Where You've Seen The Resident Alien Cast Before

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A sleeper science fiction comedy hit since its debut in 2021, "Resident Alien" has steadily been entertaining audiences with its extraterrestrial hijinks. The show adapts the comic book of the same name by Peter Hogan and Steve Parkhouse, starring Alan Tudyk as an alien hiding in the small town of Patience, Colorado. Posing as the town's doctor Harry Vanderspeigle, the alien initially intends to wipe out humanity as part of his otherworldly directive, but then he learns to appreciate it. This change of heart is informed by the friends that Harry makes in town, with "Resident Alien" boasting a strong ensemble of actors joining Tudyk.

A lot of the charm in "Resident Alien" comes from its principal cast, along with the solid writing by series creator Chris Sheridan. As the series progresses, much of these characters' backstories are gradually revealed, giving heart to the wacky sci-fi antics Harry unleashes on the town. Though "Resident Alien" is currently the biggest project for much of the cast, they have all appeared in a number of prior film and television projects. 

Here's where you've seen the cast of "Resident Alien" before.

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When an extraterrestrial tasked with wiping out humanity by his alien overlords arrives at Earth, his plans are derailed when he crashes outside of Patience. Killing the town's secretly murderous doctor, the alien assumes his identity of Harry Vanderspeigle while maintaining his cover and original mission. Through the relationships that Harry forms in town, he decides to spare humanity, incurring the wrath of the villainous Grey Aliens. Alan Tudyk plays both Harry and his human counterpart while Harry, in his true form, is physically portrayed by Keith Arbuthnot. David Bianchi plays an older version of Harry, going by the alias Goliath, in the second season.

Alan Tudyk has been steadily working in television and film since 1997, starting with memorable supporting roles in "A Knight's Tale" and "Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story." Tudyk starred as Wash in the short-lived sci-fi series "Firefly," reprising his role for its 2005 film continuation "Serenity." Tudyk's other memorable roles include doing motion capture and voice work for the droid K-2SO in "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" and "Andor" and playing the villainous Mister Nobody in "Doom Patrol." An extensive voice actor, Tudyk's notable voice roles include playing King Candy in "Wreck-It Ralph" and the Joker in Max's "Harley Quinn" animated series, but there are so many more.

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The first adult to discover Harry's true identity is Asta Twelvetrees, Harry's colleague as the assistant to the town doctor. Played by Sara Tomko, it's Harry's friendship through Asta that primarily leads him to gradually appreciate humanity and abandon his original eradication mission. In high school, Asta had a daughter with her abusive ex-husband Jimmy (Ben Cotton), with Asta's daughter Jay (Kaylayla Rice) working with her mother at the clinic. In addition to Harry and Jay, Asta stays close with her father Dan (Gary Farmer) and longtime best friend D'arcy (Alice Wetterlund).

Sara Tomko's on-screen career began in 2008 with supporting roles in the indie adventure movies "Journey to the Center of the Earth" and "2012: Doomsday." Tomko memorably appeared in the second season premiere of "The Leftovers" as a prehistoric woman fending for her newborn infant. Prior to "Resident Alien," Tomko's biggest roles were recurring characters on the shows "Once Upon a Time" and "Sneaky Pete."

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Patience's town sheriff is Mike Thompson, played by Corey Reynolds, who relocated to the Colorado community after beginning his law enforcement career in Washington D.C. Thompson's overconfident and controlling nature stems from the loss of his partner in D.C., something he continues to blame himself for years later. After growing more comfortable in Patience, Mike begins dating Lena Torres (Nicola Correia-Damude), a police detective from the neighboring town of Jessup. After Mike and Lena amicably split, he has a short fling with Judy Cooper (Jenna Lamia), who runs Patience's bowling alley.

Corey Reynolds' acting career got its start on stage in the '90s and early 2000s, with Reynolds earning a Tony nomination for his supporting role in the musical "Hairspray" (not the big screen adaptation) Following this, Reynolds was part of the main cast of "The Closer" for all seven seasons of its run. Reynolds has since guest-starred in a number of other television projects, including having recurring roles on "Murder in the First" and "All American." On the big screen, Reynolds has had supporting roles in 2014's "Selma" and 2015's "Straight Outta Compton."

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The lead bartender of the town's local pub, The 59, D'arcy Bloom has been best friends with Asta since they grew up together in Patience. D'arcy also once dated the town's mayor, Ben Hawthorne (Levi Fiehler), and remains close friends with him after he eventually got married and had a son. Years earlier, D'arcy was an Olympic-class skier, but her athletic career was derailed by a gruesome injury that led her back to her hometown. D'arcy and Asta's friendship is strained when D'arcy realizes Asta is keeping secrets from her, only for them to reconcile when she learns it was about Harry's alien origins.

