We might have to wait a little while before we finally get a chance to feast on the highly anticipated limited seriesGreat Expectations, but a teaser trailer released by the BBC today is doing exactly what it’s supposed to. Based on the legendary novel byCharles Dickens, the story centers around an orphan boy who is taken on by a wealthy spinster whose life derailed after a brutal and failed relationship.
Albeit short, the teaser forGreat Expectationsscreams of decay. In fact, decay becomesOlivia Colman(The Crown) as she wears a dirty wedding dress with a jumbled up veil, sports bad teeth and a look of despair, all of which make it look like Colman’s character Miss Havisham is coming straight off a horror movie. The room she inhabits is also representative of her years of depression, with a dark, messy, and foggy scenario in which you’re able to almost smell the dirt and mold.
The scene is Miss Havisham’s first encounter with Pip (Fionn Whitehead), and she takes a look at him and measures him head to toe. You’ve got to give toAcademy Award winner Olivia Colmanto be able to look and feel superior even though her character’s clearly hit rock bottom. Her delivery of “What a prized creature we have fished from the river” makes it clear that Havisham doesn’t see herself as defeated – or at least doesn’t want to let on how she feels on the inside.
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TheGreat ExpectationsTeam Make it A Mandatory 2023 Watch
TheGreat Expectationsteaser also dedicates a title card to making it clear that the series is written byPeaky BlinderscreatorSteven Knight. Not only because theCillian Murphyserieswas a hit, but also because fans of the screenwriters’ work have been eagerly waiting for another adaptation ever since Knight wrote miniseriesA Christmas Carolin 2019. Knight teamed up with heavyweight producers likeTom Hardy(Dunkirk) andRidley Scott(House of Gucci) to produce the series, and invitedBrady Hood(Top Boy) andSamira Radsi(Sex/Life) to direct.
Aside from Colman and Whitehead, the cast fromGreat Expectationsalso featuresAshley Thomas(Top Boy),Johnny Harris(A Christmas Carol),Hayley Squires(Call the Midwife),Owen McDonnell(Killing Eve),Laurie Ogden(The Show Must Go Online),Matt Berry(The IT Crowd),Trystan Gravelle(Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power), andRudi Dharmalingam(The Split).
BBC is yet to reveal a release window and full trailer forGreat Expectations. American audiences can expect to see it on Hulu, and people outside the U.S. will be able to watch it on Star+ or on Disney+ under the Star banner.
