From the looks of “Eric,” Abi Morgan has cooked up a stirring psychological thriller for Netflix. And for her latest limited series, the writer of Steve McQueen‘s 2011 film “Shame” returns to the Big Apple, but this is a much different NYC than that film.
Set in the 1980s New York strewn with corruption, racism, elevated crime rates, and the AIDS epidemic, “Eric” follows Benedict Cumberbatch‘s troubled puppeteer Vincent as he takes matters into his own hands to try and find his missing son, Edgar. Desperate to track Edgar down, Vincent turns to an unlikely source for help: his son’s favorite 7-foot-tall blue monster, named Eric.
Here’s an official synopsis for “Eric,” courtesy of Netflix:
Set in 1980s New York, Eric is a new emotional thriller from Abi Morgan following the desperate search of a father when his nine-year-old son disappears one morning on the way to school. Vincent, one of New York’s leading puppeteers and creator of the hugely popular children’s television show, ‘Good Day Sunshine,’ struggles to cope with the loss of his son, Edgar, becoming increasingly distressed and volatile. Full of self-loathing and guilt around Edgar’s disappearance, he clings to his son’s drawings of a blue monster puppet, Eric, convinced that if he can get Eric on TV then Edgar will come home. As Vincent’s progressively destructive behavior alienates his family, his work colleagues, and the detectives trying to help him, it’s Eric, a delusion of necessity, who becomes his only ally in the pursuit to bring his son home.
Along with Cumberbatch, “Eric” also stars Gaby Hoffmann, McKinley Belcher III, Dan Fogler, and Clarke Peters. Roberta Colindrez, Jeff Hephner, Wade Allain-Marcus, and Phoebe Nicholls round out the main cast.
Morgan writes and creates “Eric,” with Lucy Forbes directing all six episodes of the limited series. Holly Pullinger produces through Sister. Executive producers on the series include Morgan, Cumberbatch, Forbes, Jane Featherstone, and Lucy Dyke.
All six episodes of “Eric” premiere on Netflix on May 30. Watch a trailer for the limited series below.