In HBO’s constant search for a big-ticket TV show to replace Game Of Thrones once that ends next year, the US cable network has greenlit a full season of a tv series based off of the DC Comics book Watchmen, to be helmed by Damien Lindelorf.
HBO had previously only ordered a pilot of the show, but is now so confident that they’re willing to throw their weight and money around to make the Watchmen series a capital-T Thing.
In a press release this morning, HBO confirmed the news, as well as the absolutely stacked cast that will make up the show’s ensemble, including Regina King, Tim Blake Nelson, and Jeremy Irons, among others.
Nothing ever ends. #WatchmenHBO #DamonLindelof pic.twitter.com/ioJU0dQipw
— HBO (@HBO) August 17, 2018
Originally printed between 1986-1987, Watchmen is the story of a group of ageing superheroes who are trying to navigate an alternative version of Cold War USA where superheroes are treated like criminals, Nixon is president indefinitely, and nobody knows what their exact place in society is anymore.
Written by renown author (and possible wizard) Alan Moore and drawn by Dave Gibbons, it was lauded at the time for its deconstruction of the superhero genre and approach to adult themes like politics, sex, and violence in the USA.
This is Alan Moore, and I’m not kidding about the wizard stuff, by the way.
You may remember that Watchmen was already adapted into a movie back in 2009. If you don’t remember, I don’t blame you; it was a fine-yet forgettable affair that didn’t live up to the expectations of its fans, while not having enough wide appeal to engage anyone else.
Damien Lindelorf, however, is best known for being the co-creator and show-runner behind most of Lost. Meaning that, despite the fact that he’s since gone on to do loads of great stuff including the 2009 Star Trek reboot and the amazingly underrated The Leftovers, he will forever be attached to the legacy of Lost.
For what it’s worth, Linedolorf has previously said that the show will be more of a “remix” of the same ideas, themes and settings that made Watchmen a hit. What this means exactly is anyone’s guess, but it’s worth putting some money on the show not being a direct adaptation of Moore and Gibbons’ material the way the movie was.
There’s no word yet as to what roles the likes of King or Irons will be playing. But let’s hope this is more like The Leftovers and less like that last garbage season of Lost.