Hulu’s new thriller Chance starts off focusing on the struggles of mental illness but evolves into an exploration of the darkest corners of the human mind.

Series star Hugh Laurie (House) plays psychiatrist Eldon Chance, a brilliant but somewhat flawed doctor tasked with evaluating patients with mental disorders and recommending specific forms of treatment through other doctors.

Chance, already dealing with a difficult divorce and his spotty relationship with his teenage daughter, encounters troubled patient Jaclyn Blackstone (Gretchen Mol), an attractive woman with multiple personalities.

He’s drawn into the life and circumstances of Jaclyn, who complains of being abused by her husband Raymond (Paul Adelstein), a rough-and-tumble homicide detective. When she ends up in the hospital after a particularly violent beating, Chance begrudgingly looks to step in to avoid what he believes to be an impending tragedy. At the same time, while trying to sell a high-priced piece of furniture, he makes acquaintances with D (Ethan Suplee), a bulky-but-unassuming antiques restorer with a dark past that feeds into Chance’s impulse to make things right for Jaclyn.

But soon Chance realizes that teaming with D could lead him into a dark underworld of violence and unscrupulousness that he may not be prepared to accept.

The pilot episode for Chance slowly sets the stage for the unraveling of a plot that weaves in elements of corruption, violence, betrayal and psychological power — all of the things that make Chance a good thriller.