William Hurt has a reputation for making films better by simply appearing in them. He is the only redeeming factor of Winter's Tale, and gave David Cronenberg's sublime A History of Violence a crucial kick of crime-lord outlandishness towards the end of the film. And this isn't even mentioning his work in Ken Russell's Altered States, one of the most psychologically audacious science-fiction films to ever see release. It's a genre the famed actor has a taste for, which explains his starring in Humans, AMC's upcoming remake of the Swedish sci-fi drama Real Humans from 2012.

According to the press release, the series is:

"set in a parallel present where the latest must-have gadget for any busy family is a ‘Synth’ - a highly-developed robotic servant eerily similar to its live counterpart...Hurt plays George Millican, a widower who has formed a close relationship with his out-of-date synth Odi (played by Will Tudor), who he treats more like a son than a piece of machinery."

From an overview of the original series, Humans looks to stay true to the contemplative, quasi-satirical tone and storyline of Real Humans, which was created by Lars Lundström. AMC's series will run for eight episodes, and also stars Katherine Parkinson, Tom Goodman-Hill, Colin Morgan, and Rebecca Front in supporting roles. There isn't a confirmed release date for Humans, but it's set to premiere on AMC later this year. It's good news for the network, considering that The Walking Dead isn't returning until later this year and Mad Men will be ending this summer. As for Hurt, he's currently filming another mini-series: an adaptation of Beowulf backed by ITV. And everyone knows movies and TV series based off of Beowulf always go over like gangbusters.