Apple TV+ launched five years ago, and they have built a reputation as the undisputed sci-fi streaming champs of original series. From Severance to Silo to For All Mankind, they are relentlessly devoted to the genre. That devotion would be why The Gorge movie will arrive early next year, and that’s not all. The tech giant’s sci-fi ambition will take on William Gibson’s Neuromancer, which many have believed is an unadaptable novel.
Speaking of literary material that cannot be easy to adapt, a Murderbot sci-fi/action show is coming, too. The project stars Alexander Skarsgård, who (despite setting loins aflame across the internet) is talented at portraying characters who look human but are most decidedly not. That includes his True Blood vampire, Eric Northman, who also recently surfaced in What We Do In The Shadows; his Walkin’ Dude, Randall Flagg, in The Stand; and a tech bro (human or not? we’ll never know) in Succession. Now, he won’t even look human. Let’s get down to business on what to expect from Murderbot.
Plot
This series will be based upon Martha Wells’ The Murderbot Diaries books (there are seven of them, both full-length books and novellas), which boast an incredibly devoted legion of fans. Skarsgård is not only starring but also executive producing, and he seemed enthused as hell this past May while telling GQ that he was skipping Met Gala parties because “It’s been a blast for the last couple of months. I’m sure I’ll be tired going to Toronto tomorrow, but I am looking forward to it.” He described the role as “an android who has hacked his system so he’s got – or it’s got – free will, and it’s talking about going on these crazy adventures, but instead it’s watching soap operas.”
Notice that Skarsgård appears to note that the Murderbot (or SecUnit) is referred to as “it” by other characters in the books. The bot also doesn’t really care about gender and is largely regarded by fans as nonbinary or gender-less. That could cause concerns for fans who didn’t exactly visualize an actor that oozes sex appeal like ASkars tends to do simply by existing. Still, if ASkars is wearing a helmet, does this matter? We will find out if the helmet hinders the sexy (the struggle is real), but also consider that the most well-regarded audio version is narrated by the award-winning Kevin R. Free.
With that said, Apple TV+ does not miss when it comes to sci-fi, and a dry-humored, stubborn, bingewatching, first-person narrating bot seems like an irresistible ingredient amid the streaming service’s eye for worldbuilding. If this first season is successful, Wells’ source material provides much fodder for followup seasons. From the Apple TV+ synopsis:
“Murderbot” is an action-packed sci-fi series, based on the award-winning books by Wells, about a self-hacking security android who is horrified by human emotion yet drawn to its vulnerable “clients.” Murderbot must hide its free will and complete a dangerous assignment when all it really wants is to be left alone to watch futuristic soap operas and figure out its place in the universe.
Behind the camera, brotherly filmmaking duo Chris Weitz and Paul Weitz (About A Boy, American Pie) are not only writing but also executive producing and directing the series.
Cast
Alexander Skarsgård matters plenty, but he’s not going to carry this show alone. David Dastmalchian (Late Night With The Devil) will appear in an undisclosed role, and several other actors will portray other bots and augmented humans. They include Sabrina Wu (as Pin-Lee), Tattiawna Jones (as Arada), Tamara Podemski (as Bharadwaj), and Akshay Khanna (as Ratthi).
Release Date
No idea. Apple TV+ announced the series in late 2023. There are rumors that filming is complete for a first season, but no official confirmation exists there. Late 2025 sounds like a ballpark.
Trailer
Since no Murderbot trailer exists yet, it’s worth mentioning that Skarsgård recently reprised his True Blood vamp on FX’s What We Do In The Shadows, so here’s the trailer to that episode with the gathering of the vamps.
