Warning: contains major Utopia spoilers
With newly invented characters and a whole new world wrapped around bad guys/pragmatic planet savers The Harvest (the US version of The Network), Gillian Flynn’s Utopia makes considerable changes to the Channel 4 original. It’s faithful though, in most of the ways that matter – Jessica Hyde, the unforgettable Arby, Wilson Wilson and more are all kept intact, just transplanted from London to Chicago. There’s some very close translation of a few memorable scenes, as well as a good amount of invention. Flynn rewrites the backstory to weave in new setting ‘Home’, and new players, chief of which are John Cusack‘s Dr. Kevin Christie and Rainn Wilson’s Dr. Michael Stearns (the latter a sort-of combination of the original’s Michael Dugdale and scientist Donaldson).
Flynn’s series takes the bold step of taking us inside the shady global organisation pulling...
With newly invented characters and a whole new world wrapped around bad guys/pragmatic planet savers The Harvest (the US version of The Network), Gillian Flynn’s Utopia makes considerable changes to the Channel 4 original. It’s faithful though, in most of the ways that matter – Jessica Hyde, the unforgettable Arby, Wilson Wilson and more are all kept intact, just transplanted from London to Chicago. There’s some very close translation of a few memorable scenes, as well as a good amount of invention. Flynn rewrites the backstory to weave in new setting ‘Home’, and new players, chief of which are John Cusack‘s Dr. Kevin Christie and Rainn Wilson’s Dr. Michael Stearns (the latter a sort-of combination of the original’s Michael Dugdale and scientist Donaldson).
Flynn’s series takes the bold step of taking us inside the shady global organisation pulling...
- 9/28/2020
- by Louisa Mellor
- Den of Geek
Rainn Wilson has been cast in a lead role in the upcoming Amazon series “Utopia.”
Based on the British series of the same name created by Dennis Kelly, “Utopia” follows group of young adults who meet online and are mercilessly hunted by a shadowy deep state organization after they come in to possession of a near mythical cult underground graphic novel. They discover the conspiracy theories in the comic’s pages may actually be real and are forced in to the dangerous, unique and ironic position of saving the world.
Wilson will play Michael Stearns. Once a promising virologist, Michael is now a forgotten scientist who’s lost his edge—under-appreciated and underfunded in his laboratory work. When a nationwide outbreak of a deadly flu arises, Michael offers his expertise, and soon finds he has landed smack in the middle of something much bigger.
Wilson joins previously announced cast member Sasha Lane,...
Based on the British series of the same name created by Dennis Kelly, “Utopia” follows group of young adults who meet online and are mercilessly hunted by a shadowy deep state organization after they come in to possession of a near mythical cult underground graphic novel. They discover the conspiracy theories in the comic’s pages may actually be real and are forced in to the dangerous, unique and ironic position of saving the world.
Wilson will play Michael Stearns. Once a promising virologist, Michael is now a forgotten scientist who’s lost his edge—under-appreciated and underfunded in his laboratory work. When a nationwide outbreak of a deadly flu arises, Michael offers his expertise, and soon finds he has landed smack in the middle of something much bigger.
Wilson joins previously announced cast member Sasha Lane,...
- 2/20/2019
- by Joe Otterson
- Variety Film + TV
The Office alum Rainn Wilson is set to co-star opposite Sasha Lane in Utopia, Amazon’s adaptation of the British series, written by Gone Girl author and screenwriter Gillian Flynn.
Amazon Studios
Utopia follows a group of young adults who meet online that are mercilessly hunted by a shadowy deep state organization after they come into possession of a near-mythical cult underground graphic novel. Within the comic’s pages, they discover the conspiracy theories that may actually be real and are forced into the dangerous, unique and ironic position of saving the world.
Wilson will play Michael Stearns. Once a promising virologist, Michael is now a forgotten scientist who’s lost his edge—under-appreciated and underfunded in his laboratory work. When a nationwide outbreak of a deadly flu arises, Michael offers his expertise, and soon finds he has landed smack in the middle of something much bigger.
Lane plays the lead,...
