Just over a year ago, NBC announced its plans to reimagine the world of fantasy classic The Wizard of Oz as a new, grittier adventure with Daredevil actor Vincent D’Onofrio on board as the titular wizard and Tarsem Singh — the filmmaker responsible for moody, visually stunning projects such as The Cell and Snow White tale Mirror Mirror — shepherding the series as director and executive producer. Now the first trailer for the series offers a peek at what’s to come from this new take on L. Frank Baum’s classic story.
If nothing else, Emerald City certainly seems to live up to its promise of being different than any version of the Oz tales we’ve seen so far.
The trailer for Emerald City debuted on Twitter, and was accompanied by a caption asking a very important question in the world of Oz: “Are you a good witch, or a bad witch?”
Are you a good witch, or a bad witch? #EmeraldCity pic.twitter.com/i63ign97xC
— Emerald City (@NBCEmeraldCity) November 23, 2016
The official description of the series reads as follows:
In the blink of a tornado’s eye, 20-year-old Dorothy Gale and a K9 police dog are swept into a world far removed from our own – a mystical land of competing realms, lethal warriors, dark magic and a bloody battle for supremacy. Starring Vincent D’Onofrio (Daredevil, Jurassic World) as the guileful Wizard and directed by the visionary Tarsem Singh across three European countries, this is Oz completely reimagined – a place where familiar characters show up in fresh, unexpected ways, and where an unsuspecting young woman holds the fate of kingdoms in her hands. And as Dorothy navigates this dangerous world and uncovers her true destiny, we’ll see there’s no place like … Oz.
True Detective actress Adria Arjona portrays Dorothy in the series, with D’Onofrio playing the role of the eccentric wizard. The supporting cast includes Oliver Jackson-Cohen (The Raven) as a character named Lucas, Ana Ularu (Inferno) as West, Isabel Lucas (Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen) as Anna, Stefanie Martini (Prime Suspect 1973) as Lady Ev, and Gerran Howell (Young Dracula) as Jack.
The 10-episode series is directed by Singh from scripts penned by The Event and Do No Harm writer David Schulner, who also serves as an executive producer on the show along with Singh, Shaun Cassidy, Josh Friedman, and Matthew Arnold.
Emerald City premieres Friday, January 6, on NBC.
