The “adrenaline-filled” six-parter is described as “the very definition of a page-turner”.
ITV has announced that Richard Armitage, Jing Lusi and Lesley Sharp will lead the cast of “adrenaline-filled” thriller series Red Eye, which will exclusively air on ITVX in 2024.
The six-parter will be “set between an all-night plane flight from London to Beijing and the corridors of power within Whitehall” and will follow events after Dr Matthew Nolan (Armitage) is arrested at Heathrow Airport shortly after almost dying in a car crash in Beijing.
According to the official synopsis, Nolan is sent back to China facing murder charges, accused of killing a woman who was in the car he crashed – even though he insists he was driving alone.
Gangs of London star Lusi plays the no-nonsense London officer charged with accompanying Nolan back to Beijing, while Sharp stars as the head of MI5, Madeline Delaney – who is forced to break protocol and intervene when a number of deaths occur both on the flight and back in the UK.
The series marks the television debut of British screenwriter Peter A Dowling (Black and Blue, Flightplan) and will be directed by Kieron Hawkes (Fortitude) and produced by multi-award winning company Bad Wolf.
ITV’s head of drama, Polly Hill, who commissioned the series, described it as “a brilliantly addictive thriller with an international story taking place on the red eye flight from Heathrow to Beijing.”
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She added: “Thanks to Peter’s scripts, the story will have the audience gripped and continually surprised throughout. It’s got a fantastic cast led by Jing Lusi and Richard Armitage, and we are delighted to be working with Bad Wolf on this exciting new show.”
Bad Wolf’s director of content, Dan McCulloch, said that the series is the production company’s “first contemporary action thriller” and added that the scripts are “the very definition of a page-turner” that will keep audiences “guessing to the last minute”.
Meanwhile, Lusi said the series “marks a turning point in British Asian representation” and revealed she was “beyond thrilled and proud to be leading this series alongside the wonderful Richard Armitage”.
“I’m excited to be boarding Red Eye alongside Jing Lusi,” agreed Armitage. “This action-packed espionage thriller is one of the best scripts I have read in a long time.”
Red Eye will be available on ITVX in 2024. For more news, interviews and features, visit our Drama hub, or find something to watch now with our TV Guide and Streaming Guide.
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