Amazon Studios
Utopia follows a group of young adults who meet online that are mercilessly hunted by a shadowy deep state organization after they come into possession of a near-mythical cult underground graphic novel. Within the comic’s pages, they discover the conspiracy theories that may actually be real and are forced into the dangerous, unique and ironic position of saving the world.
Wilson will play Michael Stearns. Once a promising virologist, Michael is now a forgotten scientist who’s lost his edge—under-appreciated and underfunded in his laboratory work. When a nationwide outbreak of a deadly flu arises, Michael offers his expertise, and soon finds he has landed smack in the middle of something much bigger.
Lane plays the lead,...
- 2/20/2019
- by Nellie Andreeva
- Deadline Film + TV
“American Honey” actress Sasha Lane will star on “Sharp Objects” author Gillian Flynn’s upcoming Amazon series “Utopia,” TheWrap has learned.
“Utopia” follows a group of young adults, who meet online, and “are mercilessly hunted by a shadowy deep state organization after they come in to possession of a near-mythical cult underground graphic novel — they discover the conspiracy theories in the comic’s pages may actually be real and are forced in to the dangerous, unique and ironic position of saving the world.”
Lane has been cast as one of the drama’s leads, Jessica Hyde, who is described as “tough and feral after a life on the run from a mysterious and dangerous group, Jessica believes all the answers about her perplexing life story may be hidden in the graphic novel ‘Utopia’.”
Also Read: Amazon Orders 'Utopia' Series From 'Gone Girl' Writer Gillian Flynn
Flynn...
“Utopia” follows a group of young adults, who meet online, and “are mercilessly hunted by a shadowy deep state organization after they come in to possession of a near-mythical cult underground graphic novel — they discover the conspiracy theories in the comic’s pages may actually be real and are forced in to the dangerous, unique and ironic position of saving the world.”
Lane has been cast as one of the drama’s leads, Jessica Hyde, who is described as “tough and feral after a life on the run from a mysterious and dangerous group, Jessica believes all the answers about her perplexing life story may be hidden in the graphic novel ‘Utopia’.”
Also Read: Amazon Orders 'Utopia' Series From 'Gone Girl' Writer Gillian Flynn
Flynn...
- 1/29/2019
- by Jennifer Maas
- The Wrap
Sasha Lane has been cast in a lead role in the upcoming Amazon series “Utopia,” Variety has learned.
Based on the British series of the same name created by Dennis Kelly, “Utopia” follows group of young adults who meet online and are mercilessly hunted by a shadowy deep state organization after they come in to possession of a near mythical cult underground graphic novel. They discover the conspiracy theories in the comic’s pages may actually be real and are forced in to the dangerous, unique and ironic position of saving the world.
Lane will play Jessica Hyde. Described as tough and feral after a life on the run from a mysterious and dangerous group, Jessica believes all the answers about her perplexing life story may be hidden in the graphic novel “Utopia.”
“As I’ve been writing ‘Utopia’ and trying to imagine the actor who could possibly embody Jessica Hyde,...
Based on the British series of the same name created by Dennis Kelly, “Utopia” follows group of young adults who meet online and are mercilessly hunted by a shadowy deep state organization after they come in to possession of a near mythical cult underground graphic novel. They discover the conspiracy theories in the comic’s pages may actually be real and are forced in to the dangerous, unique and ironic position of saving the world.
Lane will play Jessica Hyde. Described as tough and feral after a life on the run from a mysterious and dangerous group, Jessica believes all the answers about her perplexing life story may be hidden in the graphic novel “Utopia.”
“As I’ve been writing ‘Utopia’ and trying to imagine the actor who could possibly embody Jessica Hyde,...
