News

Yesterday, we shared the news that season 2 of the Apple TV+ thriller series Surface, which stars Gugu Mbatha-Raw, is set to premiere on Friday, February 21st. Now, Variety reports that Mbatha-Raw has signed on to star in a thriller mini-series called Inheritance, a Sky Original. Jonny Lee Miller (Covenant), Sheldon Shepherd (Bob Marley: One Love), and Bel Powley (The Morning Show) star alongside Mbatha-Raw.

Written and created by Karla Crome (Carnival Row) from an original idea by Jefferson Bannis, Inheritance is being directed by Storm Saulter (Sprinter) and produced by Snowed-In Productions, in association with Sky Studios. The show is described as being a five-part limited event series that takes place in Bristol, U.K. and Jamaica, and it will tackle the enduring legacy of colonialism. Mbatha-Raw is taking on the role of Claudia, an ambitious young bi-racial lawyer who embarks on a journey to Jamaica to challenge an...

Gugu Mbatha-Raw (“Surface”) will star opposite Jonny Lee Miller (“Covenant”), Sheldon Shepherd (“Bob Marley: One Love”) and Bel Powley (“The Morning Show”) in “Inheritance,” a Sky Original thriller from Karla Crome (“Carnival Row”).

Set in Bristol, U.K. and Jamaica, “Inheritance” is a five-part limited event series tackling the enduring legacy of colonialism. Soon entering production, the mini-series is directed by Storm Saulter (“Sprinter”) and produced by Snowed-In Productions, in association with Sky Studios.

Mbatha-Raw stars as Claudia, an ambitious young bi-racial lawyer who embarks on a journey to Jamaica to challenge an inheritance claim filed by an unknown local resident, Cudjoe East (Sheldon Shepherd), against Oliver Connaught (Jonny Lee-Miller), a wealthy white aristocrat.

Claudia’s “quest takes an unexpected turn when the contested estate reveals the ominous house that has haunted her nightmares: the Connaught family’s Jamaican plantation, Hope Hill. As Claudia and Oliver investigate, they uncover a...

Sky has greenlit a new five-part series titled Inheritance from writer-actor Karla Crome and BAFTA-nominee Gugu Mbatha-Raw has been cast as one of the leads.

The limited “event series,” as Sky has described it, begins filming in the UK and Jamaica this month.

Jonny Lee Miller (Covenant), Sheldon Shepherd (Better Must Come), and Bel Powley (A Small Light) will also star with Storm Saulter directing. The series is produced by Snowed-In Productions in association with Sky Studios.

The series follows Claudia (Mbatha-Raw), an ambitious young bi-racial lawyer, who embarks on a journey to Jamaica to challenge an inheritance claim filed by an unknown local resident, Cudjoe East (Sheldon Shepherd), against Oliver Connaught (Lee-Miller), a wealthy white aristocrat. Her quest takes an unexpected turn when the contested estate reveals the ominous house that has haunted her nightmares: the Connaught family’s Jamaican plantation, Hope Hill. As Claudia and Oliver investigate,...

Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Jonny Lee Miller, Sheldon Shepherd and Bel Powley will star in a new Sky Original thriller Inheritance.

From writer-actor Karla Crome (Am I Being Unreasonable, Carnival Row) and set in Bristol, U.K. and Jamaica, Inheritance is a five-part limited event series directed by Storm Saulter (Better Mus’ Come, Sprinter) and produced by Snowed-In Productions in association with Sky Studios.

Claudia (Mbatha-Raw), an ambitious young lawyer, embarks on a journey to Jamaica to challenge an inheritance claim filed by an unknown local resident, Cudjoe East (Shepherd), against Oliver Connaught (Lee Miller), a wealthy white aristocrat.

Her quest takes an unexpected turn when the contested estate reveals the ominous house that has haunted her nightmares: the Connaught family’s Jamaican plantation, Hope Hill. As Claudia and Oliver investigate, they uncover a chilling connection between historical horrors and present-day injustices. Inheritance is pegged as “an ambitious genre-bending series that boldly...

Exclusive: Mrs Wilson producer Snowed-In Productions has hired Victoria Fea, the former ITV commissioner who co-founded Longboat Pictures.

Fea joins Snowed-In as an executive producer in June, reporting to CEO Ruth Kenley-Letts. Her appointment follows the departure of Jenny van der Lande to Big Talk Studios.

Snowed-In is behind projects including Itvx’s upcoming Sophie Turner series Joan and Mrs Wilson, the BBC’s Ruth Wilson drama. It also made The Midwich Cuckoos for Sky.

Fea said Snowed-In had a reputation for “classy” television, while Kenley-Letts paid tribute to van der Lande’s tenure at the company.

Longboat Changes

Fea’s exit from Longboat follows an ownership change at the production company she co-founded in 2019 with Julie Anne Robinson, a director who has worked on Doctor Who and Bridgerton.

Sky exited Longboat last year after taking a 25% stake in the company in 2020. Longboat is now wholly owned by The Story Collective,...

