The finalised cast of Amazon’s UK original series The Rig has been announced. After Deadline reported its release last November, we’ve been patiently waiting to hear the line-up of actors. It’s been confirmed that Game Of Thrones star Iain Glen and Schitt’s Creek sensation Emily Hampshire will play the leads.
Line Of Duty partners Martin Compston and Rochenda Sandall as well as Guilt duo Mark Bonnar and Emun Elliott will also appear in the series. Also joining them on screen includes Owen Teale (Game Of Thrones), Richard Pepple (Bridgerton), Calvin Demba (Life), Abraham Popoola (Cruella), Stuart McQuarrie (Des) and Molly Vevers (The Spanish Princess).
The six-part thriller will be set on the Kinloch Bravo oil rig, just off of the Scottish coast. Glen will portray the character Magnus MacMillan, the offshore installation manager of the rig and leader of the crew. Hampshire is to take on the role of Rose Mason, a scientist and the oil company rep.
The drama will follow the crew as they set off in return to the mainland. They’re suddenly faced with dangerous waters of the North Sea and an all-enveloping fog, leaving them cut off from all communication with the shore and the rest of the world. As terrible tremors hit, they’re forced to come together and uncover what’s driving the unknown force. But when a major accident occurs, they begin to question who they can really trust.
It will be directed by the acclaimed John Strickland, whose notable credits include Line Of Duty and Bodyguard. Wild Mercury Productions will produce the show with creator David Macpherson, with casting by Kelly Valentine-Hendry.
Georgia Brown, director of European Amazon Originals for Prime Video says, “The Rig is a brilliant story. It asks searching questions about nature and the environment, about what it takes to survive and to be human, which feels very pertinent to the world we are living in now.”
Derek Wax, Managing Director of Wild Mercury says; “The Rig is a character-driven, epic thriller, full of heart-grabbing action and bold, original ideas, and we are delighted to be working with Amazon Prime Video in bringing it to life.”
This series will be the first Amazon Original to shoot exclusively in Scotland. The cast are due to start shooting on an oil rig in Scotland and at FirstStage Studios in Edinburgh later this month.
Words by Danielle Saunders
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