy strikes, Juliette (played by Rebecca Ferguson) is thrust into a position of power and just has one thing on her mind – finding the truth.
Common plays Sims, who becomes something of a rival for Juliette in Silo. He is the head of the judicial system in the silo and he very much wants things to be kept the way they have always been. The longer the series goes on, the more we learn about him and the secrets he keeps.
Screen Rant sat down with Common to discuss his role in the new Apple TV+ series Silo. He revealed what it was that drew him to this show and how he is similar and different from his character. Common also spoke about who he would connect with in the silo if he was personally living there.
Common Talks Silo
Screen Rant: This show is one of those shows where every time an episode ended I was like, “I need that next one.” I’d love to know what drew you to want to be a part of Silo.
Common: You know, when I read the scripts for Silo, I felt like you felt watching it. “I gotta read the next one.” And then I was looking at my character, because at first I was like, “Wait…”
Sims, in some of the early episodes, is there… But it wasn’t a lot yet. And then as the episode started going, I was like, “This character is incredible. This would be a great character for me to play.” And man, it was that writing. And that character that made me really want to be a part of it. And then knowing that they had Tim Robbins and Rebecca Ferguson, and all these great actors. It’s an Apple TV+ show, so I was like, “This is the right combination.” I was so glad they said, “Hey, man, we’re gonna give you the role of Sims in Silo.” I was like, “Okay, I’m going hard. I’m going for it.”
It’s subtle at first, and I can’t say spoilers, but you know exactly what I’m talking about. You get crazy, a little bit. Are you like Sims at all, in real life?
Common: I think the ways that I’m like Sims is doing things because he really believes he’s doing what’s right for the greater cause. He believes that wholeheartedly, with all his soul and spirit. And I’m that type of person. If I believe in something, I’m gonna give everything I got. If that means sacrificing things in my life or sacrificing others, I will. Meaning I’m not going to take anybody off the planet, but I’m saying I’ve lost certain things and friendships because of what I believe and what I know.
My vision and my goals are for myself, and I feel like Sims has that type of drive and love and loyalty. That, we share. But we don’t sit on the same side of the political aspect of social things. I definitely would be in the silo down deeper, which is more of a revolutionary type, questioning the system. But I do understand that Sims is believing what he believes in. And it’s great to be that character because I like going somewhere. There’s not me. I got into acting because I want to play whoever this character is and tell this person’s story. I’m loving playing Sims.
Would you be a truth seeker in the silo?
Common: I would be a truth seeker. I mean, I’m a truth seeker right now. I don’t just take what government says and the system says or the news says and just be like, oh yeah, this is facts and this is the way I’m going to operate because they said that. I sit back and think and use my experiences, use my spirituality, and use my intuition, to make decisions and see how I should proceed; what I think who I am in my relationship with my loved ones, and in relationship to the government and things that they create.
Yeah, I would be for sure stirring up that pot and be down with the down-deepers, flame keepers – by the way, that rhymes.
About Silo
Silo is the story of the last ten thousand people on earth, their mile-deep home protecting them from the toxic and deadly world outside. However, no one knows when or why the silo was built and any who try to find out face fatal consequences. Rebecca Ferguson stars as Juliette, an engineer, who seeks answers about a loved one’s murder and tumbles onto a mystery that goes far deeper than she could have ever imagined, leading her to discover that if the lies don’t kill you, the truth will.
Check out our other Silo interviews here:
The first 2 episodes of Silo premiere May 5 on Apple TV+, with new episodes airing on Fridays.
