Posted in: Peacock, Preview, streaming, TV | Tagged: Frederick Forsyth, peacock, Sky UK, The Day of the Jackal, thriller

The Day of the Jackal: Peacock & Sky Team for Updated TV Series Take

The Day of the Jackal is a seminal novel that not only launched the career of thriller author and journalist Frederick Forsyth, but also a classic 1973 movie (and a forgettable and mostly forgotten 1997 updated movie starring Bruce Willis). Now it's getting a new TV series from Peacock and the UK-based Sky with veteran scribe Ronan Bennett as writer and showrunner and director Brian Kirk.

The original The Day of the Jackal was about a plot to find a chameleonic assassin who had been hired to murder President Charles de Gaulle of France. The novel established the modern techno-thriller genre that drew on research to give a sense of real-life authentic detail in the world geopolitics and updated the classic adventure thriller, and made author Frederick Forsyth a household name. The story also firmly updated the figure of the cool, murderous assassin archetype (though manga creation Golgo 13 was already established in the 1960s) The 1997 remake The Jackal updated the plot of the original movie to the present day to a more high-tech world where the assassin played by Bruce Willis in his first bad guy movie lead used technology to plan his hit and elude the authorities.

The Day of the Jackal is All About the Nameless Hitman

The new TV series will be a contemporary reimagining of the beloved and respected novel and movie. While remaining true to the DNA of the original premise, this update will delve deeper into the chameleon-like 'anti-hero' at the heart of the story in a high-octane, cinematic, globetrotting "cat and mouse" thriller, set amidst the turbulent geo-political landscape of our time. The Day of the Jackal will be produced by Carnival Films, which is part of Universal International Studios, a division of Universal Studio Group, in association with Sky Studios.

"It is an exciting prospect to work with Ronan Bennett and Brian Kirk on this contemporary cat-and-mouse thriller inspired by Frederick Forsyth's respected novel and the much admired and remembered Fred Zinnemann movie. We'll retain the pan-European setting and play to the strengths of episodic television in this fast-paced, intelligent international thriller with the story of an assassin and the race to stop him still at the heart of the action," said Gareth Neame, Executive Producer, Carnival Films. Lisa Katz, President, Scripted Content, NBCUniversal Television & Streaming, added, "We're excited to adapt this internationally recognized classic into an updated, timely, political thriller. Shepherded by novelist and showrunner Ronan Bennett and Carnival, this action-packed high-stakes drama is sure to be an edge-of-your-seat adventure for Peacock audiences." Meghan Lyvers, Director of Original Drama, Sky Studios UK, shared, "The Day of the Jackal is a timeless international espionage thriller that is beloved the world over. Ronan's propulsive storytelling will keep viewers on the edge of their seats, and we cannot wait to bring this premium, cinematic, globe-trotting series to Sky audiences across Europe."

Production on the series will begin in Summer 2023, with The Day of the Jackal commissioned by Gabriel Silver, Director of Commissioning, Drama, and Sam Hoyle, Executive Producer, at Sky Studios for Zai Bennett, MD of Content at Sky UK & Ireland. Gareth Neame and Nigel Marchant are Executive Producers for Carnival Films. Frederick Forsyth will serve as Consulting Producer, and Christopher Hall is set to produce. The series will be available on Peacock in the US and on Sky in the UK, Ireland, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria.

Meanwhile, you can always watch the original 1973 The Day of the Jackal with its matter-of-fact naturalism to see the origin of a particular genre of movies, and the 1997 movie The Jackal if you want to see Bruce Willis horribly murder Jack Black, possibly the only death scene Jack Black ever played.

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