Netflix has just released a trailer for Boy Swallows Universe, its newest locally-produced Australian series, based on the best-selling Trent Dalton book of the same name. We’ve written about it before, in response to an article that dubbed it questionably ‘Boy Swallows’, but it’s a brilliant Australian book that absolutely deserves to be watched.
Before we go any further, here’s the trailer.
It’s not a series for the faint of heart. Following a boy who is just trying to do good, Boy Swallows Universe is a gritty coming-of-age story set in the 1980s that revolves around crime, drug addiction, and lost innocence. If you haven’t read the book, it’s one of the best pieces of Australian literature ever written, and the Netflix adaption seems to get the tone just right, at least in the trailer.
It’s the latest Australian story that Netflix is taking on, and the trailer seems to do it justice (Paul Kelly’s ‘Dumb Things’ is playing in the background at the beginning). The last story was the Netflix remake of Heartbreak High, which was widely praised.
And there might be reason to expect more locally-produced content in Australia. New streaming rules could force streaming services like Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Prime Video to produce local content if they are to operate locally – however, as reported by The Guardian at the beginning of November, streaming giants cut spending on local productions by 11 per cent (about $47 million) as the new rules loom.
Regardless, Dalton believes that the show will portray a side of Brisbane that has rarely been shown before, he told The Australian. I’m just hoping that the momentum keeps up and we see many more great Aussie shows on streaming services.
Boy Swallows Universe starts streaming on Netflix on January 11, 2024.
Image: Netflix
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