Paramount+ UK Sets 'Curfew' for Fall 2024

Paramount+ is prepping to drop a Curfew for the autumn of 2024. The series, which is one of the few commissioned after parent company Paramount Global, axed 95% of its in-progress slate of U.K. programming, is based on the novel After Dark by Jayne Cowie, set in a dystopian near-future where the Women's Safety Act has been passed, declaring men must stay indoors during the overnight hours, starting at 7 p.m. local time. The idea is that women should be allowed to walk the streets at night free of fear, and rather than teach men to do better, society has decided "Lock Him Up" is the best option. But of course, these sorts of freedom-restricting punitive measures never really work, no matter how well-intentioned. Instead, they merely start society down a slippery slope to violent authoritarianism.

The violence, in this case, begins when the body of a woman is dropped on the steps of the Women's Safety Center in the middle of the night, and the lead detective takes one look at the violence done against her and sees all the hallmarks of a male killer. But if there are no men on the street after dinner, how did she die?

Curfew's six-part thriller is a deep dive into how authoritarian regimes start, how those who believe they're doing right can be on the absolute wrong side of history, and how some  cases wind up forcing a detective to work there way all the way to the top to find the true whodunit.

Here's the show's synopsis:

The six-part crime thriller is set in a society where all men live under ‘The Women’s Safety Act’, meaning they are bound by a strict curfew from 7 PM to 7 AM every night, with their movements tracked by an ankle tag 24 hours a day. When a woman’s body is discovered, brutally murdered during curfew hours and left on the steps of the Women’s Safety Centre, veteran Police officer Pamela Green believes that a man is responsible. But her theory is rejected in a world where the curfew system binds men. The introduction of The Women’s Safety Act almost three years ago is widely considered as effective at protecting women, who have been able to go out at night without looking over their shoulders, and nobody wants to hear different.

If Pamela proves a man committed this murder, it could bring The Women’s Safety Act crashing down – people in high places are determined to make the curfew a success. They will do all it takes to prevent Pamela from discovering the truth.

Sarah Parish (Stay Close) leads the cast as Pamela; Mitchell Robertson (Mayflies) is Eddie, the rookie shadowing Pamela's investigation. Mandip Gill (Doctor Who) and Alexandra Burke (Sister Act) round out the leading ensemble as Sarah, who becomes involved in the investigation, and Helen, a curfew advocate, respectively. Further cast members include Lucy Benjamin (Detectorists), Larry Lamb (Gavin & Stacey), Bobby Brazier (The Point of Mo Return), Anita Dobson (Call the Midwife), Tommy McDonnell (Alice & Jack), Adam Korson (The Stairs), Amy Louise Pemberton (Legends of Tomorrow), Imogen Sandhu (Casualty), James Craven (Coronation Street), Selorm Adonu (Man to Man) and newcomer Raphael D'Alterio.

Lydia Yeoman (The Haze) is the lead writer with Jess Green (EastEnders) and Sumerah Srivastav (Manifest) also penning episodes. Director Joasia Goldyn (Britannia) helms all six installments; John Adams (Damaged) joins the team as Producer. Allan Niblo, Jane Moore, and Nathalie Peter-Contesse are Executive Producers of the series for Vertigo Films. 

Curfew will premiere on Paramount+ in the U.K. in the fall of 2024. However, it is almost certain the show will be sold to a different streaming service in the States if it's a hit. Either way, chances are it won't cross the pond until 2025.