Netflix growth in the UK Market has gone from strength to strength over the last few years, having recently revealed their commitment to the UK creative industry with a $6 billion investment.
Speaking on stage at See What’s Next, Anne Mensah, Vice President, Content, Netflix UK shared news of new productions for Netflix. Created and written by Joe Barton the Keira Knightley led ‘Black Doves. From Left Bank Pictures, ‘Department Q,’ an 8-part series, lead directed by multi-award-winning Scott Frank and adapted by Chandni Lakhani, based on the novels of the same name from Danish author, Jussi Adler-Olsen. Shooting will take place in Edinburgh, where the story is set. They will also deliver a ‘Bank of Dave’ sequel.
Netflix is known for its gems, and coming up over the next year it certainly looks like it’s the streamer is certainly going to deliver from documentaries on British Icons to the final season of the phenomenal series ‘The Crown,’ audiences are in for a treat.
Also in news – “Enjoy the show…” Trailer drops for ‘The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’
Documentaries
The highlight of the night had to go documentaries on British Icons, from the 80’s pop Duo, Wham, and the 90’s Robbie Williams to Football icon David Beckham.
Robbie Williams (Docu-Series)
Launch date: 2023
Directed by Joe Perlman with contributions from Robbie Williams and his Family, The multi-part series which will launch in 2023 will be an unfiltered, in-depth examination of a global icon and natural-born-entertainer who had to navigate the highs and lows of being in the limelight for more than 30 years. It will cover Robbie navigating media scrutiny throughout his career, adulation and addiction, professional and personal break-ups, reunions, recovery, and the impact they have had on his mental health. Featuring 25 years’ worth of intimate, never-before-seen archive, and exclusive access to Robbie; this definitive series is a no-holds-barred look at the entertainer and will reveal a more nuanced and multifaceted character.
WHAM! (Doc Film)
Launch date: 5th July 2023
In 1982, the best of friends and still teenagers – George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley as WHAM! set out to conquer the world. By June of 1986, they played their very last gig at Wembley Stadium having done exactly that. Now for the very first time, told in their own words, the amazing story of how in four years they dominated the charts around the world with timeless and classic pop songs. Hit after hit – Club Tropicana, Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go, Freedom, I’m Your Man and of course last Christmas. Their time in the spotlight was white-hot, becoming the very first Western pop act to play in
China. It was a time that both encapsulated and epitomised not just their youth, but also those of the many millions of fans that adored them. With unprecedented access to both George and Andrew’s personal archive including remarkable and never-before-seen footage, alongside rare, candid and previously unheard interviews, WHAM! charts their incredible journey from school friends to superstars.
David Beckham (Docu-series)
Launch date: 2023
The definitive multi-part series will go beyond the shine of stardom to explore Beckham’s humble working-class beginnings in East London, and the drive and determination that led him to become one of the most recognizable and scrutinized athletes of all time. It will feature a mixture of never-before-seen personal archive footage from the last forty years, candid current-day moments, and interviews with the family, friends, and footballing figures that have been part of his journey.
BRITISH CREATORS & DIRECTORS
Supacell (Series)
Launch date: TBC
Created and directed by Rapman The 6-episode series is about a group of five ordinary people who unexpectedly develop superpowers. They have little in common except for one thing: they are all Black South Londoners. It is down to one man, Michael Lasaki, to bring them all together in order to save the woman he loves.
Cast: Josh Tedeku, Calvin Demba, Tosin Cole, Eric Kofi Abrefa, Nadine Mills, Adelayo Adedayo, Rayxia Ojo, Eddie Marsan.
The Gentlemen (Series)
Launch Date: TBC
Coming from Guy Ritchie, the 8-episode series sees high life meet pond life as the estranged son of an English aristocrat, Eddie (Theo James), inherits the family pile – only to discover that it’s sitting on top of the biggest weed farm in Europe. It’s all about old money, new money and show me the money.
Cast: Theo James (White Lotus 2), Kaya Scodelario(Crawl, The Pale Horse), Daniel Ings (I Hate Suzie), Joely Richardson (Lady Chatterley’s Lover), Giancarlo Esposito(Better Call Saul) and Peter Serafinowicz (The Tick), Vinnie Jones (Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels).
The Kitchen (Film)
Launch date: TBC
Written by Daniel Kaluuya, the timely feature is set in London, 2044, a future where the gap between rich and poor has been stretched to its limits. All forms of social housing have been eradicated and London’s working classes have been forced to live in temporary accommodation on the outskirts of the city, The Kitchen is the first and the largest of its kind, it’s London’s last village harbouring residents that refuse to move on and move out of the place they call home. It’s here we meet Izi, a resident of the kitchen who is desperately trying to find a way out and 12-year-old, Benji, who has lost his mother and is searching for a family. We follow our unlikely pair as they battle to survive in a system that is stacked against them.
