Created by award-winning filmmakers Baran bo Odar and Jantje Friese, who received considerable acclaim for their 2014 thriller Who Am I?, the series will chronicle the events surrounding the disappearance of a pair of children in a German town. As the investigation into their disappearance progresses, it exposes the dark secrets of several families involved with the children, as well as a supernatural connection to the town that spans more than three decades.
“The disappearance of two kids in the German small-town of Winden opens abysses that turn the concept of time on its head,” reads the official synopsis for the series. “The question is not who has kidnapped the children … but when.”
The series was first announced more than a year ago, with Netflix’s vice president of international originals, Erik Barmack, describing Dark as “an incredible German story that will appeal to a global audience.”
Dark is the first Netflix original series to be written, filmed, and produced entirely in Germany, with a large cast of German locals appearing in the series. The first season of the series will consist of 10 hour-long episodes. Among the officially announced cast members are German actors Louis Hofmann (Land of Mine), Oliver Masucci (Look Who’s Back), Jördis Triebel, Maja Schöne, Sebastian Rudolph, Anatole Taubman (Quantum of Solace), Mark Waschke, Karoline Eichhorn, Stephan Kampwirth, Anne Ratte-Polle, Andreas Pietschmann, Lisa Vicari, Angela Winkler, and Michael Mendl (Downfall).
“To be part of the family that brought amazing shows like House of Cards and Bloodline to its audience is a huge honor,” Odar said in February 2016 when the series was first announced.
Dark premiered at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival and will debut December 1 on Netflix.