Metal Gear Mastermind Can’t Stop Praising Vince Gilligan’s New Apple TV+ Series Pluribus

Hideo Kojima, creator of Metal Gear and Death Stranding, took to X to rave that Vince Gilligan’s new series Pluribus blew him away after its premiere—early buzz that the Breaking Bad creator has another must-watch on his hands.

Vince Gilligan is back on TV with a sci-fi series that is already getting the kind of love you usually only see on victory laps. And yes, Hideo Kojima watched the pilot and basically lost his mind in the best way.

Hideo Kojima watched Pluribus and had a full-on moment

The Metal Gear and Death Stranding creator caught the first episode of Gilligan's new show and posted about it on X (Twitter) on November 7, 2025. He was all-in from the opening scene and even floated a pretty specific sci-fi touchstone for what the show might be up to.

"Oh my god - this is incredible. Absolutely incredible. It pulls you in right from the opening scene. Vince really is a genius!"

Kojima also wondered aloud if this might be Gilligan's spin on Jack Finney's 1955 novel "Invasion of the Body Snatchers"—not a bad compass if you're trying to clock the vibe.

So what is Pluribus actually about?

The show centers on Carol Sturka, one of the few people who isn't swept up by a mysterious alien-borne infection that leaves almost everyone else blissfully content and synced up like a cheerful hive. Carol has to move through a world where nearly all the friction is gone—at least on the surface. It's a cool, slightly unsettling angle: not the apocalypse of rage and ruin, but an outbreak of relentless niceness.

Critics are into it (like, a lot)

Pluribus launched on Apple TV with a flawless 100% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes and a 9/10 on IMDb. Reviewers are calling it bold, surprising, and genuinely original. Empire Magazine’s Dan Jolin pegged it as a strange, sharply modern sci-fi satire that wouldn't feel out of place next to the wildest tech-anxiety stories—except it's very much Gilligan's version of that.

This one has been cooking for years

Gilligan told Variety he started playing with the idea almost a decade ago. His first draft orbit was a male lead who survives a seismic event and suddenly finds everyone around him unfailingly kind—like, willing-to-throw-themselves-in-front-of-a-bus kind. Over time, he realized the story hits harder with a woman at the center and immediately thought of Rhea Seehorn. He praised her range and presence—funny, heartbreaking, whatever the scene needs—and handed her Carol Sturka.

The essentials

• Creator: Vince Gilligan
• Premise: Carol Sturka is one of the last people not absorbed into a smiling, cooperative hive-mind created by an extraterrestrial virus
• Cast: Rhea Seehorn (as Carol Sturka), Karolina Wydra, Carlos Manuel
• Platform: Apple TV
• Reception: 100% Rotten Tomatoes critic score; IMDb 9/10
• Release plan: The first two episodes are streaming now; episode 3 arrives November 14, 2025

Bottom line

Between the concept, Seehorn leading, that early critical wall of praise, and Kojima throwing roses after the pilot, Pluribus is off to a ridiculous start. That 100% won't stay perfect forever—nothing does—but as an opening statement, it's a flex.