23-Episode Steampunk Fantasy On HBO Makes Up For A $180 Million Failure

Published Oct 10, 2026, 10:45 PM EDT

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HBO's 23-episode steampunk fantasy series perfectly makes up for the failures of a forgotten $180 million movie. For decades, HBO has remained the home of a long line of highly acclaimed and commercially successful fantasy shows. Among these, however, one show stands out not only because it remained compelling throughout its runtime but also because it set a high bar for fantasy adaptations.

The show in question, His Dark Materials, premiered in November 2019. Adapting Philip Pullman's fantasy trilogy of the same name, the show gained immense acclaim for everything from the performances of its cast to its high production value. Unlike most book-to-screen adaptations, it was specially appreciated for its faithfulness to its source material.

Interestingly, this was not the first time Philip Pullman's books were adapted for the screen. 2007's The Golden Compass was also based on the first book, Northern Lights, from the His Dark Materials trilogy. Unlike the show, however, the movie failed to impress critics and even barely broke even at the box office after grossing $372 million against a budget of $180 million.

HBO’s His Dark Materials Shows How Fantasy Adaptations Should Be Done

After The Golden Compass' underwhelming performance and canceled sequels, HBO's His Dark Materials was taking a massive risk by adapting the Philip Pullman book trilogy. However, the show still succeeded because it did not try to tone down any narrative aspects of its source material.

It embraced the books' themes surrounding institutional control and religious authoritarianism while taking its philosophical underpinnings quite seriously.

At the same time, the show even ensured that, despite its fantastical ambition, it never watered down Lyra and Will’s coming-of-age stories from the books. Each season of the series also roughly aligned with one book from the source material, leaving enough room for all major story arcs to develop naturally.

BBC One commissioned His Dark Materials and served as the fantasy show's primary home television network in the UK.

The show even cleverly introduced Will Pary and his parallel story far earlier than the books to ensure Lyra's and Will's first encounter in season 2 felt more impactful. Similar to most HBO TV series, His Dark Materials also remains visually stunning throughout its runtime, which is complemented by Lorne Balfe’s rich score.

Like most book-to-screen adaptations, the HBO fantasy series, too, makes some creative compromises. However, almost none of these felt unnecessary and only ensured the books' story translated well to the small screen.

His Dark Materials Avoided The Golden Compass’ Biggest Mistakes To Succeed

Image courtesy of Everett Collection

One of the biggest issues with the 2007 movie was that it tried too hard to have a wide appeal. To achieve this, it even featured the Magisterium in a very generic and vaguely authoritarian light. The show, in contrast, did not shy away from capturing the organization as a dogmatic and totalizing religious power that takes away free will.

The movie seemingly tried to pivot itself as a family-friendly fantasy, aligning with other big-screen fantasy hits like Narnia. Reports even reveal that, after test screenings, the movie's ending was changed and the last three chapters of Northern Lights were cut from it right before release. This made its ending seem awkwardly optimistic, drifting it further away from the source material.

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The Golden Compass' cast, which included big names like Daniel Craig and Nicole Kidman, was its biggest strength, but the script gave the actors little room to put their range on full display. HBO's His Dark Materials, on the other hand, spent a lot of time exploring the internal conflicts and complex motivations of characters like Ruth Wilson’s Mrs. Coulter and James McAvoy’s Lord Asriel.

The HBO fantasy adaptation is not completely devoid of flaws and arguably experiences a slight dip in quality in season 2. However, it promises to keep viewers invested throughout its runtime and delivers a worthy take on its source material before ending its run on a high and satisfying note.

His Dark Materials

8/10

His Dark Materials is a television adaptation of Philip Pullman's celebrated trilogy. Set in a parallel universe, it follows orphan Lyra Belacqua as she uncovers a nefarious plot and explores a mysterious substance called Dust, joined by Will Parry and his dimensional-cutting knife.