The BBC has released the first look at its series based on Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy of novels.
The 30-second spot gives us a glimpse of James McAvoy as Lord Asriel, Lin-Manuel Miranda as Lee Scoresby, Clarke Peters as Dr. Carne and Ruth Wilson as Mrs. Coulter.
The series takes place in a world where people are accompanied by manifestations of their souls – these take the form of shapeshifting animals called daemons. It also features an elementary particle called Dust that gives humans consciousness, something the church frowns upon.
The books were a huge worldwide hit, winning awards including the Carnegie Medal and Whitbread Book of the Year. But their success hasn’t translated well to other media; New Line Cinema released a film version of the first book in 2007, but never followed through with the other two. Hopefully this series can tell the full story for fans of the screen.