Splinter Cell: Deathwatch Trailer Reveals Release Date And Cast For Netflix Adaptation
Animated series debuts October 14 featuring Sam Fisher, Grim, and new characters voiced by Schreiber, Varney, and more.
Summary
- Netflix drops trailer for Splinter Cell: Deathwatch, Sam Fisher returns in animated form on October 14.
- Liev Schreiber voices Fisher, replacing longtime actor Michael Ironside, with Derek Kolstad as head writer.
- Story teases ties to Pandora Tomorrow/Chaos Theory, featuring the grave of Douglas Shetland as a key visual.
Sam Fisher is back, finally, and he’s bringing the green goggles with him. Netflix dropped a trailer for Splinter Cell: Deathwatch, an animated series that lands on October 14.
The footage keeps it tight, hardly any plot, plenty of quiet takedowns. Classic Sam. The vibe says stealth first, fireworks later.
Release:
- Date: October 14.
- Format: Animated series on Netflix.
- Focus: Stealth, espionage, night vision, knife-in-the-dark energy.
Related
A single trailer sets the mood, not the playbook (watch below). You see Sam moving, targets dropping, no monologues about destiny. The cut lingers on one heavy image, the grave of Douglas Shetland. If that name makes your stomach drop a little, you remember the Pandora Tomorrow and Chaos Theory era. The placement hints at a story orbiting that timeline, or at least the consequences tied to it.
Cast
Liev Schreiber voices Sam Fisher. Michael Ironside owned the character for most games, so this recasting will get attention. Different texture, same shadow. The supporting squad looks solid:
- Janet Varney as Anna “Grim” Grímsdóttir
- Kirby Howell-Baptiste as Zinnia McKenna
- Joel Oulette as Thunder
The names suggest a mix of legacy and fresh faces. Grim anchors the lore. Zinnia and Thunder read as new levers for the plot.
Story hints
The trailer drops almost nothing that counts as a full synopsis. That’s fine. What we do get, fast, is the Shetland grave.
That single beat does work. It tells you loss, loyalty, fallout. It points to Sam’s moral knots, not just his silent takedowns.
Fans expecting a checklist of missions may need to wait for episode descriptions, or just watch and keep up.
Behind the pen
Derek Kolstad, John Wick co-creator, serves as head writer and producer. Different medium, similar skill set: crisp stakes, clean choreography, sharp timing. He framed the intent in a note shared with Collider:
“With Deathwatch, my goal was to honor the legacy of Splinter Cell while pushing the narrative into new, uncharted territory–exploring the psychological and moral challenges that define true heroes,” said Kolstad. “Whether you’re a seasoned gamer or stepping into Sam Fisher’s world for the first time, I hope this series offers a gripping adventure and a deeper appreciation for the complexities of modern espionage. If nothing else, though, at least it’s an absolute blast to watch!”
Ambition locked in.
The quote reads like a promise of character tension and spook-world ethics, not just wall-to-wall headshots.
Animation
Studios on deck: Sun Creature Studio and Fost.
The models look clean, the movement looks weighty, and the light work on the goggles already does the heavy lifting.
High-contrast scenes, precise framing, and that glow you can spot from a thumbnail.
Voice shift
Schreiber stepping in for Ironside is the headline a lot of people will argue about. The trailer used restraint, so you only get flashes of the new delivery.
It sounds controlled, older, heavy with mileage. Fisher never lived off quips anyway. He lived off discipline, timing, and choices that cost.
If the performance leans into that, it fits.
What else is happening
There is no other screen project to circle on your calendar.
A live-action Splinter Cell movie crawled through development for years, then got canceled last year.
The most recent adaptation before this was Splinter Cell: Firewall, a BBC Radio play from 2022 with Andonis Anthony as Fisher.
Different medium, same shadows.
Games status
Ubisoft announced a Splinter Cell remake in 2021. No release date. The lab lights are on, the doors are shut, the calendar is blank.
One tiny pulse came from Splinter Cell: Blacklist. Steam achievements were added, which is a small update, but it does show someone still touching the wires.
Blacklist came out in 2013, so the achievement pass reads like housekeeping or a signal flare, your pick.
Trailer read
What it shows:
- Sam Fisher in mission mode, close quarters, fast silences
- Night vision used as punctuation, not a crutch
- A visual nod to Douglas Shetland and the Pandora Tomorrow/Chaos Theory baggage
- A lean presentation that avoids spoiling the operation tree
What it doesn’t show:
- Full plot beats
- Clear villain hierarchy
- How far the timeline strays from the games
The restraint helps. The brand is stealth. The trailer follows suit.
So?
The Splinter Cell name still carries weight with stealth fans who like planning, patience, and clean exits.
The series also gives Netflix a lane that is not just action excess. It’s method, surveillance, pressure, then release.
If Deathwatch nails tension and consequence, it gives newcomers a reason to care and veterans a reason to argue about loadouts again.
Expectations check
- Performance: Schreiber needs to sell fatigue and focus.
- Writing: Kolstad needs to thread spycraft with human fallout.
- Animation: Sun Creature and Fost need to keep the shadows readable and the hits believable.
- Lore: The Shetland beat sets a bar for emotional stakes. Keep that thread strong.
What I liked:
- Minimalist trailer cut, no plot dump, no fake epic
- Shetland reference, immediate emotional anchor
- Grim back in play, reliable mission control energy
- Production pedigree, writer and studios that understand tempo
What I’m watching:
- Voice continuity, how Schreiber handles quiet threat
- Canon alignment, how the show maps to the Pandora Tomorrow/Chaos Theory period
- Weekly momentum, if the series structure delivers tight objectives with clean payoffs
- Action readability, every move should tell a story, not just make noise
Splinter Cell: Deathwatch looks measured, not desperate. The trailer trusts the audience. It shows Sam, it shows focus, it shows history with that Shetland grave. The rest is on the episodes.
If the writing targets moral pressure and the animation sticks the blade-in-silence style, this could be a strong return for the brand. If it drifts into generic spy chaos, the goggles turn into a costume piece. Right now, the signs point to discipline.
For the file keepers: Netflix, October 14, Liev Schreiber as Sam Fisher, Janet Varney as Grim, Kirby Howell-Baptiste as Zinnia, Joel Oulette as Thunder, Derek Kolstad writing and producing, Sun Creature and Fost animating. The live-action movie is gone, BBC Radio’s Firewall happened in 2022, Ubisoft’s remake is still un-dated, Blacklist picked up Steam achievements.
One more look at the source drop if you missed it: Collider.
Players worry XP boosts, tier skips, and locked cosmetics could mimic Call of Duty’s divisive Blackcell structure.
