H.G. Wells’ classic novel The War of the Worlds is one of the most frequently-adapted works of science-fiction ever written (the BBC released a new limited series just last year). But if you thought you’d already heard every version of the story there is: Think again.
Epix is releasing their own War of the Worlds adaptation in the form of a new limited TV series, and they’ve just released the first trailer. The new series takes place in the modern-day like the 2005 Steven Spielberg movie, rather than an Orson Welles-like 1930s or the late 19th century setting of the novel. The series does move the action to Europe, however, keeping it more in line with the novel in that respect compared to other notable adaptations that placed the main plot in America.
The series features a multinational ensemble cast consisting of Gabriel Byrne, Elizabeth McGovern, Léa Drucker, Natasha Little, Daisy Edgar Jones, Stéphane Caillard, Adel Bencherif, and Guillaume Gouix, and will follow several divergent characters to show how the alien invasion affects each of them. The trailer is careful not to actually show any aliens, saving some suspense for when the series actually airs.
Here’s the synopsis for the eight-episode series, which already aired in Europe late last year, courtesy of Den of Geek:
In this new take on War Of The Worlds, when astronomers detect a transmission from another galaxy, it is definitive proof of intelligent extra-terrestrial life. Earth’s population waits for further contact with baited breath, but does not have to wait long. Within days, mankind is all but wiped out, with just pockets of humanity left in an eerily deserted world. As alien ships appear in the sky, the survivors ask a burning question — who are these attackers and why are they hell-bent on our destruction?
War of the Worlds will invade Epix on February 16.
