Trivia / The Umbrella Academy (2019)

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• Acting for Two:
  • In addition to playing Klaus, in season 2 Robert Sheehan also plays Ben while he's possessing Klaus' body.
  • Jordan Claire Robbins plays both Grace Hargreeves the robot and Grace the human scientist introduced in season 2.
• Acting in the Dark:
  • Justin Min noted in season 2 that he was unaware if his good-bye scene with Viktor would be his last time playing the character. He only found out later that he was coming back.
  • The other actors didn't know what the final scene of the season would be as they claimed the director likes keeping the last page for himself.
• Actor-Inspired Element:
  • In general, many of Viktor's outfits are inspired by Elliot Page's own wardrobe. For example, Page came up with the idea of Viktor's White Violin outfit being a tuxedo instead of the skin-tight suit his comic book counterpart wears in the comics.
  • Each of the actors improvised their dance in the "I Think We're Alone Now" dance scene.
  • Come season 2, the actors were on occasion asked by the writers team how they thought their character would react to certain scenes.
  • Elliot Page's coming out as a trans man after the second season was written into his character's arc in the third. Said character also came out as a trans man named Viktor.
• Author's Saving Throw: Arguably the most hated storyline in the first season was the romance between Alison and Luther since it hinged on them being Not Blood Siblings. In the second season, it is finally discussed how messed-up their relationship is. Both Alison and Luther are shown to have moved on but still care deeply for each other. Also, when it's revealed that Lila was born from the same event that spawned the rest of them, Diego wonders if this means he had sex with his sister and is disturbed by the possibility. However, they ultimately continue their relationship in the third season, as they at least did not grow up together.
• Corpsing:
  • Diego is supposed to be annoyed with Klaus in the scene, but Robert Sheehan's improvised line about seeing a hippo about to shit on his face every time he closes his eyes causes David Castañeda to have to turn away from the camera to hold back cracking a grin.
  • Aidan Gallagher can be seen breaking character and cracking a smile as Five from another improvised line from Robert Sheehan while they and Luther are in the van together.
  • Diego smirking when Luther farts in the elevator during season 2 was because the actor was trying so hard not to laugh that he forgot to act disgusted.
• Easter Egg: In the stinger of the last episode of season 3, a QR code can clearly be seen on the right hand wall of the train. This QR code works, and following it will lead to a website for Mothers Of Agony, more specifically Pogo's Tattoo Shop, where the the viewer can find a selection of tattoos advertising the fourth season, including, among a few others, tattoos directly referencing each of the main characters.
• Fake American: Irish Robert Sheehan, English Tom Hopper, Bermudian Jordan Claire Robbins and Canadian Elliot Page all play Americans.
• Fake Brit: While Sir Reginald's nationality isn't stated outright, he's supposedly a knight and speaks with an RP accent, but is played by American-Canadian Colm Feore. That said, of course, it turns out that he's not even from Earth or even human to begin with, so... yeah.
• He Also Did: Emmy Raver-Lampman is known to Broadway fans as a longtime part of the Hamilton chorus before a turn as Angelica Schuyler during the United States Tour.
• Hypothetical Casting: The role of the Handler was written for "a Jon Hamm type", according to the actor who eventually played her, Kate Walsh.
• Promoted Fanboy: Aiden Gallagher was apparently a fan of the original comics before being casted as Five.
• Queer Character, Queer Actor: Elliot Page is queer and non-binary, and Viktor is a trans man who is attracted to both women and men.
• Reality Subtext: Viktor's confrontations with the homophobic society of the 1960s are drenched in Elliot Page's own history, pressured to stay closeted for years until they finally came out in 2014 (and again in 2020), which included horrible bullying from Brett Ratner while making X-Men: The Last Stand.
• Self-Adaptation: Gerard Way wrote the original comic book and served as executive producer on the series.
• Separated-at-Birth Casting: All the child actors really do look like the main cast, especially due to facial features. Jim Watson and Sean Sullivan also absolutely nail Aidan Gallagher's mannerisms when playing the older versions of Five.
• Serendipity Writes the Plot: A behind-the-scenes video shows that the snow in the finale of season 2 wasn't supposed to happen, but since the crew couldn't melt down all of the snow, they decided to write it into the script as Harlan's out of control powers causing the cold front.
• Shrug of God: An almost dead Klaus meets a little girl, who is implied to be God. The creators said that they are not sure whether or not the little girl really is God or something else entirely.
• Throw It In!:
  • Robert Sheehan improvised some of Klaus's more comedic lines, resulting in some noticeable Corpsing from the actors.
  • The high five Ben gives to another ghost in the interrogation scene was because the actor whispered to the extra to high-five him on set.
  • The argument where Diego and Ben start yelling at each other in Spanish and Korean was an improvisation by their actors, who noted in an interview with Newsweek that they were surprised it was kept.
• What Could Have Been:
  • A film adaptation lingered in Development Hell with Universal Pictures for years until Netflix picked up the rights and turned it into a series. Universal still ended up producing the show, however.
  • Justin Min revealed via Twitter what some of his alternative lines were in Ben's street fight with Klaus. Honorable mentions include "I have kidneys, bro" and "your sweat is dripping on my body and I want to die again".
  • The sub-plot of Luther becoming obese and apathetic in the "Dallas" arc of the comic was originally planned to be adapted in season two of the show but was ultimately scrapped based on the negative response of audiences to the weight gain sub-plot of Thor in Avengers: Endgame. However, they still kept elements of it in the produced season (such as showing Luther's emotional eating).
  • The Handler was originally written as a man; when Kate Walsh was cast she requested that the writing for the character stay the same, allowing for a darker "girlboss" spin to the character.
• Word of Saint Paul:
  • Prior to season two, actor Robert Sheehan stated in an interview that Klaus is pansexual and does not strictly identify as a man. This was later confirmed in the show.
  • Cody Ray Thompson, Dave's actor, confirmed on Twitter that Dave's last name is Katz.
• You Look Familiar: Ken Hall did motion capture for Pogo in season 1 and plays Herb in season 2.

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