The Institute premiered at SXSW London and is streaming exclusively on MGM+ on July 13th with the first two episodes, followed by new episodes weekly.
“You’re not kids, not here. There’s no bedtime, there’s no chores, but here, if you break a rule, there’s grown-up consequences.”
In a brutalist building hidden from public view, deep in the Maine countryside, The Institute houses a group of exceptional young people from across the country, but none of these youngsters are there by choice; they are prisoners stolen from their families due to their abilities. Like Danny Torrance and Carrie White, these kids ‘shine’ and The Institute, led by the mysterious Ms Sigsby (Mary-Louise Parker), is determined to capture, test and harness that ‘shine’ at any cost to their young guinea pigs.
Young genius Luke (Joe Freeman) is the latest kid to find himself trapped in The Institute, stolen from his parents and the safety of his bedroom in the middle of the night after his telekinetic abilities were spotted by one of The Institute’s undercover officers. Meanwhile, in the nearby town, a once decorated police officer, Tim Jamieson (Ben Barnes), has chosen a quiet Maine town as a bolt-hole and an escape from a past that continues to haunt his every choice, unaware of the horrors unfolding just a few miles away.
©MGM+ Studios
From director/executive producer Jack Bender (Mr. Mercedes, Under the Dome) and Benjamin Cavell (The Stand), the MGM+ Studios eight-part series held its episode one premiere at The Barbican last night as part of the inaugural SXSW London, giving us a sneak peek at the building blocks of this chilling new drama based on Stephen King’s 2019 novel. Bender, Cavell, co-director Brad Turner, and stars Ben Barnes, Mary-Louise Parker and Joe Freeman (son of Martin Freeman) were in attendance, and we even got a recorded introduction from King, who is clearly proud of the series. But did episode one hook us into what is undoubtedly one of King’s most chilling stories of recent years? The answer is quite simple: yes! I could have quite happily sat through another two, three or more episodes of this perfectly paced, chillingly observed and brilliantly performed addition to King’s on-screen universe. So, let’s hope the promise of episode one is only built upon as the series progresses.
The Institute sensibly opts to up the age range of Luke and his fellow prisoners to teenagers, slightly older than King’s literary kids, who were pre-teen. Benjamin Cavell said about this change, “Jack and I were very aware of making the kids slightly older than they were in the book. But the show is harrowing and horrific. However, we didn’t want it to be relentlessly dark”. Cavell added, “This isn’t a story about an action hero who finds out kids are being mistreated and rides to the rescue. As Luke and his fellow inmates say at the end of episode one, ‘If we want to get out of here, we gotta get ourselves out. ‘ I felt that was a very timely message. It seems to be what we’re all relying on. Grown-ups have abdicated a certain amount of responsibility, and I think we are relying on the kids to figure out our way through all of this”.
©MGM+ Studios
In his first significant onscreen role, Joe Freeman spoke of the daunting experience of arriving in Canada for filming. “Landing in Canada, I didn’t know anybody and was like, what do I do? Then, when I went for the first table read, I was so scared because I was surrounded by people with far more industry experience than me. I described it yesterday as being the smallest fish in the biggest of ponds because you’re up against such class everywhere, in every department, in every room”.
If Joe was nervous, it certainly doesn’t show onscreen; he owns the role and is captivating to watch. Add to the mix an ensemble of great young actors plus the brilliant Ben Barnes, who, in my opinion, is one of the most underrated UK actors working today, and a spikey and truly chilling performance from Mary-Louise Parker, and The Institute has all the hallmarks of an outstanding Stephen King adaptation.
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