As seen recently with Peacock’s Brave New World and Apple TV+’s Servant, future dystopian series are all the rage.
And now HBO Max is getting in on the trend with Alien auteur Ridley Scott, who is making his television series directorial debut for American audiences next month with Raised By Wolves.
The streaming service dropped the second trailer for the show on Monday, and the vision found therein is at once hypnotic and terrifying, following a nascent civilization on a far-off planet that sees androids raising a new breed of humanity.
Creepy android: HBO Max is getting in on the future dystopian trend with new series Raised By Wolves, which sees Alien auteur Ridley Scott making his television series directorial debut for American audiences
‘A new world, a new start,’ a voice is heard saying in the beginning of the ethereal trailer, as a ship launches into the void of space and soon lands on an exotic planet.
‘It won’t have the same problems that ended our world on Earth.’
Soon, mysterious humanoid androids are seen, wearing futuristic helmets.
They are tasked with birthing, and then raising, human children, who are branded ‘the future of humanity.’
New life, sort of: The second trailer for the show dropped Monday, following a nascent civilization on a far-off planet that sees androids raising a new breed of humanity
Out there: Mysterious humanoid androids are seen, wearing futuristic helmets
The very creepy images include a fetus or newborn that looks like it’s being unwrapped from a plastic encasement.
Very quickly, it becomes clear that atheism is the law of the land in this new outworld colony, as religion is what seemingly ended civilization back home.
And then the stakes are set: this new civilization is threatened by a mysterious enemy, who has ‘built an ark’ that is headed toward them on ‘the only known planet’ able to support human life.
Progeny: The androids are tasked with birthing, and then raising, human children, who are branded ‘the future of humanity’
The stakes are set: This new civilization is threatened by a mysterious enemy
Futuristic: They have ‘built an ark’ that is headed toward them
Raised by Wolves stars Amanda Collin (Splitting Up Together), who plays Mother – one of the primary androids charged with protecting the children.
Her buzzcut and otherworldly styling make her look like a contemporary update of Gozer from 1984’s Ghostbusters.
Opposite her is Travis Fimmel of Vikings fame, who plays Marcus, one of the enemy agents hurtling toward their home.
Newborn: The androids and children live on ‘the only known planet’ able to support human life
Raised by Wolves stars Amanda Collin, who plays Mother: One of the primary androids charged with protecting the children
Opposite her: Travis Fimmel of Vikings fame plays Marcus, one of the enemy agents hurtling toward their home
‘We must rescue our stolen children,’ Marcus is heard saying in the trailer
‘We must rescue our stolen children,’ he is heard saying in the trailer before he squares off against a menacing-looking Mother.
Other cast members include Abubakar Salim from Fortitude, Jordan Loughran of Emerald City fame, Matias Varela from Narcos and Point Break, Felix Jamieson from Game of Thrones, Ivy Wong (Star Wars: Rogue One, Maleficent 2) and Ethan Hazzard.
The look and feel of many of the shots in the trailer – mainly of spaceship interiors and set pieces that look like sleep pods – are highly reminiscent of Scott’s timeless franchise-launching film Alien from 1979.
Other exterior shots call to mind another hallmark of American sci-fi – Terminator – which is from the mind of Aliens director James Cameron.
Reminiscent of a classic: The look and feel of many of the shots in the trailer – mainly of set pieces that look like sleep pods – are highly reminiscent of Scott’s timeless Alien from 1979
Similar to the Nostromo: Same goes for certain shots of spaceship interiors
Remarkable visual: Other images in the trailer are starkly original and imaginative
But other exterior shots call to mind another hallmark of American sci-fi: Terminator, which is from the mind of Aliens director James Cameron
Ridley, who is credited as director and executive producer of two episodes of Raised By Wolves, is also known for classics such as 1982’s Blade Runner.
The new series was created by Aaron Guzikowski, the screenwriter of 2013’s Prisoners starring Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal and Viola Davis.
The highly-anticipated 10-episode series will premiere September 3rd on HBO Max.
Close encounter: Collin as Mother’s buzzcut and otherworldly styling make her look like a contemporary update of Gozer from 1984’s Ghostbusters
Coming soon: Raised By Wolves, created by Aaron Guzikowski, will premiere September 3rd