Episode Date: April 19th

Mini-Series

Round up//Catch up

*Warning Contains Spoilers*

In October 2014 AMC landed The Night Manager after a multi-network bidding war.

Published in 1993, le Carre’s Night Manager follows Jonathan Pine, a British soldier turned luxurious hotel night auditor. Pine crosses paths with a French-Arab woman named Sophie with ties to Richard Onslow Roper, an English black marketer who specializes in weapons. The woman provides Pine with incriminating documents, which he forwards to a friend in British intelligence. After Sophie winds up dead, Pine works with intelligence operatives and goes undercover as part of a sting against Roper to avenge Sophie’s death.
Source: Hollywood Reporter

The next bit of news was a press release we got was posted January 2015.  That let us know that Hugh Laurie and Tom Hiddleston were to star in this production.  BBC One and The Ink Factory to produce the mini-series.

Press Release

AMC SECURES U.S. AND CANADIAN RIGHTS TO ADAPTATION OF JOHN LE CARRÉ’S “THE NIGHT MANAGER”

Hugh Laurie, Tom Hiddleston to Star in AMC’s Co-Production with BBC One and The Ink Factory

Academy Award® Winner Susanne Bier Will Direct

PASADENA, CA – January 10, 2015 – BBC One, The Ink Factory and AMC today announced a co-production partnership for the television adaptation of John le Carré’s novel “The Night Manager.” Multiple Emmy® nominee Hugh Laurie (“House”) and Tom Hiddleston (The Avengers, War Horse, Midnight in Paris) will star in the mini-series, which is set to begin filming in spring 2015. Susanne Bier, who won an Academy Award® for In a Better World, will direct.

A contemporary interpretation of le Carré’s espionage drama – and the first television adaptation of a le Carré novel in more than 20 years – “The Night Manager” mini-series will bring together love, loss and revenge in a complex story of modern criminality. The eagerly anticipated series follows former British soldier Jonathan Pine (Hiddleston) as he navigates the shadowy recesses of Whitehall and Washington where an unholy alliance operates between the intelligence community and the secret arms trade. To infiltrate the inner circle of lethal arms dealer Richard Onslow Roper (Laurie), Pine must himself become a criminal.

“‘The Night Manager’ is truly the whole package. It’s a terrific piece of source material, great producers in The Ink Factory, a phenomenal writer in David Farr, an award-winning director in Susanne Bier, and two incredibly talented actors,” said Joel Stillerman, AMC’s executive vice president of programming, production and digital content. “Beyond that, it represents AMC’s continuing commitment to finding creative ways to work with the international community to bring the best television to our network – an initiative we have ramped up very quickly that has already resulted in multiple high-quality projects for our air. We’re thrilled to be in business with the BBC and the fantastic ‘Night Manager’ team.”

Ben Stephenson, Controller, BBC Drama Commissioning, said: “It’s a fantastic coup to bring le Carré back to our screens after more than 20 years. He is quite simply one of the greatest novelists of our time, and I am sure that with AMC, Tom Hiddleston and Hugh Laurie on board, this will be one of the BBC’s most unique, ambitious and unmissable dramas.”

Simon Cornwell of The Ink Factory said: “Working with AMC to deliver ‘The Night Manager’ to U.S. and Canadian audiences is a huge privilege. AMC has established itself as one of the great innovators in television in the 21st century, and alongside the BBC we believe they are the best possible partners to support this incredible project. In Hugh Laurie and Tom Hiddleston we have the core of an extraordinary cast, in Susanne Bier a great director, and in David Farr, an exceptional writer who is bringing a brilliant contemporary take to one of le Carré’s finest novels. We couldn’t be more excited!”

?Hugh Laurie said: “I loved ‘The Night Manager’ when it was published, and for more than 20 years have yearned to see it realized on screen; I am now thrilled and honored to have the frontest of front row seats. All the moving parts are finely machined – we just have to not mess it up.”

Tom Hiddleston said: “I could not be more excited to join BBC One, The Ink Factory and AMC for ‘The Night Manager.’ Jonathan Pine is a thrilling prospect. Described by John le Carré as a ‘sometime army wolfchild with a special unit’ in the British forces, ‘caterer, chef, itinerant hotelier, perpetual escapee from emotional entanglements, collector of other people’s languages, self-exiled creature of the night and sailor without a destination,’ Jonathan Pine is the most mysterious and complex kind of British hero. It’s an honor and a privilege to work with such truly impeccable collaborators as Hugh Laurie and Susanne Bier in bringing this to the screen. David Farr’s screenplay, adapted from le Carré’s brilliant novel, is absolutely outstanding. I’m beyond thrilled and I can’t wait.”

