'The Right Stuff': Release date, plot, cast, trailer and all you need to know about the space race series
America's obsession with its heroes is as deeply embedded into its culture as is its inexhaustible need to explore new frontiers. Both drives combine in 'The Right Stuff,' based on the Tom Wolfe novel of the same name, as America's first reality television series selects the first astronauts to make it into space. Stay tuned to this space for news, updates, cast information, release dates and trailers for this gritty look at the Mercury Seven.
Release date
'The Right Stuff' has no release date yet, but is set to premiere on Disney+ this Fall.
Plot
According to Deadline, where the series was first announced, "The show takes a gritty, anti-nostalgic look at what would become America’s first reality show as the obsessive original Mercury Seven astronauts and their families become instant celebrities in a competition that will either kill them or make them immortal. The one-hour drama will follow the protagonists from the Mojave Desert to the edges of space, with future seasons carrying through to humankind’s greatest achievement: the moon landing."
Successive seasons will follow the show's crew past the scope of Tom Wolfe's original book and head out into the stars for their first forays into space.
Cast
Patrick J Adams
Patrick J Adams plays Major John Glenn, the first American to orbit the Earth. Adams is known for his roles on 'Suits,' 'Sneaky Pete,' and 'Old School.'
Nora Zehetner
Nora Zehetner plays Annie Glenn, the wife of astronaut John Glen and an advocate for awarness regarding speech impediments in children. Zehetner is known for her roles in 'Creative Control,' 'Designated Survivor,' and in another series involving the lives of astronauts; 'The Astronauts Wives Club.'
Jake McDorman
Jake McDorman plays Lieutenant Commander Alan Shepard, the first man in space, as well as one of the few astronauts to walk on the moon in 1971. McDorman is known for his roles on 'What We Do in the Shadows,' 'Limitless' and 'Live Free or Die Hard.'
The series also stars Colin O’Donoghue as Captain Gordon Cooper, Michael Trotter as Gus Grissom, Aaron Staton as Wally Schirra, Micah Stock as Deke Slayton, James Lafferty as Scott Carpenter, Shannon Lucio as Louise Shepard, Eloise Mumford as Trudy Cooper, Eric Ladin as Chris Kraft, and Patrick Fischler as Bob Gilruth
Creators/Showrunner
From Leonardo DiCaprio’s Appian Way and Warner Horizon Scripted Television, Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Davisson are executive producers; Mark Lafferty (“Castle Rock,” “Halt and Catch Fire”) is executive producer and showrunner.
Trailer
Disney+ and NatGeo released their first trailer for the series on May 5, 2020, which you can watch below.
Speaking in the trailer for the NatGeo/Disney+ series, showrunner and former Halt and Catch Fire producer Mark Lafferty says: "Any good story isn't just applicable to the time it takes place. When we put our minds to something as human beings, we have done things that might seem unachievable. Innovation, aspiration...that's a big part of the reason we want to tell this story now."
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