FX’s The Strain was one of the more enjoyable shows of last summer, a knowingly ridiculous but still deliciously creepy thriller about the spread of a vampire epidemic through modern New York City. After a crazy cliffhanger of a season finale in which the ancient Master escaped the clutches of vampire hunters including Abraham Setrakian (David Bradley) and Ephraim Goodweather (Corey Stoll), the series will finally be returning at some point this summer, and FX has allowed the first footage from season 2 to escape quarantine (via EW).
Though the first season mostly saw the vampire epidemic spread quietly underground, that’s definitely no longer the case. “We’re going to take back this island one block at a time,” a city councilwoman (fresh face Samantaha Mathis) declares to the human survivors. The Master and his army of strigoi aren’t going to make that easy, but at least she’s still got Setrakian and company on her side. And if the trailer is any indication, they’ve got a new strategy up their sleeve – trying to infect the vampires with a new manipulation of the virus that will make their systems turn against them.
Of course, the new season will see the return of core cast members including Nora (Mia Maestro), Dutch (Ruta Gedmintas) and Vasiliy (Kevin Durand). There are lots of changes afoot as well, though. Max Charles will replace Ben Hyland as Eph’s imperilled son Zach after the showrunners decided a more accomplished actor was required for the character’s tricky storylines this season. Furthermore, a team of vampire hunters led by the enigmatic Quinlan will more fully enter the fray, and a new character will appear played by Lizzie Brochere.
All in all, The Strain‘s second season is looking just as terrifying and transfixing as the first, and we’ll be sure to keep you posted as FX unveils an official premiere date. In the meantime, enjoy this stylish new poster:
