TV Trailers of the Week: War, High Value Target: The Hunt for Saddam, Outer Banks: Season 5 and More
📺 Take a peek at some of the latest trailers for upcoming TV shows.
📺 “War” Teaser Trailer: Dominic West and Sienna Miller Turn Divorce Into an All-Out Legal Battle in HBO’s New British Drama — Premiering Thursday, October 1st on HBO and HBO Max
Divorce is one of the most painful things that can happen to two people who once loved each other. No matter how well-intentioned a couple may be when they enter a marriage, they rarely consider what happens when it falls apart. Add wealth and fame to the equation, and you’ve got yourself more than a little breakup... you’ve got war.
The Crown’s Dominic West and Anatomy of a Scandal’s Sienna Miller star as two very public figures who find themselves at the center of one of the biggest divorce trials in Britain’s legal history in the upcoming eight-episode drama War.
West’s Morgan Henderson is a tech entrepreneur, while Miller’s Carla Duval is a well-known film star. He has the money. She has the fame. And both have high-powered divorce lawyers convincing their respective clients that they are each the “wronged party”; making anything close to an amicable split nearly impossible.
The new series is written and created by prolific British TV writer-producer George Kay, the creator behind Idris Elba’s tense Apple TV hostage thriller Hijack and co-creator of the twisty French caper series Lupin. Kay is also behind the forthcoming Netflix Swedish detective series Blood Sacrifice (watch the newly released teaser below).
Seemingly drawing on real-life high-profile divorce battles, the British series will examine the legal strategies and personal fallout as each party tries to paint the other as the villain and themselves as the true victim. But as we all know, there are two sides to every story. And in a divorce, the truth usually gets lost somewhere in the middle.
Co-starring Phoebe Fox, James McArdle, Archie Renaux, Nina Sosanya, and Pip Torrens, War is slated to premiere Thursday, October 1st on HBO and HBO Max.
📺 “High Value Target: The Hunt for Saddam” Trailer: Joel Kinnaman Stars as the CIA Agent in Charge of Interrogating Saddam Hussein in TNT’s Four-Part Political Thriller — Debuting Sunday, September 13th on TNT
It’s been a while since we’ve heard much from TNT, but the cable network may finally have something to spark interest with its latest limited series. This new drama thriller takes TV viewers back to December 2003, when the world was glued to the news of Saddam Hussein’s capture after U.S. forces pulled him from a small underground hideout in Iraq. But as it turns out, the manhunt was only part of the story.
High Value Target: The Hunt for Saddam is a new four-episode miniseries starring Joel Kinnaman (Suicide Squad, For All Mankind) as CIA analyst John Nixon, tasked with identifying and interrogating Saddam Hussein after his capture. Inspired by true events, the drama traces the events leading up to and following his capture, focusing on the high-stakes interrogation that unfolds behind closed doors.
Nixon was the first American intelligence officer to positively identify and interrogate the former Iraqi dictator. And rather than approaching that encounter as a straightforward political history lesson, it seems this drama aims to turn those conversations into the center of a psychological chess match between two men sitting on opposite sides of history, each trying to assert control... and perhaps each trying to shape the narrative through his own version of the truth.
Waleed Zuaiter, the actor and co-producer of the 2013 Oscar-nominated Palestinian drama Omar, takes on the task of portraying Saddam Hussein as a complex, commanding figure at the center of the interrogation, seemingly defiant to the bitter end.
Meanwhile, it seems Kinnaman’s John Nixon may have gone into the interrogation convinced that Saddam was hiding the truth about Iraq’s supposed weapons of mass destruction. The implications of what he discovers, however, could force him to question not only the intelligence that led them there, but the entire justification for the war.
Based on Nixon’s memoir, directed and developed by Leslie Greif, the co-creator of The Offer, the limited series also co-stars Tom Berenger, Lena Góra, Talia Balsam, and Matt Barr.
High Value Target: The Hunt for Saddam debuts Sunday, September 13th on TNT.
📺 “Outer Banks: Season 5” Final Trailer: Chase Stokes, Madelyn Cline & the Pogues Return for One Last Treasure Hunt in the Final Season of Netflix’s Hit Teen Adventure Drama — Premiering Thursday, August 20th on Netflix
To be honest, when Netflix first launched Outer Banks, it felt like it might just be another quick grab at a younger audience, especially since that was clearly their fastest-growing demographic at the time. But we certainly didn’t expect it to go the distance, let alone make it to five seasons. Not only has it done that, but it also ended up launching the careers of breakout stars like Chase Stokes, Madelyn Cline, Drew Starkey, Carlacia Grant, Madison Bailey, Rudy Pankow, and Jonathan Daviss.
For anyone new to it, the Netflix series, created by Jonas Pate, Josh Pate (Surface), and novelist Shannon Burke, is set along the coastal Outer Banks of North Carolina. It follows a tight-knit group of working-class teens known as the Pogues, who get pulled into a dangerous treasure hunt that constantly puts them up against their wealthy rivals, the Kooks, along with a whole range of other threats along the way.
