Netflix isn’t messing around with their quest to satisfy all audiences, and if you love Revenge-styled, pulpy dramas, What/If might be your next soapy binge. Whereas the series’ first teaser only hinted at some sort of sexy chess game, this first trailer lays out many of the stakes involved in whatever the hell Renee Zellweger doing to this story’s seemingly happy couples, one of which has fallen prey, in a very Corleone sort-of way, to an offer they can’t refuse. Add a barely-contained Zellweger unleashing an arrow that narrowly misses Jane Levy’s head, and we have drama.
The series will focus on collateral damage wrought after one fateful decision, and Zellweger’s Anne makes her most blatant objective clear. She’s going to finance a big project for Lisa (Jane Levy) but will only do so for one night with her husband, Sean (Blake Jenner). This seems simple enough on its face, but having watched four episodes of the series, I can attest to there being more to the story than the Indecent Proposal throwback at hand. Again, there’s tons of Revenge flavor to this project, given that it was also created by Mike Kelley, and Gabriel Mann (who was arguably the most delightful part of that psychological thriller-soap starring Emily VanCamp) pops up in the first episode.
From the What/If synopsis:
Neo-noir social thriller What/Ifexplores the ripple effects of what happens when acceptable people start doing unacceptable things. The season focuses on a mysterious woman’s lucrative but dubious offer to a cash-strapped pair of San Francisco newlyweds.
What/If also stars Westworld‘s Louis Herthum in a mysterious role not entirely unlike what he’s doing for HBO. Samantha Ware, Keith Powers, Daniella Pineda, Juan Castano, John Clarence Stewart, and Dave Annable fill out the ensemble cast, and the series will stream on May 24.
