Birds, bears, war and witches in new trailer for HBO’s His Dark Materials

We’re a month away from the premiere of His Dark Materials, HBO’s adaptation of author Philip Pullman’s trilogy of novels. Season 1 will be based on Pullman’s first book, The Golden Compass, which follows Lyra Belacqua (Dafne Keen) as she goes on a globetrotting adventure involving witches, armored polar bears, child abduction, zeppelins and talking animals aplenty. HBO has just dropped a new trailer for the show that dives deep into the darkness at the center of the story:

In Lyra’s world, every person has a dæmon, a representation of their soul that takes the form of a talking animal familiar. They make for some of the most interesting parts of the book. I’m particularly looking forward to seeing more of the Lee Scoresby’s hare demon Hester. She’s got some sass in her.

Scoresby, a Texan aeronaut and one of the many people who help Lyra in her journey, is played by Lin-Manuel Miranda. Ruth Wilson and James McAvoy play Mrs. Coulter and Lord Asriel, a couple of other key characters. And Joe Tandberg will voice the giant armored bear Iorek Byrnison. We cannot forget about Iorek Byrnison.

Lyra kicks off her battle with The Magisterium, the religious authority that controls her world, when His Dark Materials premieres on HBO on Monday, November 4.

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