The new west: New frontiers explored in Season 4 of ‘Westworld’
From its very first episode, “Westworld” has captivated viewers with the promise that “violent delights have violent ends.” Over its three seasons to date, HBO’s science fiction epic has fulfilled this promise and more. After two years, the promise of new worlds, the return of old friends and even higher stakes, fans are already theorizing where the series will take them next.
Prepare to be dazzled once again when Season 4 of “Westworld” premieres Sunday, June 26, on HBO and HBO Max.
First launched in 2016, “Westworld” is the nine-time Emmywinning prestige TV adaptation of Michael Crichton’s 1973 film of the same name – think “Jurassic Park” but with robot cowboys instead of dinosaurs. HBO’s adaptation flips the script, however, and follows the perspective of the futuristic theme park’s main attraction, its artificially intelligent hosts.
The dark twist of the series is that Westworld is a playground for the ultra-wealthy to act out their darkest, most violent fantasies. During its three-season run, audiences have seen the hosts progress from the punching bags of the elite to self-aware freedom fighters working to emancipate themselves from humanity’s control.
Central to this struggle is Delores (Evan Rachel Wood, “Across the Universe,” 2007), a host who was programmed as the archetypal rancher’s daughter with a gentle soul. The first to gain sentience and retain memories of the actions inflicted upon her, Delores spreads the malicious code, thus granting consciousness to her fellow hosts and raising a bloody rebellion.
Running in opposition to Delores’s crusade against humankind are Maeve (Thandiwe Newton, “Mission: Impossible II,” 2000) and Bernard (Jeffrey Wright, “The Batman,” 2022).
Maeve is a host assigned to play the role of madam in the town’s brothel, but she is plagued by memories of a past life with her daughter. Maeve’s quest to find her daughter becomes her driving force and leads to her tenuous alliance with humanity against Delores in exchange for her lost child. Bernard, on the other hand, is a park technician who discovers he is, in fact, a host. He struggles to reconcile his humanity with this realization.