Netflix Unveils Tense Trailer for ‘East of Eden’ Series Adaptation Starring Florence Pugh

Netflix has released the official trailer for its take on John Steinbeck‘s classic East of Eden.

In Zoe Kazan’s adaptation of Steinbeck’s literary masterpiece, Florence Pugh stars as Cathy Ames, whose life is intertwined with with the Trask family, Adam (Christopher Abbott) and Charles (Mike Faist), as they settle in California’s Salinas Valley. 

Over the years, their paths intersect with the Hamilton family including “Samuel Hamilton (Ciarán Hinds), an Irishman who made his way to California where he raised a family and got to know the land, and Lee (Hoon Lee), a Chinese American whose intellect is surpassed only by his ability to give care to those who need it most, and Faye (Martha Plimpton), a brothel owner whose open heart might lead to her downfall.“

In the trailer, tensions are notable with Faist‘s Charles warning Abbott‘s Adam, “A girl like that doesn‘t just fall out of the sky.“

“You need to get rid of her and throw her out. She‘s going to tear you to pieces and I don‘t want to watch it,” Faist‘s Adam later warns.

“Evil is not always apparent at first glance. It can come cloaked in goodness or beauty or love. The heart of our oldest stories,“ Pugh is overheard saying in the trailer.

The seven-episode limited series, written and executive produced by Kazan, “offers a compelling perspective on the ways in which a family’s history impacts an individual’s present reality.“

Jeb Stuart is also a co-showrunner. Fifth Season and Anonymous Content are producing.

The novel was originally adapted for the 1955 film based starring James Dean, Raymond Massey, Richard Davalo, Jo Van Fleet and Julie Harris. Kazan‘s grandfather, Academy Award-winning filmmaker Elia Kazan, directed the film adaptation.

“In the process of bringing this family saga to life, the resonance of my own familial connection to the material has not been lost on me,” Kazan said in a statement when the series was announced. “But it is Steinbeck’s writing — personal, shocking, profound and free — that has kept me enthralled to East of Eden since I first read the book as a young teen. Working on this has been the greatest joy, and I am thrilled by the cast and crew we are assembling — and deeply grateful to Netflix, Fifth Season and Anonymous Content for their support.”

East of Eden premieres on Netflix on Oct. 1. Watch the trailer below.