Spoiler Alert: This list includes spoilers for ‘Paradise’ Season 1.After eight fantastic yet intense episodes, the first season ofParadisehas officially come to an end. It’s a relief thatthe serieshas already been renewed for a second season, because after that cliffhanger, the next installment ofParadisecan’t come fast enough. The season primarily focuses on Agent Xavier Collins' (Sterling K. Brown) investigation into the murder of Cal Bradford (James Marsden), the President of the United States, whom he has been sworn to protect. The twist is thatthis all takes place inside an underground city, three years after the world ended.
There are many factors that makeParadisegreat: the politicalthrillerelement, the post-apocalyptic twist, and the sharp dialogue. By far, what really makes this show stand out, though, are its characters.From the most moral and good characters, to the evil and twisted characters, everyone inParadiseis nuanced and well-written. These are the 10 bestParadisecharacters ranked.
10Agent Jane Driscoll
Played by Nicole Brydon Bloom
Jane Driscoll (Nicole Brydon Bloom) is initially introduced as a likable but relatively plain character. She’s new to being an agent and still learning to do the job correctly, and she’s also learning to push back when necessary. Additionally, Jane is in a secret relationship with Billy (Jon Beavers). After Billy has an explosive confrontation with Sinatra (Julianne Nicholson), Janekills the man she’s been datingjust because she’s been ordered to do so. At that point, it’s clear that there’s more to Jane’s character than meets the eye.
Jane is a fascinating character because she seems to be evil without limits…
Whereas Sinatra is a grounded villain fueled by fear and a desire for control,Jane is wildly unpredictable. Her motives are not yet clear, but in the Season 1 finale, Jane is willing to kill for a Wii– and she happily plays Wii at the end of the season to celebrate her temporary victory. Jane is a fascinating character because she seems to be evil without limits, and is not held back by concern for anyone she cares about in the way that Sinatra is.
9Kane Bradford
Played by Gerald McRaney
There seems to still be a much larger mystery at play with Kane Bradford (Gerald McRaney) that hasn’t been resolved as of the end of Season 1.Cal’s father has a great deal of power, more than even the President himself, and he somehow has access to all of these government secrets on his tablet. Kane has not had as much screen time as many of the other characters, but every one of his scenes seems to hint at some major secrets.
Kane is one ofParadise’s most mysterious characters…
Aside from his role in the government, Kane is a tragic character. He grieves the death of his wife, whom he loved very much, but he is unable to express any care for Caluntil after his death, when, unable to remember, he thinks that Jeremy (Charlie Evans) is Cal. Kane is one ofParadise’s most mysterious characters, and he will likely play an even larger role in Season 2.
8Presley Collins
Played by Aliyah Mastin
After having to leave his wife, Teri (Enuka Okuma), behind on the day of the doomsday event, Xavier is fueled first and foremost by the need to protect his two children, Presley (Aliyah Mastin) and James (Percy Daggs IV). As a character,Presley has a lot more stressors on her than James does. In her first introduction, she cooks for her family and makes sure that Xavier eats well. Her main secret, taking Cal’s tablet on the night of his murder, comes from simply trying to find out what happened to her mom.
Presley makes a risky choice at the end of the season to not go into hiding like Xavier wants.
Presley is an interesting character becauseshe’s torn between being a normal teenage girl and being stuck in the most unbelievably unfortunate circumstances. She has a sweet romance with Jeremy Bradford, and they both do some investigating together as well. Presley makes a risky choice at the end of the season to not go into hiding like Xavier wants. She does this because she also cares about Jeremy and about finding the truth about what happened outside the bunker.
7Dr. Teri Rogers-Collins
Played by Enuka Okuma
The supposed death of Xavier’s wife, Dr. Teri Rogers-Collins is something that hangs over all of Season 1, even after viewers learnthat she is very likely alive. Teri is initially introduced through stories, as Xavier mentions how she named James afterJames and the Giant Peach, and that she kept her last name in honor of her late father. Teri is barely in Season 1, buther presence is still felt even when she is not there.
Teri is fierce in her convictions and very determined…
In the scenes she has in Season 1,Teri is already shown to be a very compelling and likable character. She defends Presley for a controversial school project even when doing so makes some waves. Then, Teri keeps traveling for work even when it’s dangerous (although she doesn’t know the full extent of what is coming). Teri is fierce in her convictions and very determined, and hopefully she will play a large part in Season 2.
6Dr. Gabriela Torabi
Played by Sarah Shahi
Initially, it’s unclear what to expect from Sinatra’s second-in-command, Dr. Gabriela Torabi (Sarah Shahi). She’s always with Sinatra andhad to have done something to earn Sinatra’s trust. After Gabriela tells Xavier what to say in order to help him with the polygraph, though, it’s clear that she has some depth to her. Gabriela is deeply caring, and she has designed the town of Paradise and chosen all the people living there in a very intentional way. With this comes the added guilt of knowing that she also chose who did not get to survive.
