The Oscar-winning actor is set to be playing one of the most famous fictional assassins on the Peacock and Sky's original series, which will be based on the Frederick Forsyth thriller.
- Mar 22, 2023
AceShowbiz - Eddie Redmayne has been cast on the upcoming TV adaptation of "The Day of the Jackal". The Oscar-winning actor is set to be playing one of the most famous fictional assassins on the Peacock and Sky's original series.
The show will be based on the Frederick Forsyth thriller and subsequent award-winning 1973 film adaptation of the same name from Universal Pictures. It is being billed by the producers as a "bold, modern reimagining of the beloved and respected novel and film."
It's also said that "The Day of the Jackal" will stay true to the DNA of the original story, which was based on attempts to assassinate French president Charles de Gaulle in 1962. However, the new drama will delve deeper into the chameleon like "antihero" at the heart of the story in a "high octane, cinematic, globetrotting 'cat and mouse' thriller," set amidst the turbulent geo-political landscape of our time.
Irish screenwriter and novelist Ronan Bennett, creator and writer of the critically acclaimed global hit "Top Boy", is attached as writer and showrunner. Meanwhile, internationally award-winning director Brian Kirk, whose credits include "Game of Thrones", "Luther", "Boardwalk Empire" and "21 Bridges", is set to direct the series. "Downton Abbey" and "The Last Kingdom" producers Carnival Films will produce "The Day of the Jackal".
"We are excited to bring to life Ronan Bennett's re-imagining of Forsyth's revered thriller in the complex world in which we live today and are incredibly fortunate to have an actor of Eddie's calibre as our Jackal," Gareth Neame, CEO and executive producer at Carnival Films, said. "Paired with Ronan's screenplay and Brian Kirk's direction, this is a first-class creative team.
Gareth and Nigel Marchant are executive producers for Carnival Films. Frederick, meanwhile, will serve as consulting producer and Christopher Hall produces with Sam Hoyle serving as Executive Producer for Sky Studios.
Production on "The Day of the Jackal" will begin this year. It's slated to be available on Peacock in the U.S. and on Sky in the U.K., Ireland, Italy, Germany, Switzerland and Austria.
