Slow Horses star to lead 5's "emotionally charged thriller" Missed Call
Joanna Scanlan will play single mother Sarah in the new thriller set in a picturesque French village.
Joanna Scanlan, star of Slow Horses and A Very Royal Scandal, has been cast in a brand-new five-part thriller series for 5, which is currently going by the working title of Missed Call.
The series is set in France and also stars Claire Keim (Vise le Coeur), Rupert Graves (Sherlock), François-Xavier Demaison (Disparue) and Robert Lindsay (Sherwood).
The synopsis says: "Set against the backdrop of a picturesque French village, Missed Call follows single mother Sarah, whose world is upended after receiving a late-night missed call from her teenage daughter, Katie, while she’s on a school exchange.
"When Sarah arrives in France, she finds the host family and local authorities disturbingly indifferent to Katie’s disappearance. As Sarah refuses to accept their complacency, her search for her daughter spirals into a gripping and dangerous race against time."
The series comes from Paris and London-based production company Pernel Media, in association with ITV Studios, and is the second collaboration between 5 and Pernel, after this year's The Au Pair.
Scanlan said in a statement: "The script for Missed Call gripped me from the first page, it’s a powerful story about every mother’s worst fear, set in a place that’s stunningly beautiful but weirdly unsettling.
"Sarah is a complex, vibrant and determined woman, and I’m hugely excited to bring her to life in this tense and emotional thriller. It’s a real pleasure to be working with Channel 5 on such a bold and compelling piece of drama."
Meanwhile, Paul Testar, Commissioning Editor for 5 said: "Missed Call is an emotionally charged thriller that brings together a phenomenal international cast and a compelling story of maternal determination and cultural clash."
Scanlan previously starred in the fourth season of Slow Horses, playing Moira Tregorian, the replacement for Catherine Standish. Now that Standish has been reinstated at Slough House and Moira has gone back to the Park, she is not expected to return for season 5.
She will, however, soon be seen in Riot Women, the new BBC series from Happy Valley creator Sally Wainwright.
Missed Call will air on 5.
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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.
