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BBC America and BBC Studios introduced the third part in its expansive nature series, Planet Earth III, on Friday with an extended first-look trailer accompanied by an original song created and performed by composer Hans Zimmer, singer-songwriter Raye and the band Bastille in collaboration with composer collective Bleeding Fingers Music.
The eight-episode series, which features scenes from the polar oceans to the African plains to the Costa Rican rain forest, is once again narrated by Sir David Attenborough (Planet Earth II, Blue Planet II, Frozen Planet II). It’s executive produced by Mike Gunton (Planet Earth II, Dynasties II) and produced by Matt Brandon (Cities: Nature’s New Wild). Planet Earth III comes out seven years after Planet Earth II.
The trailer features the new track “Mother Nature” with lyrics written and performed by Raye, paired with Bastille frontman Dan Smith’s vocals. The trailer gives viewers a glimpse of animals captured on film all around the globe, including a leopard leaping 30 feet out of a tree in Southern Africa, a wild rhino walking through the busy streets of a Nepalese town and a mass of skydiving tree frogs in the Costa Rican jungle, all filmed during the five-year project.
Over the last year, composers Hans Zimmer, Jacob Shea, Sara Barone and Bastille’s Dan Smith have collaborated across the Planet Earth III series score. These soundscapes feature Dan Smith’s vocals on the opening title theme song, as well as within all episodes of the series. Their collaborative reworking of Bastille’s hit single – “Pompeii,” entitled “Pompeii MMXXIII,” features on the series end credits.
Two-time Oscar winner Zimmer worked on the track with his long-time collaborators from Bleeding Fingers Music, producer Russell Emanuel and arranger Andrew Christie. Zimmer and Bleeding Fingers Music previously composed the score to Planet Earth II, as well as music for Blue Planet II and Frozen Planet II.
“Creating scores for any of the BBC’s Natural History series is always an honor for me as there are no more epic stories than those occurring naturally every day in our own planet’s ecosystem,” said Zimmer in a statement.
“The soundscape is the secret sauce of a great wildlife series and there is no one better to deliver this than our long-term collaborators Hans and his team – but what makes this extraordinary musical project exciting for me is the new ingredient provided by Raye and Bastille. This creative combination is unprecedented, and the results are jaw-droppingly good!” said producer Gunton.
Planet Earth III is a BBC Studios Natural History Production co-produced with BBC America, ZDF and France Televisions in partnership with The Open University for BBC. BBC Studios is handling global distribution. The series premieres in the U.S. on BBC America and its streaming companion AMC Plus later this year.