‘Utopia’ Review: Gillian Flynn’s Grim Adaptation Of The Cult British Series

The new Amazon Original series Utopia was released this September 25 on Prime Video. The new show about the conspiracy theory surrounding a flu epidemic was adapted by Gone Girl author Gillian Flynn and stars John Cusack and Sasha Lane. It is as violent as the original if somewhat slightly tamer.

Utopia is based on a cult British TV thriller that aired on Channel 4 in the U.K. in 2013. This bold original series was created and written by Dennis Kelly, and starred Alexandra Roach, Adeel Akhtar, Neil Maskell, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett and Fiona O’Shaughnessy. Marc Munden directed the first three episodes which set the visual tone of the whole series, with its vibrant colors and crude depiction of violence. The series was critically-acclaimed, but it also received many complaints from some viewers who found it too brutal and violent. Utopia was eventually cancelled after its second series in 2014, ending with a huge cliffhanger, because Channel Four claimed it didn’t attract a large enough number of viewers. Many fans since have campaigned for a third series or at least a one-off special that would bring resolution to the show, but to no avail.

There seems to have been a bigger interest for an “Americanized” remake of the show, rather than investing in the production of a third season. David Fincher was first set to direct the remake and work with Gillian Flynn for HBO, but the project was cancelled due to budgetary disputes. Amazon then picked it up, with Flynn still as the writer.

In this new version of Utopia, Gillian Flynn has done away with the original show’s unique graphic novel styling. The colors are much darker and grittier, giving the show a look of an imminent apocalypse looming. The iconic yellow bag that Arby carries around though is still there, but the original show’s catchphrase “Where is Jessica Hyde?” has vanished. Already from the first episode, Gillian Flynn’s adaptation is clearly different from the original British series.

This is the premise of Amazon’s version. When a group of comic book nerds, Wilson Wilson (Desmin Borges), Becky (Ashleigh LaThrop), Ian (Dan Byrd), Sam (Jessica Rothe), and Grant (Javon “Wanna” Walton), who have met on a fan forum on a graphic novel called “Dystopia”, find that the original unpublished manuscript of its sequel named “Utopia” has emerged and is on offer for the highest bidder at a comic convention, they all decide to meet and work together to attain the copy. They all believe “Dystopia” predicted many diseases that have afflicted society over the years, and are thus eager to find out what “Utopia” will presage.

They are, however, not the only ones after the manuscript. Soon though all who have been in contact with the manuscript are killed by two mysterious henchmen. A mysterious Jessica Hyde (Sasha Lane) comes to their rescue and persuades them that they must flee from these henchmen who work for a secret society called The Harvest if they want to stay alive. They discover that the manuscript may hold the key to ending an imminent pandemic and save the world.

If you’ve never seen the original British series, the new version will appear intriguing enough. It pales in comparison to the original, however. Dennis Kelly’s series is quirky, visually-striking and surprising. Gillian Flynn’s version, in contrast, has taken all of its originality out, and its very dark humor, with only the bare bones of the storyline intact and slightly less brutal violence. Flynn’s version resembles any other regular TV shows. One sequence which Flynn’s version has kept is the horrifying eye-gouging scene. If you compare the two, Kelly’s feels more stylized, brutal and scarier. The henchman’s distinctive white moccasins are also sadly missing in the new version. This may sound trivial, but this little detail, which subtly added a tinge of humor and character, exemplifies the major differences between the two shows.

The new Amazon series though boasts a great cast, with the introduction of new characters and plotlines, such as Sam played by Jessica Rothe, Rainn Wilson’s virologist Michael Stearns, and John Cusack’s influential entrepreneur Dr Kevin Christie and his controversial meat substitute development at his pharmaceutical company.

With everything that has happened this past year, the main plot of Utopia about a flu pandemic may feel strangely too close to home, especially with all the conspiracy theories that have been thrown around on social media in the past months. Utopia is, though, an enjoyable well-paced dark and still very violent conspiracy thriller, full of twists and pending danger.

Utopia is now on Amazon Prime Video. The two seasons of the original series is also available to stream on Amazon in the U.K.