David Farnor | On 22, Jun 2015

HBO’s The Brink will premiere in the UK tonight on Sky Atlantic.

The World War III satire stars Jack Black, Tim Robbins and Pablo Schreiber as three disparate, desperate Americans upon whose shoulders the fate of the world rests after a rogue general seizes control of Pakistan and its nuclear arsenal.

Robbins plays United States Secretary of State Walter Larson, while Black plays Alex Talbot, a lowly Foreign Service officer assigned to the US Embassy in Islamabad. Orange Is the New Black’s Schreiber joins them as LCDR Zeke “Z-Pak” Tilson, a drug-dealing US Naval Aviator.

From the turbulent streets of the Middle East and the White House situation room to an aircraft carrier on the Red Sea, the sitcom follows in the footsteps of the channel’s other satirical comedies, such as Veep and Silicon Valley. The talent behind the camera is certainly sharp: the cast includes Brits Rob Brydon, Meera Syal and Michelle Gomez and the show is created by Kim Benabib and Roberto Benabib, who has been nominated for an Emmy for his work on Weeds,

The single-camera series spans 10 half-hour episodes, with Austin Powers director Jay Roach at the helm.

It premieres at 10.10pm on Monday 22nd June, within 24 hours of its broadcast in the US – an approach that has also been adopted by Sky Atlantic and True Detective Season 2, which is shown immediately before The Brink at 9pm. Like True Detective, the programme will also be available to watch online on NOW. The contract-free VOD service gives non-Sky customers access to a range of pay TV channels, including Sky 1, Sky Living, FOX and ITV Encore, with an Entertainment Membership, which costs £6.99 a month. Shows are available to watch live and also catch up with on-demand after broadcast. Sign up before 29th June and NOW is currently offering its first month for £1.

Here’s a trailer for The Brink:

All photos: ©2015 Home Box Office, Inc. All rights reserved.

 

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