If you've caught even a few episodes of SYFY’s Revival, chances are you’ve already been pulled into its eerie world of miracles, murder, and mounting paranoia. But it’s Steven Ogg’s fiery turn as Blaine Abel—a religious zealot raised by a fire-and-brimstone preacher—that truly leaves a mark. As the son of a radical pastor, Blaine sees the miraculous resurrection event known as Revival Day not as a blessing but as a divine warning. Ogg plays him with a calculated fervor, building a militia of “true believers” to confront what he sees as the ultimate spiritual crisis.
For fans who know Ogg best as Trevor Philips from Grand Theft Auto V, this role marks yet another fascinating turn in a career defined by chaos and charisma. An acclaimed Canadian actor and motion capture artist, Ogg has carved out a niche playing characters you can’t look away from—whether in video games, on screen, or somewhere in between. And though many remember him from later seasons of The Walking Dead as the unpredictable Simon, Revival gives him a chance to dig into something even more insidious: the weaponization of faith in the face of the unknown.
Set in rural Wisconsin, Revival is a genre-bending mystery where the dead rise with no explanation—and no decay. While the show’s central focus is on Officer Dana Cypress (Melanie Scrofano) and the chaos surrounding these unexplained events, Ogg’s Blaine Abel operates as a dangerous undercurrent, stirring unrest, fear, and fanaticism in a town already on the brink.
What makes Ogg’s performance stand out is not just the intensity, but the nuance. Blaine isn’t your typical TV villain—he’s a true believer, someone who sees purpose in panic. That conviction makes him feel all the more real and, frankly, terrifying.
Born in Calgary, Alberta—a connection that hits close to home for me—Ogg brings a kind of grounded unpredictability to every role. Whether he’s voicing one of gaming’s most notorious antiheroes or stepping into the shoes of a would-be prophet in Revival, his performances always command attention.
While I admittedly missed his entrance in The Walking Dead, Revival has more than made up for lost time. I’m hooked—and with Blaine Abel now in the mix, things in Wausau are only getting darker.
Jessie Hobson