In what sounds like instant, must-watch telly, the legendary John Malkovich (Rounders, Billions, Being John Malkovich) will be playing iconic detective Hercule Poirot in BBC One’s new Agatha Christie series, The ABC Murders, and we’ve got a fresh promo photie of the main cast to share with you…
Here was the first official image of Malkovich suited up for the role, courtesy of the Beeb…
We can also see him in motion, thanks to BBC One’s Twitter account!
More on The ABC Murders as we get it, of course.
The ABC Murders air date
The new three-part series is likely to arrive in early 2019.
The ABC Murders cast
Malkovich will be joined by none other than Rupert Grint (Harry Potter, Snatch) as Inspector Crome in The ABC Murders, with Andrew Buchan (Broadchurch) as Franklin Clarke, Eamon Farren (Twin Peaks) as Cust and Tara Fitzgerald (Game Of Thrones) as Lady Hermione Clarke. Bronwyn James (Harlots) will also star as Megan, along with Freya Mavor (Sunshine On Leith) as Thora Grey.
The ABC Murders story
It’s 1933 and a killer travels the length and breadth of Britain via the railway network. The killer uses the alias ABC, and strikes in a methodical pattern, leaving a copy of the ABC railway guide at the scene of each of murder. As Poirot attempts to investigate, he is thwarted on every front. If he is to match his most cunning nemesis, everything about him will be called into question: his authority, his integrity, his identity.
The ABC Murders crew
The classic 1936 Agatha Christie tome is being adapted for telly by the immensely talented lady behind three other recent versions of the author’s work, Sarah Phelps. Phelps’ other series – And Then There Were None, The Witness For The Prosecution and Ordeal By Innocence – have all been extremely solid, and this one sounds like it’ll be storming, too.
“Over the last three years Sarah has breathed new life into some of Agatha Christie’s most renowned crime stories and we can’t wait for her to do the same with Christie’s most iconic detective, Hercule Poirot,” remarked Piers Wenger, Controller of BBC Drama, in a statement. “We are utterly thrilled that John Malkovich has been persuaded to unleash his extraordinary abilities on this stellar role.”
“Set in the seething, suspicious early 1930s, The ABC Murders is a brutal story of violence and lies, the long shadow of the past and the slaughter to come. At its centre, one of the most familiar, famous characters in crime fiction. We may all think we know Poirot but do we really know Hercule?” Phelps added, ominously.