Hunted [BBC One and Cinemax]

JP Liz V1

Source

A new trailer for suspense thriller Hunted has been released by the BBC.
Written and created by American writer Frank Spotnitz (The X Files, Strike Back) and from the producers of Spooks and Life on Mars, Hunted is an original eight-part mini-series set in the world of international espionage.Hunted stars Melissa George as Sam, a highly skilled operative for an elite private intelligence company who survives an attempt on her life that may have been orchestrated by members of her own team.
Once she returns to the firm, she is forced to perform her highly dangerous secret missions "in the shadows" without knowing who to trust and who wants her dead.
Spotnitz said of the show: "I'm incredibly excited about the ambition of this series. It's got action on a cinematic scale, huge story twists and turns, and intriguing characters who are both emotionally and morally complex.
"I can't imagine a better cast, director or production team to bring it all to life."
Stephen Dillane (Game of Thrones), Morven Christie (The Sinking of the Laconia) Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Lost, Strike Back), and Lex Shrapnel (Captain America: The First Avenger) round out the show's cast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8BnUkJc6qlg

don ramo

advertised for October 19th on cinemax in the states, new trailer on IMDB cant seem to find a You Tube link so ill leave the IMDB one below

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2069449/

i always liked mellisa george, the show looks good, i hope it doesnt turn out like Missing it kinda has that kinda vibe off it

Conor108

You had me at "From the makers of Spooks"

don ramo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmiymimBm-8

JP Liz V1

Starts 4th of October on BBC 1

JP Liz V1

Source

Prepare yourself for an action-packed thrill ride this Thursday night; new spy thriller Hunted - a collaboration between the BBC and US cable network Cinemax - is making its UK debut. Created by X-Files producer Frank Spotnitz, the show is pitched somewhere between Spooks and 24.

Hunted stars Melissa George - the veteran of such US series as Alias, In Treatment and Grey's Anatomy - in the lead role of Sam Hunter, a security operative who returns to work after surviving an assassination attempt which may have been organised by one of her co-workers...

On a trip to London, the Australian actress spoke to assembled journalists - including Digital Spy - about her action-packed role, the tough physical training required for the show and how her spy skills have helped her out in real life!

What sort of person is Sam Hunter?
"I think from the age of 8 years old when she had her mother killed in front of her, she's become a very different Sam Hunter than maybe how she would have turned out if her mother were still alive. I think she became very defensive; she became a spy to find her mother's killer... I think that's one of the reasons.

"She is a very good spy... and she takes it very seriously. In the opening scene in Morocco, you see someone try to kill her. Now she has two things going on in her life - being a spy is a hobby for her, I really believe that. Going to back to [private security agency] Byzantium, it's like, 'I need a job', but really she's focused on who tried to kill her.

"I think that makes her very strong - the fighting in the show is very real, so it's weird because I think the line between Sam and me has become confused, even for me. It was so real when we were shooting that I couldn't figure out... was it Melissa doing [the fighting] or was it Sam?

"She's also vulnerable to a point - she can't show that in front of her co-workers, but you see a maternal side. She's a lot of things - she's very troubled, but so she should be with what she's been through."

Where do we find Sam when Hunted begins?
"You see her in Morocco at the top of her game - she uses her sexuality a little bit [in her work] and why not, I guess? I read it and I was like, 'Oh, okay, I knew that was coming!'

"You see the stuff with her boyfriend [Adam Rayner's fellow spy Aidan], and she's obviously pregnant with his child. Then you see her on a mission that goes terribly wrong...

"From then on... she's getting tough and getting her strength back, and then she just drops by [at Byzantium]. My idea was for her to always put her feet on the table in Byzantium, because she doesn't give a s**t, but I don't think that's going to [be in the final show] - they didn't want that, [she has to show] a little bit of respect!"


How did you become involved in Hunted originally?
"When you do TV as an actress you have to be careful - as it could potentially be long-term - so a couple of things go through your mind. Who's going to be the showrunner? Who's writing it? Who are you working with? Do you love the character enough that you're going to live her for the next five years?

