''Departure'' is a 2019 suspense

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has b ...

television series created by Vince Shiao. It was commissioned by Canadian broadcaster

Global Global means of or referring to a globe and may also refer to: Entertainment * ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003 * ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007 * ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 1989 * ''Global'' (Todd Rundgren album), 2015 * Bruno ...

and United States streaming service

Peacock Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera '' Pavo'' and '' Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female peafowl are r ...

and produced by

Shaftesbury Films Shaftesbury Films is a film, television and digital media production company founded by Christina Jennings in 1987. It is based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Background Shaftesbury is a creator and producer of original content for television an ...

. Starring

Archie Panjabi Archana Panjabi (born 31 May 1972) is a British actress. She has had various roles in both UK and US television including as Maya Roy in ''Life on Mars'' (2006–07), Nas Kamal in NBC crime drama '' Blindspot'' (2016–17, 2020), Kendra Malle ...

and

Christopher Plummer Arthur Christopher Orme Plummer (December 13, 1929 – February 5, 2021) was a Canadian actor. His career spanned seven decades, gaining him recognition for his performances in film, stage, and television. He received multiple accolades, inc ...

and directed by

T. J. Scott TJ Scott is a Canadian film and television director, screenwriter, producer, and former stuntman and actor. He is primarily known for his work directing television series such as ''Orphan Black'', '' Xena: Warrior Princess'', '' Gotham'', '' St ...

, the series premiered on

Universal TV Universal TV, formerly Universal Channel, is an international pay television network specializing in movies and television series in the thriller, drama, comedy, horror, crime and investigation genres, owned by NBCUniversal International Netwo ...

on 10 July 2019, with Global scheduling the Canadian debut for 8 October 2020. During the first season's release in Canada and the UK, the series averaged more than one million viewers per episode. In 2021, the series was renewed for a third season, with

Eric McCormack Eric James McCormack (born April 18, 1963) is a Canadian-American actor and singer, known for his roles as Will Truman in the NBC sitcom ''Will & Grace'', Grant MacLaren in Netflix's ''Travelers'' and Dr. Daniel Pierce in the TNT crime drama ...

joining the cast. That year, the series was nominated for a Canadian Screen Award for Best Dramatic Series.

Cast

Transport Safety and Investigations Bureau personnel: *

as Kendra Malley: a TSIB investigator and lead investigator looking into the crash of Flight 716 *

as Howard Lawson: the senior manager of the TSIB and Kendra's mentor (seasons 1–2) *

Kris Holden-Ried Kris Holden-Ried (born August 1, 1973) is a Canadian actor. Early life and pentathlon Holden-Ried was born in Pickering, Ontario. He studied at Montreal's Concordia University School of Business. He was a champion competitor in riding and fen ...

as Dominic Hayes: a TSIB investigator and Kendra's partner * Florence Ordesh as Rose Tate *

Peter Mensah Peter Mensah (born 27 August 1959) is a Ghanaian English actor, best known for his roles in the films '' Tears of the Sun'', '' Hidalgo'', '' The Incredible Hulk'', ''300'', and television series such as Starz' '' Spartacus: Blood and Sand'', '' ...

as Levi Hall: a senior TSIB investigator * Claire Forlani as Janet Friel: an MI5 officer assigned to the investigation * Tamara Duarte as Nadia: a TSIB investigator *

Mark Rendall Mark Rendall (born October 21, 1988) is a Canadian film, television and voice actor whose roles include the lead in the 2004 film, ''Childstar'' and Mick in season 1 of the Canadian television drama series ''ReGenesis''. He played Bastian Bux i ...

as Theo: a TSIB investigator British Global Airlines Flight 716 crew and passengers: *

Allan Hawco Allan Hawco is a Canadian writer, actor, and producer from Bell Island, Newfoundland. He is best known for his roles in the series '' Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan'', ''Republic of Doyle'', and '' The Book of Negroes'', and the television limited seri ...

as Richard Donovan: the pilot of Flight 716 * Tyler Fayose as Arthur Delaney: the co-pilot of Flight 716 * Chloe Farnworth as Leah Sims: a flight attendant on Flight 716 *

Rebecca Liddiard Rebecca Liddiard (born ) is a Canadian actress. She is known for her role as Constable Adelaide Stratton in the 2016 trans-Atlantic mystery series ''Houdini & Doyle'' and as morality officer Mary Shaw in ''Frankie Drake Mysteries''. Life and c ...

as Madelyn Strong: the sole survivor of Flight 716 *

Kristian Bruun Charles Kristian Bonnycastle Bruun (born October 25, 1979) is a Canadian actor. He is best known for his roles in ''Orphan Black'' and ''Murdoch Mysteries''. Life and career Bruun was born on October 25, 1979, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, where ...

as Daniel Hoffman: a passenger on Flight 716 * Emilio Doorgasingh as Hassan Esmaili: a former Iranian terrorist and secret Israeli double agent, who is a passenger on Flight 716 Additional characters: *

