HBO Confirms ‘Westworld’ Will Debut This Fall

Ed Harris Westworld
Ed Harris in a scene from ‘Westworld’ (Photo by John P Johnson © 2015 HBO)

After a heavily publicized start of shooting and an even more talked about pause in production, Westworld is apparently going to be on HBO’s fall 2016 primetime lineup. The series, inspired by Michael Crichton’s 1973 Westworld film, comes from executive producer/writer/director Jonathan Nolan, writer/executive producer Lisa Joy, and executive producers J.J. Abrams, Jerry Weintraub, and Bryan Burk. In an interview with io9, Nolan explained the delays: “We came out of the gate very, very quickly, because we wanted to get on the air as early as possible, and so we started shooting with only a handful of episodes in hand. Nothing that I have done prepared me for the sheer avalanche [of production requirements]. The truth is, what we’re doing there is a 10-hour movie. It’s not really a TV series. When they say ‘It’s not TV, it’s HBO,’ they’re really not kidding.”

HBO also confirmed the half hour comedies Divorce with Sarah Jessica Parker, Insecure with Issa Rae, and High Maintenance with Ben Sinclair will premiere this fall.

Here’s HBO’s official descriptions of the new 2016 series:

Westworld – The one-hour drama series Westworld (ten episodes) is a dark odyssey about the dawn of artificial consciousness and the evolution of sin. Set at the intersection of the near future and the reimagined past, it explores a world in which every human appetite, no matter how noble or depraved, can be indulged. The cast includes Anthony Hopkins, Ed Harris, Evan Rachel Wood, James Marsden, Thandie Newton, Jeffrey Wright, Tessa Thompson, Sidse Babett Knudsen, Jimmi Simpson, Rodrigo Santoro, Shannon Woodward, Ingrid Bolsø Berdal, Ben Barnes, Simon Quarterman, Angela Sarafyan, Luke Hemsworth and Clifton Collins, Jr.


Divorce – The half-hour comedy series Divorce (ten episodes) stars Sarah Jessica Parker, who also serves as an executive producer, as Frances, a woman who suddenly begins to reassess her life and her marriage, and finds that making a clean break and a fresh start is harder than she thought. The show also stars Thomas Haden Church, Molly Shannon, Talia Balsam, Tracy Letts, Sterling Jerins and Charlie Kilgore. The pilot episode was written by Sharon Horgan and directed by Jesse Peretz. Divorce was created by Sharon Horgan and is executive produced by Paul Simms, Sarah Jessica Parker, Sharon Horgan, Alison Benson and Aaron Kaplan.

Insecure – The half-hour comedy series Insecure (eight episodes), starring Issa Rae, Yvonne Orji, Jay Ellis and Lisa Joyce, looks at the friendship of two black women and their uncomfortable experiences and racy tribulations. Created and executive produced by Issa Rae, the show is also executive produced by Prentice Penny, Melina Matsoukas, Michael Rotenberg, Dave Becky and Jonathan Berry. Larry Wilmore serves as a consultant.

High Maintenance – The half-hour comedy series High Maintenance (six episodes) follows a Brooklyn pot dealer who delivers to clients with neuroses as diverse as the city. The show stars Ben Sinclair as “The Guy,” a friendly pot dealer whose clients include an eccentric group of characters, revealing the dynamics of their lives. From the unexpected and offbeat to the predictable and mundane, the series provides a glimpse into the daily routines of the customers and how they light things up. Created and written by the married duo of Katja Blichfeld and Ben Sinclair, and executive produced by Katja Blichfeld, Russell Gregory and Ben Sinclair.