- 1/29/2019
- by Joe Otterson
- Variety Film + TV
Where is Jessica Hyde? The Us adaptation of Channel 4's cult hit Utopia has found a new home and a new showrunner. Variety is reporting that Gone Girl author Gillian Flynn has signed on to create the series for Amazon Studios. Amazon has already ordered a nine-episode first season. “Utopia” follows group of young adults who meet online and are mercilessly hunted by a shadowy deep state organization after they come in to possession of a near mythical cult underground graphic novel. They discover the conspiracy theories in the comic’s pages may actually be real and are forced in to the dangerous, unique and ironic position of saving the world. “’Utopia’ is pure creative catnip to me,” Flynn said. “Dennis Kelly’s show blew...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
- 4/19/2018
- Screen Anarchy
While David Fincher is no stranger to small screen success, launching "House Of Cards" over at Netflix where he continues to serve as executive producer, his ventures so far at HBO have hit some major bumps. Last month, production was halted on the set of the '80s-based "Videosyncrazy," facing creative adjustments after the network saw footage from the first four or five episodes. In the meantime, Fincher began work on "Utopia," his ambitious remake of the cult U.K. series, the first season of which he would direct entirely himself, with scripts from Gillian Flynn, and Rooney Mara in the lead role. However, it seems as if things are not working out. Read More: Rooney Mara To Reteam With David Fincher For HBO Series 'Utopia' Playing Jessica Hyde Deadline reports that while more casting has happened, the green-light still has not been given for "Utopia" as the...
- 7/31/2015
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
We already know that David Fincher has decided to dive headfirst into small screen work, and is gearing up to direct every episode of Utopia, adapted from Dennis Kelly’s Channel 4 original. He’s locking in a regular collaborator for one of the lead roles, with The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo’s Rooney Mara in negotiations.Utopia set things in motion with the discovery of a manuscript for a legendary graphic novel known as The Utopia Experiments, long shrouded in mystery. When a small group of previously unconnected people unites in their shared interest, things take a much darker turn.It turns out that they are by no means the only ones interested in the manuscript. Targeted swiftly and relentlessly by a murderous organisation known as The Network, the terrified group are left with only one option if they want to survive: run. Mara will play the Jessica Hyde...
- 7/1/2015
- EmpireOnline
Update 6/30: Yep, Rooney Mara is negotiations to take on the role of Jessica Hyde. 6/23: With HBO recently halting production on David Fincher's music video world set "Videosyncrazy," it seems the director is pivoting fast to one of his other brewing projects at the cable company. His remake of the Brit series "Utopia" now looks to be cooking, and it will mark a reunion with an actress whose career he helped break. Read More: The 20 Most Anticipated TV Shows Of 2015 Jeff Sneider from The Wrap reports that Rooney Mara is in talks to star in "Utopia," with the entire first season set to be helmed by Fincher, and "Gone Girl" writer Gillian Flynn penning the scripts. The show follows a group of people who get their hands on a cult graphic novel called "The Utopia Experiments," which has predicted no shortage of disasters. An organization known only as...
- 7/1/2015
- by Kevin Jagernauth
- The Playlist
I don't know about you, but I have been itching for Rooney Mara and David Fincher to reteam on a project. I am still holding out hope for the sequels to their greatly under appreciated The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (at this point, though, that feels like a lost cause), but them doing anything together is enough to spark my interest and it looks like that is going to happen. Mara is in talks to star in Fincher's HBO adaptation of the UK series "Utopia", which will be penned by Gone Girl writer Gillian Flynn. This news comes to us courtesy of The Wrap's Jeff Sneider's Twitter account, so the details of who she would be playing are not totally clear. Most speculation points to the character of Jessica Hyde (originally played by Fiona O'Shaughnessy). We also do not know how far off from the original series they will go,...
- 6/24/2015
- by Mike Shutt
- Rope of Silicon
Utopia's second series came to an end this week in typically explosive fashion.
We won't spoil things, but it's not a big secret to say that we were left on a knife-edge, with the future of our lead characters and the rest of the planet not exactly secure.
To sum up the first 12 hours without giving too much away, a bunch of geeky types obsessed with comic book The Utopia Experiments meet up and uncover a deadly conspiracy.
Unlikely alliances form and fracture. Authority is depicted as the corrupt, dangerous force we all deep down fear it to be.
Our enemies are driven by an invincible mix of unfeeling ideology, emotional weakness and amoral attachment to ends over means - their weapons are blackmail and sickening violence.
The old X-Files mantra of "Trust No One" and Larkin's This Be The Verse never feel more true - but who can survive without family and friends?...
We won't spoil things, but it's not a big secret to say that we were left on a knife-edge, with the future of our lead characters and the rest of the planet not exactly secure.
To sum up the first 12 hours without giving too much away, a bunch of geeky types obsessed with comic book The Utopia Experiments meet up and uncover a deadly conspiracy.