Emmanuel Kabongo Emmanuel Kabongo (born December 25, 1986) is a Canadian actor and producer. Born and raised in Zaire before it became the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kabongo immigrated to Canada with his family in the 1990s. He began his acting career as a ...

as The Orderly * Alexandre Bourgeois as AJ Malley: Kendra's adopted son *

Shazad Latif Shazad Latif (born Iqbal Amin; 8 July 1988) is a British actor, who starred as Tariq Masood in the BBC TV series '' Spooks'', Clem Fandango on '' Toast of London'', and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in ''Penny Dreadful''. In 2017, he was cast as Chi ...

as Ali Basra: Madelyn Strong's boyfriend *

Evan Buliung Evan Buliung is a Canadian actor.

as Derek Strong: Madelyn Strong's father *

Sasha Roiz Sasha Roiz ( he, סשה רויז; born October 21, 1973) is an Israeli-born Canadian actor. He is best known for his portrayals of Sam Adama in the science-fiction TV series ''Caprica'' and Captain Sean Renard in the American fantasy TV series ' ...

as Pavel Bartok: An oligarch and the CEO of Bartok Airways * Chantelle Han as Su-Lin Donovan: Richard Donovan's wife * Ryan Pierce as Hugh Keehlar: Richard Donovan's secret husband *

Dougray Scott Stephen Dougray Scott (born 25 November 1965) is a Scottish actor. He has appeared in the films ''Ever After'' (1998), '' Mission: Impossible 2'' (2000), ''Enigma'' (2001), ''Hitman'' (2007), and ''My Week with Marilyn'' (2011). Early life Sc ...

as Ethan Moreau: the CEO of British Global Air * Mark Lutz as Gavin Malley: Kendra's late husband * Paris Jefferson as Gillian Malley: Gavin's sister

Production

First season

Location filming took place in several cities of

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

, including

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

, and

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

, in 2018. In Cambridge, the city hall was used to represent Scotland Yard and

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...

. In January 2019, filming shifted to

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in the United Kingdom. Principal photography was completed in 40 days.

Second season

''Departure'' was renewed for a second season on 11 September 2020. Production was already underway by 20 September 2020. Christopher Plummer filmed his scenes from his home in Connecticut instead of traveling to the sets in Toronto due to travel restrictions into Canada owing to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

. Plummer died on 5 February 2021 but was able to complete filming his scenes for the second season shortly before his death. Plummer's work in the second season was his final on-screen performance before his death.

Episodes

Series overview

Season 1 (2020)

This season follows the investigation by the fictional Transport Safety and Investigations Bureau into the disappearance of a British passenger plane over the Atlantic Ocean and the reasons behind it.

Season 2 (2021)

The plot featured an investigation of the crash of an automated high-speed train travelling to Chicago from Toronto. The accident leaves multiple deaths in its wake and a web of potential suspects which include, in addition to possible mechanical or software errors, the tech visionary who invented the train's control system; an anti-technology politician, and an FBI prisoner who disappears after the crash. When the feds swoop in to initiate a manhunt, Kendra's investigation evolves from finding the causes of the crash to working with federal agents to capture the fugitive.

Broadcast and release

NBCUniversal pre-bought the series to air it on

in the United Kingdom and Germany and on 13th Street in Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Ukraine, and Spain, as well as on Universal TV in Africa and 13th Street in Poland. On 14 July 2020, NBC's streaming service

acquired the series in the United States, where it debuted on 17 September 2020. The distributor is Red Arrow Studios International, although Starlings Television managed the sale to Peacock/Universal. The

NBCUniversal NBCUniversal Media, LLC is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate corporation owned by Comcast and headquartered at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, United States. NBCUniversal is primaril ...

media conglomerate purchased the series for distribution in Europe and Africa. The second season of ''Departure'' was released on Peacock in the United States on 5 August 2021 and in the United Kingdom on

Sky Witness Sky Witness is a British pay television channel owned and operated by Sky, a division of Comcast. The channel primarily broadcasts drama shows from the United States, aimed at the 18–45 age group. An Italian version of Sky Witness, named S ...

Reception

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly larg ...

'' was impressed with some aspects of the series but concluded its review noting the series had: "just enough enticing elements to pique curiosity, but ackedthe execution needed to actually be good". The ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' review was quite positive and particularly praised Panjabi and Plummer in a "drama that punches above its weight". Based on viewing the first two episodes, the ''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and pa ...

'' reviewer commented that "the action is as taut and absorbing as any detective thriller". In 2021, the series was nominated for a Canadian Screen Award for Best Dramatic Series.

References

External links

* {{Global Television Network Shows (current and upcoming) 2019 British television series debuts 2020 Canadian television series debuts 2010s British drama television series 2020s British drama television series 2010s British mystery television series 2020s British mystery television series 2010s Canadian drama television series 2020s Canadian drama television series Canadian mystery television series Global Television Network original programming Aviation television series Disaster television series Television shows about aviation accidents or incidents