The Trailer for 'His Dark Materials' Season 2 Promises A Thrilling Second Chapter
The trailer for the second season of HBO fantasy series His Dark Materials promises a dark and epic ride - featuring everything from grand battles and air-balloon chases to militant witches and the debut of Andrew Scott.
Based on the bestselling series from author Philip Pullman, Season 1 of the show introduced us to a world that was very similar to our own - with a few singularly important differences. Set in a sort of Victorian alternate reality in which science, theology, and magic are entwined, the world is powered by a mysterious substance known as dust and ruled over by a theocratic body known as The Magisterium. Oh, and also, humans have adorable animal sidekicks known as "daemons", which are basically pieces of human souls that exist in tandem with their other halves and can communicate with them.
The story follows a young girl named Lyra (Dafne Keene), whose search for a kidnapped friend leads her to discover a dangerous plot involving stolen children and dark experiments centered on Dust and the connection between humans and daemons. The Season 1 finale saw Lyra step through a portal chasing after her deadbeat father Lord Asriel into an entirely new world.
Season 2 is based on the second novel in Pullman's trilogy, entitled The Subtle Knife, which introduces an important new character in the form of Will Parry (Amir Wilson), another dimensional traveler whose presence was hinted at during the series' first season and whose fate is tied to Lyra's. Much as her destiny is tied to the Golden Compass, Will's is tied to the titular Subtle Knife, an artifact that can cut holes between worlds.
Watch the action-packed Season 2 trailer for yourselves below.
Though James McAvoy's Asriel is nowhere to be found this season - his character actually doesn't appear in The Subtle Knife - the bulk of His Dark Materials' all-star cast is back for Season 2, with a few new faces through in for good measure. Ruth Wilson returns as the villainous Mrs. Coulter, as does Lin-Manuel Miranda as Lee Scoresby and Ariyon Bakare as Lord Boreal. New characters that will debut in Season 2 include the former Sherlock star Scott as John Parry, Will's missing father, Fleabag's Phoebe-Waller Bridge as the voice of John's daemon, Sayan Kötör, and Terence Stamp as Giacomo Paradisi, the bearer of the Subtle Knife.
Are you looking forward to the second season of His Dark Materials? Let's discuss in the comments.
