The cult of Torv: how Fringe built a genre icon
Let’s rewind to a time before clickers and cordyceps – back when Anna Torv was dodging shapeshifters and alternate universes instead. If you weren’t riding the cult train for Fox’s Fringe between 2008 and 2013, honestly, what were you even doing? J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman, and Roberto Orci cooked up a genre blend that started as a monster-of-the-week and then snowballed into pure sci-fi chaos.
At the center of this mind-bending ride? Anna Torv’s Olivia Dunham, who practically carried the show’s ever-expanding mythology on her back. And talk about multitasking: one week, she was hunting down psychic terrorists, the next, staring down her own doppelgänger with a poker face. The kind of arc that would melt a less versatile actor for sure.
But Torv? She made morphing between “our Olivia,” “Alt-Olivia,” and even an animated version (yeah, that happened) seem like a regular Tuesday.
Fans caught on, and critics too. The IT-crowd on Twitter and Reddit started declaring Fringe “the little cult show that could.” Even Torv herself later admitted, “We had a little cult following.” The show’s passionate base turned low ratings into legend. It may have survived a scheduling graveyard shift only to thrive in the halls of sci-fi fame.
Four Saturn Awards: not just a trophy shelf
Now, plenty of actors have trophies, but how many can boast four consecutive Saturn Awards for Best Actress on Television? That’s what Anna Torv did — basically running the table from 2010 right through 2013. The Saturn Awards, run by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, are catnip for genre fans.
Every calendar year between season two and the emotional series finale, Torv’s name came up. And every time, the Saturn voters said, “Yeah, let’s just hand this one to Anna again.” Four-peat? That’s an actual record in the Best Actress on TV category, and everyone in the geek trenches took notice.
So, what did these wins really mean? Not just fan adoration, but a feather in the cap from the hardest-to-please crowd: sci-fi peers. It’s the Academy telling you, “You belong in the genre hall of fame.”
As for Olivia herself, those Saturn wins followed the wildest arcs – body-swapping episodes, love triangles across literal universes, and high-stakes emotional daredevilry. No wonder she later felt right at home with HBO’s The Last of Us.
Mastering mood swings: Torv’s toolkit from monster to mushroom
This is where Torv’s prowess starts to shine through. Surviving five years of high-octane Fringe Division business made her a genre Swiss army knife. One of her secret weapons? Absolute precision. On Fringe, she was often juggling emotional states — sympathy, suspicion, searing rage — all in the same scene.
She carried those chops into everything she did next. Even before The Last of Us, Anna Torv landed on Netflix’s Mindhunter in 2017 and 2019, sharpening her edge as Wendy Carr, the ultimate behavioral scientist. And when Australian TV handed her The Newsreader (2021, 2023), she coolly shifted gears and scooped up both AACTA and Logie awards for it. Clearly, this actor is allergic to typecasting.
So, fast forward to the TLOU casting call. Scary world, survival stakes through the roof, big emotions in tiny moments – sound familiar? Of course Anna Torv fit Tess like a (somewhat bloodstained) glove.
Tess in The Last of Us: short arc, maximum impact
Landing the role of Tess for HBO’s The Last of Us almost felt predestined. Who else could sell heartbreak, grit, and stubborn hope… all in a two-episode arc? That performance in Season 1, Episode 2, “Infected” still sticks with us a year later. The stakes were new – clickers, spores, and jaw-dropping practical effects – but the dramatic pressure-cooker felt uncannily close to home for Torv.
Here’s the quick-and-gritty:
- Joel’s partner, a smuggler with scars inside and out.
- A plan gone sideways in Boston’s museum of horrors (those clicker prosthetics? Still nightmare fuel).
- A bite, a confession, and a torch-passing at the Massachusetts State House.
Torv doesn’t just play the part – she embodies Tess’s steel and vulnerability. When Tess shows her bite to Joel and Ellie, you can feel the world tip on its axis. It’s all urgency and raw emotion. Her face, the quiver in her voice, even the way she sets her jaw – that’s Torv’s mastery dialed up to 11.
The episode sent shockwaves through social media. Fans on X (back then, Twitter) posted reactions in real time, many saying they wished for “more Anna Torv” in the show. Vanity Fair, Entertainment Weekly, and GamesRadar+ all raved about her sudden, seismic exit.
