''Hijack'' (stylised as ''H/JACK'') is a thriller television series created by

George Kay George Kay (21 September 1891 – 18 April 1954) was an English football player and manager of Luton Town, Southampton and Liverpool. The highlight of his playing career was when he captained West Ham United in the first FA Cup final to be play ...

and

Jim Field Smith Jim Field Smith (born 20 February 1979) is an English film and television director, writer and producer. Early career Smith was a member of the British sketch comedy group Dutch Elm Conservatoire, who were nominated for the prestigious Perrier A ...

, with

Idris Elba Idrissa Akuna Elba (; born 6 September 1972) is an English actor.

starring in the lead role. It premiered on 28 June 2023 on

Apple TV+ Apple TV is a digital media player and microconsole developed and marketed by Apple Inc. It is a small network appliance hardware that plays received media data such as video and audio to a television set or external display. Since its secon ...

. In January 2024, the series was renewed for a second season.

Premise

Sam, a talented business negotiator, must use his skills to broker a peaceful end to a hijacking of a seven-hour flight from Dubai to London.

Cast and characters

Main

Idris Elba Idrissa Akuna Elba (; born 6 September 1972) is an English actor.

as Sam Nelson, a corporate business negotiator *

Neil Maskell Neil Maskell (born 1976) is an English actor, writer and director who is known for his appearances in British crime and horror films such as '' The Football Factory'' and ''Kill List''. Early life Maskell was born in London. As a youth, he pl ...

as Stuart Atterton / Gerald Taylor, Lewis's elder brother and the leader of the hijackers * Christine Adams as Marsha Smith-Nelson, Sam's estranged wife, a physics professor *

Eve Myles Eve Myles (born 26 July 1978) is a Welsh actress. She is best known for her television roles portraying Ceri Lewis in the long-running BBC Wales drama series '' Belonging'' (2000–2009), Gwen Cooper in the BBC science-fiction series ''Torchwoo ...

as Alice Sinclair, an air traffic controller *

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 ...

as DCI Zahra Gahfoor, O'Farrel's former partner and a member of

SO15 Counter Terrorism Command (CTC) or SO15 is a Specialist Operations branch within London's Metropolitan Police Service. The Counter Terrorism Command was established as a result of the merging of the Anti-Terrorist Branch (SO13) and Special Bran ...

Max Beesley Maxton Gig Beesley Jr. (born 16 April 1971) is an English actor and musician. He has appeared in a variety of television shows such as ''Bodies'', ''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'', '' Survivors'', '' Mad Dogs'', ''Homeland'', '' Suits ...

as DI Daniel O'Farrel, Marsha's current boyfriend, a

Metropolitan Police The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...

officer *

Ben Miles Benjamin Charles Miles (born 29 September 1966) is an English actor, best known for his starring role as Patrick Maitland in the television comedy ''Coupling'', from 2000 to 2004, as Montague Dartie in ''The Forsyte Saga'', from 2002 to 2003, as ...

as Captain Robin Allen, the pilot of Kingdom Airlines Flight 29 *

Hattie Morahan Harriet Jane Morahan (born 7 October 1978) is an English actress. Her roles include Sister Clara in ''The Golden Compass'' (2007), Gale Benson in ''The Bank Job'' (2008), Alice in ''The Bletchley Circle'' (2012–2014), Ann in ''Mr. Holmes'' ( ...

as Louise Aitchison, the British

Foreign Secretary The secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, known as the foreign secretary, is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom and head of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Seen as ...

Neil Stuke Neil Robert Stuke (born 22 February 1966 in Deal, Kent) is an English actor best known for his role of Matthew in the TV sitcom '' Game On'' and more recently for playing Billy Lamb in the BBC legal drama ''Silk''. Career Stuke played Matthew i ...

as Neil Walsh, the British

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...

* Kaisa Hammarlund as Anna Kovacs, the first officer of Kingdom Airlines Flight 29 * Zora Bishop as Deevia Khan, the lead flight attendant * Jeremy Ang Jones as Arthur, a flight attendant *

Kate Phillips Kate Phillips (born 21 May 1989) is a British actress. She became famous for her role as Jane Seymour in the successful miniseries ''Wolf Hall'' (2015). She subsequently appeared in the miniseries '' War & Peace'' (2016), the first season of th ...

as Collette Fisher, a flight attendant who is having an affair with Robin *

Jasper Britton Jasper Britton (born 11 December 1962) is an English actor. Early life and education Britton was born in Chelsea in London, and educated at Belmont Preparatory School, Sussex House School and Mill Hill School, north London. Britton is the onl ...

