Westworld Rides Again in 4K

Westworld may have wound up firing blanks at the primetime Emmy Awards but fans of the sci-fi shoot-’em-up can look forward to its release on 4K-UHD and Blu-ray.

It goes on sale on November 8, a month ahead of season seven of Game of Thrones.

“We are thrilled to release the first season of HBO’s critically-acclaimed and most watched new series Westworld in 4K Blu-ray with HDR, Blu-ray and DVD,” said Rosemary Markson, Senior Vice President, Television Marketing, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.

“Fans will devour this beautifully crafted series – a perfect candidate to receive the fully immersive 4K HDR experience along with limited edition collectable packaging and all-new special features.”

The 4K Blu-ray discs and Blu-ray discs will feature Dolby Atmos soundtracks remixed specifically for the home theatre environment to place and move audio anywhere in the room, including overhead.

News of Westworld’s 4K-UHD and Blu-ray release in NZ is especially welcomed given the increasing number of HBO series that in this market are DVD-only.

Cases in point are two of this year’s other Emmy-winners, Veep and Big Little Lies, which are DVD-only here (although Big Little Lies can be bought on Blu-ray in Australia, as can season 10 of The Big Bang Theory).

Big Little Lies was one of the biggest winners at the Emmy Awards, which may heighten interest in its free-to-air premiere on Prime this week (9.30 Thursday) while SoHo subscribers can revisit the series from 9.30 tonight, when it re-runs from episode one amid talk of a possible season two.

Meanwhile, The Handmaid’s Tale’s triumph as the first streaming series to win a best drama Emmy is a big win for the credibility of Lightbox, where it streams in NZ.

Its Blu-ray release has yet to be announced and there’s still no word on when another of this year’s surprise losers, Stranger Things, will go on sale, either.

In the meantime, here’s what to expect on the Westworld release:

• Inside Look with Jonah Nolan and Lisa Joy – Season One
• Imagining the Main Title
• The Key to The Chords
• 2017 Comic Con Panel
• Gag Reel
• Welcome to Westworld
• Crafting the Narrative
• An Invitation to The Set
• Welcome to Westworld: About the Series
• Reality of A.I.: Westworld
• “The Big Moment” Featurette.

And confirmed for season seven of Game of Thrones are:

• Conquest & Rebellion: An Animated History of the Seven Kingdoms
• From Imagination to Reality: Inside the Art Department
• Fire & Steel: Creating the Invasion of Westeros
• Audio commentaries on every episode with cast and crew
• Histories and Lore
• In-Episode Guides.