James R | On 23, Mar 2023

Eddie Redmayne will star in Sky and Peacock’s The Day of the Jackal.

Redmayne will also serve as executive producer on the project, which is based on the seminal Frederick Forsyth thriller and subsequent award-winning 1973 film adaptation of the same name.

The Day of the Jackal is a bold, modern reimagining of the beloved and respected novel and film. While staying true to the DNA of the original story, this contemporary drama will delve deeper into the chameleon-like anti-hero at the heart of the story in a globetrotting cat-and-mouse thriller, set amid today’s turbulent geo-political landscape of our time.

Screenwriter and novelist Ronan Bennett, creator and writer of Top Boy, is attached as writer and showrunner. Bennett’s writing credits also include the BBC One series Gunpowder, starring Kit Harrington, as well as screenplays for films such as Face and Public Enemies starring Johnny Depp and Christian Bale. Brian Kirk, whose TV credits include Game of Thrones, Luther and Boardwalk Empire, is set to direct the series. 

The Day of the Jackal will be produced by Downton Abbey and The Last Kingdom producers Carnival Films, which is part of Universal International Studios, a division of Universal Studio Group and was commissioned by Sky Studios and Peacock. 

Gareth Neame, CEO & Executive Producer at Carnival Films said: “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. Paired with Ronan’s screenplay and Brian Kirk’s direction, this is a first-class creative team.” 

The series will be available on Peacock in the US and on Sky in the UK, Ireland, Italy, Germany, Switzerland and Austria. Production will commence this year.

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