October 28

Today is the big day in some lucky European countries (including Scotland, it seems): War of the Worlds is hitting your screens, so I hope you are ready!

Paris seems prepared:

Some new promotional stills have appeared (not as scary as aliens appearing, which is good!):

And a behind the scenes pic has popped up, thanks to Leila Moghtader, photographer and photo editor at Canal+ in Paris, who shared this on Instagram.

Elizabeth McGovern, Leila Moghtader, and Gabriel Byrne

The reviews will be coming out soon, so stay tuned! Meanwhile, all the best to everyone involved with this exciting project, cast and crew, and those of us stuck in the USA will try not to be too jealous! wink


October 26

Still no word on the release date for North and South America, but Europe and maybe the UK will be hosting some aliens very soon, it seems!

A new (expanded) trailer, new (larger) production shots, and a great new (translated) interview shall prepare us for the invasion.

promotional stills

Gabriel Byrne as Bill Ward
War of the Worlds Urban Myth Films
War of the Worlds Urban Myth Films
War of the Worlds Urban Myth Films

trailer

interview from Russian press

Teleprogramma.pro: Gabriel Byrne: “I’m tired of anti-Russian propaganda in the West” by Ekaterina Inozemtseva, October 22, 2019

Translation from the Russian by Google Translate, with additional editing for clarity by Stella

October 29, the FOX channel launches the new series “War of the Worlds”, the main role in which was played by Irish actor Gabriel Byrne. The star of European cinema spoke about how he was inspired by the classic novel by Herbert Wells, and much more.

The premiere presentation of the eight-part series “War of the Worlds” from FOX was held in Paris. By the way, it was in modern Europe that the scriptwriters transferred the action of the series. Events unfold in France and the UK, and the heroes speak two languages.

Two of the main characters in the new version are the scientist Bill Ward, performed by Byrne, and his ex-wife Helen, played by American Elizabeth McGovern.

The correspondent of the Teleprogramma.pro portal was among the journalists who were able to talk with the actors about how this story “hooked” them and whom the inhabitants of 21st century Earth should fear.

“I don’t think that the idea of ​​an alien invasion is really the meaning of Wells’ book, despite the fact that this is the main element of the thriller in the novel. Look at the existential threats we are facing now.
There is the possibility of nuclear war, the destruction of the environment, governments getting out of control around the world . . . In fact, the threat to our existence does not come from outside. We are the aliens,” Byrne shared his thoughts, explaining why War of the Worlds, written in 1898, is still interesting.


Elizabeth also supported her colleague, noting that in our century the planet has enough of its own problems:

“And I would add to this that the modern world is now more divided than ever. In America, they are building a wall, Britain is losing its historical ties . . . Our history confirms that, when confronted with an external enemy, in order to survive, all our artificial differences become completely irrelevant.”

In the first two episodes of the series, which were shown to reporters at the premiere, the characters of Bill (Byrne) and Helen (McGovern) survive a destructive attack of all mankind by the aliens. These former spouses go in search of their son. However, Bill has to hide something very important from Helen. The actors also talked about how two people’s relationships can be built and how a lie can influence them.

“At the beginning of the story, we see a couple whose relationship has completely disintegrated. Each of them lives their own life. My character was able to move on and entered into a new marriage. But as a result of these new circumstances, she finds herself with her ex-husband, and Helen needs to overcome some barriers to stay alive. And that becomes most important. But, unfortunately, although they were given the opportunity to start all over again, a lie arises between them. But how these “false” relations will develop will be seen in the series!” McGovern said intriguingly.

Gabriel Byrne added:
“This is an interesting question, because truth and falsehood in relationships can lead to unknown areas. How completely true can you be with another person? How many lies, lies that are good for you, can you tell each other? To protect us from pain or to prevent pain, we all lie differently. And so we get to the stage of intimacy, where you understand that the other person really hurts, and you keep your truth to yourself, and you are show a kind face . . . Speaking of my character, it seems to me that somewhere deep inside Bill really loves Helen. And she loves him. But will this help them survive?”

Of course, everyone was interested in how the two stars (Byrne, if you recall, is the Golden Globe laureate for his role in the series In Treatment, and McGovern is very famous thanks to her Cora Crawley from Downton Abbey) worked together in this new project.

“Gabriel is so funny! And although you can’t say this, in the process of work we constantly laughed. I suppose this is because the theme of the film is very heavy, so laughter was for us a kind of survival technique. It really was a salvation for me, ”Elizabeth replied.

“We were next to each other all the time. Even during short breaks between scenes, we always sat together for a few minutes to have a cup of tea. I had a real connection with Elizabeth. I saw her not only as an actress, but also as a person. We always supported each other in work that was very difficult at times,” Byrne said.


Since among the dangers looming over the modern world is the notorious “Russian threat,” as some European journalists call it, we could not help asking Gabriel a question about his attitude to Russia and our viewers.

“You know, all I can say in response to your question,” Byrne responded, “is that I am wildly tired of anti-Russian propaganda in the West!”

Well, great words, Mr. Byrne! With this approach, no aliens should be afraid of us.

And if you want to see how people are trying to survive after an invasion by aliens, then watch the premiere of the series “War of the Worlds” from FOX beginning October 28!

War of the Worlds Urban Myth Films

At least our heroes are alive! That’s all the news for now. Let’s try to be patient and wait for the alien invasion with good humor and grace. Besides, we have Halloween to celebrate soon and what can be scarier than that?! wink

I don’t think glasses and tripods are going to be in this new War of the Worlds after all . . .
and that’s okay!

6 Comments

  1. Great trailer ! Leaves you wanting more.

  2. I just watched the first two episodes here on TV. It’s really thrilling, the first time I’ve been able to watch a Gabriel series or movie “live”. The commercials are killing me though, it’s that exciting. All those different survivors, different characters, it’s fascinating and totally believable (I was afraid of green aliens dropping from the sky – nothing like that luckily). Gabriel has a very interesting role! And that ending, wow, very promising. And now the long wait until next Sunday. Thank heavens they’re broadcasting two episodes in a row, softens the blow a bit.

    • Hi, G! Thanks for this good news about War of the Worlds! I’m glad you are able to see it where you are–The Netherlands, yes? They are showing TWO episodes at a time? That is wonderful! I hope they do that when the series comes to the US. It sounds great. I can’t wait to see it! Enjoy! <3

      • Hi Stella! The Netherlands, yes. I was just checking whether the next two episodes would be broadcast on Sunday, but to my surprise I can already watch them now! I promised myself I won’t watch them again just before bedtime because the suspense keeps me awake, hehe. But now it looks as though I can watch them this afternoon, wicked. Hope the series comes to the US soon, so you can enjoy it and give us your opinion!

        • G, I am longing to see this series! There is some good news–the group responsible for distributing it in the Americas was shopping it at the American Film Market recently, so someone will grab it, I’m sure. Could be Netflix, Amazon, HBO, Fox, who knows? I just hope it will stream here in the US and I already have the streaming service. LOL! Enjoy it and don’t watch it late at night! <3

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