Fall TV: HBO's 'Westworld' Gives Us More Self-Aware Robots

HBO's new series Westworld has big names attached to it and a long history in Hollywood. But as the venerable story is adapted for a 21st-century audience, it's being infused with some very of-the-moment themes. That could make the series an extremely topical hit, or it could seem like something we've already seen quite a few times.

The series concerns a futuristic theme park in which visitors interact with androids acting out scenes built around a Wild West theme. Unfortunately, things get out of hand, and the androids start killing the guests. The original story was written by novelist/director/producer Michael Crichton and was originally adpated to film in 1973. Crichton himself rehashed the out-of-control theme park concept in his novel Jurassic Park, which was, of course, transformed into a mega-successful film franchise.

This update of the story, penned by screenwriter Jonathon Nolan (The Dark Knight, Interstellar) and his wife Lisa Joy (Burn Notice), tweaks the motivation of the androids. This time, they're not simply malfunctioning; they're becoming self-aware and beginning to question the meaning of their existence. It's a theme that's recently been explored in films such as Ex Machina, and not so recently in stories like Frankenstein.

Westworld premieres on HBO on October 2.