The trailer for Netflix’s new teen sci-fi series The Society has landed, and the kids do not look alright. The series, created by writer Christopher Keyser (Tyrant) and directed by Marc Webb (The Amazing Spider-Man), follows a group of teens who find themselves without parents or adults of any kind.
The synopsis reads: “The Society follows a group of teenagers who are mysteriously transported to a facsimile of their wealthy New England town, left without any trace of their parents. As they struggle to figure out what has happened to them and how to get home, they must establish order and form alliances if they want to survive. The series is a modern take on Lord of the Flies.”
Sure, no adults sounds like a party: pizza for breakfast! parties every night! But it’s also a breeding ground for power clashes, violence, and chaos. But as we’ve learned from Lord of the Flies, these situations usually devolve into a cautionary tale of man’s inhumanity to man. Which is, spoiler alert for William Golding’s 1954 novel, exactly what happens.
But many have long wondered what Lord of the Flies would look like with the inclusion of female characters. In the novel, the island is inhabited only by pre-adolescent boys. Would the outcome have been different if there were girls on the island? Would they have descended into violence and paranoia as well, play-acting as soldiers amidst the backdrop of a real war?
It appears from the trailer that the series will delve into issues of gender and leadership. We see a blonde girl (Legion‘s Rachel Keller) take the lead in establishing in new world order, while a group of jocks arm themselves and prepare to seize control. The cast is made up of mostly newcomers, but includes rising stars like Blockers‘ Kathryn Newton and Gideon Adlon.
Shows like The 100 have delved into similar subject matter, but The Society sets itself apart by its mysterious trappings. Where are these teens and what happened to their parents will likely be the central mystery of the series. Netflix has had lots of success with their teen dramas, including Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Sex Education, Atypical, and the controversial 13 Reasons Why.
Teen shows are also massively successful in the global market as well. International shows like Spain’s Elite and Ireland’s Derry Girls hav garnered devoted fan bases, and Netflix’s first-ever original Arabic series Jinn promises supernatural teen drama.
But with every successful show comes the ones that don’t make it, like the critically acclaimed Everything Sucks! and The Get Down. Will The Society be able to stand out from the crowd and earn its own fan base, or will it get swallowed up by the Netflix machine?
The Society lands on Netflix on May 10th.
(via Jezebel, image: Dana Starbard/Netflix)
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