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SYFY WIRE The Ark

Everything to Know About The Ark Star Christie Burke Ahead of Season 2

Burke's wanted to be an actor since she watched Titanic at the age of 7.

By Josh Weiss

In just a few days' time, SYFY will return audiences to the farthest reaches of the galaxy with Season 2 of The Ark (premiering Wednesday, July 17 at 10/9c). Created, showrun, and executive-produced by a pair of science fiction veterans — Dean Devlin (Independence Day) and Jonathan Glassner (Stargate SG-1) — the hit show takes place aboard an interstellar vessel carrying the last hope for humanity's survival.

How to Watch

Watch new episodes of The Ark Wednesdays at 10/9c on SYFY. Catch up on Season 1 on Peacock.

When an unforeseen tragedy kills off most of the people in charge, the duty of finding a new planet on which to propagate the species falls to a small number of low-ranking crew members, including Lt. Sharon Garnet, played by Christie Burke. Appearing on the Pop Culture Unplugged podcast last year, the 34-year-old actress revealed that there was little turnaround between her landing the role and flying out to Serbia to film the pilot episode.

"It's crazy," she said. "I found out 24 hours before I was on a plane and then, three days later, I was shooting the pilot. It all felt like a whirlwind and I'm still kind of like, 'That happened?' Then I'm watching live TV and there's my face. I just never, in a million years, thought that would happen, so it definitely feels like a dream come true. Every day, I'm pinching myself, being like, 'Was I on a spaceship? Did that happen?' And I know my co-stars are feeling the same way too."

For More on The Ark:
'The Ark' writers 'went through so many iterations' of explosive Season 1 finale for new SYFY series
SYFY's ‘The Ark’ creators, stars dig into Season 1 finale cliffhanger & tease Season 2 plans
'The Ark' writer Rebecca Rosenberg on perspective as only woman in SYFY series' 4-person writers' room

How Long Has The Ark Star Christie Burke Been Acting?

Burke has appeared in major film and television projects since the early 2010s, starting with a minor supporting role — fittingly enough — on SYFY's Eureka (back then, the network styled itself as the Sci-Fi Channel). Her other notable screen credits include Almost Human, Falling Skies, Van Helsing, Supernatural, The Haunting of Bly Manor, and the final two Twilight movies.

"My parents always tell these stories of [how they always knew] I was gonna be an actor, just being a very dramatic kid," Burke said on the podcast. "One time, I accidentally fell and for two weeks straight, I pretended my arm was broken, even though it wasn't. I was just so committed to that lifestyle of having a broken arm. My dad is from New Zealand and emigrated to Canada to be with my mom and got his first job in the movie industry. He still builds sets for movies and TV to this day. I think it kind of came from there — just this love that they had for film and TV that was then placed on me. Honestly, I always tell the Titanic story. I saw Titanic when I was seven and from there, I was just like, 'I want to be an actor,' but didn't know that's what it was called until years and years later."

Is Christie Burke Married?

LT. Sharon Garnet (Christie Burke) and LT. Spencer Lane (Reece Ritchie) face Evelyn Maddox (Jelena Stupljanin) on The Ark Season 2.

As far as we know, Burke, who resides in Vancouver, is not currently in a relationship of any kind. If you'd like to keep up with her career and life developments, be sure to check out the actress's Instagram account.

When Does Season 2 of The Ark Premiere on SYFY?

Season 2 of The Ark premieres on SYFY Wednesday, July 17 at 10/9c.

Marc Roskin and Rachel Olschan-Wilson of Electric Entertainment serve as executive producers on the series alongside Devlin and Glassner. Jonathan English of Balkanic Media and Mark Franco of Electric Entertainment are producers.

Want to catch up on the story so far? All of Season 1 is now streaming on Peacock right here!