Warning! Minor spoilers ahead for Dark Matter episodes 1 – 5.
Summary
Dark Matterauthor and show creator Blake Crouch reveal the one scene that the series does better than his source material. Premiering at the beginning of May on Apple TV+,Dark Matterfollows Joel Edgerton’s Jason as he is transported against his will into an alternate version of his life. The show adapts the events of Crouch’s 2016 novel of the same name, which was met with a generally positive reception. Apple TV+‘sDark Matterreviewshave also been mostly positive, with critics generally enjoying the dense sci-fi thriller.
In a recent interview withVariety, Crouch touches on one plot point in hisDark Matterbook that didn’t make it into his adaptation. According to the creator,the scene in the book in which Jason encounters a different version of himself in The Box, which features an endless corridor of doors to different realities, isnt scientifically possible. Check out Crouch’s explanation for the cut below:
There is one thing, but it wasn’t left out because it was a darling, it was left out because when I spoke to my scientific advisor, I realized it never should have been in the book in the first place. There’s a moment where Jason is in The Box walking in the corridor alone and he sees this figure – it’s a version of him and he’s naked and all cut up. And I realized that’s actually impossible. That was the only thing I corrected from the book.
If you open the door and step into The Box and you close the door, you’re in superposition. What we see inside the box is a manifestation of a five-dimensional probability space from inside the minds of the people who step into The Box. So to have someone else in the corridor — where does that other Jason come from? Don’t get me wrong, it looks cool, and we had a lot of conversations about putting it in. But it ultimately didn’t make sense.
Dark Matter’s Dense Science Fiction Is A Major Strength
Apple TV+ Is The New Home For Smart Sci-Fi
In recent years,Apple TV+ has become known for its sci-fi originals. Shows likeDark Matter,FoundationandFor All Mankindare big-budget endeavors, and they don’t shy away from bold creative swings. These shows lean into science, where appropriate, to create stories that make viewers think while still remaining accessible.
Foundationseason 3is confirmed to be on the way, in addition toFor All Mankindseason 5.
Dark Matter’sRotten Tomatoesscore currently sits at a respectable 80%. The audience score, however, is a little lower at 69%. Evidently, not all the storytelling choices inDark Matterare working for all viewers, and the show has caught some flak for dragging out its central mystery across too many episodes. But in an age where so much entertainment, particularly movies and TV shows that go straight to streaming, feel disposable or built for “second-screening,“it’s refreshing to see a show take itself and its sci-fi premise so seriously.
The fact that Crouch left outDark Matter’s scene of Jason inside The Boxencountering his alternate self, despite its power in the book, speaks to his approach to the whole show. While another project may have leaned into more moments of pure spectacle or these more shocking scenes, Crouch’s show is content to maintain a grounded sci-fi approach. It’s unclear ifDark Matterwill be getting a season 2, but season 1 has evidently joined the roster of strong Apple TV+ sci-fi projects.
Dark Matter
Cast
Dark Matter (2024): Jason Dessen is thrust into an alternate reality where he must confront an ominous version of himself. His quest to return to his original life leads him on a challenging journey to reunite with his family, navigating the complexities of parallel existences.