"I personally get off on playing complex leading ladies - which I loved when I did The Slap, and In Treatment - because in my own life I'm not that. I'm a loving sister, daughter and girlfriend, so why would I want to play that when I play that in all my life?

"It's just the way I run my career - [for this show] I was walking in New York and my agent called me and said, 'We have this script for you and you better get it, that's all I'm saying'. I was like, 'Thanks no pressure!'

"When I recorded one scene for Frank [as an audition], I pressed play and I just got choked up, saying 'I know she's been through a lot, this girl, and I know I can do it' - I've never tried to impress anyone so much before as when I met Frank - I was pulling all the tricks out!

"When I pressed 'cut' on the tape, I was just like, 'I hope I'm this girl, I would love it'. Then [shooting starts and] reality hits and everyone is in pain, and you're like, 'This is not normal, is it?' and the BBC and HBO are like 'No, this is a lot for one girl'. But I'm an Australian girl, so we're ready to go!"


Does it feel different acting in an epic spy thriller like this, as opposed to something more intimate and small like In Treatment?
"Yeah, it does, because In Treatment was almost like meditation. You had to sit there and allow the human interaction to play out. This was like a blur between [large and small]... in the first 20 minutes, it's all inside her - there isn't a lot of talking.

"But there's a lot of disruption in my life as well. I was constantly uprooting and going to a street in London, then going to Tangiers and then a back alley somewhere, so the show itself was difficult, but also to keep my energy up with chopping and changing locations... that was a lot."

How much training was required for the role of Sam?
"I worked on my core training in New York with my trainer - we did almost like gladiator training with a cart. I had two ropes around my wrist and had this cart with steel weights in the back and was just pulling it from one end of the gym to the other and it was really hard.

"They gave me steel balls and I felt like I was in the movie Gladiator - I was like, 'Are you kidding me right now?'. They'd throw it at my stomach and I'd have to catch it, fall back onto a mat and then throw it whilst I was doing a sit-up!

"Then when I got to London, I had a team of five street fighters to teach me - they taught Bond, Bourne and Batman and they're very capable men - and I'm the only woman who's been taught this fighting technique called Keysi.

"I did a month of Keysi training. The fight you see in Morocco is all me and I was very much ready for it. I'm not so much ready today - I'm going to go to Harrods and have tea later in my stilettos!"


You sustained some injures while filming as well, right?
"Yeah, my right wrist and my left hip. I got really injured, and the stunt men got really injured too. I also developed a new muscle in my wrist - It's like Popeye, you can move it! That's not very me! I was developing muscles that nobody gets - I had an elbow muscle!

"I was walking in Manhattan at night in the Lower East Side at night, and I felt like I was in-character a bit. A funny thing happened in Harrods actually - I was in a queue and this vase was falling - it fell, and I caught it like one inch before it hit the ground.

"The guy knew I was an actress and he said, 'What role are you playing right now?'. I said a spy, and everyone in the line was laughing! Certain roles prepare you for certain things in life, like vases in Harrods!"

The role is so action-led - do you like to challenge gender stereotypes and take roles that men would usually play?
"I think so - I never get the girl next door or the loving wife."

Would you like to play those kinds of roles?
"Yeah - I like Downton Abbey, y'know! But I doubt you'd see Sam Hunter in that show, running through, 'Quick everyone, duck down, she's going to take you down!'

"When I used to watch films, I used to love seeing classic-looking women in situations where they don't belong. To me, it's fascinating, [like], 'What is she doing there?' When I see Sam Hunter in some moments I think she doesn't belong there, but it's fun to watch her get out of that situation - and it's also thrilling as an actress.

"It's weird when you take on a role - you have to be very careful because it's going to become you and you're going to lose it! It's not [just] a pay cheque - you've got to love it and hopefully people see on screen that you love it and it's not just a job."

Hunted begins this Thursday at 9pm on BBC One

Mr E

This is really good stuff ....

Kiwi_knock

Really good first show, a lot of promise. Should be a great series if it keeps up the same pace.

Basq

Sky+'d it last night so will watched it over the weekend..

.. had high hope with Frank Spotnitz at the helm.

