1 month ago
EXCLUSIVE: To Leslie prima Andrea Riseborough and Adolescence‘s Ashley Walters will beforehand an out-of-this-world ITV thriller drama, First Woman.
Deadline hears ITV Studios-owned Mammoth Screen, Blade Runner 2099 patient Alcon Television and ZDF successful Germany are attached to co-produce nan six-part lunar series, which will dart betwixt abstraction and Earth, blending sci-fi and thriller elements.
Philip Martin is nan director, pinch Lydia Yeoman and George Oakes, who had nan original idea, nan creators. The bid is being co-financed by Alcon Television Group and ITV Studios, nan second of which has world income rights.
Here’s nan logline: “When Ben Reith (Walters) is woken successful his London location to beryllium told that his woman Claire (Riseborough) has gone missing, it’s nan commencement of a world news story, because Claire is an astronaut crewing nan UK’s first moonbase and she’s vanished into nan agelong lunar night…
“Claire is nan first female to group ft connected nan moon. A biologist taking portion successful a groundbreaking investigation project, her disappearance throws suspicion connected her chap astronauts and China’s rival base. With hundreds of thousands of miles betwixt them, tin Ben uncover nan truth down his wife’s disappearance?”
The bid marks Oscar nominee Riseborough’s first tv task since HBO miniseries The Regime successful 2024, and comes during an ongoing basking streak for nan character successful which she’s landed movie roles successful Johnny Depp pic Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol and Don DeLillo adjustment Zero K, and acted successful nan likes of The Good Boy and Goodbye June.
As for Walters, his banal continues to emergence connected nan backmost of his Golden Globe- and Emmy-nominated domiciled successful Netflix’s Adolescence and his first characteristic arsenic director, Animol, debuted successful Berlin. He’s besides been cast successful HBO bid Dune: Prophecy and was nan prima of Netflix’s Top Boy.
ITV’s Director of Drama Polly Hill commissioned the drama, saying: “I wanted ITV to make this nan infinitesimal I publication it. The squad that has travel connected committee connected and disconnected surface is incredible, and a testament to nan awesome and original scripts. Ashley Walters and Andrea Riseborough are specified breathtaking casting, and Philip Martin is going to return nan assemblage connected specified an unthinkable journey, that I americium thrilled to stock pinch nan audience.”
The scripts travel from lead writer Lydia Yeoman (Curfew), Oakes and Ben Schiffer. Julia Stannard (War and Peace) is nan producer. Mammoth Screen’s laminitis and Chief Creative Officer, Damien Timmer, is executive shaper alongside James Gandhi, Martin, Oakes and Yeoman. Mammoth Screen’s Creative Director, Rebecca Keane, oversaw improvement of nan series.
Alcon Television Group will co-produce nan bid pinch Broderick Johnson, Andrew Kosove, Scott Parish, Diego Piasek and Ben Roberts serving arsenic executive producers. This marks nan first clip nan institution arsenic co-financed a co-production of this sort, arsenic it seeks to further push into world TV done akin deals.
UNIT VFX will activity pinch Mammoth Screen and Alcon delivering creative ocular effects during production, while Poli Productions imaginative exec Rob Carlisle is teaming pinch Martin and accumulation designer Gillian Devenney to create nan lunar vistas. The lunar scenery and moonbase are being housed astatine Studio Ulster, nan UK’s largest virtual accumulation studio.
ITV’s Director of Drama, Polly Hill, will beryllium responsible for drama’s accumulation from nan broadcaster’s perspective. The show is being produced successful relation pinch and distributed internationally by ITV Studios, pinch further backing support from Northern Ireland Screen. Filming is underway successful Belfast supported by Northern Ireland Screen.
ITV and ZDF will beryllium banking nan prima powerfulness of Riseborough and Walters, 2 of nan UK’s hottest acting talents correct now, and nan ambition of specified a ample standard production.
“As a kid, I dreamed, possibly much than anything, of space,” said Riseborough. “Of emptiness and stars, and nan vastness of each that those ‘grounded’ reflected connected successful verse. I can’t ideate a kinder, bolder, braver squad than Philip and Ashley pinch whom to measurement into that realm. This will beryllium endlessly compelling – I dream – for each who want to travel pinch us. I cannot wait.”
Walters added: “What an honour to beryllium a portion of specified a bold and propulsive play pinch a squad of group that I person dreamt of moving with. I ever want to beryllium a portion of projects that make america converse and deliberation extracurricular nan box. This 1 does conscionable that.”
Mammoth Screen’s Gandhi and Timmer said called nan bid “the eventual affectional rollercoaster” and added it was “going to beryllium 1 of nan astir eager ITV dramas ever made,” while Alcon’s Kosove and Johnson connected behalf of Alcon Television Group called it a “gripping, character-driven thriller group against nan backdrop of nan modern abstraction race.”
Martin noted nan action would move betwixt Mission Control successful nan UK and nan lunar surface. “This is simply a title against clip for illustration nary other, pinch nan remaining astronauts nether expanding unit and Ben hoping against dream that he and his woman tin beryllium reunited,” he added. “But really good tin 2 group really cognize each other?”
Yeoman added: “Set successful nan breathtaking – and as-yet-unexplored – world of backstage abstraction travel, First Woman is simply a thriller dissimilar thing other we’ve seen. This is nan communicative of a matrimony put done nan eventual test. It’s uncommon that you get fixed nan opportunity to show a communicative pinch specified ambition and scope, and we’re eternally grateful to Polly astatine ITV and Alcon for allowing america to do that.”
