Hulu Picks Up Irish Comedy 'Obituary' Starring Siobhán Cullen

Hulu's relationship with Irish network RTE has been paying dividends since initially getting involved with Normal People via the streaming service's standing relationship with BBC Three. The follow-up, Conversations With Friends, was a little too long but still a decent-sized draw. However, having run out of romances from Sally Rooney for the moment, Hulu is now expanding its horizons to try out an Irish dark comedy. Titled Obituary, the series, which stars Siobhán Cullen (The Dry), is perhaps not the sex-and-comfort TV of Hulu's previous series, instead having more in common with its more recent Wedding Season.

Unlike previous shows, this series isn't being produced by RTE, but both the Irish network and Hulu boarded at the same time. The series hails from APC Studios UK and Irish independent production company Tua Films. APC has several high-end TV series to its name, but only True Colours, the Australian crime drama, has made it over to this side of the pond. As for Tua Films (which was recently forced to change its name from Magamedia for obvious reasons), its fare is usually Gaelic titles, making Obituary a rare venture to non-Irish audiences.

The series hales from Irish scriptwriter Ray Lawlor (Le Ceangal), with John Hayes (Dublin Murders) helming all six episodes, with Nell Green (The Undeclared War) on board as executive producer. The series is partly funded by Fís Éireann/ Screen Ireland, BAI, and The Wrap Fund.

Here's the logline for Obituary, which sounds like it might strike a little bit too close to home for those of us who write for publications for a living.

Cullen plays Elvira Clancy, an obituarist working at a small-town newspaper, who suddenly finds herself being paid by the obituary due to cuts. When she “accidentally” kills a nasty piece of work, she discovers she might have an untapped bloodlust and sets her sights on other unpleasant residents of the town. Her killing spree hits a potential snag when the paper hires an attractive crime correspondent.

So far, Cullen is the only name attached to the project, but pre-production is not yet underway, so fans can expect further casting announcements as filming draws closer. The project is exp[ected to begin principal photography in Ireland in early 2023.

No premiere date has been set as of yet, but Deadline states that Hulu expects the show to premiere sometime in 2023, probably in the latter half of the year.