Over the past four seasons, the Pogues have chased treasure, dodged danger, dealt with plenty of bad dudes, and still somehow managed to find their way back to each other every time. And through it all, fans have stayed right there with them.
Now, as the series heads into its final fifth season, the story begins in grief following the events of Season 4. JJ (Pankow) is gone, the Blue Crown has been lost, and John B (Stokes), Sarah (Cline), Kiara (Bailey), Pope (Daviss), and Cleo (Grant) are left carrying a loss that could either bring them closer together or completely pull them apart.
With revenge now driving the chase, Season 5 feels less like just another adventure and more like the Pogues’ final chance to settle everything before their story comes to a close. And we’re sure, for fans, this final ride is going to be a bittersweet one.
And with the summer winding down, it only adds a little more bittersweetness to the idea that Outer Banks: Season 5 offers a fitting farewell to the Pogues with its final treasure-hunting adventure. And from the looks of it, it’s going to be every bit as adventurous and emotional as ever when it premieres Thursday, August 20th on Netflix.
📺 “Star Wars: Visions Presents: The Ninth Jedi” Final Trailer: Would-Be Jedi Kara Searches for Her Lightsaber-Maker Father in This New Eight-Episode Anime Series Based on the Fan-Favorite ‘Visions’ Shorts — Streaming Now on Disney+ and Hulu
The Force has always been about choosing between light and dark. But what happens when that choice becomes less and less clear? In this new anime continuation of the Star Wars: Visions shorts “The Ninth Jedi” and “Child of Hope,” Kara (Chinatsu Akasaki / Kimiko Glenn), the daughter of a kidnapped lightsaber maker, trains under Margrave Juro (Tetsuo Kanao / Andrew Kishino) while searching for her father, Lah Zhima (Shinichiro Miki / Simu Liu), across a galaxy hunted by forces determined to wipe out the Jedi. Trying to understand her own connection to the Force, Kara joins a small group of Jedi-in-training on a mission that could reveal whether light and dark were ever as simple as they seemed. While taking one of the most compelling standalone stories in Star Wars: Visions and expanding it into a full eight-episode adventure, the series gives Kara’s journey more room to explore what it really means to choose a side.
📺 “Conan O’Brien Must Go: Season 3” Trailer: Conan Takes His Shameless Travel Comedy to Four More Countries... and Once Again Makes a Fool of Himself — Premieres Friday, August 21st on HBO and HBO Max
Conan O’Brien is at his best when he’s front and center, acting ridiculously and shamelessly foolish in all his self-effacing glory. That’s likely why he’s so perfectly suited to hosting his own travel show, fully committing to the bit while gleefully playing up every embarrassing version of the “ugly American tourist” stereotype. In the third season of his HBO travel comedy series, Conan heads to four different countries to meet fans, stumble through local traditions, and turn himself into the main attraction for all the wrong reasons. The joke is rarely on the places he visits. It’s on Conan, who somehow manages to embarrass himself internationally while still finding a genuine connection beneath all the nonsense. So, if you happen to be in the country Conan is visiting, don’t be too embarrassed to laugh at him... chances are, everyone else already is. Because, from the looks of things, making a fool of himself abroad is pretty much the whole mission.
📺 “Average Joe: Season 2” Trailer: Deon Cole Takes His Darkly Comic Crime Series From Pittsburgh to South Africa — Premieres Wednesday, August 19th on Paramount+
Comedian Deon Cole may have started his career writing jokes for The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien and Conan, but he has since made a smooth transition into acting, stealing scenes in shows like Black-ish and taking on more dramatic roles in films such as the Western actioner The Harder They Fall, the musical adaptation of The Color Purple, and, most recently, playing Don King in the Michael Jackson biopic Michael. With the second season of his hit BET series, Cole puts that sharp comic timing to work while showing another side of himself as Joe, an ordinary plumber and family man whose late father’s mob ties have pulled him and his loved ones deeper into a dangerous criminal world. This time, Joe’s troubles follow him far beyond Pittsburgh, sending him and his crew to Cape Town, SoutH Africa after a new threat tied to the Russian mob puts his family directly in the crosshairs. Co-starring Michael Trucco, Malcolm Barrett, Cynthia Kaye McWilliams, Katlego Lebogang, and Hakeem Kae-Kazim, this darkly comic crime series proves that being an “average Joe” doesn’t always mean living an average life.
📺 “Colin From Accounts: Season 3” U.S. Trailer: Ashley and Gordon (Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall) Face the Fallout From a Painfully Botched Proposal in the Hit Aussie Rom-Com Series — Premieres Thursday, September 10th on Paramount+
It starts with the most adorable meet-cute imaginable, only to quickly turn into one of the most awkward and random romantic encounters ever. One injured dog and an accidental wardrobe malfunction later, Ashley and Gordon have gone on to build a relationship that’s somehow just as messy and oddly endearing as the way it began. Creators and stars Harriet Dyer and Patrick Brammall, who are also a real-life married couple, return for a brand-new season of their hit Aussie rom-com series, where love is only one bad decision away from becoming a full-blown crisis. This time around, Ashley and Gordon are dealing with the fallout from Gordon’s painfully botched proposal, forcing them to figure out whether they’re actually ready for marriage... or just barely holding together the relationship they already have. Looking for some heartfelt romance with a slightly sharper edge? Give this Aussie gem a try, as it has quietly become one of the better romantic comedies on television.
