Can anyone find the Jackal? That’s the question posed in the trailer for The Day of the Jackal, an upcoming assassin series based on Frederick Forsyth’s 1971 novel of the same name.
Oscar-winner Eddie Redmayne stars as Jackal, an elite assassin who offers his elite services to the highest bidder. Jackal is a chameleon who frequently changes his appearance to ensure anonymity. No one has been able to catch Jackal, let alone identify him. Enter Bianca (Lashana Lynch), a motivated British intelligence officer who sets out to find Jackal. The dangerous cat-and-mouse thriller spreads across Europe, as neither the Jackal nor Bianca will go quietly into the night.
“I will find him, and I will kill him myself,” Bianca emphatically states before she goes on the hunt.
Besides Redmayne and Lynch, The Day of the Jackal stars Úrsula Corberó, Charles Dance, Richard Dormer, Chukwudi Iwuji, Lia Williams, Khalid Abdalla, Eleanor Matsuura, Jonjo O’Neill, Nick Blood, Sule Rimi, and Florisa Kamara.
Screenwriter Ronan Bennett (Top Boy) is the showrunner, with Brian Kirk (21 Bridges) as the lead director. Bennett’s adaptation is a modern reimagining of Forsyth’s novel.
Fred Zinnemann directed the 1973 feature film adaptation of The Day of the Jackal. Edward Fox starred as the Jackal, a hit man hired to kill French president Charles de Gaulle in 1963. The film was well-received, winning one BAFTA (film editing) on seven nominations.
The Day of the Jackal premieres on November 14, 2024, on Peacock with the first five episodes. New episodes will then air weekly, with a double-episode finale on December 12, 2024.
U.K. viewers can watch the series on Sky starting on November 7, 2024.
