Bridge

Captain Ed Mercer (left) and Commander Kelly Grayson (right) surrounded by Bridge officers on the bridge of the USS Orville.

## Purpose

### Affiliation

Planetary Union

The **Bridge** is a room within the USS *Orville*. It acts as the Main Deck of the entire ship and houses the Captain (Commanding Officer), Commander (First Officer), Lieutenant Commander (Second Officer), and Lieutenants.

## Description

The Bridge is a large and comfortable room adorned with many computers and other pieces of various technology encompassing both sides. There are two chairs in the center of the room which are sat in by the Commanding Officer and the First Officer. Helmsman and Navigator stations are at the front of the Bridge. Three Security stations flank the left side and Engineering, Science, and Communications flank the right.

The center has a direct view of space which features a viewer which acts as a means of satellite communication with other ships or sections of the Orville as well as outposts and planetary facilities. The roof of the Bridge has an opening above the workplace that also reveals a view of the cosmos.

## History

As part of the Shipmaster Qualification Program, Lieutenant Gordon Malloy is placed in the captain's chair within a simulation of the *Orville* bridge, engaged in a confrontation against the Krill.

In 2420, the joint birthday of First Officer Kelly Grayson and Second Officer Bortus is held a month late within the *Orville* bridge. Helmsman Malloy and Chief Engineer John LaMarr justify the venue by playing a humorous animation of Kelly and Bortus that they had created on the main viewing screen.

Proceeding to win back the affections of Doctor Claire Finn, Isaac anonymously summons her to the bridge. Upon her arrival, Isaac reveals himself and initiates a program which causes rain to fall within the bridge while a recording of *Singing in the Rain* plays.

When the *Orville* is commandeered by the Kaylon, serving as the command ship of their newly constructed invasion fleet, the deposed crew can only watch as all bridge stations are taken by Kaylon units, with the captain's chair being taken by Kaylon Primary while Isaac remains at his science station.

## Production

According to composer John Debney, creator Seth MacFarlane frequently orders scenes shot on the bridge to have unexpectedly energetic music to "keep the scene going." Debney has stated that bridge scenes in *Blood of Patriots* are a strong example of "keeping the interest and the excitement going."

### Union bridges

The Orville's Bridge was designed by production designer Stephen J. Lineweaver in conjunction with illustrator Michael Maher. Lineweaver later noted that the bridge-as-constructed was remarkably similar to the drafting sketches, unlike the rest of the ship which underwent heavy revisions during construction. According to *The World of the Orville*, Lineweaver designed the Bridge as "a comfortable, 'living room' environment that would be both audience-friendly and comfortable for the characters."

Like the rest of the Orville's halls, the walls of the Bridge are made of Chilewich matting, a synthetic material that creates an unusual texture on camera. The intent was to make walls that appear almost organic, as the Orville's walls are organic in-universe. Early drafts of the walls included growing grass.

The Bridge's viewscreen is in fact an enormous, 90-foot, 11k LED screen that projects what characters are supposed to see. According to visual effects producer Natasha Francis, the show opted for the expensive screen because they predict it will be cheaper in the long run than constantly green-screening viewscreen backgrounds.

The set is adorned with obscured LED lighting that can be changed to manufacture specific environments, such as red alert emergencies.

According to Scott Grimes (Gordon Malloy), the control panels for the helmsman and navigator are in fact iPads.

The chairs were made by the furniture design company Acme Made in America. They used laser-cutting and metal braking to build the captain and commander chairs, trying to make them large enough to seem imposing but small enough not to compromise the view of the back hallway. Crew chairs on either side of the bridge were seats placed on laser-cut rolled aluminum, which forms a deceptively strong support beam.

The *Orville* bridge is used for two other ships in *Identity, Pt. 2*.

USS *Roosevelt*USS *Spruance*
### Krill bridges

The Krill Bridge was designed by artists Lineweaver, Brandon Fayette, and Kit Stølen. The modern Krill Bridge of the show is green-lit, dark, and all material has sharp angles. The original Krill Bridge was a combination of reds and ambers, with subtle curves to the walls. The colors were changed to reflect the Krill's sensitivity to light, and the walls were given sharp angles in keeping with the general architectural style of the Krill.

## Trivia

* During production, the viewscreen of the Bridge on the USS *Orville* is in fact a large television monitor that displays what actors would see as their characters.
* The panel buttons at each work station have designated functions and purposes, and actors must learn their buttons to maintain continuity.
* The set of the Orville's bridge is one of two of Seth MacFarlane's least favorite locations to film because it is so big, the other being inside Planetary Union shuttlecraft.

## References

1. ↑ Bond, Jeff. *The World of the Orville*. Titan Books. 2018. Pg. 28.
2. ↑ *Episode 2x04: Nothing Left on Earth Excepting Fishes*
3. ↑ *Episode 2x05: All the World is Birthday Cake*
4. ↑ *Episode 2x06: A Happy Refrain*
5. ↑ *Episode 2x08: Identity, Pt. 1*
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 The Orville Q&A with Stan Jones, Jason Clark and Oscar Nominated Composer John Debney. The Los Angeles Film School. June 8, 2020.
7. ↑ Lineweaver, Stephen & Robert Strohmaier. "The Orville: A Chance to Design the Future". *ADG Perspectivei.* July-Aug. 2018. Pg. 94.
8. ↑ Bond, Jeff. *The World of the Orville*. Titan Books. 2018. Pg. 29.
9. ↑ Bond, Jeff. *The World of the Orville*. Titan Books. 2018. Pg. 30.
10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Bond, Jeff. *The World of the Orville*. Titan Books. 2018. Pg. 31.
11. ↑ "Does The Orville's Scott Grimes Believe In Aliens?". *Young Hollywood*. Last accessed Dec. 5, 2018.
12. ↑ "Acme Made in America creates custom set pieces for Seth McFarlane's new show The Orville". *Creative Handbook*. Sept. 1, 2017.
13. ↑ Bond, Jeff. *The World of the Orville*. Titan Books. 2018. Pg. 103.
14. ↑ "The Orville Fan Podcast w/ Jeff Bond (15)". Planetary Union Podcast. Jan. 22, 2018.
15. ↑ Bernstein, Abbie. "THE ORVILLE: Scott Grimes beams up for Season 1 of new space trek – Exclusive Interview". *Assignment X*. Dec. 1, 2017.
16. ↑ @SethMacFarlane. "The shuttle (it’s small) and the bridge (it’s big)". Twitter. Jan. 17, 2019.