Sean Penn is the latest big name actor to make the jump to the smaller screen on television. He’s signed on for Hulu and Channel 4’s new series The First, which, set in the near future, chronicles the first human mission to Mars and explores the challenges of the first steps toward interplanetary colonisation.
Beau Willimon (House Of Cards, The Ides Of March) is creating the series and will produce alongside his producing partner Jordan Tappis. The show already has a straight-to-series order, and will go into production later this year with a view towards a 2018 premiere date.
Willimon said: “I have such deep admiration for Sean’s immense talent and extraordinary body of work. I feel very lucky to be collaborating with an artist of his caliber”.
While there are no added details about Penn’s role in the series, the show sounds interesting. While Ridley Scott‘s The Martian a few years ago managed to explore in detail the struggles of surviving on Mars, it sounds like The First is willing to take a larger and more interesting step forward and attempt to depict what it will be like to colonise and inhabit Mars.
Fresh off multiple Emmy wins for The Handmaid’s Tale, Hulu will be hoping The First can be their next smash hit show, and by bringing Penn on board they’ve certainly got the star power to draw in initial interest. The question now becomes, can they sustain it with an equally exciting and engaging show?
#Peace.Love.TheFirst
