TNT’s The Last Ship Infects Us All With Action-Packed Preview
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As the headlines are still centered on the missing Malaysian plane, we here at GFR are just as interested in a troubled vehicle that admittedly has a lot less of an impact on real life. TNT’s post-apocalyptic drama The Last Ship is set for its disastrous course this summer, and the network is giving potential audiences a new look at the series that features editing as choppy as the waves the ship will be steered through. You want the virus? You can’t handle the virus!
Now, I’m all for shows attaching themselves to taglines and catchphrases and whatnot, even when there is a hashtag attached, but the use of “#DontBreathe” as the hook is kind of disconcerting. The series takes place after a worldwide pandemic has killed off around 80% of the planet’s population, and the titular last ship is the de facto way that humanity is going to try and pick itself back up again. (Or something.) So is the virus eventually going to get on board the ship or something? If that isn’t the case, not breathing isn’t going to help anyone’s chances of survival. Also, what about the people who do everything they see on TV?
Anyway, the series is based on the 1988 novel of the same name written by William Brinkley. Eric Dane plays Tom Chandler, the commanding officer of the USS Nathan James, a Navy ship involved in a nuclear strike that goes global. All communication with the U.S. is ceased, and the ship and its mates soon find they have no home to return to. They travel around looking for something resembling safety, not to mention a cure. And maybe a little repopulation action? Hey, Adam Baldwin is in this thing, and I bet he’s got a bunk the ladies get familiar with. Baldwin plays the ship’s second-in-command, Sattery, while Rhona Mitra plays paleomicrobiologist Rachel Scott.
The series is produced by Platinum Dunes, which makes Michael Bay an executive producer, but we’re thinking he wasn’t that hands-on with this one. For one thing, this trailer is genuinely freaky and completely free from explosions. Oh, except for that one explosion. But there are still plenty of guns and antagonists, which makes me wonder exactly how much of the world’s remaining population is comprised of people who want to see this ship lying at the bottom on the ocean. And while I’m not particularly invested in which way this story goes, I know that I am indeed interested. It won’t be another Helix, right? I did see snow, though…
Lay back on your waterbed and experience The Last Ship when it debuts on June 22. Below you’ll find the first teaser that was shown at SXSW.
