David Farnor | On 01, Oct 2018

StartUp returns for a third season this November, and a new trailer gives us a first look at what’s in store.

The tech thriller, which was snapped up by Amazon Prime Video in the UK, stars Adam Brody and follows three strangers who are forced to fund a company with dirty money and form ties with a Haitian gang. But their fight to build a business ultimately pales in comparison to the fight to stay alive. That company is GenCoin, a cryptocurrency like BitCoin, which inventor Izzy Morales (Otmara Marrero) can only get off the ground with the help of financier Nick Talman (Adam Brody) and the dodgy Ronald Dacey (Edi Gathegi). Within no time at all, the trio not only found themselves on the wrong side of local gangs, but also caught the attention of FBI agent Phil Rask (Freeman), who specialises in financial crimes.

Season 2 saw the trio plunge into the world of anonymous browsing, as they moved from cryptocurrency to their own ArakNet network, and Season 3 will continue to look at the cost of ambition in the competitive world of digital startups.

We pick things up after a year of extraordinary growth, as ArakNet’s unregulated network becomes the target of NSA Agent Rebecca Stroud (Mira Sorvino), who vows to infiltrate it at any cost. The arrival of this new adversary, coupled with the mysterious return of Izzy from her ill-fated journey to Cuba, creates a pressure cooker that turns our heroes against one another.

Update: Release date confirmed

All episodes of Season 3 will be available on Amazon Prime Video UK from Friday 9th November. Here’s the trailer:

StartUp: Season 1 to 3 are available to watch online on Amazon Prime Video as part of a Prime membership or a £5.99 monthly subscription.

StartUp will return for Season 3 – with added Mira Sorvino

16th January 2018

StartUp will return for Season 3, Sony has confirmed, with Mira Sorvino joining the ensemble.

The tech thriller, which has been snapped up by Amazon Prime Video in the UK, stars Martin Freeman and Adam Brody and follows three strangers who are forced to fund a company with dirty money and form ties with a Haitian gang. But their fight to build a business ultimately pales in comparison to the fight to stay alive.

That company is GenCoin, a cryptocurrency like BitCoin, which inventor Izzy Morales (Otmara Marrero) can only get off the ground with the help of financier Nick Talman (Adam Brody) and the dodgy Ronald Dacey (Edi Gathegi). Within no time at all, the trio have not only found themselves on the wrong side of local gangs, but have also caught the attention of FBI agent Phil Rask (Freeman), who specialises in financial crimes.

Season 2 saw the trio plunge into the world of anonymous browsing, as they moved from cryptocurrency to their own ArakNet network, and Season 3 will continue to look at the cost of ambition in the competitive world of digital startups.

Speaking at TCA, Sony’s Crackle also confirmed that Oscar winner Mira Sorvino will join the show, playing NSA agent Rebecca Stroud, who has been tasked with investigating ArakNet and hopes for the network to partner with the government. Other members of the cast include Ron Perlman and Addison Timlin.

StartUp is created and written by Ben Ketai who also serves as executive producer and director. Brody, Perlman, and Gathegi also produce the show, which hails from Critical Content and Hollywood Gang Productions. Gianni Nunnari, Shannon Gaulding, Tom Forman, Andrew Marcus, Ray Ricord, and Anne Clements all serve as executive producers.

 

Trailer: Startup returns for Season 2 this September

25th August 2017

Financial thriller Startup is returning this September for a second season.

The show, which is produced by Crackle in the US, stars Martin Freeman and Adam Brody and follows three strangers who are forced to fund a company with dirty money and form ties with a Haitian gang. But their fight to build a business ultimately pales in comparison to the fight to stay alive.

The company is GenCoin, a cryptocurrency like BitCoin, which inventor Izzy Morales (Otmara Marrero) can only get off the ground with the help of financier Nick Talman (Adam Brody) and the dodgy Ronald Dacey (Edi Gathegi). Within no time at all, the trio have not only found themselves on the wrong side of local gangs, but have also caught the attention of FBI agent Phil Rask (Freeman), who specialises in financial crimes.

EP and director Ben Ketai presented the programme at TCA this month, describing it as going “beyond crypto currency”.

“There were a lot of articles about the darknet and how it’s changing,” Ketai explained. “It’s become commercialised and not as anonymous as people thought it was. More people are hopping off of it, which creates a new hunger for a new thing.”

He added that the show is “current and relevant” to what’s going on in America today, without referencing the headlines explicitly.

“I think the show is being current and relevant without ripping from the headlines,” he added. “There are nods to things like ‘Pharma bro’ and Bitcoin, obviously, but we don’t reference specific events or politicians.”

Joining the returning ensemble are a number of faces, including Ron Perlman as Wes Chandler, a multi-millionaire businessman. Addison Timlin has also joined the group as Wes’ daughter, Mara.

Season 2 picks up on the streets of Miami following the takeover of GenCoin. With the Russian mob involved, our trio instead launch a new endeavour: a darknet prototype, called Araknet. Once again facing obstacles that will threaten morals, their loved ones and knowledge itself, the season will explore the price of success and the cost of ambition.

Startup Season 2 will span 10 episodes, with Season 1 already available on Amazon Prime Video. Here’s a trailer:

Martin Freeman thriller StartUp snapped up exclusively by Amazon

8th November 2016

Amazon has snapped up the exclusive UK streaming rights to financial thriller StartUp.

Sony’s series, which stars Martin Freeman and Adam Brody, originally aired on Crackle on 6th September in the US. Produced by Critical Content, Hollywood Gang Productions and Story Machine, it follows three strangers, including financier Nick Talman (Brody), who are forced to fund a company with dirty money and form ties with a Haitian gang. But their fight to build a business ultimately pales in comparison to the fight to stay alive.

They soon catch the attention of vehement FBI agent Phil Rask (Freeman), who specialises in financial crimes. Wielding the power to make or break those he comes in contact with, he doesn’t always use that power for the right reasons.

“If they play dirty,” he reasons, “so can we.” And judging by the trailer for the show, which sees Freeman getting dirty in a brutal way, the actor’s latest role is certainly far from Bilbo Baggins.

Exploring what happens when a brilliant yet controversial tech idea gets incubated on the wrong side of the tracks, the modern, high-minded subject makes StartUp a natural fit for Amazon’s growing line-up of US exclusive series, which includes Mr. Robot. All episodes of the show are available to stream now on Amazon Prime Video in the UK, Austria, Germany and Japan.

 

 



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