Unlikely alliances form and fracture. Authority is depicted as the corrupt, dangerous force we all deep down fear it to be.
Our enemies are driven by an invincible mix of unfeeling ideology, emotional weakness and amoral attachment to ends over means - their weapons are blackmail and sickening violence.
The old X-Files mantra of "Trust No One" and Larkin's This Be The Verse never feel more true - but who can survive without family and friends?...
- 8/15/2014
- Digital Spy
Paul Ready's Hit man Lee comes to the fore in Utopia’s latest mystery and violence-filled episode…
Review
This review contains spoilers.
Of the many riddles we’ve been set by Utopia’s Sphinx-like second series, one is yet to be asked: what’s Lee’s story? Episode three belonged to Paul Ready’s hit man in the acid yellow suit, but unlike Arby and Jessica, we still don’t know the first thing about his origins. Some mysteries, we suppose, need to be saved for a potential third series – if, that is, Lee survives for that long on Arby’s shit list.
The sharp-suited psycho opened the episode by committing the most unfazed, unflappable TV murder since Lorne Malvo left our screens. Lee’s soft-spoken, genial approach to villainy is pure Utopia; comical, nasty and unsettling. Never one to rush, even with a gun pointed at his head...
Review
This review contains spoilers.
Of the many riddles we’ve been set by Utopia’s Sphinx-like second series, one is yet to be asked: what’s Lee’s story? Episode three belonged to Paul Ready’s hit man in the acid yellow suit, but unlike Arby and Jessica, we still don’t know the first thing about his origins. Some mysteries, we suppose, need to be saved for a potential third series – if, that is, Lee survives for that long on Arby’s shit list.
The sharp-suited psycho opened the episode by committing the most unfazed, unflappable TV murder since Lorne Malvo left our screens. Lee’s soft-spoken, genial approach to villainy is pure Utopia; comical, nasty and unsettling. Never one to rush, even with a gun pointed at his head...
- 7/22/2014
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
The second new episode of Utopia reunites the old gang and hits the ground running…
Review
This review contains spoilers.
Hear that? Underneath all the eerie buzzing beeps and whispering drones? That’s the sound of a TV show running at full pelt and knowing exactly where it’s heading. “They’re starting again” said back-from-the-grave Lee this week. That they are, praise be.
Episode two was this series’ real opener after that superb trip back to the seventies carefully and stylishly shaded in the outlines of Milner, Arby and Jessica. The purpose of that fifty-minute flashback was nowhere more clear than in this episode’s final scene. Imagine Milner asking a possum-playing Jessica “What have I done to you?” without understanding her history with Philip Carvel. Or for that matter, consider watching Milner’s meeting with Arby in which he assured her that his father was “not incredible, not...
Review
This review contains spoilers.
Hear that? Underneath all the eerie buzzing beeps and whispering drones? That’s the sound of a TV show running at full pelt and knowing exactly where it’s heading. “They’re starting again” said back-from-the-grave Lee this week. That they are, praise be.
Episode two was this series’ real opener after that superb trip back to the seventies carefully and stylishly shaded in the outlines of Milner, Arby and Jessica. The purpose of that fifty-minute flashback was nowhere more clear than in this episode’s final scene. Imagine Milner asking a possum-playing Jessica “What have I done to you?” without understanding her history with Philip Carvel. Or for that matter, consider watching Milner’s meeting with Arby in which he assured her that his father was “not incredible, not...
- 7/21/2014
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
Whatever your opinion of Utopia, Channel 4's striking conspiracy thriller was unquestionably quite unlike anything else on television.
It's fitting then that writer Dennis Kelly has taken a most unconventional approach to launching a second series - rather than picking up where he left off, the BAFTA-nominated scribe spends an entire hour exploring the mythology of the strange and vivid world he created last year.
Becky, Ian, Grant and Wilson are nowhere to be seen in a '70s-set opener that explores the origins of the Janus project and the younger days of Geraldine James' turncoat MI5 agent Milner, while also touching on the infancy of siblings Arby and Jessica Hyde.
