Chernobyl Creator Defends That Devastating Dog Scene

If there’s one television show that’s gripped audiences lately it’s HBO’s Chernobyl. Indeed, the grim, dark and deeply unsettling new series has everyone talking, as it presents a devastating and often horrifying account of the nuclear accident from 1986. Praised for its performances and writing, it’s without a doubt one of the best things the network’s done in a while, but for some, it’s a bit too upsetting at times.

Take this week’s episode for example, which featured a few scenes of animal violence that a lot of viewers weren’t able to stomach. Granted, we didn’t really see all that much and most of it was just implied, but over on Twitter people have been claiming that the showrunners amplified the event to make it more dramatic and painful to watch. According to creator Craig Mazin though, that’s just not true.

“I know that was hard,” Mazin wrote in a Tweet. “Just so there’s no confusion — the story of the liquidators is real. It happened. And we actually toned it down from the full story. War leaves all kinds of scars. These were the things men were ordered to do.”

In a separate Tweet, Mazin also assured viewers that all the dark and grim stuff is now done with and next week, we’ll finally get to see what really happened on April 26th, 1986.

“For everyone watching #ChernobylHBO, the hard part’s over. No more guns. No more death. Next week, you’ll see what happened on that fateful night. You will see how an RBMK reactor explodes. And a kind of justice will be done. Thank you for taking this journey with us.”

Indeed, it’s been a tough journey watching Chernobyl, though a very rewarding one, too. As we said above, it’s some of the best television HBO’s put out in a while and is finding itself showered with much praise. It hasn’t been easy making it through each episode, watching the horrors that unfolded due to the nuclear accident, but Mazin and his team should be applauded for not shying away from anything and we can’t wait to see how they wrap it all up.

Tell us, have you been following along with the devastating show in recent weeks? And if so, what did you think of that scene with the dogs in the last outing? As always, be sure to share your thoughts down below.