This new sci-fi drama from HBO Watchmen’s creator is so much cooler than its first trailer lets on

This new sci-fi drama from HBO Watchmen’s creator is so much cooler than its first trailer lets on

Time Stamp: March 10, 2023 1:10 PM
Source Node: 2004892

I’m just gonna keep it buck with you: The first teaser trailer for Mrs. Davis, the upcoming sci-fi drama series produced by Damon Lindelof (The Leftovers) and writer Tara Hernandez (The Big Bang Theory), is fucking boring. There’s no other way to put it.

It’s basically just a montage of seemingly perfect strangers from all across the world approaching one another and handing each other their wireless earbuds (which eww, gross) while saying, “She wants to talk to you,” in a disquietingly chipper tone. It all feels very Don’t Worry Darling-esque.

Doesn’t quite do justice to the otherwise raw, straightforward appeal of just coming out and saying, “The dude behind HBO’s Watchmen and a Young Sheldon writer are teaming up to make a show about a nun waging war against a benevolent tyrannical AI,” does it? Kind of just buries the lede, to be honest, and not even in an enticing way.

The series, which premieres March 14 at South By Southwest ahead of its debut on Peacock on April 20, stars Betty Gilpin (The Hunt) and Jake McDorman (Watchmen) as Simone, the aforementioned luddite nun and Wiley, her ex-boyfriend and companion in the fight against Mrs. Davis — the hyper-advanced machine of loving grace who presumably governs over all of humanity in the future. Margo Martindale (Cocaine Bear) will appear as Simone’s Mother Superior, while David Arquette (Scream), Ashley Romans (Y: The Last Man), Andy McQueen (Station Eleven), and Katja Herbers (Evil) are also set to appear in undisclosed supporting roles.

In the wake of the premature cancellation of similar cerebral (see: mindfuck) shows like Westworld, Raised by Wolves, and 1899, I’m more than willing at this point to open my heart and mind to another high-concept sci-fi drama with bold ambitions and deep philosophical underpinnings. I just hope that when Lindelof, Hernandez, and co. finally are ready to pull back the lid from the show and finally give audiences a peek at just what the hell Mrs. Davis is and what exactly the show is actually about, they’ll do it without the tried and tried approach of “Mystery Box” promotional tactics. It might have been cool when Lost was still on the air, but seriously c’mon — that was over a decade ago. This shit’s gotten old.

The first four episodes of Mrs. Davis will premiere April 20 on Peacock.

Time Stamp:

More from Polygon