Attending a secret convocation of the world's best and brightest, haunted genius Philip Carvel meets an apparent kindred spirit in Milner - Carvel's obsessed with the looming threat of overpopulation and Milner shares his concern that the...
It's fitting then that writer Dennis Kelly has taken a most unconventional approach to launching a second series - rather than picking up where he left off, the BAFTA-nominated scribe spends an entire hour exploring the mythology of the strange and vivid world he created last year.
Becky, Ian, Grant and Wilson are nowhere to be seen in a '70s-set opener that explores the origins of the Janus project and the younger days of Geraldine James' turncoat MI5 agent Milner, while also touching on the infancy of siblings Arby and Jessica Hyde.
Attending a secret convocation of the world's best and brightest, haunted genius Philip Carvel meets an apparent kindred spirit in Milner - Carvel's obsessed with the looming threat of overpopulation and Milner shares his concern that the...
- 7/14/2014
- Digital Spy
Utopia’s second series will satisfy and surprise fans in equal measure. Here are our spoiler-free thoughts on the first two episodes…
Review
Utopia’s stylish, surprising second series opener makes few concessions for newcomers; everything it does, it does for its fans. That’s your first nudge to catch up on series one before the second run starts on Channel Four in mid-July.
After some pleasing disorientation, the first episode places its audience securely back in the world of The Network and Utopia’s unwieldy central dilemma: what should humans do about impending bloodshed caused by overpopulation?
The Network’s answer to that question was the first series’ hidden conspiracy, and it’s one Utopia hasn’t finished wrestling with yet. Series two gets stuck in to the philosophical scrap immediately, staging ethical debates between characters asking the difficult questions.
Dotted amongst the speeches on moral philosophy, there are...
Review
Utopia’s stylish, surprising second series opener makes few concessions for newcomers; everything it does, it does for its fans. That’s your first nudge to catch up on series one before the second run starts on Channel Four in mid-July.
After some pleasing disorientation, the first episode places its audience securely back in the world of The Network and Utopia’s unwieldy central dilemma: what should humans do about impending bloodshed caused by overpopulation?
The Network’s answer to that question was the first series’ hidden conspiracy, and it’s one Utopia hasn’t finished wrestling with yet. Series two gets stuck in to the philosophical scrap immediately, staging ethical debates between characters asking the difficult questions.
Dotted amongst the speeches on moral philosophy, there are...
- 6/24/2014
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
News Louisa Mellor 16 Oct 2013 - 09:21
Rose Leslie, Ian McDiarmid and more have joined the cast of Dennis Kelly's Utopia for its second series...
Wonderful things are afoot. Not only is BBC Three's In the Flesh currently filming its second series, but Channel 4's Utopia has also set to work on the first block of episodes for series two.
Dennis Kelly's unsettling conspiracy drama is returning next year with six new fifty-minute episodes, including - in Kelly's own words - "a very odd" series opener, "which people are either going to really like or really say ‘what the fuck did you do that for?’ and I’ve got no idea what the reaction’s going to be".
Director Marc Munden, who was responsible for establishing Utopia's impressive style in series one, is back to head up the first three episodes of series two.
Also returning for...
Rose Leslie, Ian McDiarmid and more have joined the cast of Dennis Kelly's Utopia for its second series...
Wonderful things are afoot. Not only is BBC Three's In the Flesh currently filming its second series, but Channel 4's Utopia has also set to work on the first block of episodes for series two.
Dennis Kelly's unsettling conspiracy drama is returning next year with six new fifty-minute episodes, including - in Kelly's own words - "a very odd" series opener, "which people are either going to really like or really say ‘what the fuck did you do that for?’ and I’ve got no idea what the reaction’s going to be".
Director Marc Munden, who was responsible for establishing Utopia's impressive style in series one, is back to head up the first three episodes of series two.
Also returning for...
- 10/16/2013
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
Game of Thrones star Rose Leslie has joined the cast of Channel 4's Utopia for series two.
Leslie, Ian McDiarmid (Star Wars) and Tom Burke (The Hour) are among the new cast additions joining the conspiracy thriller in its second run.
