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Teacup Series Reveals Teaser, Key Art, and Photos

Today, Peacock released the new teaser, key art, and photos for its upcoming Teacup series. The first two episodes of the horror-thriller series will premiere on Thursday, October 10. They will be followed by two episodes weekly through Halloween.

The Teacup series follows a disparate group of people in rural Georgia who must come together to survive a mysterious threat. It is inspired by Robert McCammon’s New York Times bestselling novel Stinger.

Teacup Series Reveals Teaser, Key Art, and Photos

Ian McCulloch (Yellowstone, Deputy, Chicago Fire) is the showrunner and an executive producer. James Wan, Michael Clear, and Rob Hackett for Atomic Monster, Francisca X. Hu, Kevin Tancharoen, director E.L. Katz (The Haunting of Bly Manor), and author Robert McCammon also executive produce.

The cast includes Yvonne Strahovski, Scott Speedman, Chaske Spencer, Kathy Baker, Boris McGiver, Caleb Dolden, Emilie Bierre, and Luciano Leroux. The eight-episode series comes from UCP, a division of Universal Studio Group.

Yvonne Strahovski as Maggie Chenoweth

“When Atomic Monster first approached me about creating a series adaptation of Robert McCammon’s Stinger—a no-holds-barred, gargantuan spectacle of a novel along the lines of The Stand, Independence Day, and Mars Attacks—to be honest, I didn’t want to throw my hat in the ring,” said Ian McCulloch previously.

“I’m not a spectacle writer. I’m a less-is-more writer. I gravitate more toward what are known as keyhole epics. Large stories told through small lenses. Think Signs, The Thing, A Quiet Place. But here’s the thing. I read Stinger, and it stayed with me. Wouldn’t leave me alone.

Scott Speedman as James Chenoweth, Caleb Dolden as Arlo Chenoweth, Emilie Bierre as Meryl Chenoweth, Yvonne Strahovski as Maggie Chenoweth

“I just couldn’t stop thinking about its razor-sharp premise, how it unfolds over the course of a single harrowing day, and about the relatable and real family McCammon puts center stage. That’s when the flash bang-light bulb idea hit…

“What if I adapted Stinger in a way that honors the book and stays true to the kinds of stories I like to tell? Keep the conceit. Keep Stinger’s most effective elements. Take away the large ensemble. Take away the giant set pieces. Even take away the book’s crowded town setting. The adaptation would be like an acoustic guitar version of, say, a Radiohead song.

Diany Rodriguez as Valeria Shanley, Kathy Baker as Ellen Chenoweth

“It won’t have the production value, electronic instruments, loops, or synthesized bells and whistles, but it will still have the melody, the structure, the lyrics, the real magic at the core, all the stuff that makes a great song a great song.

“All of which is to say I could suddenly see exactly what to do and how to do it. Two weeks later, Atomic Monster had the script for the first episode. Soon after that, Peacock bought it. Not so long after that, both my creative and career dreams actually started coming true as more scripts were written, hires made, actors cast, sets built, and production began…

Scott Speedman as James Chenoweth in the Teacup series

“Of course, during production the series changed and evolved. Just as it should. Even the title’s different. Stinger is now Teacup. The reasons for this are too spoilery to share but watch the first few episodes and all will be revealed.

“Point being, the series is now very much its own thing: a puzzle-box mystery, an edge-of-your-seat thriller, a can’t-but-must look horror story, a family drama, a science fiction epic—of the keyhole variety, of course.

Caleb Dolden as Arlo Chenoweth, Luciano Leroux as Nicholas Shanley, Emilie Bierre as Meryl Chenoweth

“But as singular, strange, and surprising as I hope Teacup is, all you need to do is peel away the layers, characters, situations, and mythology and look behind the thrills, chills, hairpin turns and make-you gasp reveals. Do all that and you’ll see, at its heart, Teacup is still very much standing on the shoulders of Stinger. Just as it should.

Executive producer James Wan commented: “After reading Robert McCammon’s book Stinger, the entire team at Atomic Monster felt a spark. The story had all the ingredients for a captivating series and Ian McCulloch had a vision to bring it to life in a fresh way that was both startling and darkly atmospheric, but filled with a rich sense of humanity — often lacking in edgy narratives.

Chaske Spencer as Ruben Shanley

“Add in our incredibly talented cast led by Yvonne Strahovski, Scott Speedman and Chaske Spencer and fans are in for a true edge-of-your-seat experience. Teacup defies easy labels. It’s a genre-bending blend of horror, mystery, and drama, with layers that unfold like a captivating puzzle.

“It goes beyond chills and thrills and holds up a mirror to humanity, exploring the darkness that resides within us all. We hope you enjoy this wild ride as much as we’ve loved creating it!”

Watch the official teaser trailer here and scroll down to view the key art.

 Boris McGiver as Donald Kelly, Scott Speedman as James Chenoweth
Teacup series key art