The concept of turning back time is a central theme in Stephen King’s 11/22/63, and the latest trailer for Hulu’s upcoming adaptation of the novel offers a literal interpretation of that theme with a preview that seems stuck in reverse.
Set to debut on Presidents Day next year, 11.22.63 follows high school history teacher Jake Eppings, played by James Franco, who discovers a way to travel back through time. When he attempts to thwart the assassination of former U.S. President John F. Kennedy, he learns that time doesn’t want to be altered. Meanwhile, Eppings must contend with both falling in love and the ever present threat of a man named Lee Harvey Oswald.
In the new trailer for 11.22.63, Eppings is seen watching the world rewind as he tries to avert one of the nation’s most infamous tragedies.
The eight-part miniseries is directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Kevin Macdonald (The Last King of Scotland, State of Play) and, along with Franco, stars Chris Cooper (Adaptation), Josh Duhamel (Transformers), T.R. Knight (Grey’s Anatomy), Cherry Jones (24), Sarah Gadon (Enemy), Lucy Fry (Vampire Academy), George MacKay (Sunshine on Leith), and Daniel Webber (Home and Away). The series was executive produced by King, as well as J.J. Abrams, Bridget Carpenter, and Bryan Burk.
Given all of the high-profile names involved in 11.22.63, the series is expected to generate some serious buzz when it premieres in February. As with past Hulu original series, the streaming service will roll out episodes of the series on a weekly basis instead of releasing the entire series all at once, as Netflix does with their original projects.
In an October interview with LA Review of Books, King explained why his novel was better suited to television than a big-screen feature.
“I gravitate toward that immediately, so for me, shows like Breaking Bad or The Sopranos or The Walking Dead — all of those things are superior to movies because they have more texture, more depth,” he said.
11.22.63 is scheduled to premiere February 15, 2016, on Hulu.