Trystan Gravelle (Mr Selfridge) and Michael Maloney (The White Queen) will also join returning cast members Fiona O'Shaughnessy (Jessica Hyde), Alexandra Roach (Becky), Nathan Stewart-Jarrett (Ian), Adeel Akhtar (Wilson Wilson), Oliver Woollford (Grant), Paul Higgins (Dugdale), Neil Maskell (Arby) and Geraldine James (Milner).
Principal photography has now begun on the new six-part series, again written by Dennis Kelly and directed by Marc Munden (The Crimson Petal and the White).
Channel 4 first announced in March that Utopia would return for a second series, with the new episodes expected to air in 2014.
A Us remake of the show was also reported to be in development at HBO, with David Fincher...
Leslie, Ian McDiarmid (Star Wars) and Tom Burke (The Hour) are among the new cast additions joining the conspiracy thriller in its second run.
Trystan Gravelle (Mr Selfridge) and Michael Maloney (The White Queen) will also join returning cast members Fiona O'Shaughnessy (Jessica Hyde), Alexandra Roach (Becky), Nathan Stewart-Jarrett (Ian), Adeel Akhtar (Wilson Wilson), Oliver Woollford (Grant), Paul Higgins (Dugdale), Neil Maskell (Arby) and Geraldine James (Milner).
Principal photography has now begun on the new six-part series, again written by Dennis Kelly and directed by Marc Munden (The Crimson Petal and the White).
Channel 4 first announced in March that Utopia would return for a second series, with the new episodes expected to air in 2014.
A Us remake of the show was also reported to be in development at HBO, with David Fincher...
- 10/16/2013
- Digital Spy
Interview Louisa Mellor 12 Sep 2013 - 07:00
Utopia writer Dennis Kelly has shared a few details about the second series of his dystopian Channel 4 thriller Utopia…
Earlier this year, Channel Four thriller Utopia splashed acid yellow over a particularly grey January. Its attention-grabbing story of hit-men, deadly viruses, and global conspiracy shook TV audiences from their post-Christmas slumber and showed them a world where graphic novels hid deadly secrets and mad scientists made deals with the devil. With ‘Where Is Jessica Hyde?’, it also coined the creepiest catchphrase since those twins asked The Shining’s Danny to pop round for a play date.
Speaking to comedy and television writer Vicky Nangle as part of a Space event held last month in Brighton, Utopia writer Dennis Kelly spoke about writing the series, dealing with controversies, and what he has planned for the second run, due to begin filming this October…...
Utopia writer Dennis Kelly has shared a few details about the second series of his dystopian Channel 4 thriller Utopia…
Earlier this year, Channel Four thriller Utopia splashed acid yellow over a particularly grey January. Its attention-grabbing story of hit-men, deadly viruses, and global conspiracy shook TV audiences from their post-Christmas slumber and showed them a world where graphic novels hid deadly secrets and mad scientists made deals with the devil. With ‘Where Is Jessica Hyde?’, it also coined the creepiest catchphrase since those twins asked The Shining’s Danny to pop round for a play date.
Speaking to comedy and television writer Vicky Nangle as part of a Space event held last month in Brighton, Utopia writer Dennis Kelly spoke about writing the series, dealing with controversies, and what he has planned for the second run, due to begin filming this October…...
- 9/11/2013
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
A deliciously brutal and demented new series comes to DVD and Blu-ray this week. Though not for those of a nervous disposition, Utopia is a fine example of the twisted things that can be done on British television given sufficient talent and balls.
Graphic novel The Utopia Experiments is an esoteric tale. The picture it paints of a world where manmade diseases deliberately ravage populations is a little too blinkered and bleak for mainstream fanboy taste. The website dedicated to its mythology has a membership comprised of conspiracy theorists, skeptics and trolls. When five of the members agree to meet they expect a weird and wonderful evening. With the exception of shy newcomer Ian, they have all been chatting for some time and Bejan’s offer to share an original manuscript of the fabled sequel proves impossible to refuse.
Feisty Welsh bird Becky has other reasons for attending the meet-up.
Graphic novel The Utopia Experiments is an esoteric tale. The picture it paints of a world where manmade diseases deliberately ravage populations is a little too blinkered and bleak for mainstream fanboy taste. The website dedicated to its mythology has a membership comprised of conspiracy theorists, skeptics and trolls. When five of the members agree to meet they expect a weird and wonderful evening. With the exception of shy newcomer Ian, they have all been chatting for some time and Bejan’s offer to share an original manuscript of the fabled sequel proves impossible to refuse.
