Jeri Jacquin

Coming soon to Apple TV+ from creator/writer Blake Crouch is the fate of one man who could never imagined that an idea would send him on a journey through DARK MATTER.

Jason Dessen (Joel Edgerton) is a college professor who has moments where he questions his life choices. Married to Daniela (Jennifer Connelly) who runs her own art gallery, they are raising their 16-year-old son Charlie (Oakes Fegley) in a modest home in Chicago.

Out for a night with friend Ryan (Jimmi Simpson) to celebrate an award, he offers Jason a chance to be part of a new project but it is in San Francisco. Jason sees his life where he is and loves being with his family.  Leaving the bar, he is abducted by a stranger who is about to rob Jason of everything he knows. Jason wakes up to discover that his surroundings are unfamiliar and frightening except for Leighton (Dayo Okeniyi).

Running to a place he knows; Jason finds a woman named Amanda (Alice Braga) living in his house. Still nothing is familiar so he reaches out to Daniela but she is also different. In fact, the world he knows seems to have simply disappeared, but has it? Leighton shows Jason something that was once only something he thought about – and now it is in front of him – the box. What is does is almost as frightening but Jason only knows one thing and that is to get back home to his family.

The box has other ideas!

Edgerton as Jason is a man who has his ups and downs but mainly happy to be with his family. There is a disappointment with being a college professor along with a bit of frustration as he sees students apathetic to classes. At home he is happy with his wife and the goings on of his son but he never could have imagined how much he would miss it all until it is taken from him. Edgerton takes on his character with such depth which is necessary to tell this particular story. Each episode Edgerton goes deeper and deeper into the journey of his character and does so stunningly. The dual emotions are there and the viewer will understand it all as well.

Connelly (Academy Award winner) as Gabriela is also happy with her home life and running the gallery. Her story begins to unfold as well showing Connelly’s amazing ability to not only transform her character physically but mentally as well. I enjoyed watching her performance so much go from joy to total gut-wrenching sadness. As the story continues, so does the importance of Connelly’s character and I am all in.

Braga as Amanda sees what Jason is going through and the danger he is in with Leighton. Taking it upon herself to save him, she joins Jason on the journey through the corridors to find his spot in time. There is so much danger in what she is doing but Braga’s character is in it deep. Braga’s character also realizes that she must find something for herself in all of this madness. Her character is equally as important to the story as she joins Edgerton and Connelly through the maze of madness.

Okeniyi as Leighton has a part to play in how Jason handles life with his family. The connection to the worlds is not something he understands yet nothing stops him from being a part of it. Simpson as Ryan is responsible for part of what is happening to Jason but how much of a part is something to be discovered.

Apple+ is a video on demand web television that debuted in 2019. Viewable through Apple’s TV app, CEO Tim Cook wanted original content calling it “a great opportunity for us from a creation point of view”. From THE MORNING SHOW to TRYING and THE BANKER and Jason Momoa in SEE, there is plenty of choices for everyone. Plenty of genres? That is exactly what they are bringing to viewers and to see more of what they have to offer please visit www.apple.com/tv/.

The eight episodes include Are You Happy in Your Life, Split, The Box, The Corridor, Dark Velocity, Fucking Married People, In the Fires of Dead Stars and Jupiter.

Crouch serves as creator, executive producer, showrunner and writer along with executive producers Matt Tolmach and David Manpearl. Edgerton also serves as executive producer.

DARK MATTER is a serious trip of a series that will have everyone guessing from one episode to the next. Travelling through the corridor for Jason is absolutely stunned at what he finds. Yes, vagueness comes in here because it is important for everyone to see each episode for themselves and enjoy it firsthand. Just know there are twisted possibilities for this maze of realities and that should get viewers on board for this piece of sci-fi brilliance.

Edgerton and Connelly are perfect together for Crouch’s written characters and they play it marvelously. They bring suspense, suspicion, the world of quantum mechanics like no Marvel movie ever could (sorry Ant Man). Apple TV+ is part of creating these worlds from stunningly beautiful to stark possibilities all in one series.

The relationships between all of the characters are sharp forcing us all to remain attentive because the details are so very important. Nothing is small in DARK MATTER, no detail, no event, and no door and that makes this series original but also bits and pieces of déjà vu.

In the end – each door brings him closer to home!

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