HBO Max just dropped the full trailer for their U.S. exclusive premiere of the BBC miniseries The Tourist, starring Jamie Dornan (Belfast, A Private War) as ‘The Man’ who, in the opening scene, runs off the road by a massive truck in the Australian wilderness. Following the accident, he wakes up in a hospital bed with no recollection of what happened before or who he is.

Throughout the series, he sets off on a journey to find out more about his identity and past and figure out why somebody wanted him dead and is still threatening his life. The trailer forecasts a stylish, harrowing ride with much unpredictability, numerous light-hearted moments, and action-packed sequences. Based on the first look, the show’s tone gives Fargo vibes with a hint of classic McDonagh, while the visuals are more in the vein of True Detective. Even in this short clip, the makers did not shy away from directly referencing the Coen brothers.

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Plot: What Can We Expect?

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BBC describes the show by saying, “The Tourist is full of shocking, surprising, funny and brutal turns. The Tourist is set in a world populated by quirky, enigmatic characters, and off-beat comedy punctuates high-stakes action. At its heart, however, is a story of self-discovery with a ticking time bomb underneath: as The Man starts to uncover the mystery of who he was, he’s also forced to ask who he is now – and fast. Will he unlock the secrets of his identity before those who are trying to kill him catch up with him?”

The Tourist is a genre-bending show combining mystery, action thriller, drama, and black comedy elements. The trailer looks somewhat dour and clunky in parts, but the creators stated several times that the show does not play things straight but peppers scenes with dry wit and pulse-pondering entertainment.

The trailer introduces a show with a fresh and vibrant tone, jokes elevated by much physical comedy, and awkward pauses. For fans of weird dark comedies, inappropriate humor, and twisted satires, The Tourist might turn out to be a true gem. Fingers crossed.

Cast and Crew

The six-episode limited series is co-produced by HBO Max, executive produced by Two Brothers Pictures’ Christopher Aird, Andrew Benson, Tommy Bulfin (BBC), and Chris Sweeney (Back to Life, Liar). Sweeney is also set to direct with Daniel Nettheim (Rush). Harry and Jack Williams (One of Us, Fleabag) wrote the scripts while Lisa Scott is also serving as a producer.

The Tourist stars Jamie Dornan, Danielle Macdonald (Dumplin, Paradise Hills), Shalom Brune-Franklin (Line of Duty, Road Kill), Damon Herriman (Mr. Inbetween, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood), Alex Dimitriades (Amazing Grace, The End), Ólafur Darri Ólafsson (Lady Dynamite, Journey), and Kamil Ellis (Clever Man, Nowhere Boys).

Dornan instantly felt he was on a journey with the character, saying, “I think I was sent the first three scripts and after one probably I was like yes, this is just when you think you have a grasp of what’s happening and what’s going to happen next and why this person is where he is at this given point that’s just turned on its head you know it is just you’re pinballed around the place from beat one of the show until the end of six hours you know that’s truly exciting and mad read. I didn’t even know what happened in the end, and I’d already committed.”

Dornan also told BFI he was excited by the many question marks regarding if ‘The Man’ was manipulated by other characters or if he was lying about what he knew and did not know. He said, “Getting to explore his own identity as it’s given to him that’s kind of rare and exciting, and it makes the process of taking on information, responding to it accordingly really fresh.”

Everything Else We Know

The show was filmed in South Australia and Flinders Ranges Mountain in the spring and summer of 2021. The outback of Australia is a character in itself. The openness and remoteness of the landscape, just like rural environments in general, lends itself as a great backdrop for sinister, twisted dramas. Some people tend to believe they can get away with things in remote places, anyway.

Dornan recounts shooting The Tourist as the toughest, longest, most physically most demanding projects of his entire career, but also fun, saying, “It was the hardest job I have ever done in my life, and it was the longest job I have ever done, and if you are going through something like that’s so long and hard physically hard to shoot if you’re not getting along with the people that you’re spending time with all day every day it’s going be the trickiest five months of your life. I got really lucky with those guys. They are just such a good bunch. My ethos going into everything is make the most of this, enjoy the days, enjoy the people, make friends, whatever happens after is totally out of your control.”

The Tourist will debut on HBO Max on March 3, 2022.