Fellow Travelers is a political thriller and epic love story that spans decades and starts during of the darkest times in American history, during the so-called McCarthy era of the 1950s.
Created by Ron Nyswamer — the man behind the Tom Hanks' movie Philadelphia and spy thriller Homeland — and based on the novel Fellow Travelers by Thomas Mallon, the story follows a clandestine romance between the charismatic Hawkins Fuller (Matt Bomer), who works in politics, and young idealist Tim Laughlin (Bridgerton’s Jonathan Bailey). The pair meet just as US Senator Joseph McCarthy and his chief counsel Roy Cohn declare that homosexuality is sexual deviancy, and the series follows the pair against the backdrop of the 1960s protests against the Vietnam War, the drug-fuelled hedonism of the 1970s and the AIDS crisis of the 1980s.
Here’s everything you need to know about the Showtime and Paramount Plus series Fellow Travelers…
Fellow Travelers release date
Fellow Travelers is an eight-part series that launched on Paramount Plus with Showtime in the US and Canada on Friday October 27 2023, then on Paramount Plus on Saturday October 28 in the UK, Australia, Latin America, South Korea, Italy, Germany Switzerland and Austria. It's a major drama during the Autumn TV season for 2023.
* How to watch Fellow Travelers: stream the historical romance drama including air date
* Paramount Plus price: cost, deals and content for the streaming service.
* Sign up for Paramount Plus here.
Is there a trailer for Fellow Travelers?
Paramount Plus and Showtime have both released trailers for Fellow Travelers. So do take a look at both below...
Yes a teaser trailer for Fellow Travelers was released by Paramount which shows a very tense drama. We see Hawkins and Tim walk past one another in the corridors of power, with flashbacks to their secret and potentially explosive romance. Take a look below at the trailer and a tweet about the show.
There are eyes everywhere. #FellowTravelers premieres 28 October on Paramount+ UK & Ireland pic.twitter.com/7KQajLiTcIAugust 17, 2023
Fellow Travelers plot
Fellow Travelers follows a secret romance between two very different men – the rich Hawkins Fuller (Matt Bomer) and the young Tim Laughlin (Jonathan Bailey) who is brimming with idealism and religious faith. They start a romance, but Joseph McCarthy and Roy Cohn have just declared war on ‘subversives and sexual deviants’ so their love could cost them everything. We follow them, alongside three other characters – Marcus (Jelani Alladin), Lucy (Allison Williams) and Frankie (Noah J. Ricketts) - as they cross paths over the next four decades.
When Hawkins Fuller (American Horror Story’s Matt Bomer), an influential staffer working for a US Senator, meets aspiring politico Tim Laughlin (Bridgerton’s Jonathan Bailey) at a Washington fundraiser, the attraction between the two men is instant.
The problem is that the year is 1952, and Republican Senator Joseph McCarthy (For All Mankind’s Chris Bauer) is about to announce his intention to stamp out ‘subversives and sexual deviants’ in the US government.
The drama follows the love story between Hawk and Tim over four turbulent decades including the Vietnam War and AIDS crisis, as they keep getting pulled back into each other’s orbit.
"It’s so compelling to have a powerful attraction between people who view life very differently," says Ron Nyswaner, the show’s creator and executive producer. "They are, in many ways, not suited to each other, but they are powerfully drawn together. And they’re in a very high-pressured, high stakes environment, where their attraction to each other could ruin their lives.?"
In order to maintain his cover, Hawk marries his friend Lucy (Girls star Allison Williams), who is also the daughter of his boss, Senator Wesley Smith (My Policeman’s Linus Roache).
"Lucy and Hawk have this delicious relationship of having known each other since childhood,’ explains Nyswaner. ‘There was always an assumption that they would get married someday - and what’s compelling to me about Lucy is, what does she know about Hawk and what doesn’t she know? What are we willing to not face, if we get to be with somebody we care about?
"Lucy and Tim are in a similar situation where they both desire this man, and are both willing to give up certain things to have him - but at a certain point, they will pay a price for that.’
The series’ timeline spans from the McCarthy era through to the Aids crisis of the 1980s and runs on a non-linear narrative, which Nyswaner admits occasionally caused some confusion during production.
‘Part of my job on set was to keep everybody clear,’ he recalls. ‘There were times when, in a given day, we were in three different decades - that was really challenging for the designers and the crew!’
Follow Travelers cast — Matt Bomer as Hawkins Fuller
Matt Bomer plays Hawkins Fuller, who has made a career for himself behind the scenes in politics.
Crucial to the success of Fellow Travelers was finding two actors with the right chemistry, and Nyswaner explains that Bomer - who also serves as executive producer on the series - and Jonathan Bailey as Tim perfectly captured the longing that keeps their characters coming back to each other.
"Matt has the ability to signal what’s going on inside without having to tell you,’ says Nyswaner. "Hawkins’ inner life is hidden from the world, because it’s too risky to share that with other human beings.
"Tim’s the opposite - his emotions are on the surface, and Jonny does that very well, that incredible nervous energy that he embodies of just wanting something so powerfully. Because of that, I think the audience will want him to get Hawk - even though it’s probably not going to be good for Tim if he does."
* Matt Bomer has previously starred in Magic Mike, In Time, White Collar, Will & Grace, The Normal Heart, Tru Calling, American Horror Story: Hotel, The Magnificent Seven and The Sinner.
Jonathan Bailey as Tim Laughlin
Jonathan Bailey is playing Hawkins Fuller's secret lover Tim Laughlin.
Jonathan Bailey is best known for playing Lord Anthony Bridgerton in the hit Netflix series Bridgerton and has also starred in W1A, Hooten and The Lady, Crashing, Broadchurch, Leonardo and Baddiel’s Syndrome. He will star in the upcoming movie Wicked, playing Fiyero.
Who else is starring in Fellow Travelers?
There's a great remaining cast for Fellow Travellers which includes Jelani Alladin (Tick, tick.. BOOM!, The Walking Dead: World Beyond) who plays Marcus Hooks, while Allison Williams (Get Out, Girls) is Lucy Smith and Noah J. Ricketts (American Gods) plays Frankie Hines. Linus Roache will play Senator Wesley Smith while Chris Bauer is Senator Joe McCarthy and Will Brill is Roy Cohn.
Fellow Travelers episode guide
Here's a brief episode guide for Fellow Travelers. Remember the episodes are released weekly from October 27 2023 (in the US) and October 28 (in the UK)...
Episode 1
It's tje 1950s in Washington DC and the atmosphere is febrile as it's the Joseph McCarthy which suspicions of communist infiltration into US society are running high and any accusations could ruin a career in an instant. Hawkins Fuller is a war hero moving up the ladder at the State Department. when Hawk meets religious Tim Laughlin and they begin an affair that puts them in jeopardy.
Episodes 2 to 8
Please do check back as we'll be adding weekly information.
Behind the scenes and more on Fellow Travelers
Matt Bomer and Nyswaner executive produce Fellow Travelers with Robbie Rogers (All American, My Policeman) and Dee Johnson. Daniel Minahan (Halston, American Crime Story: Versace) executive produces and direct the first two episodes. The series is co-produced by Fremantle and Paramount+.
* Other big dramas currently showing or coming soon to Paramount Plus...
* The Castaways
* A Gentleman in Moscow
* No Escape
* Sexy Beast
* The Killing Kind
* Fatal Attraction
* The Gymnasts
* The Flatshare
