The Last Days Of Ptolemy Grey Trailer: Samuel L. Jackson Is On A Treasure Hunt (Through His Memories)

The latest Apple TV+ series has just dropped its first trailer, and it looks like an inspirational drama with a few major twists. The series is called "The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey," and it stars Samuel L. Jackson as an elderly man who undergoes a procedure to bring his life's memories back. The show, which is directed by "The White Tiger" filmmaker Ramin Bahrani, is based on a novel by Walter Mosley. The author also wrote the miniseries.

This trailer seems to present an emotional, sci-fi-tinged story, but it's got some odd details, too. For example, there's Samuel L. Jackson in old man makeup, which is fine until you find out the actor is apparently playing a character in his nineties. Ptolemy says he's "got a lot of things to do," and can't do them when stricken with dementia. So when a doctor (Walton Goggins) tells him about a one-time treatment that will bring his life's memories rushing back, Ptolemy agrees. This in itself would be a fruitful plot to mine for drama, but "The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey" casually throws in another curveball when it mentions a lost treasure the character is determined to find.

"My Uncle Gordo stole something, a treasure. I'm gonna find it," Ptolemy says once his mind has cleared. He seems to have recovered a childhood memory that leads him on this end-of-life treasure hunt. Only, as if this show didn't have enough going on, it turns out this is a "Flowers For Algernon" situation. Ptolemy learns his lucidity is temporary, and he'll soon start to deteriorate faster than ever.

This story looks like it's all over the map, but there are a few indicators that "The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey" is still worth the watch. First off, of course, is Jackson, an all-time-great actor who signaled his faith in the project by executive producing it in addition to starring. Mosley also wrote the book "Devil in a Blue Dress," which became the foundation of the Denzel Washington film of the same name. The supporting cast also looks promising. Alongside Goggins, there's Dominique Fishback, an actress who makes every project she's in, from "The Deuce" to "Judas and the Black Messiah," significantly better.

"You've got to let the river take its course," Ptolemy says at the end of an emotional montage in the trailer," and the river knows right where it's going." Despite the treasure hunt side-quest and the old man makeup, this looks like it'll be a series about the hard truths of aging, memory, and mortality. Stock up on tissues before March 11, 2022, when "The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey" hits Apple TV+.