Lena Headey's New Show Could Be the Sci-Fi Sleeper Hit of 2023

The Silo comparison isn’t unearned: Beacon 23 is based on a short story collection by Hugh Howey, who wrote the source material for Silo. The series follows a space lighthouse (Howey really has a thing for cylindrical buildings) and the various keepers who have lived there over the years. The first episode focuses on government agent Aster (Lena Headey) and Halan (Stephan James), and their storyline weaves in and out of those who came before, building to a huge secret that’s just as fascinating as it is a classic sci-fi trope.

Because of the short-story source material, Beacon 23 is able to use a non-linear, episodic structure that almost echoes single-set anthology shows like Room 104. Showrunner Zak Penn, best known for writing early drafts of a bunch of MCU movies including The Avengers, uses the structure of the show to his advantage: with every episode centered in the eponymous Beacon, the relatively low budget is expertly hidden.