Fresh off the debut of his new Max series Full Circle, Steven Soderbergh has already moved on to his next project: a sci-fi comedy series called Command Z that will debut on his Extension 765 website this Monday, July 17th.
Michael Cera stars as a talking head who puts “a wormhole in a washing machine” so three scientists — played by Roy Wood Jr., JJ Maley, and Chloe Radcliffe — can embark on a mission through time to make some critical fixes in the year 2023, or as he describes it, “America’s last inflection point.” In order to complete their task, the time travelers must enter the consciousness of certain people (a la Being John Malkovich).
Watch the Command Z trailer here.
According to a press release credited to “Fabrizia del Dongo,” it will span 90 minutes across “eight episodes of varying length.” Read the full statement below:
“I think by now you’re used to me describing the somewhat MERCURIAL behavior of our boss, Mr/Dr Soderbergh, but this most recent development is next level and can’t be kept to myself for reasons you’ll soon understand. This very morning, our fearful leader explained that in three days (July 17th for those who don’t want to do the math) we will be ‘dropping’ a series of some sort called COMMAND Z. If I seem hedgy, it’s because A) None of us have seen it; and B) it’s apparently about ninety minutes long, but there are eight episodes of varying length, so is it an actual series or just a movie cut up into pieces? Frankly, I don’t care because what this means IN THE REAL WORLD is those of us in the Fulfillment Center (aka The BB, aka BLOFELD’S BASEMENT) are about to get some heavy traffic and oh, did I happen to tell you I ALSO RUN THE I.T. DEPARTMENT? So: we are absolutely fulfilling Mr/Dr Soderbergh’s directives to the letter but I’m just letting you know: even the smallest increase in traffic is going to make my life a living hell, possibly forever. So think about that and then think about this: When I asked Mr/Dr Soderbergh why he’d done this, why he’d made this project and why he’d made it in secret, he said, ‘Hope, Fabrizia. Hope and laughter.’ Honestly, I don’t even know where to start with this guy.”
The Command Z cast also includes Liev Schriber and Zoe Winters (Succession). According to IndieWire, the project was independently financed by Soderbergh and filmed between his last movie, Magic Mike’s Last Dance, and Full Circle.
Soderbergh’s next film, the psychological thriller Presence, is currently in pre-production.
