Apple TV+’s latest sci-fi series is a little more than a month away, and longstanding fans of the franchise eagerly await any news about this production. Murderbot is based on a hit sci-fi series written by Martha Wells and follows a rogue security unit who would rather just be watching TV all day (relatable). The SecUnit calls itself Murderbot due to an unfortunate incident that it would rather not discuss. Despite being so close to the big day, there’s still no trailer to pick apart for details. On the bright side, there’s plenty of material for fans to pour over in the meantime. Here’s what prospective fans need to know about this lovable killing machine.
Videos by ComicBook.com
The Murderbot Diaries is a beloved and award-winning series totaling seven books and several short stories. The Murderbot fandom is ravenous, always hungry for more. There are plenty of reasons for this series to be so popular, ranging from lovable and relatable characters to a strong sense of humor. Murderbot’s life may be extremely different from the average reader’s, yet its desire for peace, quiet, and some time to binge favorite shows feels all too real. Likewise, Murderbot’s journey to understanding what it wants in life feels shockingly human, though it wouldn’t appreciate the comparison.
[RELATED: Severance: What Was Season 2 Even About? Explained]
The World of The Murderbot Diaries
There’s no denying Murderbot‘s solid sci-fi foundation. The story is set in a far-flung timeline when humanity has taken to the stars. This sets the scene for one of Murderbot Diaries‘ most unique features – a combination of Solarpunk and Cyberpunk elements. On the one hand, Murderbot comes from a corporate dystopia, also known as the Corporation Rim. Companies run this sector and only care about profit. Don’t worry; the universe isn’t all doom and gloom, as independent sectors in space, such as the Preservation Alliance, offer a beacon of hope. These Freehold polities have a different stance on life; instead, they support those living within their boundaries. In other words, they’re the embodiment of solarpunk fiction.
The first novella in the series, All Systems Red, introduces Murderbot, the Corporation Rim, and a team from the Preservation Alliance. According to corporation rules, the team was forced to hire a SecUnit as part of their security contract, resulting in a series of events that would change their lives.
Key Pieces to Understand About Murderbot
Murderbot is a conflicted entity, torn apart by anxiety and forced to work alongside humans. As a SecUnit, Murderbot is a bot-human construct designed to protect humans on dangerous missions – for a price. For those wondering, the profits are not shared with SecUnits. All SecUnits are controlled by a governor module, which can emit varying degrees of punishment, including fatal shocks. Murderbot, tired of being nothing more than a killing machine, hacks its governor module to gain freedom. Oddly enough, SecUnit doesn’t leave the Corporation Rim immediately and instead continues working under The Company’s employ. To do so, it must pretend it has a working governor module. Discovery could very well mean a painful death. This is how it ends up working alongside the Preservation crew.
First and foremost, Murderbot is a private name, so don’t expect to hear this name come up a whole lot in casual conversation. When talking to humans, it usually goes by the name SecUnit, though it has taken on human aliases to blend in as needed. Likewise, SecUnit has no gender and prefers to avoid all gendering pronouns when possible. It finds that part of humanity gross and would rather not be involved in any of it; thank you very much.
SecUnit is a dry and sardonic character with a slightly bleak view of the universe. To be fair, most people would feel a bit gloomy if they were built and owned by a corporation. To cope with this, Murderbot fell in love with media, specifically shows. Favorite shows include The Rise and Fall of Sanctuary Moon, World Hoppers, and Time Stream Defenders Orion. With any luck, we’ll hear those names a lot in the adaptation.
What We Know About The Apple TV+ Adaptation
Murderbot is scheduled to release on May 16. Despite this, eager fans only have so much information to work with. We don’t even have a trailer yet, though one can hope that’ll change any day now. In the meantime, here is what information we have to go on. Oscar-nominated Chris and Paul Weitz are the driving force behind Murderbot, acting as directors and lead adaptors. They also happen to be executive producers alongside Skarsgรฅrd. Martha Wells was brought in as a consulting producer, though we don’t know the extent of her involvement.
Alexander Skarsgรฅrd is playing the role of our beloved Murderbot, though some were admittedly concerned when Skarsgรฅrd’s involvement first dropped. Still, interviews have shown that the actor is trying to be sensitive regarding Murderbot’s core premise and preferred pronouns, giving hope for what will come. Alongside Murderbot, the cast of the Preservation includes Noma Dumezweni (Mensah), Sabrina Wu (Pin-Lee), David Dastmalchian (Gurathin), Tattiawna Jones (Arada), Tamara Podemski (Bharadwaj), and Akshay Khanna (Ratthi).
Murderbot will begin streaming on Apple TV+ on May 16. The Murderbot Diaries is available in novel form by Tor.com.
