The show, from Neil Cross, will star Niamh Algar and Tom Hollander.
Sky have announced a new series from the Luther creator and sometime Doctor Who scribe Neil Cross.
The show, which begins filming in this month in Sardinia, promises to be a sun-drenched chase thriller. It stars Niamh Algar (Malpractice, Mary & George) and Tom Hollander (The Night Manager, The White Lotus).
Niamh Algar image credit: Joseph Seresin
The story follows Iris Nixon who steals a code from charming philanthropist Cameron McIntyre and goes on the run. Armed only with her lethal intelligence and chameleonic charm, the clock is ticking for her to work out what the code could unleash before she is found.
Here’s what Sky say about the show…
Iris Nixon is equal parts rootless genius and puzzle addict. By day, she works a mundane job flagging harmful content for a social media platform; by night she ploughs internet forums solving complex riddles. When a mysterious thread is posted online seeking highly intelligent individuals to crack a secretive code, Iris’s curiosity and compulsion to win get the better of her, and it leads her to a charming philanthropist, Cameron McIntyre.
Having outsmarted every code-breaker around the world, Iris realises she has unwittingly unlocked a dangerously powerful, world-changing piece of technology. Suspicious of Cameron’s motives, she steals the code and then… vanishes. Ever resourceful and intending to lay low, Iris reinvents herself as Ms Brooks, a tutor to Joy, the daughter of a wealthy family on the Sardinian coast. As the cyber-speculation as to Iris’ whereabouts intensifies and Cameron’s net closes in, her lethal intelligence and chameleonic charm may for once not be enough to stop her from being drawn into an increasingly deadly game of hide and seek.
Also cast are Meréana Tomlinson, Sacha Dhawan (Doctor Who), Maya Sansa, Peter Sullivan (Poldark) and Debi Mazar (Entourage).
Writer, Creator and Showrunner, Neil Cross, said
“All I wanted to do was to make a show I wanted to watch. ‘Iris’ is an unapologetically exciting, witty, chase-driven adventure show and features a lead character the like of which I don’t think we’ve ever met before on TV. With Niamh Algar and Tom Hollander bringing these complex characters to life, coupled with Terry McDonough’s direction, I couldn’t be more excited to share this world and these characters.”
Iris is a Sky Studios and Fremantle co-production, with Wildside is providing production services in Italy. The series directors are Terry McDonough and Sarah O’Gorman. The Series Producer is Tim Bricknell.
Susan E. Connolly and Ian Scott McCullough write episodes alongside Neil Cross. Executive Producers are Cross and McDonough; Jenni Sherwood and Dante Di Loreto for Fremantle, and Adrian Sturges for Sky Studios.
The series will air on Sky and stream on NOW in the UK, Ireland, Italy, Germany, Switzerland and Austria.
We’ll keep you posted about Iris.