Two people in a confined space is always a recipe for stress. Two people in a confined space in space is a recipe for disaster, and that certainly seems to be what’s coming in Beacon 23, MGM+’s adaptation of the tale by Hugh Howey. Lena Headey—rocking two very sorceress-y white streaks in her dark hair—leads the cast for this thriller, which looks downright claustrophobic.
The synopsis is very short and quite confusing, as the trailer clearly shows that Halan was already at the beacon. But here’s what it says:
Aster (Lena Headey) and Halan (Stephan James) are drawn to Beacon 23 and face an onslaught of threats. When an object called The Artifact appears, they begin to unravel its mysteries, and develop a deep bond just in time to face a deadly AI.
Previous descriptions of the show have referred to Aster as a government agent, and their situation as a battle of wills—though the trailer makes clear that the pair are going to face an array of threats from outside the beacon, and suggests that their pasts are somehow relevant. The last line is Halan asking Aster, “Who are you?”—a question which Aster pointedly does not answer.
Beacon 23 was created by Zak Penn, a writer whose resume includes X-Men: The Last Stand, Elektra, and Free Guy. The trailer touts that the show also comes from the producers of Orphan Black and Invasion, and the executive producer of The Walking Dead. Howey, of course, is also the author of the books that became Apple TV’s Silo; he’s clearly cornering the market on tight spaces and the untrustworthy people who reside in them.
Beacon 23 premieres November 12th on MGM+.
Check out the trailer below.
This post was written during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike. Without the labor of the actors currently on strike, the series being covered here wouldn’t exist.
