If you’re a thriller fan, then you’ll certainly be familiar with cat-and-mouse narratives. The Day of the Jackal, the new take on Frederick Forsyth’s 1971 novel, is the latest of its kind, as it sees Lashana Lynch’s British intelligence officer try to track down Eddie Redmayne’s elusive contract killer.
Think Killing Eve meets The Night Manager. Naturally then, its characters spend the majority of the 10-part series separated; something that Lynch believes benefitted the show immensely.
“There are these real strange similarities between [Bianca and Charles] that kind of help the audience along; you recognize things that you shouldn’t in a person you want to root for and how all that can flip so quickly,” the Marvel star tells GamesRadar+, when we asked how she and Redmayne ensured they matched each other’s vibes while filming apart. “Our first block director, Brian Kirk, set the tone. He taught me personally, and our cinematographer Chris Ross, how we could aesthetically let the audience into each character’s minds without being too invasive and giving them too much, too early.”
Adapted by Ronan Bennett (Top Boy, Public Enemies), The Day of the Jackal follows Redmayne’s high-stakes hitman Charles – or at least that’s what he says his name is – as he’s tasked with killing a controversial political figure. (In the book, ‘The Jackal’ takes aim at former French president Charles De Gaulle, who died in 1970. In the show, his target is strictly fictitious).
Problem is, though, is that Charles’ previous job has caught the attention of MI6 and, more specifically, tenacious firearms expert Bianca (Lynch), who sets out to catch him before he can strike again. Also starring Kate Dickie, Eleanor Matsuura, Charles Dance, and Úrsula Corberó, the gorgeously-shot show hops between Germany, France, Spain, and England, as Bianca relentlessly pursues ‘Charles’ through Europe.
“From a producer perspective, I was actually quite happy in the end, even though I really wanted to work with Eddie closely, that there were these two separate experiences, because each director that came in saw the similarities and how all the characters around them responded to them in different ways made their coming together make sense,” says Lynch. “I thought [their separation] would be a disservice at the beginning but actually, I think it made for a better aligning story.”
The Day of the Jackal releases on Peacock in the US and Sky Atlantic/NOW in the UK on November 7. For more, check out our picks of the best new TV shows heading our way.
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