BBC One's The Capture casts Paapa Essiedu as series two guest lead

BAFTA and Emmy nominated Essiedu to star opposite returning series lead Holliday Grainger.

Indira Varma and Andy Nyman also join the cast, alongside returning actors Ron Perlman, Ben Miles, Lia Williams, Nigel Lindsay, Cavan Clerkin & Ginny Holder.

BBC One, Heyday Television and NBCUniversal International Studios' hit thriller The Capture will star Paapa Essiedu (I May Destroy You, Gangs Of London, Hamlet) as guest lead for series two, it was announced today. The BAFTA and Emmy award nominated actor will join series lead Holliday Grainger for the next instalment of the hit drama, created and written by Ben Chanan.

Essiedu will play Isaac Turner, a young rising star MP with ambitions for the very top.

Indira Varma (This Way Up, Game Of Thrones) and Andy Nyman (Hanna, Unforgettable) will also join The Capture for series two.

Ron Perlman (Hand Of God, Sons Of Anarchy), Ben Miles (Devils, V For Vendetta,), Lia Williams (The Crown, Riviera), Cavan Clerkin (The Last Kingdom, Babylon), Ginny Holder (Avenue5, MotherFatherSon) and Nigel Lindsay (The Salisbury Poisonings, The Last Kingdom) all reprise their roles from series one.

Series two of The Capture will again question if we can really believe what we see. Britain is under siege: hacked news feeds, manipulated media, and interference in politics. Entrenched in the UK's own 'Correction' unit, DCI Rachel Carey (Grainger) finds herself in the middle of a new conspiracy - with a new target. But how can she solve this case when she can't even trust her closest colleagues?

Escalating from the CCTV thriller of series one, the six-part run features 'invisible' assassins, the terrifying rise of deepfake technology, the ever-growing tension between government and Big Tech, and corruption at the heart of the British media.

On joining The Capture, Paapa Essiedu says: "I'm so excited to be coming on board with The Capture. Ben has written one of the freshest and most prescient scripts of recent times and I can't wait to see what this incredible cast and crew can do with it."

Creator & writer Ben Chanan adds: "I am thrilled to be working with Paapa Essiedu on The Capture series two. I've honed the story of Isaac Turner, a young, ambitious, idealistic British politician with Paapa in mind, and there's no actor I'd rather collaborate with in bringing it to life. I also feel incredibly lucky to be welcoming Indira Varma and Andy Nyman to the show, where they join the brilliant Holliday Grainger, Ron Perlman, Lia Williams and the cast from series one. A dream cast, across the board"

The first series of The Capture was a big hit for the BBC, growing its live BBC One audience across the series and attracting an average consolidated audience of 7.7 million viewers. On BBC iPlayer, it was 2019's most requested new title across all genres.

Series two of The Capture (6x60') was commissioned by Piers Wenger, Director of BBC Drama, and Charlotte Moore, BBC Chief Content Officer. It will be produced by Heyday Television, which is part of NBCUniversal International Studios, a division of Universal Studio Group, for BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

The Capture creator Ben Chanan has written all six episodes. James Kent (MotherFatherSon) and Philippa Langdale (A Discovery of Witches) have boarded series two to direct. Executive Producers are David Heyman, Rosie Alison and Tom Winchester for Heyday Television, Tom Coan for NBCUniversal International Studios, with Ben Irving for the BBC alongside Ben Chanan and Derek Ritchie. The producer is Kristian Dench. The series will be distributed by NBCUniversal Global Distribution.

Filming begins imminently. Further details about The Capture series two will be announced in due course.

GK