Benedict Cumberbatch in first look at Netflix's Eric, from The Split creator
Cumberbatch stars alongside a puppet monster in the new thriller series.
Abi Morgan, creator of BBC's The Split, is behind brand-new thriller series Eric, starring Benedict Cumberbatch – and we've now got our first look at the actor in the series.
The series is set in 1980s New York, and follows Cumberbatch's Vincent, a puppeteer and creator of the popular children’s television show, Good Day Sunshine. When his nine-year-old son Edgar disappears one morning on the way to school, Vincent struggles to cope and becomes increasingly volatile.
The show's synopsis says: "Full of self-loathing and guilt around Edgar’s disappearance, he clings to his son’s drawings of a blue monster puppet, Eric, convinced that if he can get Eric on TV then Edgar will come home.
"As Vincent’s progressively destructive behaviour alienates his family, his work colleagues, and the detectives trying to help him, it’s Eric, a delusion of necessity, who becomes his only ally in the pursuit to bring his son home."
In one of the first-look images, Vincent is seen stressed and dishevelled, while another of the images sees him looking intently at something in a workshop.
Meanwhile, a third image sees him on the train, sat next to his son Edgar.
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Cumberbatch spoke about the series alongside Morgan at the Next on Netflix UK event last week, where he said of the series: "It's pretty unusual. The part of it, I just hadn't read anything like it, and Abi builds the most extraordinarily detailed and fully realised world.
"So she's a walking bible for what is an endless series of questions when you're reading about a mental collapse manifesting in the way it does.
"But it is rooted in a lot of real world issues. And I think looking at parenthood, looking at marriage, looking at mental health, looking at the AIDS pandemic then, but also the ongoing crises of homophobia, racism in institutions.
"There's a lot going on and yet it does speak to our world. It's not cramming stuff in that we're not sadly all too familiar with."
He continued: "And it just takes you on one of the most unusual journeys through my character's involvement that I've ever read. So I was hooked."
The series also stars Gaby Hoffman, McKinley Belcher III, Dan Fogler and Clarke Peters.
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Eric is coming to Netflix on Thursday 30th May 2024. Sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.
Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on.
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Authors
James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.