Good to hear it's delivering.

Dozen Wicked Words

Melissa George has come a long way since she pretended to manage Frente! (great twee pop band) in Summer Bay.

I was never a fan of Spooks, so didn't get too excited about the whole makers of spooks thing, but the first episode was excellent.

JP Liz V1

dooferoaks wrote: »

Melissa George has come a long way since she pretended to manage Frente! (great twee pop band) in Summer Bay.

I was never a fan of Spooks, so didn't get too excited about the whole makers of spooks thing, but the first episode was excellent.

She seems to be channelling Angeline Jolie must be the lips

The Black Oil

Not bad, well, based on the pilot anyway. Started off a bit bonkers, but seemed to settle into pretty good drama. Easy does it with the childhood flashbacks, please, but that's fairly standard for this genre. Private sector, eh?

How are the rest of the episodes stacking up?

Tristram

This is quite good!

expectationlost

nah it turns into silly dan brown stuff, can't get over the spy carpentry

Basq

I've had all the episodes since the first episode stockpiled..

.. will wait to see how the reaction is towards the end of the season before finishing it methinks.

Patty O Furniture

It's pretty good action, almost like a female 'Bourne' & a pout that could kill at 500 yards

Richard Dower

Woah!...cancelled! http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/nov/14/bbc1-hunted-laid-to-rest

Richard Dower

http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity/melissa-george-has-meltdown-on-the-morning-show-after-hosts-mentioned-home-and-away/story-fn907478-1226514684954

Basq

Ah well.. have them stockpiled on my Sky+, so not sure if I'll bother now..

ejmaztec

The Beeb is chicken!

Once in a blue moon do any of their offerings make it beyond a first series.

I think that Hunted's entertaining enough.

Basq

Hmmm..

Cinemax has announced plans to produce a more episodes of Hunted.

The Guardian reported yesterday that the Melissa George spy drama had been axed by BBC One.

However, Hunted is co-produced by US cable network Cinemax, which will now proceed with the show without the BBC's involvement, according to Deadline.

"We are making plans with creator and executive producer Frank Spotnitz and star Melissa George to present a new chapter in the Sam Hunter mythology," Kary Antholis, President, HBO Miniseries and Cinemax Programming, said.

"We are very pleased with what Hunted has done for Cinemax's brand and are very excited about what lies ahead."

It is currently unclear what format the return of Hunted will take, but the show is not expected to return "in its current form".

Series creator Spotnitz was previously rumoured to have begun planning a second season, which would have been set in Berlin.

Mr E

That's interesting. Looks similar to what happened with Strikeback. When Cinemax got involved with season 2, it was almost like a reboot. There was a tonal shift in the show - it leaned more towards the MA side of the spectrum, it got a good bit grittier and definitely benefited as a result.

Hopefully Hunted will go the same way. I have it stockpiled on my Sky+ box. I enjoyed the first episode, so I'd like to see the rest when I get a chance.

Richard Dower

Producer talks series 2; http://www.digitalspy.ie/tv/news/a439629/hunted-creator-frank-spotnitz-on-series-two-its-sort-of-a-spinoff.html?rss

how did the finale end lads?

killbillvol2

The action petered out after a few episodes and it became more and more far-fetched towards the end.

brian_t

Richard Dower wrote: »

how did the finale end lads?

Much like how the series started - with her running around the Scottish Highlands.

JP Liz V1

brian_t wrote: »

Much like how the series started - with her running around the Scottish Highlands.

Dont forget the baby

I think the finale was a big mess myself all over the place

Patty O Furniture

I was hoping for more, it felt weak & predictable at the end & where did the baby come out of ?

Tristram

JP Liz V1 wrote: »

Dont forget the baby

I think the finale was a big mess myself all over the place

Very poor finale alright. I still hope that it gets a second season with a better narrative. The bones of a good show was there.

ejmaztec

brian_t wrote: »

Much like how the series started - with her running around the Scottish Highlands.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1422136/

I'd only just seen this^^^^^^ on Sky Movies and it seems to me that she likes being hunted and running around the Scottish Highlands.:pac: