Humans star Katherine Parkinson says the way the current season ends, the third could be a "whole different genre".
The second season of the stylish sci-fi thriller has just premiered on TV3 and - like most of the great works of science fiction - can be read as an important allegory of contemporary issues in the real world.
The show imagines a not-too-distant future in which humanoid synthetics have become an inextricable part of society, obediently serving and protecting the human population.
But what happens when these synths are given the right to consciousness and their own free will?
"I'm pleased to say it goes to an interesting place," says Parkinson, who plays Laura, of the second season.
"Particularly with their relationship - I'm with my husband and the children, but also I'm separated from the family quite a lot this year. Laura wants to fight for the synths and Joe [her husband] wants to live in a synth-free community. It's complex."
Season two of Humans picks up several months on from the events of season one, with Niska still at large and in possession of the consciousness code.
As unconfirmed reports of synths behaving inexplicably surface, the ripple effects of one simple yet seismic decision sees the past return dramatically and surprisingly to the door of the Laura and Joe's house.
Their family is then faced with a difficult choice that will put the family under an intense spotlight.
Parkinson says she knows where her character's story goes, but not everyone else's.
"I trust [the writers] because they're so good at coming up with surprising but truthfully found ideas," she says.
"I know what I've shot and how that ends, and I knew that at the beginning of the series - it's really brave. The way this series ends, the third series could end up being a whole different genre. It's very exciting."
The show features a multi-stranded narrative centred on the synths, an emerging form of intelligent life, and humanity - an established one - fighting for their places in the world.
While the other characters are embroiled in various dramas of their own, Laura and Joe's is primarily concerned with their own family.
"Joe wants to protect his family, and she has this guilt from the past that she's trying to rectify," says Parkinson.
"The one thing Laura wants to be is a good mother, because she failed her brother, but she's so involved in her work that she takes her eye off them a bit. Sophie, her youngest, has developed this syndrome where she pretends to be a synth... That's why Joe feels so strongly about moving away. Things aren't great, in other words."
Parkinson says Humans has very real-world parallels, despite its fantastical nature.
"I just think, apart from all the sci-fi weirdness, Humans is clearly so relevant to things like immigration," she says.
"I'm not saying the show is directly about hate crimes, but I think the political edge of the show has become far sharper given current headlines... It's basically about the way we treat people that we nominate as second-class citizens. The parallels with Mexicans and America are obvious."
Humans is broadcast on TV3 on Monday nights at 8:30pm.
Newshub.