Apple TV+ has just unveiled the first-look images from Dark Matter, a science fiction thriller series adapted from the highly successful novel by renowned author Blake Crouch. The limited series, which will take place over nine episodes, stars Joel Edgerton, Jennifer Connelly, Alice Braga, Jimmi Simpson, Dayo Okeniyi, and Oakes Fegley. Set to make its worldwide premiere on Apple TV+ on May 8, 2024, Dark Matter will launch with its first two episodes, with subsequent episodes releasing every Wednesday until June 26. Fast X director Louis Leterrier will direct the first four episodes.

Dark Matter marks the latest sci-fi production from Apple, fast becoming the home of ambitious and lusciously-produced science fiction. The producing arm of Sony is also responsible for the streaming service’s For All Mankind, a sci-fi series that imagines a version of reality where the space race between the Soviets and the Americans never ended. Apple TV+ slate of sci-fi productions also includes Foundation, inspired by the literary work of Isaac Asimov.

What is ‘Dark Matter’ About?

Based on the bestselling book by Blake Crouch, Dark Matter follows a physicist, professor and family man who embarks on a harrowing journey to get back to his family and save them from the most terrifying, unbeatable foe imaginable: himself.

Starring Joel Edgerton and Jennifer… pic.twitter.com/B03UDCG7iI

— Apple TV (@AppleTV) February 5, 2024

Dark Matter centers around Jason Dessen, a college physics professor living in Chicago with his wife and son. He once had the potential for a brilliant research career, but he set aside his ambitions for a happy and content family life. One night, after being abducted by a masked stranger, Jason wakes up in a world where his life has taken a different path. In this alternate reality, he is not married, has no child, and has achieved professional success in his career. He discovers that he has been thrust into a universe where the many-worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics is real, and every decision creates a branching path, leading to a nearly infinite number of parallel worlds.

The novel explores themes of identity, the path not taken, and the nature of reality, as Jason does what he can to possibly comprehend the physics behind his situation and seeks a way to return to his own universe and the family he loves. It delves into the scientific hypothesis that there are multiple versions of our universe — very topical in entertainment right now — each containing different outcomes of our lives based on the decisions we make.

Crouch serves as executive producer, showrunner, and writer alongside executive producers Matt Tolmach and David Manpearl for Matt Tolmach Productions, and Joel Edgerton. Dark Matter is produced for Apple TV+ by Sony Pictures Television. The series will debut on the streamer on May 8 in a two-episode premiere, with subsequent episodes dropping every Wednesday until the finale on June 26.

via Collider