With all of the media frenzy surrounding the final season of Breaking Bad and the latest season of The Walking Dead, we haven’t heard a ton about the projects AMC currently has in the works. This week, the cable network finally put together a first look at Turn, the Revolutionary War era drama that is expected to air on AMC in the spring of 2014. From what the trailer illuminates, the drama will be full of mystery and intrigue, as well as plenty of fighting.
There are a lot of nods to the Revolutionary War in Fox’s freshman drama, Sleepy Hollow, but while Hollow tries for a historical retelling with a supernatural element, Turn is busy promoting that it is “based on a true story.” Set in 1788, the preview mostly focuses on Abe Woodhull, a character played by Billy Elliot actor Jamie Bell. Bell was the first to be signed to the pilot last winter, but he was soon joined by the likes of We Bought A Zoo’s Angus Macfadyen and Pirates of the Caribbean 's Kevin McNally.
Turn is based on Alexander Rose’s book, Washington’s Spies, which tells the story of an unlikely group of men in America who created a secret society known as The Culper Ring. The spying organization used both male and female spies in order to help turn the tide in the fight against England. Bell’s character, Woodhull, is only an average Joe farmer at the beginning of the series, but his attitude changes after he is caught smuggling on the black market. I’m wondering if those images of the character getting smacked around by British officers are related to those smuggling charges. I guess we won’t have much longer to wait to find out.
We also get a few scenes between Bell’s character and McNally’s. The latter will play Woodhull’s father in the series. Richard Woodhull is described as a complicated man who on the surface seems loyal to the English government. However, he might be willing to switch sides should the tides of the war turn, and his son’s involvement with The Culper Ring might very well have something to do with his loyalties. Or maybe not. The two do seem to be arguing pretty heavily in the preview.
There haven’t been a ton of TV programs devoted to the Revolutionary War period in the past (the most recent I can think of is HBO’s miniseries John Adams, which partially covers that time period). So, Turn should at least offer a fairly fresh historical perspective. It’s still too early to tell if this one will be a hit, but goodness knows AMC could use a ratings bringer to fill the space left in lieu of new episodes of Breaking Bad.
We’ll let you know as soon as Turn gets an official premiere date.
