Scott Speedman and Yvonne Strahovski are fighting for their lives in the first look at their spooky TV show Teacup.
Peacock released the official teaser for the series on Wednesday, August 14, where Speedman, 48, and Strahovski, 42, are seen facing a dangerous threat. The sneak peek clip didn’t show what the characters on the show have to deal with, but it’s safe to say it is a scary sight to behold.
“We are in control,” read the text in the video before it shifted to the phrase, “We are not in control.”
The streaming service has kept details about the series under wraps ahead of its premiere on October 10. Based on Robert McCammon‘s book Stinger, Teacup follows a group of people in rural Georgia who must come together to survive.
Teacup was brought to life by first-time showrunner Ian McCulloch, who has previously worked on Yellowstone, Deputy and Chicago Fire. Earlier this year, McCulloch reflected on what drew him to the project and hinted at his vision for the show.
“When Atomic Monster first approached me about creating a series adaptation of Robert McCammon’s Stinger — a no-holds-barred, gargantuan spectacle of a novel along the lines of The Stand, Independence Day and Mars Attacks! — to be honest, I didn’t want to throw my hat in the ring. I’m not a spectacle writer. I’m a ‘less-is-more’ writer,” McCulloch said in a July statement. “I gravitate more toward what are known as ‘keyhole epics,’ large stories told through small lenses.”
He continued: “But here’s the thing: I read Stinger and it stayed with me. Wouldn’t leave me alone. I just couldn’t stop thinking about its razor-sharp premise, how it unfolds over the course of a single harrowing day and about the relatable and real family McCammon puts center stage. That’s when the flash-bang light-bulb idea hit.”
The spooky factor can also be attributed to executive producer James Wan following his successes with the horror franchises Saw, Insidious and The Conjuring.
“Teacup defies easy labels,” Wan said in a statement last month. “It’s a genre-bending blend of horror, mystery, and drama, with layers that unfold like a captivating puzzle. It goes beyond chills and thrills and holds up a mirror to humanity, exploring the darkness that resides within us all.”
In addition to Strahovski and Speedman, Teacup stars Chaske Spencer, Kathy Baker, Boris McGiver, Caleb Dolden, Emilie Bierre and Luciano Leroux as well. Behind the camera, E.L. Katz has been credited for directing the first two episodes after working on The Haunting of Bly Manor and Channel Zero.
According to Speedman, his excitement for Teacup grew as soon as he read the scripts. “I knew there was going to be a very character-based slow burn,” he told reporters at a Comic-Con panel for the show in July. “It takes awhile to get going, but then when it does, it just becomes more meaningful and the horror elements kick in.”
The first two episodes of Teacup premiere on Peacock Thursday, October 10. Two episodes will be released weekly on Thursdays through Halloween.
