Chiwetel Ejiofor plays an alien named Faraday in Man Who Fell to Earth trailer

Bill Nighy, Naomie Harris, and Chiwetel Ejiofor star in The Man Who Fell to Earth, Showtime's new series based on a 1963 novel.

Showtime has released the official trailer for its upcoming new sci-fi series, The Man Who Fell to Earth, starring Chiwetel Ejiofor as an alien who comes to Earth in hopes of saving the people on his home planet. It's a bold move, considering that the series is based on the classic 1963 novel by Walter Tevis, which already spawned an iconic film adaptation featuring rock star David Bowie.

(Spoilers for the 1963 novel and 1976 film below.)

Tevis' novel tells the story of a humanoid alien from a planet called Anthea, which is suffering from severe drought. Going by the name Thomas Jerome Newton, the alien travels to Earth in hopes of transporting the remnants of his people to our soggy orb. Thomas patents a bunch of advanced alien technology from his own planet and makes a fortune, with plans to use that wealth to construct spaceships for his people. He finds a friend and ally in a fuel technician named Nathan Bryce.

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