Early word onAlex Garland’sAnnihilation, the second movie from theEx Machinadirector, is that it’s a new classic of the science-fiction genre, which was essentially what people said aboutEx Machina. The movie doesn’t hit theaters for another two weekends but Garland has already seemingly teased that he has a new project in the pipeline, according toThe PlaylistandFandango.
During an interview with Fandango, Garland spoke about a planned eight-part series that he is currently working on with FX, a network that has been at the forefront of the so-called “Prestige TV” era with series likeLegion,Atlanta, andBetter Things. Here’s what Garland had to say about the narrative of the series to Fandango, via PL:
“It’s a sort of science fiction, but it’s a much more technology based sci fi whereasAnnihilationis a more hallucinogenic form of sci fi and more fantastical form of sci fi…This is slightly more in common with projects I’ve worked on likeEx MachinaorNever Let Me Gowhich are taking something about our world now — not our world in the future, but our world as it is right now — and then drawing sort of inferences and conclusions from it.”
That’s not much to go on but news that Garland will continue to build his career on ambitious science-fiction is great news. Though he is not nearly as blunt, physical, or political asDavid CronenbergorJohn Carpenter, the filmmaker clearly sees the promise of genre as a conduit to talk about big ideas in our society, as well as flex his inarguable talents for building narrative worlds on screen. And miniseries have a long history of allowing major directors to explore ideas and premises that the film industry simple does not have the stomach for nowadays. Some ofR.W. Fassbinder’s best work came from his work with German TV, andSteven Soderberghhas explored innumerable concepts of visual storytelling in his two series collaborations with HBO,K Streetand this year’s excellentMosaic. Hopefully, if this all works out, the same will hold true for Garland.
