If you're a fan of thrillers, you're probably familiar with cat-and-mouse narratives. The Day of the Jackal, the remake of Frederick Forsyth's 1971 novel, is the last of its kind, as it sees Lashana Lynch's British intelligence officer attempt to track down Eddie Redmayne's elusive hitman.
Think Killing Eve and The Night Manager. Naturally, their characters spend most of the series in 10 separate chapters; something Lynch believes benefited the program greatly.
“There are really strange similarities between [Bianca and Charles] that kind of helps the audience; “You recognize things you shouldn't in a person you want to support and how all that can change so quickly,” the Marvel star tells GamesRadar+, when we asked how she and Redmayne made sure they matched each other's vibes. while filming separately. Our first block director, Brian Kirk, set the tone. “He personally taught me, and our cinematographer Chris Ross, how we could aesthetically let the audience into each character's mind without being too invasive and giving them too much, too soon.”
Adapted by Ronan Bennett (Top Boy, Public Enemies), The Day of the Jackal follows Redmayne's hitman Charles, or at least that's what he says his name is, as he is tasked with killing a controversial political figure. (In the book, 'The Jackal' targets former French president Charles De Gaulle, who died in 1970. In the series, his target is strictly fictional.)
The problem, however, is that Charles' previous work 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 filmed show jumps between Germany, France, Spain and England, as Bianca relentlessly pursues 'Charles' across Europe.
“From a producer's perspective, in the end I was pretty happy, even though I really wanted to work closely with Eddie, that there were two separate experiences, because every director that came in saw the similarities and how all the characters around them responded in different ways made it so. their union made sense,” says Lynch. “I thought [their separation] “It would be a disservice at first, but I actually think it contributed to a better alignment of the story.”
Day of the Jackal launches on Peacock in the US and Sky Atlantic/NOW in the UK on November 7. For more, check out our pick of the best new TV shows coming up.