‘Watchmen Chapter 1’ Trailer Introduces Matthew Rhys, Katee Sackhoff as Animated DC Heroes

The Doomsday Clock is ticking in the trailer for the animated feature Watchmen Chapter 1.

Hailing from Warner Bros. Animation and Paramount, the title is the first in a two-part film based on the classic DC Comics series Watchmen, a satirical project focusing on an alternate reality in which superheroes — known as costumed vigilantes — have been outlawed. Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment releases director Brandon Vietti’s feature via digital platforms Aug. 13 before it hits Blu-ray on Aug. 27.

The voice cast includes Matthew Rhys as Dan Dreiberg and Nite Owl, Katee Sackhoff as Laurie Juspeczyk and Silk Spectre, Titus Welliver as Rorschach and Walter Kovacs, and Michael Cerveris as Jonathan Osterman and Dr. Manhattan. Also voicing characters are Troy Baker, Adrienne Barbeau, Corey Burton, Jeffrey Combs, Kelly Hu and Phil LaMarr.

“There is good, and there is evil, and evil must be punished, even in the face of armageddon,” Welliver says as Rorschach in the trailer. “I shall not compromise on this.”

Vietti directed the film from a script by J. Michael Straczynski. It is based on the comic book series from writer Alan Moore and artist Dave Gibbons that was released in 1986 and 1987. Vietti, James Krieg and Cindy Rago are producers on the movie.

In 2009, Warner Bros. released director Zack Snyder’s live-action feature adaptation Watchmen in theaters after a lengthy development process. Starring Billy Crudup, Matthew Goode, Jackie Earle Haley, Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Patrick Wilson, the film holds a 65 percent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and collected $185 million at the global box office.

A decade later, an HBO series of the same name from creator Damon Lindelof was set 34 years after the events of the comics. The show was widely acclaimed, earning 11 Emmys from 26 nominations.

Watchmen Chapter 2 is set to be released later this year.