Video screenshot by Bonnie Burton/CNET
In the battle between good and evil, which side will humans choose? That’s the question upcoming CBS All Access miniseries The Stand seeks to answer. (Disclosure: CBS is the parent company of CNET.)
Based on the 1978 Stephen King novel, The Stand takes place when humanity is almost completely killed off by a deadly virus, a story made more relevant considering our current coronavirus pandemic.
In The Stand most of the world’s population dies from weaponized influenza known as Captain Trips, and society breaks down, with supernatural evil being Randall Flagg encouraging violence and destruction, and 108-year-old Mother Abagail leading a small group of good guys against him.
The new, two-minute-long trailer, which debuted Friday at New York Comic Con, shows actor Alexander Skarsgard as the villain Randall Flagg who will stop at nothing to make sure evil reigns. Actor Whoopi Goldberg plays the voice of hope — Mother Abagail.
Video screenshot by Bonnie Burton/CNET
“The world is now a blank page, make your stand,” Goldberg’s Mother Abagail says.
The trailer shows a variety of characters who will bond or fight against each other. James Marsden plays Stu Redman, Odessa Young is the heroic Frannie Goldsmith, Amber Heard is the mysterious Nadine Cross, Owen Teague as the dangerous incel Harold Lauder, and Jovan Adepo as troubled musician Larry Underwood.
This is a world full of desolate roads littered with abandoned cars, dead bodies and despair. But one very important road leads the survivors to the Boulder Free Zone — where people guided by Mother Abagail come together to help rebuild society. “All I know is we dreamed of her and she was real,” Redman says in the trailer.
CBS
Other cast members for The Stand include Henry Zaga (13 Reasons Why), Brad William Henke (Orange Is the New Black) and Daniel Sunjata (The Dark Knight Rises).
The Stand series also includes a new coda at the end of the finale written by King himself, according to Entertainment Weekly.
The Stand premieres on CBS All Access on Dec.17. New episodes of the nine-episode will air weekly.
