Identifying one of the hot tickets at this year’s London TV Screenings,’ “Gone,” from George Kay, creator or writer of “Hijack,” “The Long Shadow” and “Lupin,” has scored bullish pre-sales across four continents led by a BritBox deal for the U.S. and Canada.
Other pre-sales on the upcoming psychological thriller, starring David Morrissey (“Sherwood”) and Eve Myles (“Keeping Faith”), take in both top broadcast networks and streaming services in Australia, New Zealand, Asia and Europe.
Partners include Norwegian public broadcaster NRK, and Australian streaming service Stan. SkyNew Zealand has also licensed “Gone,” set to air on Three and stream on ThreeNow.
Across Asia, A3Media International has struck a pre-sales deal with BBC Studios’ premium SVOD drama channel, BBC First, alongside its multi-genre SVOD platform, BBC Player.
The six-part series will be one of the centerpiece scripted titles at All3Media International‘s London Screenings showcase on Feb. 26.
In “Gone,” bound for ITV and ITVX for a March bow, Morrissey plays the headmaster of an elite English private school, whose wife suddenly vanishes. Enter Detective Annie Cassidy (Myles) who views Polly as the prime suspect and “Gone” lifts off as a high-stakes cat and mouse psychological drama-thriller between the hard-charging Cassidy and Polly, who keep his own counsel.
That comes with his caste and class. Released mid-Feb, a trailer for “Gone” begins not with Polly but his school, which looks to date back to Tudor times, its facade sporting an elegant nineteenth century Anglo-Italianate makeover. It goes on to catch Polly addressing students in the school’s main hall, its coat of arms behind him. Cut to Polly’s country house.
This is a man who is the voice of the British establishment, its moral arbiter whose ethics are not to be questioned lightly. Enter Myles Cassidy, caught in the trailer in a slightly larger than normal first close-up, who stares at Polly across a police interrogation room table with an air of not very dissimulated disbelief.
This is a “story about privilege and prejudice,” Kay said when “Gone” was announced. “The truth is tantalisingly close. Or at least, that’s what Annie thinks,” he teased. Kay’s Observatory Pictures, backed by All3Media, produces with New Pictures, in association with All3Media International.
‘Gone’ Eve Myles as Annie, David Morrissey as Michael Copyright New Pictures, All3Media International
Gone Eve Myles as Annie, David Morrissey as Michael Copyright New Pictures, All3Media International
“Blending psychological mystery with a claustrophobic thriller and layered character drama, George Kay’s latest series has resonated strongly with international buyers as is evident through this impressive line-up of premium partners at pre-sale stage, including BritBox,” said Jennifer Askin, EVP Americas at All3Media International.
“With its atmospheric setting, a stellar cast led by David Morrissey and Eve Myles and a tightly constructed cat-and-mouse narrative, “Gone” delivers sustained tension and broad audience appeal,” she added. “We look forward to unveiling further details to buyers at our upcoming upfronts event this week.”
“Beyond the central mystery, ‘Gone’ digs into themes of trauma, trust and the long shadow cast by elite institutions, giving the drama a deeper emotional and social edge alongside its thriller elements,” All3Media International noted in a press statement on Wednesday.
Written and created by Kay, “Gone” is directed by BAFTA-winning Richard Laxton (“Mrs Wilson,” “The Thief, His Wife and the Canoe”). Cast also takes in Jennifer Macbeth, Arthur Hughes, Nicholas Nunn, Elliot Cowan, Billy Barratt, Rupert Evans, Jodie McNee, Oscar Batterham and Clare Higgins.
“Gone” is produced by Mark Hedges (“Hanna,” “The Rising”). Kay, Laxton, Willow Grylls (“Des,” “The Missing”) and Matt Sandford (“The Long Shadow”) serve as executive producers.
“Gone” is fiction, A3Media Intl. stresses It is partly inspired, however, by the book “To Hunt a Killer” and the real-world work of former Detective Superintendent Julie Mackay and ITV Crime Correspondent Robert Murphy, both of whom worked as consultants on the show.
