EXCLUSIVE: Apple TV+’s Gary Oldman spy drama Slow Horses has rounded out its cast, with Ready Player One star Olivia Cooke and The Two Popes actor Jonathan Pryce joining a lineup that also includes Kristin Scott Thomas and Jack Lowden.
See-Saw Films’ adaptation of Mick Herron’s espionage novels is currently shooting in the UK following a delay due to the coronavirus production shutdown, and sources tell Deadline that 12 episodes are being filmed back-to-back.
Six of these episodes will be based on Herron’s first book, Slow Horses, and the other six will be based on his second novel, Dead Lions. Production sources are referring to it as two seasons, or at the very least, two sets of six episodes. Apple sees it as one season, but declined to comment on release plans.
Related Story
‘House Of the Dragon’: Olivia Cooke, Matt Smith & Emma D'Arcy To Star In HBO's 'Game of Thrones' Prequel
Oscar-winner Oldman stars as Jackson Lamb, a brilliant but irascible leader of a group of spies who end up in MI5’s Slough House, having been exiled from the mainstream for their mistakes.
Scott Thomas features as Diana Taverner, a formidable high-ranker at MI5, while Lowden is on board as River Cartwright, a talented agent who is desperate to claw his way up and out of Slough House. Apple confirmed Scott Thomas and Lowden’s casting after the Daily Mail first reported that they had signed for the series.
Pryce, the Oscar nominee who recently was cast as Prince Philip in The Crown, will play David Cartwright, River’s grandfather and a retired MI5 agent. Finally, Cooke is Sid Baker, a sharp agent and River’s officemate. It caps a good few days for Cooke, who was confirmed last week as a lead in HBO’s Game of Thrones prequel House Of Dragon.
2020 Apple TV Pilots & Series Orders
Deadline understands that casting is not confirmed for the second season, though it’s safe to assume Oldman will return as he is the central character in Herron’s series, which spans seven books, including the upcoming Slough House.
Slow Horses is adapted by Will Smith, who executive produces with Graham Yost, Jamie Laurenson, Hakan Kousetta, Iain Canning, Emile Sherman, Gail Mutrux, and Douglas Urbanski. James Hawes (Black Mirror, Snowpiercer) is directing the first six episodes, while Deadline hears that interviews are underway for a director of Season 2.
The series was commissioned for Apple TV+ by London-based Jay Hunt, Apple’s creative director for Europe worldwide video, alongside heads of worldwide video, Zack Van Amburg and Jamie Erlicht.
Cooke is repped by The Artist Partnership (in the UK), Grandview and Viewpoint. Attorneys are Gretchen Rusch and Huy Nguyen. Pryce is represented by Julian Belfrage Associates and Anonymous Content. Scott Thomas’ reps are Independent Talent Group and CAA, while Lowden’s are Conway Van Gelder Grant (in the UK) and UTA.
Subscribe to Deadline Breaking News Alerts and keep your inbox happy.