MGM+ has released the first trailer for a new six-part television adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island. The series stars David Oyelowo as Long John Silver and follows Jim Hawkins and his mother as they become involved with a treasure map, a legendary pirate and a British agent with a hidden agenda. The adaptation matters for casting Oyelowo as the first Black actor to play the iconic pirate in a major screen version, while acknowledging the historical presence of African-descended pirates.

The trailer introduces Tom Sweet as Jim Hawkins and Hayley Atwell as his mother, whose discovery of the map sets the adventure in motion. Oyelowo’s Silver retains familiar elements including the peg leg and parrot, while the story expands the conflict around the treasure hunt and its competing factions. Created by Robert Murphy and directed by Jeremy Lovering, William McGregor and Paul Walker, all six episodes are scheduled to premiere exclusively on MGM+ on Sunday, 11 October.