'The Castaways' Joins 'No Escape' As Another Paramount+ Show Without a U.S. Home

It is rude to speak ill of the dead, especially when they haven't actually passed away yet, but it is commonly understood in Hollywood that Paramount Studio's chances of surviving 2024 without a miracle are slim to none. It's merely a matter of who buys the studio and how it is broken up and sold for parts. However, the network, especially the slow-motion collapsing streaming service, is currently not doing itself any favors. In 2022, it put dozens and dozens of international originals into production to help bolster its offerings. Those series are now being frittered away, showing up on Freevee and Roku with no warning and less fanfare, if they turn up at all.

Two of those who haven't come over are the adaptations of Lucy Clarke's best-selling novels. First, there was No Escape (which was commissioned in March 2022 and released in early 2023), based on Clarke's book The Blue. Just as the trailer for that arrived, Paramount announced it was already working on the next one, The Castaways, based on Clarke's novel of the same name. The TV limited series was right in line with multiple hits on TV and streaming, including Showtime's Yellowjackets and Amazon Prime Video's The Wilds, where a lost-like plane crash scenario becomes more complicated the longer the survivors remain on the island.

Starring Sheridan Smith (Four Lives) and Céline Buckens (Showtrial) as sisters Lori and Erin, who have a massive fight before the former goes missing in a plane crash, the series has debuted in the U.K. to reviews that call Smith the best part of the series. Dropping it on Paramount+ U.S. would seem like a no-brainer, at least to get subscribers to tune in for one or two episodes.