Alice Wetterlund began doing stand-up comedy regularly in the 2000s and was a part of the improv troupe known as the Upright Citizens Brigade. After starring in the MTV series "Girl Code," Wetterlund joined the cast of Mike Judge's HBO comedy series "Silicon Valley" as a recurring character for its second and third seasons. Wetterlund's first major foray into science fiction was part of the main cast of the TBS comedy series "People of Earth." Wetterlund has guest-starred on numerous shows, including "GLOW" and "Space Force," and had supporting roles in the 2016 comedy "Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates."

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Patience's town mayor is Ben Hawthorne, who grew up with Asta and D'arcy, briefly dating the latter. Ben has since married Kate Hawthorne (Meredith Garretson), with whom he shares and raises a son, Max (Judah Prehn). Often maintaining a high level of anxiety, Mike frequently butts heads with Mike, with the sheriff not recognizing Ben's authority over him. Ben is revealed to have been a recurring target of abduction and study by the Grey Aliens ever since he was a child, informing much of his anxiety.

Before getting his start in acting, Levi Fiehler was born and raised in Juneau, Alaska. Fiehler's breakthrough acting project was starring in 2010's "Puppet Master: Axis of Evil," part of the cult favorite horror franchise. Fiehler followed this up with supporting roles in various television projects, including "Ray Donovan" and "Murder in the First." Fiehler would later have recurring roles in "The Fosters" and the second season of National Geographic's "Mars."

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Mike's diligent deputy is Liv Baker, played by Elizabeth Bowen, who is a constant presence by his side whenever he's on the job. Though Mike initially dismisses her opinion at the start of the series, he gradually notices and appreciates how insightful and observant she truly is. Liv also provides Mike with valuable life advice, including encouraging him to pursue a relationship with Lena. Flashbacks reveal that Liv had her own extraterrestrial encounter as a child, leaving her obsessed with them ever since, though Mike is skeptical until his own paranormal experience.

Coming from an improv comedy background, Elizabeth Bowen appeared in supporting roles in a number of television and film projects since 2000. Bowen's profile increased considerably after a supporting role in the second season of "Fargo" in 2015. In between "Fargo" and "Resident Alien," Bowen had a recurring role on the CW romantic comedy series "No Tomorrow." Since joining "Resident Alien," Bowen has guest-starred on the comedy series "Animal Control" and "Family Law."

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Kate Hawthorne is Ben's wife and the mother of their young son, Max, with Kate working as a teacher in Patience. Kate and Ben learn new ways to spice up their marriage, leading to her becoming pregnant in the second season. However, Kate's baby is abducted by the Grey Aliens and her memories are erased, leaving her shaken from the ordeal in the third season. After regaining her memories, Kate entrusts her baby to D'arcy while confronting the Greys on their ship.

Meredith Garretson actually became friends with Sara Tomko years before both were cast for "Resident Alien," with the two actors attending James Madison University together. After completing her Master of Arts at New York University in 2017, Garretson guest-starred in various shows, including "The Good Fight" and "Prodigal Son." Garretson had a recurring role as Ali McGraw in the Paramount+ miniseries "The Offer," chronicling the production of "The Godfather." Garretson is also a co-founder of the Society Theatre Company in New York, which officially began operations in 2020.

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Asta's father, Dan Twelvetrees, owns the town's popular restaurant, Joe's Diner, named after a friend who died while serving alongside Dan in the Vietnam War. Dan works diligently in the kitchen, making the diner a regularly frequented breakfast spot for much of the town. Dan is initially wary of Asta being around Harry, given Harry's weird behavior and Asta's history with Jimmy, but eventually learns to trust Harry. Asta reveals to Dan that Harry is an alien as she asks her father's help in performing a life-saving procedure on a wounded Harry.

Gary Farmer's on-screen career started with appearances on Canadian television in the show "Spirit Bay," following a First Nations community in rural Ontario. Farmer also was part of the main cast for the horror series "Forever Knight," the First Nations drama "The Rez," and had a recurring role on "Reservation Dogs." Farmer has had supporting roles in numerous films over the years, most notably the 1995 Jim Jarmusch movie "Dead Man." In addition to his acting career, Farmer is a blues musician and is a pivotal figure in First Nations media, helping launch Aboriginal Voices Radio Network in Canada.

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One of the two officers assigned to investigate the crash-landing of Harry's alien spaceship at the start of the series is Lieutenant David Logan, played by Alex Barima. Logan is joined by government operative Agent Lisa Casper (Mandell Maughan), but is put off by Casper's eagerness to eliminate any witnesses. Logan's reluctance nearly leads Casper to kill him but he goes into hiding while Casper is later killed during a scuffle with Harry. After regaining his superiors' trust, Logan resumes his work monitoring extraterrestrial activity and planning against the Grey Aliens.