Gabriela is deeply caring, and she has designed the town of Paradise and chosen all the people living there in a very intentional way.
Gabriela is such an interesting character, because she has good intentions.She wants to make the transition to the bunker easier for everyone, and to give them a version of life that they could almost mistake for Earth. She’s put in a difficult placedue to her loyalty to Sinatra, whom she met at Sinatra’s lowest point of grief. Ultimately, Gabriela wakes up and does the right thing at the end of the season, letting go of Sinatra– at least for now.
5Agent Nicole Robinson
Played by Krys Marshall
Agent Nicole Robinson (Krys Marshall) is first introduced asa high-ranking agent with whom Cal was having an affair before he died. While that makes it hard to trust her at first for Xavier and for viewers, she becomes a character who is easy to root for and sympathize with. Robinson really loved Cal, and what they had seemed to be real. His murder fuels her to push back against the status quo and risk everythingto take down Sinatraand to find out who killed him.
Much of Robinson’s character this season is driven by grief and a desire for justice…
For a lot of the season, Robinson was the one person standing by Xavier to do the right thing. She is a complicated character because ofhow her work and personal lives blur together, but she is dedicated to doing what is right. She has also been affected by the lack of control in the bunker and misses being armed all the time. Much of Robinson’s character this season is driven by grief and a desire for justice, so it will be interesting to see where Season 2 takes her.
4Agent Billy Pace
Played by Jon Beavers
Although the first season ofParadiseis dedicated to the murder of Cal Bradford,the murder of Billy Paceis arguably even more tragic.Billy is first introduced as Xavier’s best friend and fellow agent, and the only person from work that he can trust after Cal is murdered. Billy initially seems like a comic relief character. He’s very funny, in a secret relationship with Jane, and devoted to Xavier and his kids.
Billy’s whole life story is deeply tragic, all leading up to his death when he’s killed by the woman he loves.
The Billy-centered episode ofParadiseis one of the best ofParadiseso far. It shows flashbacks of Billy’s life, from killing his abusive uncle to save his dog’s life, to then spending a lot of his life in juvenile detention and prison, before being let out, only to be forced to become a hired killer. Billy’s whole life story is deeply tragic, all leading up to his death when he’s killed by the woman he loves. Whereas most of the people living in Paradise would rather be back on Earth,this is the first time that Billy’s life is really his own, as he points out to Xavier at one point.
3President Cal Bradford
Played by James Marsden
President Cal Bradford is an incredibly compelling character. Cal could have easily been written as this one-note tragic hero, the President of the United States who was murdered while trying to do good. Instead,Paradisedoes something far more interesting with Cal, and he is this deeply flawed and nuanced character. Cal goes into a career that he doesn’t want because his father pushes him to do so, and he passively winds up in the ultimate position of power.
Cal could have been different if he weren’t president, but he’s stuck hiding the secret that the world is going to end and that there’s only enough room in the bunker for certain people to survive. He hasto make moral compromises, as well as to turn a blind eye to certain injustices, and this ultimately gets him killed.Cal is also funny and charming, and he loves music and his son.
2Samantha “Sinatra” Redford
Played by Julianne Nicholson
Samantha “Sinatra” Redford is one of thevery best TV villainsof recent years. A character like this requires a delicate balance. She can’t be cartoonishly evil, and needs to have nuance and an understandable backstory and motives. At the same time, though, she can’t just be evil due to a typical tragic backstory.Sinatra needs to have her own desires and self-serving interests that fuel her actions.
Sinatra is ambitious, driven, and vain, long before the start of the series, even when the series shows her in a happy flashback.
Paradisenails this balance perfectly with Sinatra, and she is a fantastic character and villain. Sinatra is ambitious, driven, and vain, long before the start of the series, even when the series shows her in a happy flashback. She makes a lot of money and has a great family, but her son (Peter Gorbis) gets sick and she can’t save him.Sinatra’s grief fuels everything that comes afterward. While she certainly enjoys her position of power in the bunker, a major motivator for Sinatra is to keep her daughter (Kate Godfrey) safe, so that she never has to lose a child again.
1Agent Xavier Collins
Played by Sterling K. Brown
It speaks a lot to the quality of a show when the main character is also its best character. Agent Xavier Collins is inherently a moral and good person. He is driven by the desire to do what is right, and he finds purpose in his career as a Secret Service Agent when he’s unable to move forward as a pilot. He’s not just a flawless hero, though, and these nuances are what make Xavier so fascinating.Xavier sacrifices a lot, including close relationships, in order to do what is right.
He’s not just a flawless hero, though, and these nuances are what make Xavier so fascinating.
Xavier also ends up allowing deaths, and ultimately killing two people, due to his need to protect his kids. He is an incrediblywell-written and well-acted character who drives the show. Xavier is the moral compass, but he is also someone who loves his family; and those two things sometimes have to be at odds, especially in this world. His story arc aboutslowly fighting back against Sinatrais amazing to watch, all up until the final scene of the season where he leaves to go find Teri.
