Netflix
Netflix says a fan-made teaser for the upcoming "A Series of Unfortunate Events" adaptation is fake. Netflix

In Daniel Handler’s “A Series of Unfortunate Events” nothing was as it seemed – there were red herrings, constant fractures to the fourth wall, and a mysterious narrator/author, Lemony Snicket, who existed in the universe of the books. Why should the upcoming Netflix show based on the best-selling book series be any different? Fans of “A Series of Unfortunate Events” were elated when a new teaser trailer for the Netflix series popped up on YouTube, but, alas, the extraordinarily well made video turned out to be just another red herring.

According to TV Line, Netflix has confirmed that the trailer, which already had over 740,000 views Monday morning, was a fake. However, Netflix’s disowning of the trailer, coupled with very little by way of a public statement or tweet discouraging fans from watching the 35-second video, has only added fuel to the fire for those who believe the trailer’s validity is just a Lemony Snicket-style curveball from Netflix to the series’ fans.

The allegedly fan-made – though curiosuly high production quality – teaser depicts a creepy bedroom that viewers will quickly surmise to be the residence of the infamous Count Olaf. While creepy music plays on an old record player, viewers are given a tour of the insect-filled room, crawling with allusions to the books, including Violet’s ribbon, Klaus’ glasses, and books with titles such as, “How To Start Fires.” The video ends with the menacing shadow of Olaf himself.

To make things even more interesting, the video was uploaded by a YouTube user with the username Eleanora Poe – the name of the editor of “The Daily Punctilio” newspaper in the books.

Watch the (fake) trailer for “A Series of Unfortunate Events” below:

While the trailer may be a fake, a very real adaptation of the book series is coming to Netflix. The project was announced last November, but no premiere date has been set. Fans will have to wait to see if the real thing lives up to the phony teaser.

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