The ABC Murders Trailer: John Malkovich Is Famous Fictional Detective Hercule Poirot

In 1999, being John Malkovich meant starring in a film centered around your existence. Twenty years later, it means taking on a role entirely different from yourself. 

John Malkovich — known for Death of a Salesman, Con Air, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Being John Malkovich (duh), and dozens more — steps into the suit, tie, and mustache (and goatee) to star as Hercule Poirot on the upcoming Amazon limited series The ABC Murders. The streamer dropped the first trailer for the show, based on Agatha Christie's novel of the same name, on Thursday, teasing what's bound to be an exhilarating murder mystery.  

Set in 1930s England, The ABC Murders follows the famous detective Poirot on a race against time to locate — and put an end to — a terrifying serial killer who goes by the moniker "ABC." The crime-solver and the people-slasher engage in a heart-racing cat-and-mouse game across Britain, the latter leaving a trail of dead railroad guides behind him as he hacks his way through the country, each of his crimes growing more gruesome and bizarrely meticulous than the last. Poirot, as the trailer teases, understands that the killer's code is him — that only he can make sense of the murderer's methods and crack the "spectacularly grisly" case. 

If Malkovich as Poirot isn't enough to whet your appetite, The ABC Murders also features Harry Potter icons Rupert Grint and Shirley Henderson as Inspector Crome and Rose Marbury, respectively, as well as Broadchurch star Andrew Buchan as Franklin Clarke, Twin Peaks revival actor Eamon Farren as Alexander Bonaparte Cust, and Skins actress Freya Mavor as Thora Grey. Rounding out the stacked cast are Jack Farthing as Donald Fraser, Gregor Fisher as Dexter Dooley, Tara Fitzgerald as Lady Hermione Clarke, Bronwyn James as Megan Barnard, and Kevin McNally as Inspector Japp. With so many bright talents on board The ABC Murders, the series is sure to be a smash. 

And a smash it is, with U.K.-based critics who have seen the series already praising it as "magnificent," regarding Malkovich's turn as Poirot, one brimming with "latent violence," as being "potent as ever." Thanks to these glowing responses, The ABC Murders currently sits at an impressive 100 percent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Will that pristine score remain when the series hits Amazon on February 1, 2019? We'll have to wait and see.