Hudson Williams’ Yaga clip brings blue-eyed mystery to Comic-Con
Crave’s mystery thriller Yaga previewed its first clip at San Diego Comic-Con, with AMC+ later posting a trailer on Instagram.
By Poppy Nakagawa · Culture Writer
3 min read
The first Hudson Williams Yaga clip landed in front of San Diego Comic-Con fans Saturday, giving the room an early look at the actor’s role in Crave’s coming mystery thriller, Variety reported.
The footage screened during a panel for the series, which featured cast members Noah Reid, Clark Backo and Carrie-Anne Moss, along with showrunner and executive producer Kat Sandler, according to Variety. Williams was not at the panel, but he sent a recorded message to the audience.
Recording was barred during the Comic-Con preview, Variety reported. Soon after the panel, AMC+ posted a trailer to Instagram that offered the public a taste of the show’s eerie, sensual tone.
In the trailer, Moss’s character, Katherine, is heard describing the different versions of Baby Yaga, the witch figure from Slavic folklore that inspired both the series and Sandler’s earlier play. The footage then cuts through a quick run of ominous and sexually charged images, including a shot of Williams’ character in an intimate moment, according to Variety.
What is Yaga about?
Yaga is based on Sandler’s play and reworks the Baba Yaga legend as a mystery thriller. The series follows Radd, played by Reid, a private investigator who comes to a small coastal town after Henry Park, a young heir connected to a powerful fishery, disappears.
Williams plays Henry Park, Variety reported. As Radd digs into the case, he clashes with Carson, a wary local detective played by Backo, and crosses paths with Katherine, a university professor played by Moss, along with a wider group of suspects.
Baba Yaga is a figure from Slavic folklore often depicted as a dangerous witch. In Yaga, that myth becomes the spine for a story about disappearance, suspicion and desire in a tight coastal community.
Williams used his video message to tell the Comic-Con crowd he wished he could have joined the cast and crew in person, according to Variety. He said he had never been to Comic-Con and would have liked to be there.
He also described the production as a fun and unusual shoot, saying he hoped viewers enjoyed watching it as much as he enjoyed filming it, Variety reported.
Sandler told the panel she was pleased to cast Williams after his breakout turn in Heated Rivalry, according to Variety. She joked that she was “the smartest showrunner in the world” for bringing him into the series and said the production was lucky he wanted to take part.
Reid also teased a different side of Williams’ work in the show, Variety reported. He called the performance “wild” and pointed to Williams’ blue eyes in the footage, saying people had been reacting to them as “scary hot.”
AMC+ shared the trailer on Instagram after the panel. Crave is behind the upcoming series, though no release date was included in Variety’s report.
This story draws on original reporting from Variety.