After graduating from the Vancouver Academy of Dramatic Arts, Alex Barima began guest-starring in numerous shows filmed in and around Vancouver, including "Supernatural" and "DC's Legends of Tomorrow." Barima had recurring roles in the second season of "The Exorcist" and the fourth season of "Riverdale." Barima has also worked extensively as a voice actor, playing War Machine and Nick Fury in various "LEGO Marvel Avengers" limited series and TV specials. After joining "Resident Alien," Barima starred as the title character in the Netflix original animated series "Daniel Spellbound."

Asta and Harry's assistant at their town clinic is Ellen Cho (Diana Bang), who works alongside them as a nurse. Despite this close working relationship, Ellen is a prickly figure in town, who is sarcastic and rude to virtually everyone she interacts with. In spite of her usual abrasiveness, Ben and Kate still hire Ellen to babysit Max when needed, and Ellen maintains a quiet friendship with D'arcy. Ellen is a regular at the town's weekly poker game, where she often performs quite well as a cardshark.

Working steadily on-screen since 2008, Bang started her acting career doing sketch comedy in her native Vancouver. Bang has appeared in guest and supporting roles in television and film projects filmed in British Columbia, including the television series "The Flash" and "The Killing." Bang had a recurring role on "Bates Motel" as well as the cult classic Netflix horror series "The Order." Bang's largest role to date was being part of the main cast of Hulu's "Y: The Last Man" in 2021.

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Leading the hunt for Harry at the start of "Resident Alien" is General Eleanor McCallister, played by Linda Hamilton. McCallister keeps much of her investigation a secret from her superiors, heading a black ops organization monitoring extraterrestrial activity free of government bureaucracy. McCallister's obsession of aliens stems from witnessing an alien spacecraft over her home as a child. After realizing that Harry is working against Grey Aliens intent on wiping out humanity, McCallister reluctantly joins forces with him, though grows exasperated by his behavior.

Linda Hamilton is science fiction royalty through her breakout starring role as Sarah Connor in the first two "Terminator" movies and their 2019 sequel "Terminator: Dark Fate." Outside of "Terminator," Hamilton had starring cinematic roles in 1984's "Children of the Corn" and 1997's "Dante's Peak." Hamilton's biggest television role was starring in '80s fantasy series "Beauty and the Beast," which ran for three seasons from 1987 to 1990. On television, Hamilton also had a prominent recurring role on the action comedy series "Chuck" and the final season of "Stranger Things."

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After Peter Bach (Dylan Sloane) witnesses aliens abduct his son, he makes it his life's obsession to track their activities in the hopes of reuniting with his child. Played by Terry O'Quinn in the present timeline, Peter has since become a leading authority on extraterrestrials by the start of "Resident Alien," working as an author and government consultant. Peter is nearly killed by the Grey Aliens, though his body is secretly kept in stasis by General McCallister and fitted with a robotic exosuit. Revived to battle the Grey Aliens, Peter regains his memories and autonomy before escaping government custody, fleeing to Patience where he meets Liv.

Acting on-screen since 1980's "Heaven's Gate," Terry O'Quinn's roles in the '80s include appearances in "Silver Bullet," "Young Guns," and "The Stepfather." After appearing in "The Rocketeer" and the sci-fi television series "Millennium," O'Quinn had a recurring role on the espionage series "Alias." But O'Quinn's career reached new heights in 2004 with a starring role in "Lost," appearing as the enigmatic John Locke. Following "Lost," O'Quinn has had recurring roles on "Hawaii Five-0," the Stephen King universe series "Castle Rock," and "The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live."

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In the wake of Harry's assimilation into humanity, the Grey Aliens begin employing Grey-human hybrids to carry out their agenda incognito on Earth. In the second season finale, Harry is confronted by Grey-hybrid Joseph Rainier, played by Enver Gjokaj. After Harry rejects the Greys' offer for him to leave Earth, Daniel infiltrates Patience, gaining a job as a deputy under Sheriff Mike. This leads to a prickly feud between Harry and Daniel in town while they both maintain their cover from their neighbors.

After several smaller roles in film and television, Enver Gjokaj's breakout role was as a series regular on the 2009 sci-fi series "Dollhouse." After this, Gjokaj gained recurring roles on the crime series "Vegas" and "Rizzoli & Isles," in addition to memorable guest-starring spots on "Community" and "The Walking Dead." Gjokaj joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe as S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Daniel Sousa in "Agent Carter," a role he reprised in the final season of "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." After joining "Resident Alien," Gjokaj joined the main cast of "Invasion" for its second season, with his character involved with a very different extraterrestrial story.