''V Wars'' is a 2019 American
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imagination, imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, Paral ...
horror
Horror may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Genres
*Horror fiction, a genre of fiction
**Japanese horror, Japanese horror fiction
** Korean horror, Korean horror fiction
*Horror film, a film genre
*Horror comics, comic books focusing on ...
streaming television series based on the
anthology series of the same name and
comic book
A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. ...
by
Jonathan Maberry
Jonathan Maberry (born May 18, 1958) is an American suspense author, anthology editor, comic book writer, magazine feature writer, playwright, content creator and writing teacher/lecturer. He was named one of the Today's Top Ten Horror Writers.
...
. The series stars
Ian Somerhalder
Ian Joseph Somerhalder (born December 8, 1978) is an American actor. He is known for playing Boone Carlyle in the TV drama ''Lost'', Damon Salvatore in The CW's supernatural drama ''The Vampire Diaries'', and Dr. Luther Swann in Netflix's sci- ...
,
Adrian Holmes
Adrian Holmes (born March 31, 1974) is a Canadian actor. He is known for his work on the Bravo television series '' 19-2'', for which he won a Canadian Screen Award in 2017. He is also known for playing the role of Uncle Phil in the ''Fresh Pri ...
, Jacky Lai,
Kyle Breitkopf
Kyle Breitkopf is a Canadian born actor who appears in film and television. His first motion picture role was as Barker Simmons in the 2012 feature film '' Parental Guidance'', which earned him a Young Artist Award nomination as Best Supporting ...
,
Peter Outerbridge
Peter Outerbridge (born June 30, 1966) is a Canadian actor, best known for his role as Ari Tasarov in the CW action series ''Nikita'', Dr. David Sandström in the TMN series ''ReGenesis'', Henrik "Hank" Johanssen in ''Orphan Black'', Bob Corbett ...
, Kimberly-Sue Murray and
Sydney Meyer
Sydney M. Meyer (born 15 September 1995) is a Canadian actress. She starred in the Netflix series ''V Wars'' and Shudder’s '' Slasher: Flesh & Blood''. Her other television work includes the third season of the Freeform series ''Shadowhunters ...
. It premiered on
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...
on December 5, 2019.
The series was canceled after one season, in March 2020.
Synopsis
''V Wars'' follows the story of the physician/scientist Dr. Luther Swann, and his best friend Michael Fayne, as they face the evolving crisis of a deadly outbreak that fractures society into opposing factions, potentially escalating to a future war between humans and vampires. The outbreak is caused by an ancient biological infectious agent, a prion, that turns humans into vampires, released from ice by
climate change
In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...
.
In the conflict, the vampire faction, called Blood, is opposed by the elements of the government, such as Calix Niklos (
Peter Outerbridge
Peter Outerbridge (born June 30, 1966) is a Canadian actor, best known for his role as Ari Tasarov in the CW action series ''Nikita'', Dr. David Sandström in the TMN series ''ReGenesis'', Henrik "Hank" Johanssen in ''Orphan Black'', Bob Corbett ...
) who plots with anti Blood senator Smythe (
Ted Atherton
Ted Atherton is a Canadian actor. He is best known as Myles Leland III in the TV series '' Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye''.
Early life
He moved with his family to Scarborough, Ontario when he was 13. He went to the University of Toronto and obtained a ba ...
).
Cast and characters
Main
*
Ian Somerhalder
Ian Joseph Somerhalder (born December 8, 1978) is an American actor. He is known for playing Boone Carlyle in the TV drama ''Lost'', Damon Salvatore in The CW's supernatural drama ''The Vampire Diaries'', and Dr. Luther Swann in Netflix's sci- ...
as Dr. Luther Swann
*
Adrian Holmes
Adrian Holmes (born March 31, 1974) is a Canadian actor. He is known for his work on the Bravo television series '' 19-2'', for which he won a Canadian Screen Award in 2017. He is also known for playing the role of Uncle Phil in the ''Fresh Pri ...
as Michael Fayne
*
Laura Vandervoort
Laura Dianne Vandervoort (born September 22, 1984) is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her roles as Sadie Harrison in the CTV teen drama series '' Instant Star'', Arla "The Bolt-Gun Killer" Cogan in the Syfy supernatural drama series ' ...
as Mila Dubov
*Kimberly-Sue Murray as Danika Dubov
*
Sydney Meyer
Sydney M. Meyer (born 15 September 1995) is a Canadian actress. She starred in the Netflix series ''V Wars'' and Shudder’s '' Slasher: Flesh & Blood''. Her other television work includes the third season of the Freeform series ''Shadowhunters ...
as Ava O'Malley
*
Michael Greyeyes
Michael Greyeyes (born June 4, 1967) (Muskeg Lake Cree Nation) is an Indigenous Canadian actor, dancer, choreographer, director, and educator.
In 1996, Greyeyes portrayed Crazy Horse in the television film ''Crazy Horse''. In 2018, Greyeyes por ...
as Jimmy Saint
*Jacky Lai as Kaylee Vo
*
Kyle Breitkopf
Kyle Breitkopf is a Canadian born actor who appears in film and television. His first motion picture role was as Barker Simmons in the 2012 feature film '' Parental Guidance'', which earned him a Young Artist Award nomination as Best Supporting ...
as Desmond "Dez" Swann
*
Peter Outerbridge
Peter Outerbridge (born June 30, 1966) is a Canadian actor, best known for his role as Ari Tasarov in the CW action series ''Nikita'', Dr. David Sandström in the TMN series ''ReGenesis'', Henrik "Hank" Johanssen in ''Orphan Black'', Bob Corbett ...
as Calix Niklos
*
Kandyse McClure
Candice McClure (born 22 March 1980), known professionally as Kandyse McClure, is a Canadian actress. She is known for her roles as Anastasia Dualla in the SyFy series '' Battlestar Galactica'' and as Dr. Clementine Chasseur in the Netflix ser ...
as Claire O'Hagan
Recurring
*
Emmanuel Kabongo
Emmanuel Kabongo (born December 25, 1986) is a Canadian actor and producer. Born and raised in Zaire before it became the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kabongo immigrated to Canada with his family in the 1990s. He began his acting career as ...
as Jack Fields
*
Jessica Harmon
Jessica Harmon (born December 27, 1985) is a Canadian actress and director. She portrayed Esrin in the Syfy science fiction web series '' Battlestar Galactica: The Face of the Enemy'' (2008–2009), FBI Agent Dale Bozzio in the CW supernatural ...
as Jess Swann
*
Greg Bryk
Gregory Michael Bryk (born 19 August 1972) is a Canadian film and television actor. He has appeared in numerous films and television series and is best known for his reoccurring roles in ''ReGenesis'' (2004–2008), '' XIII: The Series'' (20 ...
as Bobby
*Teddy Moynihan as Jergen Weber
*
Ted Atherton
Ted Atherton is a Canadian actor. He is best known as Myles Leland III in the TV series '' Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye''.
Early life
He moved with his family to Scarborough, Ontario when he was 13. He went to the University of Toronto and obtained a ba ...
as Elegabulus
*Jonathan Higgins as General Aldous May
*Samantha Liana Cole as Theresa
*
Laura de Carteret
Laura de Carteret is a Canadian actress from St. Catharines, Ontario. She is most noted for her recurring role as Janet in the television series ''Seed'', for which she was a Canadian Screen Award nominee for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Se ...
as Senator Sasha Giroux
*Bo Martyn as Detective Elysse Chambers
*
Nikki Reed
Nicole Houston Reed (born May 17, 1988) is an American actress known for her portrayal of vampire Rosalie Hale in ''The Twilight Saga'' (2008–2012). She became known in 2003, after the release of the film '' Thirteen'', directed by Catherine ...
as Rachel Swann
Episodes
Production
Development
On April 16, 2018, it was announced that
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a ...
had given the production a series order for a first season consisting of ten episodes.
The series was created by William Laurin and Glenn Davis, who are credited as the showrunners and executive producers of the series. Additional executive producers were set to include Brad Turner, Eric Birnberg, Thomas Walden, David Ozer,
Ted Adams and James Gibb.
Production companies involved with the series include High Park Entertainment and
IDW Entertainment
IDW Publishing is an American publisher of comic books, graphic novels, art books, and comic strip collections. It was founded in 1999 as the publishing division of Idea and Design Works, LLC (IDW), itself formed in 1999, and is regularly rec ...
.
Netflix canceled the series after one season, on March 30, 2020.
Casting
In April 2018,
Ian Somerhalder
Ian Joseph Somerhalder (born December 8, 1978) is an American actor. He is known for playing Boone Carlyle in the TV drama ''Lost'', Damon Salvatore in The CW's supernatural drama ''The Vampire Diaries'', and Dr. Luther Swann in Netflix's sci- ...
was cast in the role of Dr. Luther Swann.
In June 2018,
Adrian Holmes
Adrian Holmes (born March 31, 1974) is a Canadian actor. He is known for his work on the Bravo television series '' 19-2'', for which he won a Canadian Screen Award in 2017. He is also known for playing the role of Uncle Phil in the ''Fresh Pri ...
, Jacky Lai and
Peter Outerbridge
Peter Outerbridge (born June 30, 1966) is a Canadian actor, best known for his role as Ari Tasarov in the CW action series ''Nikita'', Dr. David Sandström in the TMN series ''ReGenesis'', Henrik "Hank" Johanssen in ''Orphan Black'', Bob Corbett ...
joined the main cast. In July 2018,
Laura Vandervoort
Laura Dianne Vandervoort (born September 22, 1984) is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her roles as Sadie Harrison in the CTV teen drama series '' Instant Star'', Arla "The Bolt-Gun Killer" Cogan in the Syfy supernatural drama series ' ...
,
Kyle Breitkopf
Kyle Breitkopf is a Canadian born actor who appears in film and television. His first motion picture role was as Barker Simmons in the 2012 feature film '' Parental Guidance'', which earned him a Young Artist Award nomination as Best Supporting ...
and Kimberly-Sue Murray were cast in the series.
Filming
Principal photography
Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production.
Personnel
Besides the main film personnel, such as a ...
began in
Sudbury Sudbury may refer to:
Places Australia
* Sudbury Reef, Queensland
Canada
* Greater Sudbury, Ontario (official name; the city continues to be known simply as Sudbury for most purposes)
** Sudbury (electoral district), one of the city's federal e ...
and
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge beca ...
, Ontario in the end of June 2018. Principal photography wrapped in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...
in October 2018.
Releases
Anthology series
There have been four anthologies, edited by Jonathan Maberry and published by
IDW Publishing
IDW Publishing is an American publisher of comic books, graphic novels, art books, and comic strip collections. It was founded in 1999 as the publishing division of Idea and Design Works, LLC (IDW), itself formed in 1999, and is regularly re ...
, in the ''V Wars'' series. Notable authors who contributed short stories to the series include Maberry,
Jennifer Brozek
Jennifer Brozek (born December 9, 1970) is an American freelance author, game design writer, editor, and small press publisher.
Career
Before becoming a full-time writer, Brozek was a software QA engineer working on a wide range of projects, inc ...
,
Larry Correia
Larry Correia is an American fantasy and science fiction writer, known for his ''Monster Hunter International'', ''Grimnoir Chronicles'', and ''Saga of the Forgotten Warrior'' series. He has authored or co-authored over 20 novels, has over 50 pub ...
,
Keith R. A. DeCandido
Keith Robert Andreassi DeCandido (born April 18, 1969) is an American science fiction and fantasy writer and musician, who works on comic books, novels, role-playing games and video games, including numerous media tie-in books for properties such ...
,
John Everson
John Everson (born March 14, 1966) is an American author of contemporary horror, dark fantasy, science fiction and fantasy fiction. He is the author of thirteen novels and four short fiction collections, as well as three mini-collections, al ...
,
Gregory Frost
Gregory Frost (born May 13, 1951) is an American author of science fiction and fantasy, and directs a fiction writing workshop at Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. He received his Bachelor's degree from the University of Iowa. A g ...
,
Nancy Holder
Nancy Holder (born August 29, 1953) is an American writer and the author of several novels, including numerous tie-in books based on the TV series ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''. She's also written fiction related to several other science fiction ...
,
Jeff Mariotte
Jeff Mariotte (born 1955) is an author who lives in Arizona. As well as his own original work, he is best known for writing novels and comic books based on licensed properties.
Biography
Mariotte was born in Park Forest, Illinois, but he moved ...
,
Joe McKinney
Joseph Anthony McKinney (born 12 May 1967) is an Irish stage, film and television actor and voice-over artist. Rathfarnham-born McKinney trained and worked as a hairdresser for four years, before joining fringe theatre. He trained at Inchicor ...
,
James A. Moore
James Arthur Moore is an American horror novelist and short story writer.
In 2003, he was nominated for a Bram Stoker Award for "Best Novel" for his book ''Serenity Falls''. In 2006, the novella ''Bloodstained Oz'' (co-authored by Christophe ...
,
Yvonne Navarro
Yvonne Navarro (born 1957 in Chicago, Illinois) is an American author who has published over twenty novels. Of those twenty, the titles ''AfterAge'', ''deadrush'', ''Final Impact'', ''Red Shadows'', ''DeadTimes'', ''That's Not My Name'' and ''M ...
,
Scott Nicholson
Scott Nicholson (born 1963) is an American author specializing in horror or thrillers, often set in rural Appalachia. His debut, ''The Red Church'', was a finalist for the Bram Stoker Award.
''Thank you for the Flowers''
The anthology ''Than ...
,
Weston Ochse
Weston Ochse (born 1965 in Gillette, Wyoming) is an American author and educator. He has won the Bram Stoker Award for Best First Novel and been nominated for the Pushcart Prize for his short fiction. His novel SEAL Team 666 is currently being ...
,
Jeremy Robinson
Jeremy Robinson (born October 22, 1974), also known as Jeremy Bishop, Jeremiah Knight, and other pen names, is an author of sixty novels and novellas. He is known for mixing elements of science, history, and mythology. Many of his novels have b ...
,
Scott Sigler
Scott Carl Sigler is an American author of science fiction and horror and a podcaster. Scott is the New York Times #1 bestselling author of sixteen novels, six novellas, and dozens of short stories. He is the co-founder of Empty Set Entertainme ...
,
John Skipp
John Skipp is a splatterpunk horror and fantasy author and anthology editor, as well as a songwriter, screenwriter, film director, and film producer. He collaborated with Craig Spector on multiple novels, and has also collaborated with Marc Lev ...
, and
Tim Waggoner
Tim Waggoner is the author of numerous novels and short stories in the Fantasy, Horror, and Thriller genres.
Education
Waggoner graduated from Wright State University in 1989 with a Master of Arts in English with a Creative Writing Concentrat ...
.
*''V Wars'' (May 2012, )
*''V Wars: Blood and Fire'' (July 2014, )
*''V Wars: Night Terrors'' (March 2015, )
*''V Wars: Shockwaves'' (August 2016, )
Comic series
The ''V Wars'' comics series was released in 11 issues by IDW from April 2014 through March 2015. They have been collected in the following volumes:
*''V Wars: Crimson Queen'' (October 2014, )
*''V Wars: All of Us Monsters'' (May 2015, )
An omnibus volume containing all 11 issues was also released:
*''V Wars: The Graphic Novel Collection'' (May 2019, )
TV series
On November 19, 2019, the official trailer for the series was released by Netflix. The series was released on December 5, 2019.
Reception
Critical reviews are mixed. On
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...
, the series holds a critic approval rating of 56%, with an average rating of 6.73/10, based on nine reviews.
Isaac Feldberg at ''
The Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'' enjoyed it, calling it "unabashedly silly...a fun, freaky B-movie stretched out to series’ length".
''
The Sydney Morning Herald
''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...
'' reviewer, Brad Newsome, was less kind in calling it a "a frustrating thing" that doesn't deliver on its promises.
Andrew Dex at ''
Starburst
MicroPro International Corporation was an American software company founded in 1978 in San Rafael, California. They are best known as the publisher of WordStar, a popular early word processor for personal computers.
History Founding and early su ...
'' criticized the weak character development and mix of seemingly-unrelated side characters while also praising the growing strength of the series by the end of the season.
In her review for ''Film Inquiry'', Stephanie Archer stated "the series left much to be desired" and that there was "an immediate disconnect with Dr. Swann, played by Somerhalder".
Vincent Schilling of ''
Indian Country Today
''ICT News'' (formerly known as ''Indian Country Today'') is a daily digital news platform that covers the Indigenous world, including American Indians, Alaska Natives and First Nations.
It was founded in 1981 as a weekly print newspaper, ''The ...
'', on the other hand, praised the casting of Somerhalder and Michael Greyeyes, stating he was "hooked from the beginning". He goes on to say that the "show is a blast".
Dustin Rowles at ''Pajiba'' described the series as "very low-rent", "poorly written", and "humorless".
Mikel Zorilla of the Spanish-language web magazine ''Espinof'' criticized the series' lack of focus, saying it had potential but failed to do anything to stand out.
''
WhatCulture
WhatCulture Ltd. is an online entertainment news website and magazine which was launched in 2010. The site offers news in the field of professional wrestling, television, films, video games, and board games.
History
Originally started by Pete ...
'' described the series "a thrilling well-paced ride...
nddamn good fun that compels you to keep watching" despite "moments that temporarily draw focus from the plot and leave you scratching your head".
References
External links
*
*
{{IDW Publishing
2010s American drama television series
2010s American supernatural television series
2010s American horror television series
2010s American science fiction television series
2019 American television series debuts
2019 American television series endings
American horror fiction television series
American thriller television series
Serial drama television series
Television shows based on comics
IDW Publishing adaptations
English-language Netflix original programming
Television shows filmed in Toronto
Television shows filmed in Greater Sudbury
Vampires in television
Apocalyptic television series
Dark fantasy television series
American action television series
Television shows set in the United States
Dark fantasy web series
Thriller web series
Horror fiction web series