Bodies (Netflix Series)
Launch date: TBC
The 8-episode series is a crime procedural with a twist, based on the mind-bending graphic novel by Si Spencer. Four detectives in four different eras of London find themselves investigating the same murder – an unidentified body in Whitechapel – uncovering a conspiracy spanning 150 years.
Cast: Jacob Fortune-Lloyd, Shira Haas, Amaka Okafor, Kyle Soller and Stephen Graham.
Eric (Limited Series)
Led by Benedict Cumberbatch, the 6-episode limited series is set in 1980s New York, Eric is a new emotional thriller from Abi Morgan following the desperate search of a father when his nine-year-old son disappears one morning on the way to school. Vincent, one of New York’s leading puppeteers and creator of the hugely popular children’s television show, ‘Good Day Sunshine,’ struggles to cope with the loss of his son, Edgar, becoming increasingly distressed and volatile. Full of self-loathing and guilt around Edgar’s disappearance, he clings to his son’s drawings of a blue monster puppet, ERIC, convinced that if he can get ERIC on TV then Edgar will come home. As Vincent’s progressively destructive behaviour alienates his family, his work colleagues, and the detectives trying to help him, it’s Eric, a delusion of necessity, who becomes his only ally in the pursuit to bring his son home.
Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Gaby Hoffmann, McKinley Belcher III, Dan Fogler, Clarke Peters.
Fool Me Once (Limited Series)
Harlan Coben’sFool Me Once follows Maya Stern (Michelle Keegan) who is trying to come to terms with the brutal murder of her husband, Joe (Richard Armitage). But when Maya installs a nanny cam to watch her young daughter, she is shocked to see a man she recognises in her house. Her husband, who she thought was dead… Detective Sergeant Sami Kierce (Adeel Akhtar) leads the homicide investigation into Joe’s death while grappling with secrets of his own. Meanwhile, Maya’s niece and nephew, Abby and Daniel, are trying to find the truth about their mother’s murder, several months earlier. Are the two cases connected? Fool Me Once follows these characters on a thrilling hunt for the truth that will reveal shocking secrets and change their lives forever. Joanna Lumley is Judith Burkett, Joe’s protective mother.
Cast: Michelle Keegan, Adeel Akhtar, Richard Armitage, Joanna Lumley, Emmett J. Scanlan, Dino Fetscher.
Heart of Stone (Film)
Launch Date: 11th August 2023
Directed by Tom Harper Rachel Stone (Gal Gadot) is an intelligence operative, the only woman who stands between her powerful, global, peace-keeping organization and the loss of its most valuable — and dangerous — asset.
Cast: Gal Gadot, Jamie Dornan, Alia Bhatt, Sophie Okonedo, Matthias Schweighöfer, Jing Lusi, Paul Ready.
SCOOP (Film)
The inside track of the women that broke through the Buckingham Palace establishment to secure the scoop of the decade, leading to the catastrophic fall from grace of The Queen’s ‘Favourite son’. From navigating Palace vetoes to penetrating Prince Andrew’s inner circle, from the high-stakes negotiations and rehearsal – to the jaw-dropping interview itself. SCOOP is the insider account of the inner workings of the Palace and the BBC, twin bastions of the British Establishment, spotlighting the journalists whose tenacity and guts broke through the highest of ceilings – and into the inner sanctum and calculations of a man with everything to lose.
Cast: Gillian Anderson, Keeley Hawes, Billie Piper, Rufus Sewell, Romola Garai, Amanda Redman, Lia Williams and Connor Swindells.
At Home With The Furys (Doc Series)
Launch date: Summer 2023
At Home with the Furys will have exclusive access to the heavyweight champion of the world as he exits the ring and tries to embrace retirement with his extraordinary family including his wife Paris, father John and his six children. Alongside changing nappies and the school run, At Home with the Furys (w/t) will see Tyson constantly looking for projects to keep him busy, from a world tour to meet his fans, to lavish family holidays, encounters with other A-listers and impromptu family camping trips.
