AMC’s The Walking Dead proves the undead are all the rage right now. Not to be outdone, FX is hoping to see the same success with Guillermo del Toro’s The Strain; the series has been ordered a total of 13 episodes scheduled for this summer.

The project has been very hush-hush with only two teaser trailers. The first trailer is a double feature back-to-back starring rats, which we can assume are running from an impending threat. The second trailer shows New York City and an eclipse with only the words, “He is here.” Both are very minimalistic in what is presented and seems like something J.J. Abrams would do in order to pique viewer’s curiosity.  You can check out both trailers below;

As part of the press release, FX provided the following synopsis;

A thriller that tells the story of Dr. Ephraim Goodweather, the head of the Center for Disease Control Canary Team in New York City. He and his team are called upon to investigate a mysterious viral outbreak with hallmarks of an ancient and evil strain of vampirism. As the strain spreads, Eph, his team, and an assembly of everyday New Yorkers, wage war for the fate of humanity itself.

Thanks to Yahoo, we have our first look at the human characters. Corey Stoll (The Bourne Legacy) stars as Dr. Ephraim Goodweather. Mia Maestro (Frida) is Dr. Nora Martinez, Goodweather’s love interest and colleague. Sean Astin (The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers) plays Jim Kent and David Bradley (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban) rounds out the cast as Professor Abraham Setrakian.

Dark Horse Comics is currently publishing the graphic novels adapted from the book. I haven’t had a chance to check them out but our very own Jules Boyle reviewed The Strain Book 3: The Fall and gave it a 5/5, so I’m excited to see what we get. Even if the series isn’t great, the depictions of the vampires should truly be the thing of nightmares.

The Strain is slated to debut in July on FX, and FX is promoting The Strain at SXSW (South by Southwest) so we should be seeing more news and footage soon. So be sure to stick around the Big Comic Page for updates on the television series.

Tell us what you think of the viral marketing of The Strain? Are you excited for this property getting adapted for T.V.? What are some your favorite movies, tv shows, and/or comic book titles about a virus outbreak?

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The writer of this piece is:

Laurence Almalvez
Laurence has previously written over at Whatculture.com.
Laurence tweets from @IL1511