Night Shyamalan’s Apple TV+ show Servant premieres November 28. After remaining in relative obscurity after his first two comedic feature films went largely unnoticed, Shyamalan turned to the suspense/thriller genre and immediately found himself being praised for his 1999 film, The Sixth Sense.
The film’s tense, gloomy atmosphere and excellent twist may have made it all the rage at the tail end of the 1990’s, but Shyamalan, despite ongoing creative output and effort, has still not been able to recapture that same level of intrigue in his filmmaking since. This is not to say that the popular director hasn’t acquired a faithful following over the years, of course, and films like Signs, The Visit, Split and Glass have all created their own degree of buzz among critics and audiences alike. However, for all his work, Shyamalan seems to be in need of something new, a different direction or perhaps a new medium in which to try out more of the sort of suspense that got him noticed in the first place.
Fortunately, Shyamalan is one of the many talents that have found a home at Apple’s new subscription based streaming service, Apple TV+. His move to TV means that a new series, Servant, is on its way this fall, with the filmmaker taking on producing and directing duties. And, as a press release from Apple TV+ details, Servant will be premiering on the new service as of November 28. There’s also a new teaser trailer available below, the darkest yet of the four that have been released to date:
For those who have been following the progress of Servant, the official release date will likely come as a bit of a pleasant surprise. While Apple TV+ has been set for a November 1 release, Servant was not expected to premiere on that date as well. The horror/suspense series focuses on a mourning Philadelphia couple who have recently experienced an unspeakable tragedy. Now, as a result of that tragedy, a mysterious force has entered their home and caused a rift between them. The series wasn’t created by Shyamalan, but by BAFTA-nominated writer/producer, Tony Basgallop, and the cast includes Rupert Grint (Harry Potter franchise), Lauren Ambrose (Six Feet Under), Toby Kebbell (Kong: Skull Island) and Nell Tiger Free (Game of Thrones).
Given Shyamalan’s filmmaking history, some may feel cynical about the prospects of success for Servant. While that may be the case, Apple TV+’s low initial subscription price of $4.99 per month and its growing list of original programming will likely result in a healthy amount of viewers checking out what Servant has to offer. So far it seems that the show’s biggest secrets are being kept well under wraps, meaning there could be some classic Shyamalan style twists and turns awaiting us all.
