British actors Emma Thompson and Ruth Wilson join forces for the new Apple TV+ thriller series “Down Cemetery Road”, bringing to life Mick Herron’s crime novel of the same name.
Wilson plays art restorer Sarah Tucker who hires Thompson’s private investigator Zoe Boehm to look into an explosion in her neighbourhood. As the duo delve deeper into the mystery, they come across a larger conspiracy involving a missing girl and state secrets.
The series marks a reunion for the actors who first collaborated on the 2013 period comedy-drama “Saving Mr. Banks” although they didn’t share any screen space together. While Thompson starred in the film as “Mary Poppins” author PL Travers, Wilson played her mother Margaret Goff in flashback sequences.
Talking to Reuters in London, Thompson said, “When I heard Ruth was doing it (Saving Mr. Banks), I thought, ‘Wait, she’s playing my mother, I’m not going to meet her.’ And it was frustrating. And then this (Down Cemetery Road) came along and, this is even bigger than a movie. A long, long time to work with somebody. And I’m very grateful.”
When asked what sets “Down Cemetery Road” apart from other English countryside thrillers, Thompson added, “It stars two women. That’s one big change.”
This is Apple TV+’s second Mick Herron adaptation with the streamer previously turning his “Slough Horses” series of novels into the Emmy-winning hit “Slow Horses”. The series stars Gary Oldman as alcoholic reclusive intelligence officer Jackson Lamb.
Thompson, who has been a “slavering Mick Herron fan” before his work was adapted for TV, immediately got on board as lead actor and executive producer when the show was pitched to her.
When asked if there can ever be a crossover with “Slow Horses”, Wilson told Reuters, “It’ll actually be very funny. Zoe Boehm and Jackson Lamb, having a conversation.”
With “Down Cemetery Road” also including conversations on political correctness and cancel culture, Wilson feels that showrunner Morwenna Banks and Herron “put out the absurdity of human behaviour and life and the clash of opinions and views and what that might lead to.”
“Down Cemetery Road” premieres its first season on Apple TV+ on October 29.
