Apple TV+ has a major new sci-fi show dropping this week

Dark Matter looks like some twisty fun

Dark Matter
(Image credit: Apple TV+)

Apple TV+ might not be the biggest service by subscriber numbers, but there are plenty of people out there ready to fly the flag for it as the best streaming service right now (indeed, it won the T3 Awards 2023 for Best Streaming Service).

It takes the "quality not quantity" approach to new content, but still gets new shows pretty regularly – with its latest dark sci-fi series starting to air on 8 May and bringing what looks like a nice twisty story to your screen. 

Dark Matter stars Joel Edgerton as Jason Dessen, a scientist working on parallel reality theories who seemingly finds himself kidnapped by himself from one of those other worlds. Sounds a little bit like Netflix's previous no.1 series, Bodies, which was a great watch. 

That's a trippy premise, and the show looks like it'll lean into that tone pretty heavily, with disorientation and multiverse theories key to the whole thing. You get more than a hint of it from the trailer, above, which is a must-watch. 

Dark Matter is based on a best-selling novel, which shouldn't come as a surprise given how cerebral it is, and shows again that Apple seems to have a real penchant for high-concept shows, given the likes of Severance, Constellation and Foundation, among others.

That's made Apple TV+ a destination for sci-fi fans, with Silo and For All Mankind rounding out the offering nicely, so here's hoping Dark Matter can join the best of them. Sci-fi is very much the flavour of 2024 so far, with lots of streaming services offering some great options, such as Fallout on Amazon.

Edgerton is the front man for the show, but Dark Matter also features Jennifer Connelly, Alice Braga, Jimmi Simpson, Dayo Okeniyi and Oakes Fegley, making for a rounded cast. 

On 8 May we'll get the first two episodes, then they'll come out weekly on a Wednesday, through to a finale on 26 June, so this is ideal if you're looking for a show you can't binge quite yet. It adds to the tension and ought to make for better viewing. 

Edgerton's character will seemingly go through some pretty mind-bending revelations as it all unfolds, and we're hyped to see how he plays more than one version of himself, which is always a fun challenge for an actor. 

Being Apple TV+, you can also expect really stellar production values, so it should look stunning in 4K and there's a very good chance it arrives with Dolby Atmos sound mixing – so if you don't have a great sound system, check out our list of the best soundbars for one-stop solution. 

Max Freeman-Mills

Max is a freelance writer with years of experience in tech and entertainment. He's also a gaming expert, both with the games themselves and in testing accessories and consoles, having flexed that expertise at Pocket-lint as a features editor. He has tested all manner of tech too, from headphones and speakers to apps and software.