His name is Zeus (Jeff Goldblum). Living above the clouds in a mansion on Mount Olympus, he springily struts through his massive home and it’s evident the all-powerful deity is confident and carefree — for now.

The opening scenes of KAOS — which you can watch in full on Netflix now — show Zeus’ pristine property, chock-full of lush greenery and harboring a large pool complete with a pink flamingo float, all being maintained by workers wearing tennis club-style uniforms. You might think Zeus is a not a regular king of gods, he’s a cool king of gods, but none other than Prometheus (Stephen Dillane) himself, narrating the scene, quickly dispels that notion by labeling Zeus “a transcendent, unmitigated bastard.”

Goldblum tells Tudum that he prefers to think of Zeus as being “complicated and charismatic, not to mention cruel,” and explains that series creator Charlie Covell’s script drew him in immediately. “Charlie Covell’s writing leapt off the page and struck my gizzard like a lightning bolt. [It’s] spectacularly smart, surprising, unexpected, profound, deeply moving, and hilarious.”

Alongside Zeus is his wife, Hera (Janet McTeer). The queen of the gods is as tyrannical as her husband, while also being a bit more controlled and calculated. McTeer tells Tudum she “had a ball” playing Hera, whose story she found to be surprisingly relatable, all things considered. “These [gods] dress like they do and live in amazing surroundings and have powers and never grow old,” McTeer says. “At the same time, it’s a deeply normal family drama.”

To bring the world of Olympus to life, Covell and  executive producer Georgi Banks-Davies were inspired by Slim Aarons’ photography. “Sun-drenched wealth was always the feeling for us,” Covell says. “[It] was tricky delineating between Olympus and Earth because both were vibrant, but there’s a bit more grain on Earth. Olympus feels smoother, more glacial. In my head, Olympus was kind of a beautiful prison, this sterile paradise.”

Justin Downing/Netflix

Speaking of Earth, Episode 1 also  introduces us to Riddy (Aurora Perrineau), who is navigating a humdrum day with a palpable heaviness in her heart before encountering Cassandra (Billie Piper), who warns Riddy: “Nobody believes a word I say, but it all comes true.” Riddy will be leaving her partner soon, according to Cassandra, who offers one last ominous statement before the two depart: “Your love is dead.”

Perrineau praises Covell for helping her embody Riddy, telling Tudum they each had similar ideas for bringing the character to life. “The cool thing about Charlie is they’re very good at letting you decide things on your own and then if you have questions, they have amazing answers. We didn’t want Riddy to come off as someone who doesn’t have agency or who isn’t in control of their path. [She’s] more just in this distraught place of trying to figure out how to get to where [she’s] going.”

And where is that exactly? Head to Netflix to find out for yourself because all eight episodes of KAOS are streaming now. 

Additional reporting by Ariana Romero.