Feisty Welsh bird Becky has other reasons for attending the meet-up.
- 3/11/2013
- by Emily Breen
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Interview Louisa Mellor 8 Mar 2013 - 09:00
Days before the DVD and Blu Ray release of Utopia, we enjoyed a brief chat to the wonderful Adeel Akhtar, aka Wilson Wilson…
Warning: contains Utopia spoilers.
I’d take a bet, right now, that somewhere in the country is a new-ish puppy, guinea pig, or goldfish named Wilson Wilson. I’d take a similar bet that someone, somewhere is using Neil Maskell’s unvarying delivery of the line “Where is Jessica Hyde?” as their mobile ringtone. Finally, I wager that the next time a flu epidemic hits the headlines, Twitter will be standing room only thanks to gags about Mr Rabbit.
Such is the ardent affection that six-part Channel 4 drama Utopia provoked from fans earlier this year. The show splashed a can-full of acid yellow paint onto the greyness of a UK January, rousing us from the post-Christmas slumber with a nasty...
Days before the DVD and Blu Ray release of Utopia, we enjoyed a brief chat to the wonderful Adeel Akhtar, aka Wilson Wilson…
Warning: contains Utopia spoilers.
I’d take a bet, right now, that somewhere in the country is a new-ish puppy, guinea pig, or goldfish named Wilson Wilson. I’d take a similar bet that someone, somewhere is using Neil Maskell’s unvarying delivery of the line “Where is Jessica Hyde?” as their mobile ringtone. Finally, I wager that the next time a flu epidemic hits the headlines, Twitter will be standing room only thanks to gags about Mr Rabbit.
Such is the ardent affection that six-part Channel 4 drama Utopia provoked from fans earlier this year. The show splashed a can-full of acid yellow paint onto the greyness of a UK January, rousing us from the post-Christmas slumber with a nasty...
- 3/7/2013
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
Channel 4 has garnered somewhat of a reputation in certain years for developing quality, dark-horse dramas that have often been somewhat left-field and utterly inspired – from teen dramas like Skins, Misfits and My Mad Fat Diary to intense shows like Black Mirror, Complicit and a little show called Utopia.
Utopia follows the converging storylines of a group of five strangers who meet on an Internet forum about a mysterious graphic novel called The Utopia Experiments. These five strangers arrange to meet when the novel’s sequel is revealed to be circulating but find a secret group – the Network – are willing to kill indiscriminately in order to retrieve the manuscript, which is said to have predicted the worst disasters of the 20th century – and to access the secrets it holds. This is all connected to an ongoing pandemic of Russian flu, an assassin named Arby, a government agent named Milner and the ever-elusive Jessica Hyde,...
Utopia follows the converging storylines of a group of five strangers who meet on an Internet forum about a mysterious graphic novel called The Utopia Experiments. These five strangers arrange to meet when the novel’s sequel is revealed to be circulating but find a secret group – the Network – are willing to kill indiscriminately in order to retrieve the manuscript, which is said to have predicted the worst disasters of the 20th century – and to access the secrets it holds. This is all connected to an ongoing pandemic of Russian flu, an assassin named Arby, a government agent named Milner and the ever-elusive Jessica Hyde,...
- 2/21/2013
- by Chris Haigh
- Obsessed with Film
Feature Louisa Mellor 20 Feb 2013 - 07:00
Channel 4’s six-part thriller Utopia aired its finale last night. Here are some of the questions it left us with…
Warning: this feature contains spoilers for Utopia.
Resolving a conspiracy thriller to the satisfaction of your audience while leaving enough plot in play for a second series is an unenviable task. If the recommission doesn’t arrive, people will be left wanting. Comments sections can fill up with splutter and rage. Facebook posts can descend into under-punctuated babble. To channel our collective curiosity about the world of Dennis Kelly’s Utopia then, we’ve gathered up these remaining questions about series one to see what answers the hive-mind can provide. In the words of Milner, “We have so much to do”…
1. Are Arby and Wilson really dead?
Quiffed henchman Lee was the first of the Network’s soldiers to fall, which he did...
