‘Essex County’ Trailer: First Look At CBC’s Series Adaptation Of Jeff Lemire’s Graphic Novel

EXCLUSIVE: Here’s a first trailer for CBC/Radio Canada’s series adaptation of Jeff Lemire’s graphic novel Essex County.

The five-part limited series tells the story of four disparate characters – old Lou (Stephen McHattie), young Lester (Finlay Wojtak-Hissong), country nurse Anne (Molly Parker) and stoic farmer Ken (Brian J. Smith) – linked through their bloodlines. Kevin Durand also stars as Jimmy.

It launches on March 19 on CBC and CBC Gem and the trailer promises family drama and a weaving storyline. On its announcement last year, CBC billed the show as an exploration of “how loss, betrayal, and trauma can impact generations and how redemption can be found through human connection.”

In the trailer, we first see Smith’s Ken anxiously considering how to raise his nephew Lester after his sister’s passing, and upsetting the boy in the process. We see Lester bonding with Jimmy, something that angers Ken, and Anne reuniting with Lou, who is suffering from dementia and tells her to “keep the past the past.”

We see shots of hockey players, a caped Lester and Lou burning old newspaper articles as the trailer reaches its end lingering on a field in the show’s rural setting.

Produced by by First Generation Films in association with ITV Studios and Media Musketeers Studios, Essex County is executive produced by Lemire, Eilis Kirwan, Christina Piovesan, and Andrew Cividino. Lemire is the showrunner, and he wrote the series with Kirwan. Cividino is the director. For CBC, Sally Catto is General Manager, Entertainment, Factual, and Sports; and Trish Williams is Executive Director, Scripted Content; Sarah Adams is Director, Current Productions, Drama.

ITV Studios handles international distribution, and launched it last year at MIPCOM.