Peacock has officially launched as the long-awaited NBCUniversal streaming service, and the dystopian Brave New World is the big-ticket original already available. The show is an adaptation of the classic Aldous Huxley novel of the same name, with some modern twists that allow it to run for nine episodes and quite possibly more seasons. As usual with the premiere of a streaming show, there is the big question: should it be binge-watched? Fortunately, Brave New World star (and former Originals leading man) Joseph Morgan weighed in.
Speaking with CinemaBlend, Joseph Morgan shared how he thinks Brave New World should be watched:
I recommend binge-watching it. Even though you want to spread it out, I suppose, and make it last. For me, I'm watching these two at a time. I know there's only nine, but I just feel like you immerse yourself in that world. You can't resist it. You know when the show's really good, you know when it finishes you want to put the next episode on straightaway. I felt that way about 24 when it first came out. They leave you with a bloody cliffhanger at the end of each episode, so you can't help but watch the next one. For me, that's Brave New World as well. It finishes and I want to see where it goes next. So, definitely binge-watch it.
Even though binge-watching an intense series like Brave New World means running out of episodes sooner rather than later, the first season also isn't comprised of nine standalone episodes. With cliffhanger after cliffhanger, Joseph Morgan shared that it's impossible to resist watching more than one episode in a sitting. He also compared the drive to keep watching multiple episodes in a row to 24, and Brave New World fans have the benefit of not needing to wait a week between hours of the show, a la 24 back in its heyday!
Brave New World recruited a talented cast to fill its nine episodes, with Joseph Morgan joined by Alden Ehrenreich (whose performance in the Peacock show outshines his work in Solo: A Star Wars Story in my book), Downton Abbey's Jessica Brown Findlay, Game of Thrones' Harry Lloyd in a very non-Targaryen role, Pitch's Kylie Bunbury, Demi Moore, and more.
Joseph Morgan is a familiar face on the small screen thanks to his long-running role as Klaus on the CW, first on The Vampire Diaries and then on The Originals. He shared with CinemaBlend how the move to Brave New World meant a lack of inhibitions, which means that prospective viewers can go into the new Peacock series with the promise of adult elements that definitely couldn't happen on broadcast television.
The new Peacock series isn't the first time that Aldous Huxley's Brave New World was adapted for the screen, with two television movies in 1980 and 1998, respectively. This version of Brave New World definitely isn't a redo of either of those previous adaptations, and even readers who know the book cover to cover are in for some surprises. Considering how long a Brave New World TV adaptation has been kicked around, this show is a long time coming.
Brave New World is available for your binge-watching pleasure on Peacock now. The full first season is available to Peacock Premium subscribers, but the first two episodes are available streaming free if you want to give the show a try before becoming a Premium subscriber for $4.99 a month. If you're in the market for more TV options now and in the not-too-distant future, check out our 2020 summer TV premiere schedule!
