Keeley Hawes to Star in 'The Assassin' for Prime Video
Keeley Hawes in "Crossfire"
BritBox
Future Dame Keeley Hawes has set her next project after PBS' Miss Austen. The actor has signed on to lead The Assassin, the newest project from The Williams Brothers (Baptiste) at Amazon's Prime Video. She'll play Julie, a retired assassin whose estranged son, Edward, tracks her down to the remote Greek Island where she's settled to live her final years away from those who might come after her. (We will, for the purposes of this post, assume the Greek Island in question is not Corfu.) However, is she as safe as she thought if her normal civilian son can trace her to her hidden location?
Hawes' co-star for the limited series is Freddie Highmore (Bates Motel), who plays Edward. Having discovered the man who probably fathered him was not who he thought he was, he is determined to make his mother talk to him after she's spent his life keeping her distance to ensure his safety. However, his uncovering of her whereabouts is precisely what Julie's enemies were waiting for, and now they know not only where she is but that the one person she'd sacrificed for is with her.
The Assassin is the Williams Brothers' second series to air on an Amazon streaming service after Boat Story landed on Freevee in early 2024. The pair are also the brain trust behind Netflix's The Tourist, which stars Jamie Dornan.
Freddie Highmore as Young Norman Bates in 'Bates Motel'
Cate Cameron/© 2017 A&E Networks, LLC
The show’s synopsis reads:
Secluded on a remote Greek island, retired assassin Julie has a somewhat thorny reunion with her estranged son, Edward, visiting from England. Armed with questions about new information on his paternity, Edward battles to find the right time to speak to his frustratingly distant mother. But when the moment finally presents itself, things take a deadly turn as Julie’s dangerous past catches up with her, and they are forced to flee the island and go on the run together. Edward’s quest for truth clashes with Julie’s secrecy while they are forced to work together in a fight for survival, testing their dysfunctional relationship to its limits. Amid uncovering a dark conspiracy they believe to be their only threat, a greater danger emerges that will destroy their relationship entirely. In a race against time, Julie fights to save Edward and salvage their relationship as past and present collide in a global showdown.
Hawes and Highmore co-star alongside Shalom Brune-Franklin (Great Expectations), Jack Davenport (Ten Percent), Alan Dale (Torchwood), Gerald Kyd (Unforgotten), Devon Terrell (Totally Completely Fine), Richard Dormer (Blue Lights), David Dencik (The Ipcress File), and Gina Gershon (Elementary).
Harry and Jack Williams will pen all episodes of The Assassin, but no director has been announced yet. The Williams also produce the series via their company, Two Brothers Pictures, in association with Germany’s ZDF, All3Media International, and Stan in Australia.
The Assassin is expected to start filming before the end of the year and be released in 2025.
