If you've ever dreamed of a socially anxious robot security guard becoming your new best friend – Apple has just the thing for you. And Alexander Skarsgård is ready to rip your heart out. Literally.
When Apple TV+ debuts a new series, it usually shakes the world. But this time, it seems like the universe is shaking too—and it's because Murderbot, a new science fiction series that will be available worldwide on May 16, 2025. It is an adaptation of the cult bestseller The Murderbot Diaries writers Martha Wells, which has won everything from the Hugo to the Nebula Award – and probably some unknown AI awards from the future.
What is this Murderbot?
This is not your typical story of robots saving humanity. Murderbot, played by the charismatic Alexander Skarsgård (and also executive produces it), is a self-sufficient, deadly protective unit that hates emotions and jealously guards its privacy, but by a strange coincidence, he feels (or at least simulates) an attachment to his human clients.
And when the world needs him, he needs... peace. And the remote controlBecause he prefers futuristic soap operas to saving human lives.
Directors who understand that humor is the best protocol
The brothers are behind the camera. Chris and Paul Weitz, known for films such as About a Boy and American Pie (yes, that's canon too). This time, however, they decided to take us to a dystopian future, where the question of identity is more relevant than ever before – especially if you're a machine that has written its own operating system.
Skarsgård is also joined by Noma Dumezweni, David Dastmalchian, Sabrina Wu, Akshay Khanna, Tattiawna Jones and Tamara Podemski – a cast that knows how to combine humor with tension, dialogue with ethical dilemmas, and action with existential crisis.
Why Murderbot could be your new Ted Lasso?
Because since its premiere in 2019, Apple TV+ has nailed the formula: great actors + great story + eerily realistic future = series we binge like we're going to run out of oxygen. And Murderbot is no exception. It's Ted Lasso with laser guns, Fleabag in a metal shell, Westworld, which decided enough was enough philosophizing.
The series consists of 10 episodes, the first two parts will be available on May 16th, and the rest every Friday until July 11th. So – plenty of time for it to become your new Friday night ritual. Unless, of course, you're on a mission to rescue colonists on the edge of the galaxy.
Conclusion: If Murderbot doesn't win your heart, it will at least open it
In a world where artificial intelligence has long since ceased to be a mere tool and is becoming a mirror of our greatest phobias (and fantasies), Murderbot is a fresh, brutal, and at the same time heartbreakingly strange reminder that it is those created without a soul who perhaps understand us the most.
With one difference – they are ashamed of it.
Murderbot will be available May 16, 2025 exclusively on Apple TV+ (source: tv.apple.com).
