FAQ

It is set and filmed in Toronto, Canada, this is why cars sport Ontario license plates, there is multi-coloured money, and a plane ticket that is displayed in the pilot episode clearly identifies Toronto's Pearson International Airport. Alison lives in Scarborough, the eastern district of Toronto, which Sarah refers to as "practically local". In the third episode, the night skyline shown around 13 minutes in is Toronto's, and the stolen motorcycle turns up in Parkdale, a neighborhood in southwestern Toronto. Furthermore, Sarah refers to a 'Bay Street', which is Toronto's financial district.

The police cars, station and mugs just say, "Police Department" and have almost the Toronto Police crest. The detectives use NYPD-style badges that say "Police Detective" (Beth's also says, "N.J."). The uniformed police have LAPD-style badges that say "Metropolitan Police". A close-up of Art's business card shows a phone number with area code 416, which is Toronto's area code.

In the first episode, Sarah arrives at the fictional "Huxley Station", where a loudspeaker announces that trains to New York will be departing from platform B, which would indicate the show is not set in New York.

Cosima Niehaus is in Toronto in the first episodes, but thereafter is seen communicating via Skype from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (U of M), a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States.

Mrs. S' driver license shows a Toronto address.

Tatiana Maslany, who plays Sarah and the clones, is Canadian, as are the majority of the principal actors. While she and a few others are from western Canada, the majority of the cast is from Ontario and Quebec. Jordan Gavaris who plays Felix, for example, is from Ontario. Evelyne Brochu, who plays Delphine, is from Quebec. A very few cast members are from the United States and the British Isles. The actress who plays Mrs. S was born in Dublin, Ireland.

Orphan Black refers to orphans "in the black," hidden during the restrictive regime of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. In Sarah Manning's case, she was smuggled through the pipeline to avoid being subjected to medical experiments.

Mrs S.: "There were rumors about the kids we were hiding, the ones that came in Carlton's pipeline, like you: children in the black." Sarah: "What do you mean exactly, 'in the black'?" Mrs. S.: "You know: undocumented, outside the system."

Most of the Project Leda clones, such as Sarah, Alison, and Helena, are heterosexual. But Cosima is gay. Some fans are confused by this since all the clones share identical DNA. However, sexual orientation is not determined by simple genetics. This can be seen in the fact that identical twins, who share the exact same DNA, do not necessarily have the same sexual orientation. Instead, sexuality may be the result of complex "epigenetics" -- where certain genes are "switched" on or off during fetal development -- as well as childhood experiences and other environmental factors. While all the sisters share DNA, they were carried by different mothers and so would show subtle deviations.