LOS ANGELES — Eerily apropos of sex researcher Virginia Johnson’s recent passing, Showtime will premiere the series “Masters of Sex” Sept. 29, about the trials, tribulations and eventual triumph of Johnson and her partner-in-sex-science William Masters, as they navigate a pre-progressive U.S landscape.
Showtime also released a new trailer yesterday for the series that centers on the hesitant reception of their work by their early-50s late-60s coevals.
“Long before anyone else, a curious man and an unconventional woman were mastering the art of impolite science,” the trailers flashes in segments, spliced inbetween images of Masters monitoring a woman while she is engaged in intercourse. He holds a clipboard and stopwatch as she moans, “Oh God.”
“I simply want to answer the question: What happens to the body during sex?” Master says at one point, defending his research. His friend replies, “It’s smut.”
Michael Sheen replaced Paul Bettany as Masters after the original star dropped out of the project and significantly delayed it release. Lizzy Caplan plays Johnson.
The series is reportedly based on the nonfiction book “Masters of Sex: The Life and Times of William Masters and Virginia Johnson” by Thomas Maiers.
Following the premiere of “Masters of Sex” next month, it is slated to air every Sunday at 10 p.m. on Showtime.
