Netflix has released the first full trailer for their highly anticipated new series Maniac, and it looks wild. Maniac is created by Patrick Somerville (The Leftovers) and directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga (True Detective) and is based on a popular Norwegian series.
The trailer follows Owen Milgrim (Jonah Hill) and Annie Landsberg (Emma Stone) as patients in a pharmaceutical trial run by the mysterious Dr. James Mantleray (Justin Theroux).
The trailer takes us through various multiverses and alternate realities, showing a domestic scene with children and Owen in a mullet, a 60’s set Mad Men meets Dr. Strangelove setup, and a fantasy realm akin to Lord of the Rings. We also get our first look at Sally Field as a doctor concerned with the experimental treatment, as well as supporting players Billy Magnussen (Into the Woods) and Sonoya Mizuno (Ex Machina).
Oh, and there’s a purple koala too.
The trailer is reminiscent not only of FX’s mind-melting super villain drama Legion, but also Michel Gondry’s Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. The 2004 film (ugh, were we ever so young) follows Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet as a couple who break up, then get a medical procedure to remove all memories of their time together. As Carrey’s memories are excised, they find themselves lost in various memories and timelines, continually reconnecting and reigniting their relationship. There’s also shades of Twin Peaks and Lynchian creepiness throughout the trailer.
Given the talent and pedigree attached to the series, Maniac is going to be a must-watch when it’s released on Netflix in September. Fingers crossed it’s as good as the trailer.
(via Entertainment Weekly, image: Netflix)
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