as Terry Reid / Marcus Sutton, one of the hijackers *

Jack McMullen Jack Michael McMullen (born 22 February 1991) is an English actor and writer, best known for his roles in '' Waterloo Road'', ''Little Boy Blue'', ''Brookside'' and ''Grange Hill''. Early life Jack Michael McMullen was born in Liverpool on 22 F ...

as Lewis Atterton / Ryan Cunningham, Stuart's younger brother and one of the hijackers * Aimée Kelly as Jamie Constantinou / Bella Cunningham, one of the hijackers * Mohamed Elsandel as Jaden Dahir / Alexander Kier, one of the hijackers *

Simon McBurney Simon Montagu McBurney (born 25 August 1957) is an English actor, playwright, and theatrical director. He is the founder and artistic director of the Théâtre de Complicité, London. He has had roles in the films ''The Manchurian Candidate'', ...

as Edgar Janssen, a powerful criminal

Recurring

* Harry Michell as Hugo, the passenger sitting next to Sam * Mohammad Faisal Mostafa as Abdullah, a Dubai air traffic controller who manages KA29 *

Holly Aird Imogen Holly Aird (born 18 May 1969) is an English television actress known for playing forensic pathologist Frankie Wharton in the BBC1 drama series '' Waking the Dead'', having previously starred in productions such as ''Soldier Soldier'' a ...

as Amanda, a passenger *

Fatima Adoum Fatima Adoum is a French actress based in London and Paris. Biography She studied language sciences, performing arts and holds a PhD in Cinema – at La Sorbonne, Paris 1. Filmography Cinema * 2002: ''Irréversible'' de Gaspar Noé * 20 ...

as Rashida, a first-class passenger * Nebras Jamali as Nasir, a passenger * Nikkita Chadha as Neela, an airport security screener who leaves her station mysteriously * Antonia Salib as Leesha, a first-class passenger *

Gretchen Egolf Gretchen Egolf (born September 9, 1973) is an American theater, film and television actress. Early life and education Egolf was born and raised in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. She is the daughter of artist Paula Egolf and stepfather Gary Egolf. Her ...

as Adelaide * Lucia Aliu as Lizzy Blakefield * Mei Henri as Naomi, a teenage passenger * Chantelle Alle as Kacey, a teenage passenger *

James Burrows James Edward Burrows (born December 30, 1940), sometimes known as Jim "Jimmy" Burrows, is an American television director who has been working in television since the 1970s.Stated in interview on ''Inside the Actors Studio'' Burrows has direct ...

as Jonty, a passenger with a criminal history *

Alex Macqueen Alexander Tulloch Macqueen (born 30 November 1973) is an English actor. He has appeared on television, film and radio in the UK in productions such as ''Holby City'', ''Doctor Who,'' ''Hut 33'', ''Peep Show'', ''The Thick of It'', ''Keeping Mu ...

as Tindall, a government official *

Kevin Eldon Kevin Eldon (born 2 October 1959) is an English actor and comedian. He featured in British comedy television shows of the 1990s including ''Fist of Fun'', '' This Morning with Richard Not Judy'', '' Knowing Me, Knowing You with Alan Partridge' ...

as Devlin, a mysterious businessman * Richard Hope as Phillip Paxton, an Anglican priest *

Julia Deakin Julia Margaret Deakin (born 20 May 1952)Clarke, Gemma (5 September 2016)"GRAND RE-OPENING OF GAINSBOROUGH HERITAGE CENTRE" ''Gainsborough Heritage Association''. Retrieved 10 August 2021. is an English actress. She is known for her roles in the ...

as Claire Paxton, Phillip's wife

Episodes

Production

It was announced in April 2022 that

had greenlit the miniseries, which would see

Idris Elba Idrissa Akuna Elba (; born 6 September 1972) is an English actor.

starring and serving as an executive producer. George Kay would write the script, and

would direct. In May,

joined the cast. Production began on 9 May 2022 in

Aylesbury Aylesbury ( ) is the county town of Buckinghamshire, South East England. It is home to the Roald Dahl Children's Gallery, David Tugwell`s house on Watermead and the Waterside Theatre. It is in central Buckinghamshire, midway between High Wy ...

and wrapped up on 18 November 2022. The series consists of seven episodes. In January 2024, it was renewed for a second season, and filming began in June.

Reception

The week of its finale, 31 July–6 August 2023, ''Hijack'' became the second Apple TV+ show to be listed on the

Nielsen streaming rankings Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the #Nielsen TV ...

for original shows when it received 357 million minutes of viewing time.

Accolades

References

External links

''Hijack''
on Apple TV+ * {{Apple TV+ 2023 British television series debuts 2020s British drama television series Apple TV+ original programming British thriller television series British English-language television shows Television shows about aviation accidents or incidents Television shows set in London Television shows set in the United Arab Emirates Television shows filmed in England Fiction about aircraft hijackings