Line of Duty icon and more stars confirmed for "chaotic" Dublin-set family drama based on best-selling novel
Adrian Dunbar has joined the cast of Grown Ups, a new Netflix series based on the novel by Marian Keyes.
Netflix has announced the start of production on new drama series Grown Ups, which is set in Dublin and based on the best-selling novel by Marian Keyes.
The streamer has also announced the cast for the 8-part series, which includes Bad Sisters stars Sarah Greene and Barry Ward as Jessie and Johnny, while Taskmaster's Aisling Bea will play Cara and The Umbrella Academy's Robert Sheehan will play Liam.
A Line of Duty icon is also joining the cast, with Adrian Dunbar set to play Canice, alongside You's Amy-Leigh Hickman as Nell, Marcella's Sinéad Cusack as Rose and Call My Agent: Berlin's Karin Hanczewski as Ed.
Meanwhile, James Agnew, a newcomer who has just graduated from the Lir Drama school in Dublin, will play Ferdia, and Katelyn Rose Downey, who will soon be seen in Blade Runner 2099, will play Saoirse.
The synopsis for the series says: "Set in south county Dublin, Grown Ups follows the chaotic lives of the Casey clan, a noisy tight-knit Irish family, who are bound together by a tangled web of loyalty, resentment, money, memory and love.
"When the rock of the family, the ‘good son’, dies unexpectedly, it sets off a seismic emotional reckoning. Over the course of the next year, the Caseys will fall in and out of love, confront old wounds and make some new ones.
"They’ll be forced to face not only their grief, but the exhausting, relentless, and often ridiculous struggle of being an adult. Despite their age and responsibilities, the Caseys are far from grown up."
The series comes from writer and creator Samantha Strauss, who was previously behind another Netflix drama, Apple Cider Vinegar.
Strauss said in a statement: "I know I'm not alone in being obsessed with every word Marian Keyes has ever written, and it is a true life highlight to be trusted with her characters as we bring the Casey family and the world of Grown Ups to Netflix.
"James Griffiths, our set up director is already crafting something beautiful and very human. I am pinching myself to be in the company of our preposterously glorious cast and our fantastic crew as we shoot here in sunny Ireland."
Meanwhile, Keyes said of her work being adapted: "The filming of Grown Ups has begun in Dublin and it feels like a succession of dreams come true. On 15/10/2020 at the height of Covid, I had a zoom call with Samantha Strauss from Picking Scabs (a See-Saw Films label).
"She was on Australia’s Gold Coast adapting Liane Moriarty’s Nine Perfect Strangers. I was closeted in my Dublin bedroom, once again in lockdown.
"Sam had optioned the book (Grown Ups) six months earlier but this was our first time to speak; our emotional and creative connection was immediate.
"Her questions were relevant and intelligent and she was adamant that the show needed to be shot in Ireland. Countless books are optioned and very few ever make it to the screen. (I’ve been there many times lol.) Funding is usually the biggest challenge. But from that first conversation I believed Sam and I trusted her."
Keyes added: "Then Netflix came on board and again it was so easy to like and trust the people involved. (For a long time the only people I met related to this production were women).
"Then casting began and it was above and beyond my wildest dreams: what an incredibly talented group of people. Likewise the two directors and the hardworking crew."
"Being part of this, seeing it all come together has been so exciting and so much fun," she concluded. "I’m honoured by the hard work and commitment of everyone involved, I’m beyond grateful for all the care that’s been taken with my characters and most of all, I’m enormously proud."
Grown Ups will stream on Netflix – sign up from £5.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.
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Authors
James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.
