'It's funny science fiction, but it's not parody' — 'Murderbot' creators talk nailing the tone for Apple TV+’s latest sci-fi series (exclusive)

Cultivating an atmosphere of irreverent humor amid a dramatic core of relatable human nature is something filmmakers Chris and Paul Weitz ("American Pie," "About A Boy") are always primed to explore, and those instincts are put to fine use in Apple TV+'s new sci-fi series, "Murderbot."

This 10-episode project arrives today (May 16, 2025) and was adapted from "All Systems Red," the initial book in author Martha Wells's Hugo and Nebula Award-winning "The Murderbot Diaries" series that was first published in 2017. It stars Alexander Skarsgård ("True Blood," "The Northman") in a farcical drama about a self-hacking security android leased out by The Company to anyone in need of protective muscle.

“The humor and the cynicism was always essential," Paul tells Space.com on the careful adaptation. "And believing that the character was real. Murderbot is part action, and there's a little bit of Clint Eastwood in it because it's very effective at violent action and violent things. But at the same time, it has a totally recognizable degree of social anxiety and humor to it."

Murderbot has overridden its governor module and is now a free-thinking sentient machine obliged to take orders from needy human beings to hide its hacked restrictions. They're oblivious to its self-awareness as it tries to tolerate these over-emotional biological creatures as best it can. Oh, and Murderbot is severely addicted to cheesy futuristic soap operas that it's constantly watching via corporate entertainment streams such as "The Rise and Fall of Sanctuary Moon."

"I think the tone is everything," adds Chris. "It's a unique setup. There's not much like it on television or streaming. It's funny science fiction, but it's not parody and it's not broad science fiction and it's not a spoof, so getting that right was really tricky."

The Weitz Brothers have collaborated on several Hollywood films over the years, co-writing 1998's animated film "Antz" and 2000's "Nutty Professor II: The Klumps," co-directing 1999's "American Pie," and 2002's "About A Boy," for which they also penned the script and received an Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay. Chris also directed "The Twilight Saga: New Moon," and "The Golden Compass," in addition to adding elements to the story for 2016's "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story."

In the series' development process one would naturally assume that there was a certain degree of research on exoplanets, spaceflight, and colonization. Right?

"You're implying that we've done research, which is very touching and we appreciate it," Chris jokes. "I think that Martha's sense of AI in the future is that it's likely to have as much personality as human beings will. Her books are a series of encounters with various kinds of people who are not human, but that are not alien either.

"Also something interesting in terms of astronomy about Fermi's Paradox as it applies to this world, is there are alien things encountered in this universe but they're long long dead. So what it has to say about humanity I think is that we've got nothing but each other and the things we create."

According to Paul, there actually is a corporate space station featured in the show and "Murderbot's" production designer, Sue Chan, did research on terraforming asteroids, and what that might look like if you were building a station having mined an asteroid.

Part of the filmmakers' attraction to the material is that "Murderbot" is essentially a futuristic workplace comedy. Plus, it positions them to use the rogue Murderbot as a reflection of ourselves and to comment on our insatiable attraction to drama and messy interpersonal relationships. Alexander Skarsgård perfectly inhabits the anti-social robot, and working with him was a rich and rewarding experience for the pair.

"He's both very literal and he has a good sense of humor," Paul notes. "Alexander was a good ally in that he didn't let us get away with much. He wanted to know why people were doing the things that they were doing, even if it wasn't in the script or in the book. He's physically imposing, but he has the soul of an eccentric weirdo inside the body of a leading man. He's a lovely person, so those qualities were helpful."

Chris recalls another aspect of the Emmy-winning actor's portrayal of Murderbot.

“One of the interesting things he brought to the table was to keep the sentimentality available to us at bay for as long as possible. So this sort of buildup to the identification between this construct and the people it was protecting lasts over the good course of the season. Whereas in the book, it's pretty obvious it's in the tank for its clients very early on. Stretching it out allows for a really satisfying conclusion to the series."

Also starring Noma Dumezweni, David Dastmalchian, Sabrina Wu, Akshay Khanna, Tattiawna Jones, and Tamara Podemski as the show's crew of interplanetary hippie scientists, "Murderbot" arrives on Apple TV+ May 16, 2025, with a two-episode debut.