The upcoming Westworld series on HBO is already shaping up to be a grim exploration of the nature of humanity and consciousness, and the latest trailer hammers that theme home with some exceptionally creepy moments.
Along with offering a hint of what’s to come for many of the characters — both human and robot — the new preview also teases the terrifying lengths the characters will go to in an effort to either preserve their manufactured world or destroy it.
Executive produced, co-written, and directed by Jonathan Nolan (The Dark Knight, Interstellar), Westworld unfolds in and around a Western-themed theme park populated by artificially intelligent robots whose primary directive is to indulge the desires of human guests, no matter how noble or depraved. When the android inhabitants of the park begin to question the nature of their existence, the lines between the brutal realities of the theme park and the outside human world begin to blur.
The 10-episode series, which will consist of one-hour episodes, is based on novelist Michael Crichton’s 1973 film of the same name, which he wrote and directed. Westworld is co-written and executive produced by Lisa Joy Nolan (Burn Notice, Pushing Daisies), with J.J. Abrams also serving as an executive producer through his Bad Robot Productions studio.
The show features an all-star cast that includes Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins and four-time Academy Award nominee Ed Harris, as well as Evan Rachel Wood, James Marsden, Thandie Newton, Jeffrey Wright, Tessa Thompson, Sidse Babett Knudsen, Jimmi Simpson, Rodrigo Santoro, Shannon Woodward, Ingrid Bolsø Berdal, Ben Barnes, Simon Quarterman, Angela Sarafyan, Luke Hemsworth, and Clifton Collins, Jr.
Westworld will premiere at 9 p.m. ET on Sunday, October 2 on HBO.