Chicken Run: Dawn Of The Nugget (Film)
Launch date: Winter 2023
CHICKEN RUN: DAWN OF THE NUGGET will make its debut only on Netflix in 2023. Cr: Aardman/NETFLIX © 2022
From the multi-Academy and BAFTA award-winning Aardman (Creature Comforts, Wallace & Gromit, and Shaun the Sheep), and Academy Award® and BAFTA-nominated director Sam Fell (ParaNorman and Flushed Away, respectively), comes Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget, the eagerly anticipated sequel to the beloved and highest-grossing stop-motion animated film of all time, Chicken Run. Having pulled off a death-defying escape from Tweedy’s farm, Ginger has finally found her dream – a peaceful island sanctuary for the whole flock, far from the dangers of the human world. When she and Rocky hatch a little girl called Molly, Ginger’s happy ending seems complete. But back on the mainland, the whole of chicken-kind faces a new and terrible threat. For Ginger and her team, even if it means putting their own hard-won freedom at risk – this time, they’re breaking in!
Cast: Thandiwe Newton, Zachary Levi, Bella Ramsey, Imelda Staunton, Lynn Ferguson, David Bradley, Jane Horrocks, Romesh Ranganathan, Daniel Mays, Josie Sedgwick-Davies, and Nick Mohammed.
RETURNING FAVOURITES
The Crown (Series)
Launch date: Autumn 2023
The final series of Peter Morgan’s critically acclaimed drama. Introducing Ed McVey as Prince William and Meg Bellamy as Kate Middleton alongside Imelda Staunton as Queen Elizabeth, Jonathan Pryce as Prince Philip, Dominic West as Prince Charles, Lesley Manville as Princess Margaret and Elizabeth Debicki as Princess Diana. Bertie Carvel will play Tony Blair. Also introducing Luther Ford as Prince Harry.
Heartstopper S2 (Series)
Launch date: August 3 2023
Nick and Charlie navigate their new relationship; Tara and Darcy face unforeseen challenges and Tao and Elle work out if they can ever be more than just friends. With exams on the horizon, a school trip to Paris and a prom to plan, the gang has a lot to juggle as they journey through the next stages of life, love and friendship.
Cast: Kit Connor, Joe Locke, Yasmin Finney, William Gao, Corinna Brown, Kizzy Edgell, Sebastian Croft, Tobie Donovan, Rhea Norwood, Jenny Walser, Cormac Hyde-Corrin and Olivia Colman.
The Witcher S3 (Series)
Launch date: 29 June & 27 July
As monarchs, mages, and beasts of the Continent compete to capture her, Geralt takes Ciri into hiding, determined to protect his newly-reunited family against those who threaten to destroy it. Entrusted with Ciri’s magical training, Yennefer leads them to the protected fortress of Aretuza, where she hopes to discover more about the girl’s untapped powers. Instead, our family discovers they’ve landed in a battlefield of political corruption, dark magic, and treachery. They must fight back, put everything on the line – or risk losing each other forever.
Cast: Henry Cavill (Geralt of Rivia), Anya Chalotra (Yennefer of Vengerberg), Freya Allan (Princess Cirilla of Cintra), Joey Batey (Jaskier), Myanna Buring (Tissaia), Eamon Farren (Cahir), Mimî M Khayisa (Fringilla), Royce Pierreson (Istredd), Anna Shaffer (Triss Merigold), Mecia Simson (Francesca), Tom Canton (Filavandrel).
Black Mirror S6 (Series)
Launch date: June 2023
Expect the unexpected.
The long-awaited return of Charlie Brooker’s dark, satirical anthology series which reinvents itself with each new episode. The sixth season of Black Mirror is the most unpredictable, unclassifiable and unexpected yet.
Cast: Aaron Paul, Anjana Vasan, Annie Murphy, Auden Thornton, Ben Barnes, Clara Rugaard, Daniel Portman, Danny Ramirez, Himesh Patel, John Hannah, Josh Hartnett, Kate Mara, Michael Cera, Monica Dolan, Myha’la Herrold, Paapa Essiedu, Rob Delaney, Rory Culkin, Salma Hayek Pinault, Samuel Blenkin, Zazie Beetz.
TOP BOY S3 (series)
LAUNCH DATE: September 2023
Following the release of Top Boy season 2 on Netflix on 18th March 2022, the show quickly went to number 1 in the UK. The finale of the season left fans with their jaws dropping. Now the stakes are at their highest and it’s time for the final reckoning..
Regular cast Ashley Walters and Kane Robinson, Simbi Ajikawo, Jasmine Jobson, Saffron Hocking and Araloyin Oshunremi will return with new cast members Barry Keoghan (The Batman, American Animals) and Brian Gleeson (Bad Sisters, Peaky Blinders, Frank of Ireland) playing new characters, Jonny & Tadgh.
