Richard Madden Reteams with Jed Mercurio for 'Trinity'

Despite PBS successfully importing the best of British television for nearly forty years, when the streaming revolution hit, it wasn't immediately apparent to most production studios how well contemporary U.K. shows would fare with American audiences. Only Netflix figured it out early on, when it imported most of the BBC Two lineup of Home and Garden shows, and then landed PBS' The Great British Baking Show, which stands today as one of the streaming service's most reliable hits. It wasn't until 2018 when Netflix launched Bodyguard, inspired by the success of series creator Jed Mercurio's Line of Duty on the BBC, that most places realized the U.K.'s love of tightly paced thrillers held true for Americans as well. However, Bodyguard was a standalone, and there was no Season 2; meanwhile, everyone else scooped up Mercurio's post-Line of Duty shows, leaving Netflix with no follow-up.

It's been nearly seven years since Bodyguard's surprise smash hit on the service, and most viewers have long since forgotten it or given up on a sequel. So, of course, now is the time that Netflix finally lands a new standalone thriller from the Mercurio team. Though the streaming service has not formally announced it, Variety reports that Netflix has greenlit Trinity. A new standalone political thriller, the series will reunite Mercurio with the star of Bodyguard, Richard Madden (Game of Thrones). 

Madden initially parlayed the one-two punch of three seasons (and a spectacular death) on Game of Thrones, followed by Bodyguard's success, into an A-list career starring in high-profile, ambitious films and series. Unfortunately for him, those wound up being Marvel's Eternals and Prime Video's Citadel, both of which wound up spectacular flops. With no movement on the former getting a sequel, and the latter being canned by Amazon Studios, it makes sense for Madden to retrace his steps back to the last place where he thrived to see if he can find success again. 

Here's the series logline:

A heroic female Naval Officer becomes involved with the outwardly charismatic Secretary of Defense, only to discover he may be at the heart of a dangerous conspiracy.

Gugu Mbatha-Raw (The War Between the Land & the Sea) stars as the heroic naval officer, Commander Katherine Decker, second-in-command on the USS Kansas, a nuclear submarine and one of the deadliest weapons on Earth. Madden plays Webb Preston, the Secretary of Defense, who has a technology background that sets him apart from most politicians; his innovative approach and purpose are seen as a threat in more ways than one. 

Please note that the spelling in the Variety article refers to the character as the Americanized "Secretary of Defense," even though the British title for the position is "Secretary of State for Defence" and is usually referred to as "Defence Minister." The current assumption is that the Americanization is due to this being a report rather than a direct press release from Netflix, and not that these British actors are going to be playing American characters. 

The rest of the cast is expected to be announced in due course when Netflix confirms the start of filming. Mercurio serves as writer and showrunner on the series; director Michael Cuesta (Homeland) helms the first two installments. Both executive produce, along with Wendy Mericle and Jimmy Mulville, for Hat Trick Mercurio (HTM) Productions.

Trinity does not yet have a filming schedule or a release date, but if the rumored Line of Duty revival is indeed happening, it'll likely film before the end of 2025 and arrive whenever Netflix wants it to.