Philip Pullman is the kind of author who always comes up in conversations for one very good reason: he created a whole new other world for everyone to enjoy.

And now that world will be brought to life on the small screen.

The His Dark Materials trilogy (Northern Lights, The Subtle Knife, and The Amber Spyglass) follows the characters of Lyra Belacqua and Will Parry as they enter parallel universes. Their story is set to light up our screens in the not-so-distant future, and the people behind the TV adaptation are so sure of its success that a second season has already been confirmed.

Here’s everything that we know so far, including a look at the first trailer. 

Who’s involved?

Filmed in Wales and co-produced by the HBO and BBC, the show is believed to be one of the biggest in scope and most expensive British dramas to date.

Written by Jack Thorne (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child) and directed by Tom Hooper, both seasons will also be eight episodes long.

The cast line-up

Of course, the cast is a good as you’d imagine: Clarke Peters, Ariyon Bakare, Will Keen, Ian Gelder, Georgina Campbell, Lewin Lloyd, Lucian Msamati, James Cosmo, Daniel Frogson, Tyler Howitt, Ruta Gedmintas and Mat Fraser. They star along with a few big names, too.

James Mcavoy as Lord Asriel

Dafne Keen as Lyra Belacqua

Ruth Wilson as Mrs Coulter

Lin-Manuel Miranda as Lee Scoresby

Watch the first trailer for Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials

Debuting at Comic-Con 2019, the BBC and HBO finally unveiled the full trailer for the epic fantasy. As predicted, there’s plenty of magic and intrigue, as we see Lord Asriel declaring that there is “a war raging right now with the Magesterium”, inviting a hall of men around him to “stand with me” in the fight for truth and freedom.

We also see an adventuring Lyra Belacqua being gifted the alethiometer by Dr. Carne (played by Clarke Peters), a mysterious truth-telling device, as well as a wicked Mrs Coulter ominously warning that “sometimes children can just disappear.”

There’s also a first glimpse at Lyra’s daemon Pantalaimon, Lord Asriel’s snow leopard Stelmaria, and Mrs Coulter’s menacing golden monkey, manifestations of the human soul in animal form. Elsewhere, there’s a brief appearance from the iconic armoured polar bear, Iorek Byrnison, an exiled warrior who pledges to help Lyra on her quest to rescue her friends and fight against the evil forces.

Watch the full extended trailer below:

Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials release date

His Dark Materials will be be released on the BBC in the autumn and via HBO in the US. 

Images: Instagram / Getty