Sian Clifford, Jonathan Aris board ‘His Dark Materials’ season 3

By PTI

LOS ANGELES: “Fleabag” star Sian Clifford and “Sherlock” actor Jonathan Aris are the latest additions to the cast of the third and final season of “His Dark Materials”.

According to Deadline, the duo will play Agent Salmakia and Commander Roke, respectively, both ‘Gallivespian Spies’ in the BBC and HBO fantasy series based on Philip Pullman’s book series.

The new season will be based on “The Amber Spyglass”, the most complex and ambitious of Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy of novels, as Lyra (Dafne Keen) and Will (Amir Wilson) travel through different worlds to find each other.

In Pullman’s books, Gallivespians are as tiny humanoids who evolved in their native universe’s earth.

The author writes: “He was striking to look at: he was no taller than Lord Asriel’s hand span, and as slender as a dragonfly, but the rest of Lord Asriel’s captains treated him with profound respect, for he was armed with a poisonous sting in the spurs on his heels.

“He and his kind, the Gallivespians, had few of the qualities of good spies except, of course, their exceptional smallness: they were so proud and touchy that they would never have remained inconspicuous if they had been of Lord Asriel’s size.

” The returning cast also includes Ruth Wilson, Simone Kirby, Will Keen, Jade Anouka, Ruta Gedminstas and James McAvoy.

Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje and Jamie Ward have joined season three as new entries.

Bad Wolf produces the series in association with New Line Cinema.

Production on season three of the fantasy drama began earlier this year in the UK.