Chiwetel Ejiofor stars as an alien who comes to Earth in hopes of saving the humans on his home planet in Showtime’s new series The Man Who Fell to Earth†
SXSW attendees were treated to the world premiere of Showtime’s new sci-fi series this weekend, The Man Who Fell to Earth, starring Chiwetel Ejiofor as an alien who comes to Earth in hopes of saving the humans on his home planet. The network followed up that premiere by previewing the first five minutes of the pilot episode.
As we previously reported, the new TV series is based on the classic 1963 novel by Walter Tevis, which already spawned an iconic 1973 film adaptation starring rock star David Bowie as the titular alien. Developed and written by Alex Kurtzman and Jenny Lumet, it started out as a project for Hulu before moving to CBS All Access (which has since been incorporated into Paramount+). Showtime will broadcast the series in the US, while Paramount+ will air the series internationally. According to the official logline, “The Man Who Fell to Earth will follow a new alien character (Ejiofor) who arrives on Earth at a turning point in human evolution and must confront his own past to determine our future.”
The TV adaptation introduces some obvious departures from the source material, starting with Ejiofor’s character, an alien named Faraday. Bill Nighy plays Thomas Jerome Newton, the character Bowie played. (He even has a similar flamboyant hat.) Naomie Harris stars as Justin Falls, described as “a brilliant scientist and engineer who must overcome her own demons in the race to save two worlds.” She has a young son who has a bond with Faraday. The cast also includes west world‘s Jimmi Simpson as Spencer Clay; Rob Delaney as Hatch Flood; Sonya Cassidy as Edie Flood; Joana Ribeiro as Lisa Dominguez; Annelle Olaleye as Molly Falls; Josh Herdman as Terry; and Kate Mulgrew as Drew Finch.
The official trailer came out last month and focused on Faraday introducing Justin’s acquaintance. The first five minutes presumably show us Faraday much later in his tenure on Earth. He’s become a tech billionaire in the vein of Steve Jobs, thanks (one presumably) to patenting some of that sweet alien technology. (That’s certainly how Thomas amassed his wealth in the 1973 novel and film, hoping to use the money to build spaceships to transport his people.)
YouTube/Showtime
The first five minutes are basically the equivalent of an Apple showcase event, culminating in Faraday’s introduction of a mysterious black cube. Ejiofor is perfect when he gives his talk about adapting to survive, climbing out of a hole, and so on, which the audience seems to think is a metaphor. But those scenes are interspersed with flashbacks of Faraday’s fiery arrival, where he actually dons new skin and makes his way out of a deep hole. We even get a brief glimpse of yellow reptilian alien eyes staring out of the darkness.
The Man Who Fell to Earth will be released on Showtime in the US and on Paramount+ internationally on April 24, 2022. Color us curious to see how Kurtzman and Lumet reimagined this iconic piece of science fiction for the 21st century.
List image by YouTube/Showtime