Exclusive: Big Talk Studios, producer of Amazon/BBC series The Outlaws, has turned to Brontë Film & TV to find its first creative director of drama.

Jenny van der Lande will join Big Talk in the newly-created role having developed all six seasons of J.K. Rowling’s BBC/Max series Strike, starring Tom Burke and Holliday Grainger.

Alongside her creative director duties at Brontë, she has also led the editorial side of Snowed-In Productions, overseeing projects including Itvx’s upcoming Sophie Turner series Joan and Mrs Wilson, the BBC’s Ruth Wilson drama.

Joining in June, Van der Lande will report to Big Talk CEO Kenton Allen and work closely with Luke Alkin, drama executive producer. She will split her time between London and Bristol, and is tasked with growing the ITV Studios-backed company’s drama slate.

Allen said: “She brings a wealth of experience and relationships and has...

Though the CW is beginning to pivot much more heavily to reality fare, with “All American” as the only original scripted series on its fall 2023 lineup, the network has added three new scripted projects to its slate for 2024: “Joan,” “The Librarians: The Next Chapter” and “The Swarm.” Additionally, 2024 will see the premieres of unscripted series “Patti Stanger: Millionaire Matchmaking,” “The Force” and “The Great American Bakeover” (all working titles).

All newly announced series are currently in production.

“Joan” stars Sophie Turner (“Game of Thrones”) as Joan Hannington, the notorious real-life jewel thief. Set in 1980s London, the series sees Joan as a devoted mother to her six-year-old daughter, Kelly, while trapped in a disastrous marriage with a violent criminal named Gary. When Gary goes on the run, Joan seizes the opportunity to adopt new identities and embark on a high-stakes journey to create a new life for herself and Kelly.

The CW announced two new scripted series that are in the works for 2024: Joan, a six-part co-production starring Game of Thrones‘ Sophie Turner, and The Librarians: The Next Chapter, a spinoff of fantasy adventure series from writer and executive producer Dean Devlin.

Joan is about notorious jewel thief Joan Hannington and is set against the backdrop of the 1980s — an era known for its bold fashion trends, iconic music and cultural shifts. The series opens with Joan, a fiery and uncompromising woman in her twenties who is deeply scarred and vulnerable. She is a devoted mother to her six-year-old daughter, Kelly, but is trapped in a disastrous marriage with a violent criminal named Gary. When Gary goes on the run, Joan seizes the opportunity to create a new life for herself and her daughter. Adopting new identities and making new acquaintances along the way, Joan becomes a masterful jewel thief.

Exclusive: Game of Thrones star Sophie Turner will star in a six-part drama inspired by notorious British jewel thief Joan Hannington for ITV.

Joan, from writer Anna Symon, is set in the brash and aspirational London of the 1980s and follows X Men: Dark Phoenix star Turner as criminal Hannington, whose exploits earned her the nickname ‘The Godmother’ in the city’s underworld.

Filming will begin in London in spring next year, based on Hannington’s memoirs. Writer Anna Simon with the diamond thief and criminal mastermind while penning the scripts.

The series begins with Hannington in her twenties in a disastrous marriage to a violent man. When he goes on the run, she sets her sights on a better life for her and daughter Debbie before transforming into an accomplished jewel thief.

“I’m so excited to be bringing Joan Hannington’s fascinating life story to screen in Joan,...

TBS announced that “Full Frontal with Samantha Bee” will be releasing a comedy special about gun reform called “Full Frontal Wants To Take Your Guns,” which will air on May 12 at 10:30 p.m.

The special will “explore how appalling and frankly stupid it is that we as Americans are told there’s simply nothing we can do about gun violence. Don’t even get us started on the whole “good guy with a gun” thing. It’s high time to figure out how America’s gun problem got this bad, and what we as citizens of this glorious mess can do to help fix it.”

The series is executive produced by Bee, Jason Jones, Tony Hernandez of Jax Media, Miles Kahn and Alison Camillo.

Also in today’s TV news roundup:

Dates

Netflix and Riot Games are bringing the “League of Legends” franchise to television with the new animated series “Arcane,...

One of the bright lights of this year’s awards season, BAFTA best actress nominee Bukky Bakray of the film “Rocks” will star in forthcoming BBC One and Netflix drama “You Don’t Know Me.”

Produced by Snowed-In Production and co-produced with Netflix, the show has now begun filming in Birmingham. The project is an adaptation of Imran Mahmood’s bestselling novel, and is written by “The Crown” and “Judy” writer Tom Edge.

Directed by Sarmad Masud, the four-part drama turns on a young man named Hero (Samuel Adewunmi) who, with overwhelming evidence against him, stands accused of murder. At his trial, Hero tells an extraordinary story about the woman he loves, and how he risked everything to save her. Hero swears he is innocent, but can we believe him?

Bakray plays Bless, Hero’s younger sister, who is a guiding force for her older brother and believes fiercely in his innocence.