Hulu’s Dopesick Trailer Unveils the Lies that Kick-Started the Opioid Epidemic

From its first trailer, Dopesick looks like the kind of show that is going to be both excellent and incredibly depressing. The eight-episode scripted series, based on the New York Times bestselling book by Beth Macy, takes an intimate look at the start of the opioid epidemic. From the creation of oxycontin by members of the Sackler family and the lies peddled by Purdue pharma, to the rural doctors and communities targeted and decimated by its swift and ravaging effects, Dopesick’s story is already poised to be one of the year’s most essential.

Created and written by Danny Strong and directed by Barry Levinson, the series also boasts an outstanding cast, including Michael Keaton, Peter Sarsgaard, Michael Stuhlbarg, Will Poulter, John Hoogenakker, with Kaitlyn Dever and Rosario Dawson. Guest stars include Phillipa Soo and Jake McDorman.

According a press release, “Dopesick examines how one company triggered the worst drug epidemic in American history. The series takes viewers to the epicenter of America’s struggle with opioid addiction, from the boardrooms of Big Pharma to a distressed Virginia mining community to the hallways of the DEA. Defying all the odds, heroes will emerge in an intense and thrilling ride to take down the craven corporate forces behind this national crisis and their allies. “