The Emmy nod – and some infamous tendrils
Now, Torv’s Tess lived fast and died hard, but she made history: the first Last of Us actor to bag an Emmy nomination (Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series, 2023). The Television Academy vaulted her into prime-time contention alongside Melanie Lynskey and eventual winner Storm Reid. Not too shabby for showing up, breaking hearts, and blowing stuff up — all in two episodes.
Let’s not dance around it – that State House sacrifice changed the game. The creators threw curveballs: instead of the game’s straight-up shootout, they handed Tess one of the weirdest survivors’ kisses ever. Yes, the clicker “tendril kiss.”
Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann explained they wanted something both horrifying and intimate. Torv, ever the pro, broke down how surreal it felt on camera. “It was gross and fascinating at the same time,” she said in interviews with TVLine and Entertainment Weekly.
- Location of Tess’s bite? The showrunners insisted it match the original game.
- The mechanics of that kiss? Torv handled it like a true Saturn veteran.
- The timing, the tension, the way she locked eyes with Joel? All earned.
No wonder awards season came calling — and TLOU’s guest actors swept both categories overall (props to Offerman and Storm Reid for their wins). Still, Torv’s nomination underscored the impact she left with so little screen time.
Fringe skills, mushroom world: the through line
It’s not hyperbole to say Fringe was the ultimate boot camp for prepping Torv to play Tess. Back in the day, Olivia Dunham balanced being a leader, a lover, and a lone wolf in a reality that changed every week. Every “save the world” situation forced her to adapt fast.
In The Last of Us, that same intensity pulses through Tess. She commands, improvises, and — when the time comes — faces the end with total clarity. The line she delivers to Joel: “Save who you can save.” That’s the heart of the character, and traces of Olivia’s old grit shine through.
Fans spotted it. Critics noticed too. The science fiction press called out the “shared emotional calibration” between Olivia and Tess. Not just problem solvers, but women who act decisively when survival hangs in the balance.
Enter the Outback: Torv’s wild new Territory
So, what’s Anna Torv been up to since leaving Boston’s bombed ruins behind? In 2024, she stormed into another genre battleground – Netflix’s big-budget Territory. Swap infected tunnels for red dust and high-stakes drama on the world’s largest cattle station.
Torv led a power-packed cast along with Michael Dorman and Robert Taylor in this neo-Western that landed with a bang. Netflix released it globally on October 24, 2024. Within days, it broke into the Top 10 in seventy-four countries and racked up 6.4 million views. Critics embraced it too, pushing the Rotten Tomatoes score up to 87%.
Here’s the Territory lowdown:
- It’s got family dynasties, miners, cowboys, and corporate sabotage.
- The landscape? Filmed on location in Larrakia and Kaurna Country for a haunting outback authenticity.
- Torv’s performance? She slides comfortably into the shoes of a weathered Aussie survivor. The risk-taking, the pragmatism, the emotional charge — sound familiar?
Unfortunately, Netflix axed Territory after just one season. The streamer’s ANZ content head, Que Minh Luu, thanked the whole team and called it a “pioneering Outback saga.” But let’s be honest, Torv fans weren’t happy. Social feeds lit up with disappointment, but plenty argued this just leaves Anna open for fresh international mischief.
The unsung sizzle reel of Anna Torv
Adding it up, you see a pattern: from Fringe’s wild mythology to Outback showdowns, Torv picks roles that crank up the pressure and let her test every trick in the actor’s book. She’s won:
- Four Saturn Awards (that’s a sweep, not a fluke)
- Back-to-back AACTA awards for The Newsreader
- An Emmy nomination for blowing up a State House and our collective psyche in The Last of Us
Her fanbase? Still fiercely loyal, whether they first met her as the world’s most determined FBI agent or Boston’s toughest smuggler. She keeps it grounded, whether wrestling infected clickers or cattle barons.
Why Tess needed an actress with a few apocalypses under her belt
This all begs the question — would The Last of Us have hit as hard without Anna Torv? Both creators and fans seem to agree: she brought gravity to Tess that just doesn’t come off in pixels alone. The briefness of the role made the impact punchier, like a gut shot.
Her Saturn-winning time spent fighting Doomsday devices and running between realities prepped her to sell every scar on Tess’s soul. And, let’s face it, in a franchise where nobody’s safe, she left us wanting more — which is probably the real trick.
So, next time you rewatch Tess’s final moments, remember: you’re watching a sly genre pro, a Saturn Award juggernaut, and an actress forever game to jump into the fire, Outback or apocalypse.
Anna Torv doesn’t just survive weird worlds — she makes them matter. And that, folks, is her real legacy.
