Paramount+ has announced casting for its upcoming original U.K. drama series, Sexy Beast, which commenced production, filming on location in Liverpool.
James McArdle (“Mare of Easttown,” “Angels in America”) leads the cast as Gal Dove and Emun Elliott (“The Rig,” “The Gold”) stars as Don Logan – the duo are best friends and small-town thieves, living the good life in ‘90s East London. Sarah Greene (“Dublin Murders,” “Normal People”) is Deedee, a captivating adult film star, who has the potential to turn Gal’s whole life upside down. Stephen Moyer (“Shots Fired,” “True Blood”) is Teddy Bass, a rising name in the gangster world, who Gal and Don are offered the chance to work with on a high-profile heist. Tamsin Greig (“Episodes,” “Friday Night Dinner”) is Don’s stern and formidable older sister Cecilia. The prequel series will explore Gal and Don’s complicated relationship as Gal finds himself descending into the seductive madness of the London criminal world during the vibrant and volatile 1990s, while falling in love with DeeDee.
Produced by Chapter One Pictures, Anonymous Content and VIS, the international studio division of Paramount Global. The series is written by showrunner and executive producer Michael Caleo (“The Family,” “The Sopranos”) and the opening episodes are directed by Daniel O’Hara (“Brassic”), who also serves as executive producer. Sophie Gardiner (“Best Interests”) and Rupert Ryle-Hodges (“The Hollow Crown”) are executive producers for Chapter One Pictures alongside Nicole Clemens. David Scinto and Louis Mellis, the writers of the original film, also serve as executive producers and James Levison (“Endeavour”) joins as producer.
“I feel so fortunate to be able to explore these beautifully crafted characters a decade before we met them in the original story,” said showrunner Michael Caleo. “This series has been a great passion of mine for many years and I cannot wait to see it come to life with this amazing cast.”
Joining the ensemble cast for Sexy Beast are Eliza Bennett (“Dynasty”), Clea Martin (“Hanna”), Nicholas Nunn (“The Victim”), John Dagleish (“The Third Day”), Robbie Gee (“Motherland”), Paul Kaye (“The Stranger”), Lex Shrapnel (“Infiniti”), Cally Lawrence (“Who Is Alice”), David Kennedy (“Hollyoaks”), Nitin Ganatra (“EastEnders”) and Alice Bailey Johnson (“This Is Going to Hurt”).
The series, part of Paramount+’s strategy to commission 150 international originals by 2025, will debut in 2023 in the U.K., U.S. and other international territories where the streaming service is available. Paramount+ continues to expand its global footprint and is set to launch in France, GSA and Italy later in 2022. Sexy Beast is one of the first original dramas commissioned in the U.K. that will debut across Paramount+ internationally, with additional series including The Flatshare, A Gentleman In Moscow, No Escape and The Burning Girls.
