CIVIL WAR

DC’s ‘DMZ’ Trailer: Rosario Dawson’s Badass Mom Charges Into a Warzone

Dystopia never looked as pretty—and as terrifying—as it does in the new HBO Max series based on the DC graphic novel about a mom's desperate, dangerous search for her son.

As The Batman finishes out a strong first weekend in theaters, DC is raising the bar yet again with another gritty metropolitan adaptation heading to HBO Max.

Taking a page out of thrillers like Prisoners and Searching, Rosario Dawson’s Alma is on the hunt for her missing child in the trailer for mini-series DMZ. Alma’s got her work cut out for her as she barrels down a version of New York that’s shockingly even more terrifying than the horrors of Times Square today. DMZ sees your off-brand Elmo and raises it…an actual cheetah?!

“What we had was so good,” the gruff lead laments in the clip. “What we had was family.” Such is the mournful cry of a vengeful mother, ready to reclaim her son and start afresh. There are a few barriers in the way, though: for one, Manhattan has been demilitarized, with crime on the rise and danger lurking around every corner. Fans of the recent HBO Max hit Station Eleven will enjoy the foliage-filled dystopia introduced by the streamer’s upcoming release. It’s the Golden Age of gorgeous post-apocalypses.

DMZ comes amidst a surge of critically acclaimed DC series on HBO Max, including Titans, Doom Patrol, and most recently, Peacemaker starring John Cena (a series that was a real win up until that cringe Ukraine tweet…). In 2019, HBO released the award-winning saga Watchmen from Damon Lindelof, based on the original comics of the same name. That’s a pretty sturdy track record for DMZ to follow in the path of.

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The four-part series, which is executive produced by Oscar nominee Ava DuVernay, is based on the DC graphic novel of the same name and will land on HBO Max later this month. Alongside a fuming Dawson, the saga will also star Benjamin Bratt in prime badguy hottie mode, as well as Hoon Lee, Freddy Miyares, Jordan Preston Carter, and Venus Ariel.

Emmy nominee Roberto Patino created DMZ, based on Brian Wood’s original comic book series that began in 2005. DuVernay will tag-team directorial duties with Ernest Dickerson.

Catch Dawson’s punches and other sweet action when DMZ releases on HBO Max on Thursday, March 17. All four episodes of the mini-series will land on the streamer at the same time, a win for those who have been tortured by the weekly rollout of shows like The Gilded Age and And Just Like That… (Those series share a similar target fanbase with DMZ, right?)

Fletcher PetersEntertainment Reporter

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