Premiere: November 7th, Apple TV+
Starring: Rhea Seehorn, Karolina Wydra, Carlos Manuel Vesga
Vince Gilligan is well known for creating the crime classics Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, but he actually got his start in television on The X-Files, writing 29 scripts for the show—including “Drive” which guest-starred Bryan Cranston and “X-Cops”—and acting as executive producer in later seasons. Now he is returning to his genre roots with the upcoming Pluribus (aka PLUR1BUS), though this is not your standard sci fi TV series.
The show follows Carol Sturka, a best-selling historical romance author who refers to her work as “mindless crap.” Her world is shattered while on a promotional book tour, when a mysterious virus spreads across New Mexico, transforming humanity into a mass of cheerful and content individuals. Carol is somehow immune to the virus and faces this new reality with a mixture of rage and confusion.
Gilligan told Entertainment Weekly that he came up with the idea while working on Better Call Saul:
During our lunch breaks, I would take long walks around the neighborhood near our offices. My mind would wander and I got interested in the idea of a world in which everyone was nice. There was no way you could insult them. There was no way you could hurt their feelings. But they would do anything and everything for you.
He went on to say:
There’s no denying that we live in a country that is very fractured. What interests me about this show and the possibilities for it is that people, I hope, can watch it and say, ‘What would the world be like if everybody got along?’ There’s probably a bit of wish fulfillment in the idea of this show. I don’t know that I set out to create that, but I see the real benefit in it now.
He originally thought of a male protagonist, but then realized that Rhea Seehorn—who he worked with on Better Call Saul—was perfect for the part. “She’s so funny when she wants to be, but can also break your heart when she wants to.” He then went on to explain the irony of the show:
The drama of the show is that the world’s most miserable person is desperately trying to save the planet from happiness. There’s a surprising amount of drama that we’re mining from that.
Gilligan has referred to Pluribus as a genre-bending show that is very different from his previous work on Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul. It certainly sounds interesting, and it will get the chance to develop its story as it has been renewed for a second season in advance.
Source: ew.com
Teaser:
