Devs


Devs is an American science fiction thriller television miniseries created, written, and directed by Alex Garland that premiered on March 5, 2020, on FX on Hulu.
Lily Chan is a software engineer for Amaya, a quantum computing company run by Forest. Lily soon becomes embroiled in the mysterious death of her boyfriend, who died on the first day of his new job at Devs. The series explores themes related to free will and determinism, as well as Silicon Valley. It received generally positive reviews, with critics praising its imagination, acting, and soundtrack.

Cast and characters

Main

Production

Development

On March 13, 2018, it was announced that FX had given the production a pilot order. The pilot was written by Alex Garland who also directed and executive produced the episode as well. On July 23, 2018, Rob Hardy mentioned in an interview that he would serve as the cinematographer for the series.
On August 3, 2018, it was announced during the Television Critics Association's annual summer press tour that FX had decided to bypass the pilot process and instead were giving the production a straight-to-series order consisting of eight episodes. Additional executive producers include Andrew Macdonald, Allon Reich, Eli Bush, and Scott Rudin.
Garland appeared at the New York Comic Con and explained his reasoning behind the creation of the series: "I read more about science than anything else, and it started with two things. One was getting my head around this principle of determinism, which basically says that everything that happens in the world is based on cause and effect...That has all sorts of implications for us. One is that it takes away free will, but the other is that if you are at a computer powerful enough, you could use determinism to predict the future and understand the past. If you unravel everything about you, about the specifics of you why you prefer a cup of coffee to tea...then five seconds before you said you'd like to have a cup of coffee one would be able to predict you'd ask for it." In November 2019, it was announced the show would premiere on Hulu instead of FX, as part of "FX on Hulu". On January 9, 2020, it was announced that the series would premiere on March 5, 2020.

Casting

Alongside the series order announcement, it was confirmed that Sonoya Mizuno, Nick Offerman, Jin Ha, Zach Grenier, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Cailee Spaeny, and Alison Pill had been cast in the series' main roles. Amaya Mizuno-André, who plays Forest's daughter Amaya, is Sonoya Mizuno's niece.

Filming

Filming on the series had begun by August 2018, with scenes shot at UC Santa Cruz.

Release

The first teaser for the series was released October 5, 2019. The first two episodes of the series were released on March 5, 2020, with the rest debuting weekly on Hulu under the label "FX on Hulu". In India, the series premiered on Hotstar on March 6, 2020. The series premiered on BBC Two in the UK on April 15, 2020, with the whole series available on iPlayer at the same time.

Reception

As of June 2020, the series has an 81% rating with an average score of 7.64 out of 10 based on 84 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes. The site's critical consensus reads: "A hauntingly beautiful meditation on humanity, Devs slow unfurling may test some viewers' patience, but fans of Alex Garland's singular talents will find much to chew on." On Metacritic, it has a score of 70 out of 100 based on 31 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
Brian Tallerico of RogerEbert.com wrote a highly positive review and called it "stunningly ambitious" and stated "It's ultimately an unforgettable and rewarding experience". Tallerico praised Garland's work and concluded by writing, "one of the best new shows in a long time." CNN's Brian Lowry gave it a positive review, summarizing that it is "a mind-blowing concept that doesn't entirely come together at the close, but which remains unsettling and provocative throughout".
In a more mixed review from The New York Times, James Poniewozik wrote that "It showcases what Garland does well—ideas and atmosphere—while amplifying his weaknesses in character and plot. As the techies say, it scales—for better and for worse". In a more negative review, Sophie Gilbert of The Atlantic wrote that "Devs is only the latest in a series of puzzle-box shows more preoccupied with their own cleverness and their labyrinthine twists than with the burden of watchability."
The New York Times interviewed theoretical physicist Sean Carroll about the sweeping statements on humanity and determinism by the creators of Devs and Westworld. When asked which show he preferred, Carroll responded, "I was very impressed with how were doing something very, very different. I thought it was a very well done show. It was slow and contemplative, but that's a perfectly good change of pace from what we ordinarily see in action movies".