Susanne Bier said: “John le Carre’s ‘The Night Manager’ is a relentlessly exhilarating thriller with profound emotional depths. Its narrative is carried by two secretive, alluring protagonists, Roper and Pine. David Farr’s elegant script perfectly orchestrates the central cat-and-mouse game between these two irresistibly flawed characters. That Hugh Laurie and Tom Hiddleston will be playing Roper and Pine, respectively, is so thrilling to me. Their shared soulfulness, precision and sharp humor will seduce us all, both through Roper’s charming yet insidious manipulations and Pine’s unsettlingly enigmatic struggle to do the right thing. It is a great honor to be directing ‘The Night Manager’ and to be part of the collaboration between AMC, BBC1, The Ink Factory and Stephen Garrett. I could not be more excited.”

Published in 1993, The Night Manager is one of le Carré’s most beloved and critically acclaimed books. A fusion of spy story and tale of organized crime, the novel was a best-seller in the United States and the UK, translated into over 20 languages and selling over a million copies in North America alone.

“The Night Manager” will be produced by The Ink Factory (A Most Wanted Man) for broadcast on BBC One and AMC in 2016. Executive producers are Stephen Cornwell and Simon Cornwell for The Ink Factory, Stephen Garrett, David Farr, and Polly Hill for the BBC. The series was commissioned for BBC One by Charlotte Moore and Ben Stephenson, and Joel Stillerman, Marci Wiseman and Kristin Jones for AMC. “The Night Manager” is adapted by David Farr (Hanna, “Spooks”) from John le Carré’s original novel. Rob Bullock (“The Suspicions of Mr Whicher,” “Chasing Shadows”) will produce for The Ink Factory.

The Ink Factory, Laurie and Hiddleston are represented by WME. WME negotiated the deal with AMC. Laurie is represented by Hamilton Hodell in the UK. Hiddleston is represented by Hamilton Hodell and Ziffren Brittenham, and managed by Authentic Talent and Literary. Bier is represented by CAA, Brillstein and Lichter, Grossman.

April 2015 we found out more about the casting in another press release. While not first annoucned we learned that Olivia Colman was also in the production, as she is listed in the first line of the second press release.

Press Release #2

DAVID HAREWOOD, NEIL MORRISSEY, KATHERINE KELLY AND TOBIAS MENZIES JOIN THE CAST OF “THE NIGHT MANAGER”

Acclaimed Actors Join Hugh Laurie, Tom Hiddleston and Olivia Colman in

AMC’s Co-Production with BBC One and The Ink Factory

NEW YORK / LONDON – April 16, 2015: Highly acclaimed British actors David Harewood (“Homeland”), Neil Morrissey (“Line of Duty”), Katherine Kelly (“Mr Selfridge”) and Tobias Menzies (“The Honorable Woman”) have been announced to join the star-studded cast of the television adaptation of John le Carré’s novel The Night Manager, which started filming last month.

Co-produced by AMC with BBC One and The Ink Factory, the latest names to feature in the international production join previously announced stars Hugh Laurie (“House”), Tom Hiddleston (The Avengers), Olivia Colman (“Broadchurch”), Tom Hollander (Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest), Elizabeth Debicki (The Great Gatsby) and Academy Award®-winning director Susanne Bier (In a Better World).

Harewood is most well-known for his role in Golden Globe® and Emmy Award®-winning drama “Homeland,” whilst Morrissey was recently featured in BAFTA-nominated drama “Line of Duty.” Kelly starred in two series of Emmy®-nominated British drama “Mr Selfridge,” and Menzies has made a name for himself in Golden Globe®-winning drama “The Honorable Woman” and Emmy® Award-winning series “Game of Thrones.”

Other names announced to appear in the espionage drama include BAFTA nominees Adeel Akhtar (“Utopia”) and Natasha Little (“Wolf Hall”), as well as Jonathan Aris (“Sherlock”) and Hannah Steele (“Wolf Hall”).

A contemporary interpretation of le Carré’s 1993 novel – and the first television adaptation of a le Carré novel in more than 20 years – “The Night Manager” mini-series will bring together love, loss and revenge in a complex story of modern criminality. The eagerly anticipated series follows former British soldier Jonathan Pine (Hiddleston) who is recruited by an intelligence operative named Burr (Colman) to navigate the shadowy recesses of Whitehall and Washington where an unholy alliance operates between the intelligence community and the secret arms trade. To infiltrate the inner circle of lethal arms dealer Richard Onslow Roper (Laurie), which includes girlfriend Jed (Debicki) and an associate named Corcoran (Hollander), Pine must himself become a criminal.

