Motherland: Fort Salem Gets Trailer and Premiere Date

Straight from their Television Critics Association press tour, Freeform has released the first official trailer for Motherland: Fort Salem, an alternate-history drama which asks the intriguing question, "What if the witches in Salem, Massachusetts cut a deal to stop their persecution?" The answer to that question is simple, the US Government has them serve in the military and use their magical abilities for protection and combat. An action-fueled show with a clear feminist edge, you can check out the trailer in the player below and look for the series when it premieres on March 18. The official description for Motherland: Fort Salem reads:

"Set in an alternate America where witches ended their persecution over 300 years ago by cutting a deal with the government to fight for their country, Motherland: Fort Salem follows three young women from basic training in combat magic into early deployment. In this world, the traditional roles of gender and power are flipped, with the more dominant women on the front lines fighting looming terrorist threats that are familiar to our world—but with supernatural tactics and weapons."

Written and created by Eliot Laurence, the series stars Ashley Nicole Williams, Jessica Sutton, Taylor Hickson, Demetria McKinney with Amalia Holm and Lyne Renee, most of whom were on hand at the show's TCA panel to open up about the series and its patriarchy smashing intentions.

"We talked a lot about what female sexuality looks like in the absence of patriarchy," Laurence said (via EW). "Their sexuality is not something that complicates their lives or labels them in any way. It informs their power."

"It was a lot of reinvention, taking what was meant to be bad and making it such a positive and powerful thing for us to build up and create this world," McKinney added. "It's so powerful. We're all harnessing power that has been taken away from us in a way by society. Sexuality, we use that for power. Everything has been flipped as far as the gender roles. It's so cool to be part of something so innovative."

Two details potential viewers will be interested to hear is that the word "magic" is never spoken in the series and also Anchorman team Will Ferrell and Adam McKay are executive producers on the project under their Gary Sanchez Productions banner.

Motherland: Fort Salem will debut on Freeform on Wednesday, March 18 at 9 PM ET. Will you check it out when it premieres? Sound off in the comments below!