Starz’ New Pirate Drama Sails Early

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pvxpv_fycl8

Black Sails is the new pirates-themed Starz series, and it premieres next week on January 25^th. For those of you who can’t wait to explore the world of cutlasses, sails and rum, the pilot episode is available right now on Machinima (you can also catch it embedded below).

Black Sails is a prequel to Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island, set during the third and final period of the Golden Age of Piracy (1714-1726, if you were interested), which puts it anywhere from 20 to 30 years before the events in Treasure Island. The series centers around a young John Silver (Luke Arnold)—with both his legs and no parrot–and his adventures with Captain Flint (Toby Stephens) of The Walrus.

This isn’t the fantastical world of pirates we might have seen in the past—this world is darker, grittier, more realistic–and certainly a lot more naked.

Black Sails stars Zach McGowan as the historical figure Captain Vane, Toby Schmitz as Rackham, Hannah New as Eleanor Guthrie, Jessica Parker Kennedy as Max and Mark Ryan as Gates (Flint’s Quartermaster…if your familiar with the book, that should clue you in to all kinds of exciting possibilities…).

The series was executive produced by Michael Bay and his Platinum Dunes partners (Brad Fuller and Andrew Form) and created by Jonathan Steinberg (Jericho, Human Target) and Robert Levine (Touch).

For even more on Black Sails, see our interview with Mark Ryan, who plays Gates, Flint’s closet friend, Quartermaster and advisor.

Black Sails premieres on Starz next Saturday, January 25^th, at 9 p.m. or you can watch it right now on Machinima:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v68pX9k4PJY