Nikolaj Coster-Waldau has just locked in his next major small screen role as Dr. Richard Strand, a brilliant psychiatrist out to debunk infamous paranormal cases in The Black Tapes. MGM+ announced today via press release that its upcoming series will begin filming in Vancouver, Canada in January 2027 with Coster-Waldau in the lead role. It's not yet known who will play his partner in these investigations, a "relentless scientist" named Alex Regan, but with any luck the studio will lock down someone who can perfectly compliment the Game of Thrones' veteran's charismatic performance style.
The Black Tapes is based on the hit podcast of the same name, which has accumulated more than 60 million downloads since it began in 2015. Here's the official logline for the television show:
"Dr. Richard Strand, a brilliant psychiatrist with a mysterious past, teams with the obsessed, relentless scientist Alex Regan to debunk paranormal cases of hauntings, possessions, disappearances, and sinister legends - the infamous black tapes. But as Strand and Regan unravel the secrets of these events, they uncover a hidden occult world behind our own and must unravel a centuries-old apocalyptic conspiracy."
Coster-Waldau more than proved his range as an actor as Jaime Lannister on Game of Thrones, so I'm completely on board with him as a paranormal skeptic falling ever deeper down the rabbit hole, while his own demons pop up along the way. The Black Tapes is being produced by MGM+, with Kearie Peak of Peak Pictures and John Rogers and Jennifer Court of Kung Fu Monkey Production serving as executive producers. The writer-creators of the podcast, Terry Miles and Paul Bae, will also have roles as writers and executive producers for the television show.
“The Black Tapes crafts a compelling story around our cultural fascination with the unexplained, while delivering the cinematic, classic storytelling that MGM+ audiences expect," said Michael Wright, global head of MGM+, in a press release. "With Nikolaj's compelling presence and the creative vision of John Rogers, Kearie Peak and our talented production team, we’re excited to make something that is both provocative and hugely entertaining."
"I was an early and passionate fan of The Black Tapes podcast," said Rogers. "It's a unique blend of truly unsettling horror and puzzle-box conspiracy mystery. With Paul and Terry not just executive producing, but also in the writer’s room, we have a chance to both bring The Black Tapes to a new generation of genre fans and deepen and expand the mythos in ways that will surprise long-time supernatural horror fans."
“I’ve always been a sucker for a great conspiracy story, and The Black Tapes combines that irresistible investigative element with the supernatural horror our team knows so well—a perfect fit for MGM+,” said Peak. “Reuniting with John Rogers and Michael Wright is incredibly exciting, and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau is an inspired choice for Dr. Strand, bringing exactly the intelligence, complexity, and mystery the role demands. We couldn’t be more thrilled to have him aboard.”
When does The Black Tapes come out on MGM+?
With filming set for early 2027, there's a decent chance that The Black Tapes could premiere by October of that year to give MGM+ a strong spooky season show, or sometime in 2028 at the latest. MGM+ has often had a hard time breaking through in today's crowded streaming market, but recently that's starting to change with From, which has run for four seasons and is already renewed for a fifth and final outing. From is also a mind-bending paranormal show, and it's buzzy enough that the series recently made the leap to Netflix and shot to the top of the viewership charts there, exposing it to a whole new audience. Maybe The Black Tapes can hit on a similar vein?
We'll have our ear to the ground for more updates as production gets underway.
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