Ted, the upcoming Peacock prequel series to the films of the same name, got a full, raunchy Red Band trailer today, following the brief teaser trailer that was released a little less than two weeks ago. The new trailer follows 16-year-old John Bennett, played as an adult by Mark Wahlberg in the films, and Ted heading to high school, and the perils of having a talking teddy bear attend educational institutions with unpopular teenagers during the ‘90s.
The Red Band trailer opens by exploring Ted’s life in suburbia after his 15 minutes of fame have passed. The talking teddy bear was brought to life by a childhood wish and has until now been allowed to hang around the house while the rest of the family is at school or work. Naturally, this has resulted in some property destruction, among other things, so Ted is shipped off to school with John.
The trailer also gives us a glimpse of John and Ted’s trials in high school. We see the two of them dealing with bullies, attending a sex education class (which goes about as well as you’d expect), getting high for the first time, and tackling John’s search for a girlfriend. We also get a brief look at Ted and John’s role in the Bennett family dynamic. Ted, of course, is trying to help, but having a hedonistic talking teddy bear at your side always seems to make things worse.
Peacock ordered the series in 2021, and filming began in 2022. Seth McFarlane returns to voice Ted, but also serves as executive producer, writer, director, and co-showrunner. John is played by Max Burkholder (Parenthood); he’s joined by Alanna Ubach (Euphoria) as Susan Bennett, John’s kind and selfless mother; Scott Grimes (The Orville) as Matty Bennett, John’s blue-collar father; and Giorgia Whigham (13 Reasons Why) as John’s cousin Blaire, a smart, politically correct college student.
The original Ted was a fast hit, praised for being a funny, unique comedy. In our review, we said “Ted offers a litany of instantly quotable lines and memorable scenarios. If you can stomach the politically incorrect and crude humor then you’ll find Ted has a lot more to it than simply pothead humor, bodily function jokes and pop culture references.”
We weren’t quite as fond of the sequel, writing that “John's story this time out is particularly weak, and Ted's might make one a little uncomfortable in how it plays out, but the bromance between John and Ted is enough.”
Fans won’t have to wait long to see McFarlane’s debaucherous teddy bear back in action. All seven episodes of Ted will be available on Peacock on Jan. 11, 2024.
