With the dragons, swords and sex of Game of Thrones all set to wrap up later this year, there’s going to be a gap in HBO’s schedule that needs to be filled. Fortunately, then, the network already has a strong candidate for what they hope will be their next flagship series – Watchmen.
An impressive cast including Regina King, Jeremy Irons, Don Johnson, Louis Gossett Jr. and Tim Blake Nelson will lead the way for what’s no doubt one of 2019’s most anticipated new shows, and though we haven’t seen very much of it just yet, HBO has finally revealed the first bit of footage.
Thanks to their 2019 preview promo seen above, we get a very brief look at what’s in store, with about 5 seconds or so dedicated to showing off Watchmen. It’s not much, but we catch a glimpse of Jeremy Irons as Adrian Veidt (at least, that’s who we assume he’s playing), along with what appears to be our first look at Rorschach. Again, it’s not much, but given that we haven’t seen anything at all yet, we’ll take it.
As for what to expect in terms of plot, well, we know that the show will be trying to separate itself from Zack Snyder’s 2009 film adaptation, which attempted to translate every event from the comic to the screen. This take, on the other hand, will be more of an update of the story for the modern era, whatever that might mean.
While the original limited series was released in the shadow of the Cold War, fueled by 1980’s nuclear paranoia and materialism, if Damon Lindelof can get under the skin of what makes the 21st century tick here, then Watchmen could very well receive a whole new lease of life as a political statement. And with this first bit of footage now out in the wild, you can expect to see a lot more from it in no time at all.
