'A Murder at the End of the World' Is a Terrifying Whodunit
Fans of The OA are still smarting from Netflix’s decision to cancel the show in 2019 after just two seasons, but the good news is that Brit Marling will soon be back on TV. She’s not doing another season of The OA, but she is once again teaming up with longtime collaborator Zal Batmanglij, who also worked with her on The OA, The East and Sound of My Voice.
The duo’s latest project, A Murder at the End of the World, is a psychological thriller set at a mysterious and extremely remote retreat hosted by a billionaire. When one of the attendees is found dead, another guest—who happens to be a hacker and a hobby detective—tries to prove that a murderer is in the group’s midst.
“We absolutely loved what Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij came to us with, which is radical reconceptualization of whodunit with a really, really original set of characters, particularly a really strong and original young woman at the center of the story whose backstory and present-day story form a strong emotional core,” FX Networks chairman John Landgraf said during the TCA Press Tour in 2021. “There obviously is a mystery [that] unfolds too. It’s a distinctive and unique show that is not that easy to produce.”
Landgraf didn’t offer any further plot details, but he noted that “a pretty good chunk of it is set in an ultra-luxury hotel adjacent to a glacier in a very forbidding northern place.” People do always say an icicle makes the perfect murder weapon!
Keep reading for everything to know about A Murder at the End of the World, including release date, cast and trailer details.
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What is A Murder at the End of the World about?
A Murder at the End of the World follows Darby Hart (Emma Corrin), an amateur sleuth and hacker who accepts an invitation to a retreat hosted by a mysterious billionaire named Andy (Clive Owen) and held in a frigid, remote location. When one of the other eight guests turns up dead, Darby tries to prove it was a murder before the killer can strike again.
Is there a trailer for A Murder at the End of the World?
FX released the official trailer for A Murder at the End of the World on September 7, 2023. “I sometimes wonder, would it have been better not to go?” Darby asks in a voiceover. “I think about it like a coin toss, when your life can go one way or another. When you’re trapped at the end of the world, there’s no going back.”
The clip also shows Andy welcoming the group, including a man who seems to be Darby’s boyfriend. One scene shows the attendees toasting each other over a luxurious meal, but other snippets in the tease—a car rolling down a hill, lots of blood—hint that this isn’t a run-of-the-mill vacation.
Who is in the Murder at the End of the World cast?
Emma Corrin (Darby Hart)
Emma Corrin is perhaps best known for playing a young Princess Diana in Season 4 of The Crown. In 2022, they starred alongside Harry Styles in My Policeman and appeared in a new Netflix adaptation of Lady Chatterley’s Lover. Next year, Corrin will star in Deadpool 3 and Robert Eggers’ new take on the classic vampire film Nosferatu.
Brit Marling (Lee)
In addition to co-creating, cowriting and co-directing the show, Brit Marling stars as Lee, one of the (possibly unlucky) people at the retreat. Marling previously co-created and starred in The OA, which ran for two seasons on Netflix. She also cowrote and starred in the films Sound of My Voice, The East and Another Earth.
Clive Owen (Andy)
Clive Owen plays the eccentric billionaire at the center of the fatal retreat. Most recently, he played former President Bill Clinton in Impeachment: American Crime Story. He’s also appeared in Lisey’s Story, The Knick, Gemini Man, Hemingway & Gellhorn and The Informer. In 2024, he’ll play iconic fictional detective Sam Spade in a new series titled Monsieur Spade.
Harris Dickinson (Bill Farrah)
Harris Dickinson, who plays Darby’s love interest, most recently starred in Where the Crawdads Sing and the Oscar-nominated Triangle of Sadness. In 2024, he’s set to appear in the wrestling biopic The Iron Claw alongside Zac Efron and Jeremy Allen White.
Alice Braga (Sian)
After wrapping up five seasons on Queen of the South, Alice Braga will play Sian on A Murder at the End of the World. Braga—who has also starred in The New Mutants and The Suicide Squad—is set to appear in the upcoming Apple TV+ adaptation of Dark Matter, based on Blake Crouch’s novel of the same name.
Jermaine Fowler (Martin)
Jermaine Fowler made a splash in 2021 as the long-lost son of Eddie Murphy’s King Akeem in Coming 2 America. He has also appeared in The Blackening, Superior Donuts and Sorry to Bother You.
Joan Chen (Lu Mei)
Twin Peaks obsessives will recognize Joan Chen as Josie Packard, the glamorous heiress to the Packard Mill. She has remained a prolific actor in both the U.S. and her native China, appearing in Marco Polo, Serangoon Road, Fringe and Lust, Caution. She also starred as Madame Chiang Kai-Shek in Hemingway & Gellhorn alongside Murder at the End of the World costar Clive Owen.
Raúl Esparza (David)
While theater kids will always remember Raúl Esparza for his Tony-winning performance in the 2006 Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim’s Company, he’s also active on TV, starring in 2022’s Candy and 2021’s Dopesick. His other credits include Hannibal, The Path and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.
The cast also includes Edoardo Ballerini, Pegah Ferydoni, Ryan J. Haddad, Javed Khan, Daniel Olson, Britian Seibert, Christopher Gurr, Louis Cancelmi, Kellan Tetlow and Neal Huff.
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How many episodes are in A Murder at the End of the World?
A Murder at the End of the World will include seven episodes.
What is the Murder at the End of the World release date?
The first two episodes of A Murder at the End of the World are set for release on Nov. 14, 2023, with the remaining episodes to air weekly through Dec. 19. (The show was originally set to premiere on Aug. 29, 2023, but was delayed because of the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes.)
How to watch A Murder at the End of the World
As an FX on Hulu show, A Murder at the End of the World will be exclusively available to stream via Hulu. Even though it’s produced by FX, it won’t air on the channel on linear TV.
Will A Murder at the End of the World come to Netflix?
As a Hulu exclusive, it’s not likely that A Murder at the End of the World will stream via Netflix—at least not for a while after the full series debuts on Hulu.
