Everyone ‘running away from something’ in wild Apple TV+ Shantaram trailer

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Feeling hunted and reckless? Welcome to 1980s Bombay.
Feeling hunted and reckless? Welcome to 1980s Bombay.
Photo: Shantaram

Looking for romance, adventure and more than a little life-threatening danger? That’s easy, just head to Bombay in the 1980s. Apple TV+ offered first-look images and an action-packed trailer Wednesday for the upcoming series Shantaram. It ticks all those boxes.

The 12-episode first season starring Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy) debuts October 14. Watch the trailer below.

Shantaram trailer shows fugitive disappearing into chaos of 1980s Bombay

Based on the bestselling novel by Gregory David Roberts, Shantaram follows an Australian fugitive named Lin Ford (Hunnam). He’s looking to get lost in vibrant and chaotic 1980s Bombay (now Mumbai).

Alone in an unfamiliar city, Ford struggles to avoid the trouble he’s running from — a prison escape after conviction for bank robberies — and find some sort of redemption in this new place.

“After falling for an enigmatic and intriguing woman named Karla, Lin must choose between freedom or love and the complications that come with it,” Apple TV+ said. And it looks like he makes a few friends in the trailer that may be difficult to leave, not to mention enemies who may not let him live.

“Everyone here is running away from something,” intones Karla in the video. “Trust me, it doesn’t work.”

“I guess I need to be running toward something,” Ford replies, after several intervening action scenes. “Not away from it.”

The first three episodes of Shantaram’s 12-episode first season air on Friday, October 14, on Apple TV+. One new episode follows weekly every Friday through December 16.

It’s impressive the epic series got made, with the book’s story seeming to some to be too big for the small screen (or maybe any screen). Previous attempts have failed, and this production saw its own difficulties along the way.

Sprawling city, sprawling cast

In addition to Hunnam, the series also stars — deep breath — Shubham Saraf, Elektra Kilbey, Fayssal Bazzi, Luke Pasqualino, Antonia Desplat, Alyy Khan, Sujaya Dasgupta, Vincent Perez, David Field, Alexander Siddig, Gabrielle Scharnitzky, Elham Ehsas, Rachel Kamath, Matthew Joseph and Shiv Palekar.

The series is co-created, written and executive produced by Steve Lightfoot, who also serves as showrunner. Bharat Nalluri directs and executive produces. Andrea Barron, Nicole Clemens, Steve Golin and Justin Kurzel also executive produce along with Eric Warren Singer, who co-created the series.

Shantaram is produced for Apple by Paramount Television Studios and Anonymous Content’s AC Studios.

Could it be another hit for Apple TV+?

Should the viewing public be in the mood for romantic adventure series that looks like it may have an edge (an in the odd knife in the guts in a dark corner of Bombay), Apple could have another hit on its hands.

Apple Original series, films and documentaries have now been honored with 275 wins and 1,152 award nominations and counting, Apple said. That includes this year’s Best Picture win at the Oscars for CODA, which made Apple TV+ the first streaming service to win that award.

Apple TV+ is available by subscription for $4.99 per month with a seven-day free trial, or via any tier of the Apple One subscription bundle.

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