Hot Picks: Boat Story

The latest thriller from Two Brothers Pictures opens on the windswept Yorkshire coastline where two strangers, Janet and Samuel, stumble across a boat containing millions of pounds’ worth of drugs.

When the pair, played by Daisy Haggard (Back To Life) and Paterson Joseph (Noughts + Crosses), make the life-changing decision not to call the police and take matters into their own, rather amateur, hands, they are thrust into a dangerous criminal network, led by a twisted Frenchman called The Tailor (Tchéky Karyo).

All3Media International’s newly promoted vice-president of scripted content Lauren Jackson says Boat Story has a combination of “strong premise, surprising storytelling and fresh characters”, suffused with a latent humour that sets it apart in the thriller genre.

“The tone is a bit like a Cohen brothers’ film, with the moments of off-beat comedy never distracting from the tension or drama,” she says.

“It is littered with unique characters who become entangled in the story in completely unexpected ways, and we get to delve into their backgrounds, which makes the drama really rich.”

Jackson also highlights the “captivating” on-screen chemistry between Haggard and Joseph, while Karyo – who is widely known for his previous role as the titular hero in BBC1’s Baptiste – is “magic” in his role as the “enigmatic, violent and cultured” criminal mastermind.

Two Brothers’ pedigree in producing hit comedy-dramas is another calling card for Boat Story, following its success with Fleabag and Back To Life.

“At All3Media International, we’re always looking for a great story that compels you to keep watching, and it is Two Brothers’ experience in this area that will make this production very special,” says Jackson.

“It’s already appealing to both linear broadcasters and streaming platforms, with stylistic overtones of The Tourist, and we anticipate several windows for the show in many regions”

The indie’s founders, Jack and Harry Williams – who are best known for writing dramas including The Tourist, The Missing, Liar and Baptiste – were even more involved in the production than usual, according to Jackson, with the duo serving as directors alongside Alice Troughton (Doctor Who; Baghdad Central) and Daniel Nettheim (The Tourist).

“Partially inspired by stories of boats with strange cargo washing up in the north of England, they sent us a brilliant script and then, interestingly, said they were keen to direct,” she says.

“Jack and Harry have such a strong visual in their writing and we were excited to see them realise that vision in the first block.”

Jackson adds that the Williams brothers were keen to make the plot as unpredictable and surprising as possible, with the mantra: “Whatever your expectations are, we’re fairly sure you won’t quite know what’s happening next.”

With a commission from BBC1 in the UK, a co-pro partner in Amazon Freevee for the US and Germany, and pre-sales with BBCS Australia, Jackson says the series has “broad adult appeal” in the global market.

“It’s already appealing to both linear broadcasters and streaming platforms, with stylistic overtones of The Tourist, and we anticipate several windows for the show in many regions,” she adds.