The Knick Trailer: The Treatment of the Human Body

Cinemax has released the first trailer for upcoming medical drama The Knick, which stars Clive Owen (Children of Men) and features direction from Steven Soderbergh (Magic Mike).

Created by Jack Amiel and Michael Begler (Raising Helen), The Knick tells the story of Knickerbocker Hospital and its groundbreaking surgeons, nurses, and staff, all of whom navigate a medical field with high mortality rates and zero antibiotics.

Cable tends to stay away from medical and legal series unless there’s a twist in the formula that wouldn’t work on broadcast, so it should be interesting to see how The Knick will play with the form of a medical drama and individualize itself in a crowded genre. Owen’s performance and the distinct style of Soderbergh are two very good starts toward differentiating itself and drawing an audience to Cinemax, with the trailer an elegant and stylish showcase for what could be the network’s next big thing, but it’ll have to do more to stand out in a television landscape that has shown that star power (Michael J. Fox, Robin Williams, Debra Messing) isn’t the shortcut to success that it used to be.

In addition to Owen, The Knick stars the likes of Andre Holland (1600 Penn), Eve Hewson (Enough Said), Jeremy Bobb (Hostages), Juliet Rylance (Frances Ha), and Michael Angarano (Will & Grace).

The series premiere of The Knick is set for Friday, August 8th at 10:00 on Cinemax.

Will you be watching The Knick? Do you think a medical drama can work on a network like Cinemax? Are you surprised that someone like Owen would come to series television at this point in his career?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_xvw-_YJSo