Halle Berry and Jeffrey Dean Morgan star in “Extant”

Space is big. Really big. That said, our international space agencies have a pretty tight rein on the population density of our immediate galaxy. Do they not? It's a safe bet that claiming you recognize someone from space back here on Earth has to be the truth -- at least, you'd hope. Throw in accusations of psychiatric difficulties and an unexplained alien pregnancy, however, and the story starts to sound a little thin. Welcome to the world of "Extant," where you can discover a new episode Wednesday, July 15, on CBS, and nothing is quite as it seems.

Getting used to seeing Halle Berry ("X-Men," 2000, "Catwoman," 2004) as Molly Woods for more than a feature-length stay on our screens is a welcome change, and something we have not witnessed since the early '90s when the Golden Globe, Emmy and Oscar-winning actress had roles in "Knots Landing" and "Living Dolls." What makes it even more welcome is the fact that she seems to thrive in "Extant," and the events of season 1 helped shape who she's become in season 2.

"She's more sexualized. She's tougher, she's stronger," Berry said in an interview with "ET Canada" of playing Molly in the second season. She has to be, especially since she now has two children to contend with -- one who is a robot and one who is half alien -- and a host of people who believe she belongs in a psychiatric hospital.

Fans also know Berry is in good company in "Extant," where her fellow castmates -- old and new -- truly shine as bright. One such new character, who may not believe in aliens but has a keen interest in helping Molly, is the enigmatic cop and bounty hunter JD Richter, played by Jeffrey Dean Morgan ("Grey's Anatomy," "Watchmen," 2009).

"The way the police work in the future is very much like how we would use Uber today, so he picks and chooses assignments. He gets a job, and it's a good amount of money. It's a murder, so he decides that he will go check it out, and that's where he runs into Molly Woods," Morgan said of his character in an interview on the show's YouTube channel. "He is dragged into her world, and as his life falls apart, he meets this woman who's got all sorts of crazy stories about aliens and robots ... so the two of them kind of team up and are out to save the world."

"[JD]'s a bit of an everyman," Fisher said in the same interview, "and he's somebody that the audience I think is going to be able to view our world through, and he brings a bit of gallows humor." Which, of course, lightens the very serious journey Molly has set herself on. Former astronaut, mother to a hybrid, fugitive from psychiatric care and now on a quest to force the world to face the fact that aliens are among us and have not come in peace -- yes, a little gallows humor is just what she'll need.

Jeffrey Dean Morgan as seen in “Extant”

The storyline is not without a flicker here and there, if not a total supernova. With some big changes in the show's orbit and the direction the series is taking, some regular players from season 1 are seeing their roles diminished or completely wiped off the face of the Earth. Goran Visnjic ("ER") who played Dr. John Woods, Molly's husband, and Camryn Manheim ("Ghost Whisperer") only show up in a few episodes, while Michael O'Neill ("Bates Motel") and Hiroyuki Sanada ("Helix") are not coming back at all.

It is worth a mention that even after all the hard work of the stellar cast and out-of-this-world set pieces, the fate of the series was touch-and-go from launch. Even this season wasn't a guarantee until word of renewal sealed the deal. For that reason, the first season was designed to stand on its own ... just in case.

“I think the best thing I ever did for myself was to not wait around for someone to give me a break," said writer and creator Mickey Fisher in an interview with "Go Into The Story" on how the series came to be. "I kept writing, I kept making my own stuff, I kept raising my own bar and trying to get better. I entered everything I could, and really tried to make my own breaks. ... I learned to embrace the struggle and accept that even though this was going to be a long, difficult journey, I’d be better for having tried."

And so will Molly, who -- up against the odds, even if no one believes her -- won't stop trying to find out exactly what happened to her while in the space station and what secrets are being left to drift into a giant black hole.

Start the countdown and find out who believes and who does not when a new episode of "Extant" airs Wednesday, July 15, on CBS.