You might have clicked the headline to read this article because you saw that Apple TV+ is making a TV version of the film, “The Mosquito Coast.” While that is true, in theory, after watching the trailer for the series, it’s clear this is not the ‘Mosquito Coast’ that you were anticipating.
As seen in the trailer, Apple TV+’s newest drama, “The Mosquito Coast,” from creator Neil Cross, is still based on the source material from author Paul Theroux, but deviates quite a bit from Peter Weir’s 1986 film starring Harrison Ford. Instead of a story about a genius trying to create a new type of society in Central America, the series follows Justin Theroux (yes, the nephew of the original source material’s author) as he plays a genius on the run from the US government with his family in tow. As someone at The Playlist said after watching the trailer, the series feels like someone mixed a dash of “Ozark” in with the “Mosquito Coast” soup.
“I have a long history with the novel in that I read it as a kid, and this was one of those happy accidents where the stars aligned for me to do it,” said Theroux (via Deadline). “This is Allie seen through a different prism, you’ll see the evolution of this character in subsequent episodes. I responded to the few initial scripts.”
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The seven-episode limited series is being described as a prequel of sorts to the 1986 film. So, perhaps the series could cover the film’s territory in future seasons, but that would be putting the cart before the horse, so to speak. First, Apple TV+ has to make sure “The Mosquito Coast” is a series that people want to watch, right now.
“The Mosquito Coast” stars Theroux and Melissa George and debuts on Apple TV+ on April 30. You can watch the first trailer below.