The Night Manager is one of le Carré’s most beloved and critically acclaimed books. A fusion of spy story and tale of organized crime, the novel was a best-seller in the United States and the UK, translated into over 20 languages and selling over a million copies in North America alone.

“The Night Manager” will be produced by The Ink Factory (A Most Wanted Man), BBC One and AMC for broadcast in 2016. Executive producers are Stephen Cornwell and Simon Cornwell for The Ink Factory, Stephen Garrett, David Farr, and Polly Hill for the BBC. The series was commissioned for BBC One by Charlotte Moore and Ben Stephenson, and Joel Stillerman and Kristin Jones for AMC. “The Night Manager” is adapted by David Farr (Hanna, “Spooks”). Rob Bullock (“The Suspicions of Mr Whicher,” “Chasing Shadows”) will produce for The Ink Factor.

 

Then June 2015 brought more casting information in another press release.

 

Press Release #3

RUSSELL TOVEY, ALISTAIR PETRIE AND DOUGLAS HODGE JOIN THE CAST FOR “THE NIGHT MANAGER”

Further Acting Talent Join Hugh Laurie, Tom Hiddleston, Olivia Colman and Tom Hollander in AMC’s Co-Production with BBC One and The Ink Factory

LONDON – June 19th 2015: BBC One, AMC and The Ink Factory today announced further names for the highly-anticipated television adaptation of John le Carré’s novel, The Night Manager, including Russell Tovey (Banished), Alistair Petrie (Utopia) and Douglas Hodge (The Town).

Co-produced by AMC with BBC One and The Ink Factory, the latest names to feature in the international production join previously announced stars Hugh Laurie (House), Tom Hiddleston (The Avengers), Olivia Colman (Broadchurch), Tom Hollander (Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest), Elizabeth Debicki (The Great Gatsby) and Academy Award®-winning director Susanne Bier (In a Better World).

Tovey is most well-known for his role in BBC supernatural drama Being Human, BBC Comedy Him & Her, ITV’s The Job Lot plus HBO’s hit comedy series Looking where he played a lead for two series. Petrie has recently featured in highly acclaimed drama, Utopia whilst Hodge is currently guest starring in British American horror drama series Penny Dreadful. He has had great success on stage where he has won both Tony and Olivier awards on Broadway and in the West End for La Cage Aux Folles and will direct Pinter’s Old Times on Broadway in the Autumn.

Other names previously announced to star in the series include David Harewood (Homeland), Katherine Kelly (Mr Selfridge), Tobias Menzies (Game Of Thrones) and Neil Morissey (Line Of Duty).

A contemporary interpretation of le Carré’s 1993 novel – and the first television adaptation of a le Carré novel in more than 20 years – The Night Manager mini-series will bring together love, loss and revenge in a complex story of modern criminality. The eagerly anticipated series follows former British soldier Jonathan Pine (Hiddleston) who is recruited by an intelligence operative named Burr (Colman) to navigate the shadowy recesses of Whitehall and Washington where an unholy alliance operates between the intelligence community and the secret arms trade. To infiltrate the inner circle of lethal arms dealer Richard Onslow Roper (Laurie), which includes girlfriend Jed (Debicki) and an associate named Corcoran (Hollander), Pine must himself become a criminal.

The Night Manager is one of le Carré’s most beloved and critically acclaimed books. A fusion of spy story and tale of organised crime, the novel was a best-seller in the United States and the UK, translated into over 20 languages and selling over a million copies in North America alone.

The Night Manager will be produced by The Ink Factory (A Most Wanted Man), BBC One and AMC for broadcast in 2016. Executive producers are Stephen Cornwell and Simon Cornwell for The Ink Factory, Stephen Garrett, David Farr, and Polly Hill for the BBC. The series was commissioned for BBC One by Charlotte Moore and Ben Stephenson, and Joel Stillerman and Kristin Jones for AMC. The Night Manager is adapted by David Farr (Hanna, Spooks). Rob Bullock (The Suspicions of Mr Whicher, Chasing Shadows) will produce for The Ink Factory.

 

October 2015 brought the first look of The Night manager in a teaser trailer.  Which gave me just enough to be interest when I came across it.

Teaser Trailer. 

 

December 2015 brought us the first promotional photo, with Tom Hiddleston standing in a rocky place.

 

January 2016 BBC One produced a sizzle reel that showed some footage of the mini-series.

Promo

 

 

What do you think? Will you check out this mini-series?  Tweet me your answer: @telev_watcher.

 

The Night Manager will air on AMC.

I’m watching, are you?