With the rise of post-apocalyptic cinema at the turn of the century, humanity has gotten very good at depicting our own demise. We continue to be much worse at depicting the transitional period before complete collapse — and finding hope in the possibility that destruction is not a foregone conclusion. But if anyone understands that opportunity as a storyteller, it’s Scott Z. Burns, the screenwriter behind “Contagion” — a film that put humanity to the brink and walked us back — and the mind behind “Extrapolations,” an eight-episode Apple TV+ limited series that envisions a future on earth forever impacted by climate change.
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In the first trailer for “Extrapolations,” we see a vision of the future devastated by climate change. However, the hook of the series isn’t to show us far in the future, but to show what will happen in 15 years, then in 20, and 25, and so on. This, uh, extrapolation showcases how dangerous climate change is over time, as it’s likely not going to end in some Roland Emmerich-style cataclysmic event.
As with “Contagion,” Burns is best known for his collaborations with director Steven Soderbergh, serving as the screenwriter on other films like “Side Effects” and “The Laundromat.” With “Extrapolations,” Burns weaves together stories related to humanity’s future with climate change — the impact it will have on society and how people will be forced to adapt to an ever-changing planet. To tell his story, Burns has assembled an all-star cast, including — and seriously, this is just the tip of the iceberg — Meryl Streep, Marion Cotillard, Sienna Miller, Kit Harington, Daveed Diggs, Edward Norton, Tahar Rahim, Yara Shahidi, Matthew Rhys, and Gemma Chan.
If “Extrapolations” lives up to Burns’ already-impressive work as an author of speculative fiction, the show promises to be a conversation starter — to say the least — and a significant award-season contender. Regardless, the first three episodes in the eight-episode series will premiere on Apple TV+ on March 17.