With all the buzz about UFOs—more recently dubbed “Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena,” or UAPs—coming from sources not involving shadowy Men in Black these days, it’s inevitable that a Netflix series was going to come along to capture the moment. Enter Encounters, which is produced in part by Amblin Television—a bona fide that one might interpret as meaning it’s E.T.-approved.
Spoilers of the Week | June 10th
Amblin Television, along with Boardwalk Pictures and VICE Studios, released a first trailer for Encounters today.
Here’s more about the series, courtesy of Netflix:
“Explosive new revelations from military whistleblowers of alien encounters, UFOs, and clandestine Pentagon programs, as well as coverage from major news sources, have breathed a fresh urgency into a topic that, for decades, we’ve relegated to the realm of conspiracy. Encounters, directed by Yon Motskin (Generation Hustle) and executive produced by Amblin Television, Emmy-winning Boardwalk Pictures and Vice Studios, is a landmark four-part series that travels the globe to explore four extraordinary true stories of encounters with otherworldly phenomena. Each cinematic and deeply-researched episode tells a single story: strange lights in the sky over small-town Texas; submersible space crafts haunting a coastal Welsh village; an alien encounter with schoolchildren in Zimbabwe; non-human intelligence reportedly interfering with a nuclear power plant in Japan.
As told from the perspective of firsthand experiencers—in the places where the sightings occurred—and guided by cutting-edge scientists and military personnel, the series goes beyond the science to highlight the profoundly human impact of these encounters on lives, families, and communities. A timely and timeless cosmic detective story, what will be revealed from this puzzle of seemingly unrelated encounters across different places, times, and cultures is a set of uncanny similarities, and one astonishing truth: extraterrestrial encounters are global, awe-inspiring, and unlike anything we’ve ever imagined.”
While there have been a lot of documentaries purporting to reveal the “truth” about UFOs—including beloved series like In Search Of… and Unsolved Mysteries—Encounters sounds like it’ll be thoughtfully crafted and hopefully will be something both skeptics and believers (and everyone in between) can enjoy. The four-episode series drops September 27 on Netflix.
Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
