The stakes are high in SYFY’s Revival, but the story’s heart lies in two sisters trying to reconnect while the world around them comes undone.
Premiering Thursday, June 12 at 10/9c, the new series opens with a supernatural event in a small Wisconsin town that disrupts life — and death — as everyone knows it.
But while strange phenomena unfold, it’s the relationship between Officer Dana Cypress (Melanie Scrofano) and her younger sister Em (Romy Weltman) that quietly carries the emotional weight.
“Dana hasn’t left yet, but she’s planning to,” Scrofano said. “They’re divided by Em’s illness… there is an age gap between the sisters. Em’s illness made her really fragile in Dana’s mind, so she really underestimates her sister.”
The pair’s dynamic might remind fans of another sisterly duo Scrofano knows well — Wynonna and Waverly Earp.
“They’re both very protective of their sisters,” she said. “It just looks different in each show. I don’t think Wynonna underestimates Waverly as much at the beginning.”
For Weltman, the onscreen connection came naturally — thanks, in part, to a warm welcome from her co-star before they even met in person.
“The first message I got before even heading to New Brunswick to start filming was from Mel,” she said. “I got a follow from Mel, which — I’m a fan of her, so I was like, ‘Oh my God, why is Mel following me?’ And then I get a DM saying, ‘It’s you and me, sis.’”
From that moment, the bond was real. “She set a very easy tone,” Weltman continued. “It’s simple, but it goes a long way. Just ‘Hey, I’m interested in hanging out with you. I want to be your friend. I want to be more than just co-workers and colleagues.’”
That extended beyond the set. “Mel had her family there as well,” Weltman said. “I went alone. I got to spend a lot of time with Mel and her kids and her husband, and just Mel and I also.
“We went to see movies together. We hung out as much as we could, the two of us. But actually just being immersed in her family… I think made me understand Mel a lot more and fall in love with her even more.”
Scrofano added with a laugh, “I’m going to cry. But also, just to say — my kids prefer Romy, too.”
Their offscreen rapport undoubtedly enhances their onscreen chemistry, but it’s not all sisterly bonding. As an executive producer on the show, Scrofano also helped shape the tone behind the scenes.
“I think that was what I felt like I should do most — set the tone as an EP on the show, because I was there every day,” she explained.
“I tried to wield the power very lightly, because I… don’t love working with EPs that are also actors on the show. I find it really uncomfortable. I’m like, ‘Oh, so are you judging me right now? Are you going to fire me if I don’t do this?’ It makes me paranoid.”
That sensitivity informed her approach. “I was really paranoid about making people paranoid,” she said. “So I tried to stay away from the title on set, but at the same time, I felt a responsibility… because then if something goes wrong, my name is on the thing.”
The real challenge? Knowing when to switch hats. “I’d be on set about to do a scene where you’re acting with a capital A,” she said, “and somebody would come up and be like, ‘I’m really trying to make it to a concert this weekend…’ And I’m like, ‘I’m not producing right now.’ So that was tricky.”
As for the role of Em, Weltman had to carry a lot without revealing too much. Em’s condition — and the emotional toll it’s taken — are central to the series’ unfolding mystery.
“Playing Em was really exciting because I got to play just a range of emotions and feelings, and honestly, sometimes even personalities,” Weltman said.
“I think focusing on where she is and why she is where she is mentally… worked very well in terms of all the ranges of things she’s going through.”
For her, Em’s story is about finding a way back into life, on her terms. “I feel like for Em, this is how she lives now. This is her awakening to living life,” she said. “And I think that made it very simple.”
Revival premieres Thursday, June 12 at 10/9c on SYFY.
And don’t miss our interviews with David James Elliott and showrunners and creators Aaron B. Koontz and Luke Boyce and return after the premiere for a review!
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Melanie Scrofano and Romy Weltman on Building Sisterhood and Navigating the Mystery on Revival
Melanie Scrofano and Romy Weltman talk about sisterhood, setting the tone on set, and finding the heart in SYFY’s new supernatural mystery Revival.
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David James Elliott on Grounding SYFY’s Revival in Family, Frustration, and Chaos
David James Elliott discusses stepping into genre with Revival, playing a father in crisis, and why the show’s chaos feels surprisingly familiar.
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Aaron B. Koontz and Luke Boyce Bring ‘Horror with Heart’ to SYFY’s Revival
Revival showrunners Aaron B. Koontz and Luke Boyce on emotional stakes, weird Midwest energy, and why this story had to be horror with heart.
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