‘Shardlake’: Disney+ Announces Arthur Hughes, Sean Bean & Anthony Boyle Lead Cast For Tudor Murder Mystery Series
Disney+ has announced the cast for ‘Shardlake‘, an upcoming adaptation of the best-selling novels by British author C.J. Sansom, written by ‘The Last Kingdom’s Stephen Butchard and produced by The Forge and Runaway Fridge.
Drenched in mystery, suspense and deception, this four-part drama, based on the first novel in Sansom’s series, is an eerie whodunnit adventure, set in 16th-century England during the dissolution of the monasteries.
Arthur Hughes (“The Innocents”, “Then Barbara Met Alan”) has been cast as Matthew Shardlake, a lawyer with an acute sense of justice and one of the few honest men in a world beset with scheming and plots. Shardlake works for Thomas Cromwell, played by Sean Bean (“Time”, “Game of Thrones”), the dangerous and all-powerful right-hand man to Henry VIII. Despite Shardlake’s unwavering loyalty to Cromwell and the Crown, his position in society is unfavoured due to his appearance, as a person living with scoliosis during the Tudor period, suffering the indignity of being abused as a “crookback” wherever he turns.
Shardlake’s sheltered life as a lawyer is turned upside down when Cromwell instructs him to investigate the murder of one of his commissioners at a monastery in the remote town of Scarnsea. The commissioner was gathering evidence to close the monastery and it is now imperative for Cromwell’s own political survival that Shardlake both solves the murder and closes the monastery. He leaves Shardlake in no doubt that failure is not an option. Cromwell insists that he is accompanied by cocky, good-looking Jack Barak (played by Anthony Boyle – “Masters of the Air”, “Tetris”) and Shardlake is left unsure whether Barak is an assistant, or Cromwell’s spy. At Scarnsea, the duo are met with hostility, suspicion and paranoia by the monks who fear for their future and will seemingly stop at nothing to preserve their order.
Hughes, Bean, and Boyle are joined by Babou Ceesay (“Wolfe”, “Into the Badlands”) as Abbot Fabian, Paul Kaye (“The Stranger”, “Game of Thrones”) as Brother Jerome and Ruby Ashbourne Serkis (“The Greatest Beer Run Ever”, “Becoming Elizabeth”) as Alice. The cast also includes Peter Firth (“Spooks”, “Summer of Rockets”) as Norfolk, Matthew Steer (“Silent Witness”, “EastEnders”) as Goodhap, Brian Vernel (“The Last Kingdom”, “Gangs of London”) as Brother Mortimus, Irfan Shamji (“The Ipcress File”, “Industry”) as Brother Guy, David Pearse (“The Banshees of Inisherin”) as Brother Edwig, Miles Barrow (“The Peripheral”) as Brother Gabriel, Mike Noble (“Home Fires”, “Help”) as Bugge and Kimberley Nixon (“Consent”, “Critical”) as Joan.
‘Shardlake’ is written by Stephen Butchard who is best known for another historical book-to-screen adaptation, Netflix’s ‘The Last Kingdom’, based on Bernard Cornwell’s The Saxon Stories. He also adapted the series ‘Baghdad Central’ for Channel 4 and Hulu, based on the novel by Elliott Colla.
“Writing Shardlake has been nothing short of a joy. C.J. Sansom’s novels are incredibly rich in story, character and history; full of intrigue, excitement, cruelty and compassion – and at the centre of it all is Matthew Shardlake, a hero like no other,” said Butchard. “Although these stories are set in Tudor England, the themes absolutely engage and resonate with today’s world. Hundreds of years may have past – but humankind and what makes us tick has changed little.”
The series is executive produced by George Ormond and Mark Pybus for The Forge (“Ackley Bridge”, “Help”, “National Treasure”), Stevie Lee for Runaway Fridge, and Lee Mason for Disney+ EMEA. Justin Chadwick (“The Other Boleyn Girl”) is on board to direct the series with John Griffin as producer.
“C.J. Sansom’s novels have captivated millions of readers across the globe, and we’re thrilled to be joining forces with The Forge and Runaway Fridge, introducing the exceptional Arthur Hughes as Matthew Shardlake to fans and new audiences alike,” adds Lee Mason, Director, Scripted Content, Disney+. “Stephen and Justin’s vision for this chilling tale of murder, mystery and politics promises to thrill and delight, and joins a growing catalogue of unmissable original drama for adults on the service.”
Production has begun of ‘Shardlake‘ with filming taking place in Hungary, Austria and Romania, and will premiere on Disney+ worldwide. If you want to keep track of this or any other show, you can add them via our Never Miss system, and you’ll be notified when it gets a UK premiere date.
