# Damien (2016)

> A young war photographer discovers he is the Antichrist and must struggle with a destiny of evil he never chose.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/17590

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 10
- Episode runtime: 43 min
- Status: Canceled
- Genres: drama, science fiction
- Created by: Glen Mazzara
- Network: A&E
- Cast: Bradley James, Megalyn Echikunwoke, Omid Abtahi, Barbara Hershey, Fodé Bangoura, Kelly McCormack, Salvatore Antonio, Daniel Kash
- TMDB rating: 6.8/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4337944/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: layered
- Violence: moderate
- Tone: tense, foreboding, paranoid, dread-filled

## What critics say

Audience response to this single canceled season is mixed, with viewers rating its supernatural premise and Damien's struggle with his destiny as a worthwhile but uneven take on the Antichrist myth.

## Synopsis

Damien (2016) is a United States supernatural drama series created by Glen Mazzara for A&E. It follows Bradley James as Damien Thorn, a young war photographer who learns his origins and comes to understand that he is the Antichrist. Megalyn Echikunwoke as Simone Baptiste and Omid Abtahi as Amani Golkar support him as allies drawn into the hunt for the truth, while Barbara Hershey as Ann Rutledge looms as a figure tied to the prophecy. The engine of the story is Damien's struggle to reconcile an identity he never chose with the pull of a destiny of evil, as each episode pushes him toward confrontations with hidden believers, shadowy institutions and the question of whether he can refuse what he is. Told across a single ten-episode season, the show is a compact serialized mystery rather than a case-of-the-week format. Its atmosphere is tense and foreboding, with a dread-filled, paranoid undercurrent and imagery that draws on Catholic iconography and modern secular settings. Fans of The Omen, Supernatural and Carnivale will find resonance in its blend of religious dread, prophecy and a young protagonist caught in a cosmic conflict. The series was canceled after its season, leaving its central story unfinished.

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