With the green light for an animated Warhammer 40,000 series of its own, Amazon MGM Studios is expanding its foothold in the grimdark universe. The long-form undertaking is a direct spinoff stemming from the video game anthology Secret Level and will have the Deathwatch, that elite body of space marines who specialize in hunting alien threats, at its centre.
Viewers can expect the show to get to the heart of the lore with the likes of director Dave Wilson and John Orloff (of Band of Brothers and Masters of the Air) at the helm, not to mention Henry Cavill as executive producer and one of the franchise’s most vocal proponents. The animated project will run parallel to the live-action version Amazon has in the works, a multi-platform move of some magnitude for the venerable Games Workshop tabletop property.
There is an element of risk management and fine world-building in the decision to launch an animated series before the live-action project arrives on screens. While a dense sci-fi property might be hamstrung by the cost of alien visual effects or other budgetary considerations in live-action, animation is a medium in which the grotesque beauty and scale of the 41st millennium can be showcased unencumbered. It is a two-pronged strategy, ably steered by Henry Cavill and such old hands as Blur Studio, that should provide a point of entry for those new to Warhammer and the kind of no-nonsense, bolter-heavy narrative the die-hards want.
Diving Into the Deathwatch
For those unfamiliar, the Deathwatch are not your run-of-the-mill Space Marines. They are a black ops unit for taking on xenos, drawn from chapters across the Imperium. An episodic format is well suited to such a premise, permitting all manner of team interplay and confrontations with the galaxy’s more fearsome denizens, Tyranids and Necrons included.
As for the creative side of things, the talent on board gives the project serious credibility. Orloff has a proven track record with historical military drama and the sort of brotherhood one finds among the Adeptus Astartes. Wilson brings his considerable experience in vfx and animation to bear on the gothic setting and the brutal choreography of the combat. And with Cavill remaining hands-on, fans can rest assured that the source material is being shown the proper respect.