📺 “The Shards” Music Video Promo: Ryan Murphy and Bret Easton Ellis Take Us Back to 1981 Los Angeles for a Little Sex, Teen Angst, Murder, and ’80s Music Videos — Streaming Now on FX, Hulu, and Disney+
Looking for a time machine back to the ’80s? Ryan Murphy and Bret Easton Ellis may have found one. By the looks of this new promo, their latest FX series doesn’t simply revisit the decade... it drops us right into the neon glow and VHS haze of an early 80s music video. Based on Ellis’s semi-autobiographical novel, the series takes place in 1981 Los Angeles and stars Igby Rigney as Bret, an aspiring writer finishing his senior year at an elite prep school where money, sex, and jealousy are all part of the daily routine. But when magnetic new student Robert Mallory (Homer Gere) enters Bret’s inner circle just as a serial killer begins targeting teenagers across the city, attraction quickly gives way to suspicion and obsession. With Kaia Gerber, Hayes Warner, and Graham Campbell rounding out the cast, this retro-soaked teen-gone-bad mystery-thriller suggests that a little paranoia may be healthy... especially when the object of your obsession might also be a killer.
📺 “Blood Sacrifice” Trailer: Jakob Oftebro and Peter Andersson Star as Detectives Hunting a Killer in a New Swedish Crime-Thriller Series From Hijack Creator George Kay — Premieres Thursday, August 20th on Netflix
George Kay, the British writer and producer behind Hijack, Lupin and HBO’s upcoming War, is back with another crime mystery. This time, he brings the suspense to the Swedish islands. During the brightness of a Swedish summer, two police officers respond to a call at an empty house and walk straight into a carefully planned execution. The attack is only the beginning. As the police realize someone is targeting their own, investigator Thomas (Jakob Oftebro) is forced to work with his estranged father, former detective Alfred (Peter Andersson). With another officer potentially next on the list, the two men must put years of bad blood aside long enough to catch the killer before it’s too late.
📺 “Made in Korea: Season 2” Teaser: Power, Revenge, and Family Rivalry Drive This New Season of the Korean Political Thriller, Starring Hyun Bin — Streams Wednesday, September 9th on Hulu / Disney+
Nine years can change a man... or simply give him more time to tighten his grip on power. In the new season of this sprawling Korean political crime series, undercover agent turned smuggler Baek Kitae (Hyun Bin) has risen to the height of his influence, but prosecutor Jang Geonyoung (Jung Woo-sung) is finally ready to strike back. Meanwhile, Kitae’s brother Baek Kihyun (Woo Do-hwan) begins chasing power on his own terms, creating a family rift that could bring everything Kitae has built crashing down. In a world built on secrets and corruption, the people closest to you may be the ones capable of doing the most damage.
📺 “Tyler Perry’s Beauty in Black: Season 3” Trailer: Taylor Polidore Williams Fights to Hold Onto Power in Netflix’s Soapy Family Drama as the Bellarie Clan Strikes Back — Streams Thursday, August 27th on Netflix
Power inside the Bellarie family has always come with a price, and Kimmie may finally be the one holding the bill. Tyler Perry returns as creator, writer, and director for Season 3, with Taylor Polidore Williams leading the cast as Kimmie alongside Crystle Stewart, Ricco Ross, Charles Malik Whitfield, Terrell Carter, Debbi Morgan, Richard Lawson, Julian Horton, and Steven G. Norfleet. After fighting her way from the club floor to the top of the Beauty in Black empire, Kimmie enters the new season with more control than ever. But staying on top proves more dangerous than getting there, as the Bellarie family closes ranks and prepares to take back everything Kimmie claimed.
📺 “Lion” Trailer: A Vulnerable Cub Grows Into a Leader in National Geographic’s Four-Part Wildlife Series — Premieres Wednesday, August 19th on National Geographic and Streams Thursday, August 20th on Disney+ / Hulu
Every king’s journey has to start somewhere. For lion cub Kio, that begins not with a crown, but as a vulnerable youngster trying to survive the dangers surrounding his pride. In this new four-part nature docuseries, cameras follow Kio over four years as loss, exile, and fierce rivals push him from cubhood toward becoming a leader. Every king has to earn his roar before he can lead the pride, and this little guy has a long road ahead of him before he’s ready to claim that crown.
📺 “102 Minutes Inside the Towers” Trailer: Survivors Recount the Fight to Escape the World Trade Center in Robin Roberts’ 9/11 Documentary Special — Premieres Friday, September 11th at 8/7 on HISTORY
For 102 minutes on September 11, 2001, the people inside the World Trade Center towers faced an unimaginable disaster that those watching from the outside could never fully see or understand, even after the world watched it unfold live on television. Executive produced by Good Morning America host and journalist Robin Roberts, this HISTORY documentary special brings together survivors, office workers, security personnel, window washers, and first responders to recount what happened inside the buildings... and how they miraculously found a way out.
