While big-city cases may come with a level of added anonymity, for the citizens of York, the arrival of a high-profile court case brings this close-knit Western Australian community to an uncomfortably familiar halt.
Two years after the first season enthralled audiences across Australia, The Twelve returns for a highly-anticipated second season, with Sam Neill reprising his role in legal drama as leading defence lawyer, Brett Colby.
Stepping away from the bench, the second season continues to explore the nuanced complexities of the court, with the women of York becoming avenues for examining the role of justice, morality, and community.
Sitting at the centre of York’s biggest legal event is Sasha Price – a respected and beloved member of the community whose heinous crime fractures the town’s collective consciousness.
“She’s this beautiful dichotomy of insecurity, dreaming, romantic, complicated, and sheltered, but also incredibly capable, strong, physical and visceral,” actor Amy Mathews tells WHO.
Accused of murdering her mother, Sasha’s plight in the courtroom begins to shed light on the multi-faceted nature of her conviction, with her wealth, status, and complex relationship with her mother wreaking havoc not only on the community, but also on her psyche.
“This is a rural trial and the implication of this is that you can’t not know everyone. Everybody knows everybody, and how do you create an environment that is nonprejudicial or subjective in a space like that?” Mathews continues.
“Having somebody who has never had to deal with the legal system before – this is her first – being at the mercy of appointed lawyers or lawyers that you seek out and everything is new, but it all being about your life and freedom, is so daunting.”
While factoring the context of the defendant is central to examining their crime, the assembly of a small-town jury also provides a unique lens for those in the community to reflect on how their prejudices may impact their worldview – particularly for lead juror Thelma Connell, played by Tasma Walton.
“For Thelma, what’s amazing is that she goes from living a regular, constant, known life, to almost every element of her life being held under a microscope and being questioned in some way,” says Walton.
“Thelma begins her journey from the viewpoint of a small-town mentality, which has layers of racism held within it, to her world view being completely changed and wonderfully opened up… She begins the story thinking she is very much a responsible citizen in society who is on the side of what is right and she does everything by the book and therefore, she is a good person.”
It is this new perspective that Thelma begins to uncover through her connection with the women of the courtroom, with her newfound friendship with nurse Parvinder Sanger offering her a rare opportunity to reconnect.
“Deep down, I think Thelma is quite lonely and people misunderstand her, but Parvinder is quite open,” Sharon Johal tells WHO, sharing that the differences between the two women allow them to deepen their understanding of both each other and their wider community.
“That family expectation that a lot of ethnic people in the community have, and a lot of people generally, we connected off of that. Parvinder has two small kids, but she has a big extended family, so we connect over that and the expectations to care for our parents.”
“Throughout the story, Thelma realises things aren’t quite what they seem and things aren’t as simple as that, and I think this starts to challenge her idea of what justice and morality look like,” Walton adds, sharing that Parvinder’s openness allows Thelma to be vulnerable in the high-stakes setting.
With new friendships formed and pre-conceived realities reconsidered, it is not only the women of York that benefit from their restored connections, but also the women working within the trial.
While she may have been a key player in determining the narrative of Sasha’s case, defence team member Meredith, played by Frances O’Connor, is forced to reconsider not only her professional reality, but her personal life.
“For my character, it’s about family. I think because I’ve really given everything to my career and I assume that my family life is alright, and that’s really a tactical error that my family makes, that I don’t have to put that much work into my family, and it kind of comes undone,” O’Connor tells WHO.
As the 12 individuals prepare to cast their collective judgment, the role that each singular interconnected story plays in influencing the case is brought to the forefront – highlighting the inherent complexities and often overlooked nuances of a small-town trial.
“What I saw from the first series is that we’re all human and that we’re all infallible, and this idea of 12 people passing judgment on someone, and they’re all living complex lives themselves, is really unfair,” Mathews reflects, adding that she hopes Sasha’s journey through The Twelve brings the audience’s empathy and humanity to the forefront.
Reflecting on her time in the courtroom, Johal concludes, “A big part of it is the empathy and the love of humanity.”
“I hope people come away with a newfound understanding of the complexity of people and have a bit more compassion,”
Stream The Twelve Season 2 now on BINGE with a 7-day free trial. Subscribe here.