Channel 4’s six-part thriller Utopia aired its finale last night. Here are some of the questions it left us with…
Warning: this feature contains spoilers for Utopia.
Resolving a conspiracy thriller to the satisfaction of your audience while leaving enough plot in play for a second series is an unenviable task. If the recommission doesn’t arrive, people will be left wanting. Comments sections can fill up with splutter and rage. Facebook posts can descend into under-punctuated babble. To channel our collective curiosity about the world of Dennis Kelly’s Utopia then, we’ve gathered up these remaining questions about series one to see what answers the hive-mind can provide. In the words of Milner, “We have so much to do”…
1. Are Arby and Wilson really dead?
Quiffed henchman Lee was the first of the Network’s soldiers to fall, which he did...
- 2/19/2013
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
Review Louisa Mellor Feb 12, 2013
Utopia is nearing its finale, and the paranoid conspiracy plot has finally been revealed…
This review contains spoilers.
In a week where food contamination has been the topic on everyone’s slightly nauseated lips, Utopia is looking horribly prescient. Luckily for us, the unwelcome guest in our food chain is just a few rogue hooves and manes, not a protein that, when combined with its evil twin, provokes a permanent and hereditary genetic mutation that sterilises ninety per cent of mankind. Good luck spinning that one, Jeremy Hunt.
On the topic of evil twins, those harbouring suspicions that Arby and Jessica Hyde were peas in a decidedly weird pod were vindicated. We learnt that they share a dad - the infamous Mr Rabbit (the Pietre/Peter/Jessica Rabbit gag not lost on our commenters). We’ll have to wait until next week’s finale to discover...
Utopia is nearing its finale, and the paranoid conspiracy plot has finally been revealed…
This review contains spoilers.
In a week where food contamination has been the topic on everyone’s slightly nauseated lips, Utopia is looking horribly prescient. Luckily for us, the unwelcome guest in our food chain is just a few rogue hooves and manes, not a protein that, when combined with its evil twin, provokes a permanent and hereditary genetic mutation that sterilises ninety per cent of mankind. Good luck spinning that one, Jeremy Hunt.
On the topic of evil twins, those harbouring suspicions that Arby and Jessica Hyde were peas in a decidedly weird pod were vindicated. We learnt that they share a dad - the infamous Mr Rabbit (the Pietre/Peter/Jessica Rabbit gag not lost on our commenters). We’ll have to wait until next week’s finale to discover...
- 2/12/2013
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
Review Louisa Mellor Feb 5, 2013
Utopia’s spiralling plot expands as the gang begins to fall apart in this week’s episode. Here’s Louisa’s review…
This review contains spoilers.
Episode four led us a little farther down Utopia’s rabbit hole (now complete with its own Alice, who, like her literary namesake, finds herself in a world of terrifying unfamiliarity). The forum group’s newest arrival bracketed the episode, which opened on her screaming, and closed on a retreating shot of the man she’d disembowelled with a sawn-off shotgun.
Utopia, we should know by now, couldn’t make it through an entire fifty minutes without providing a trademark ‘talking point’ act of violence, hence the eleven-year-old girl blasting a hole you could push a loaf of bread through in a man’s stomach. That aside, there was remarkably little gore in the episode, which saw figurative, not literal...
Utopia’s spiralling plot expands as the gang begins to fall apart in this week’s episode. Here’s Louisa’s review…
This review contains spoilers.
Episode four led us a little farther down Utopia’s rabbit hole (now complete with its own Alice, who, like her literary namesake, finds herself in a world of terrifying unfamiliarity). The forum group’s newest arrival bracketed the episode, which opened on her screaming, and closed on a retreating shot of the man she’d disembowelled with a sawn-off shotgun.
Utopia, we should know by now, couldn’t make it through an entire fifty minutes without providing a trademark ‘talking point’ act of violence, hence the eleven-year-old girl blasting a hole you could push a loaf of bread through in a man’s stomach. That aside, there was remarkably little gore in the episode, which saw figurative, not literal...
- 2/5/2013
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
Review Louisa Mellor Jan 29, 2013
Be warned: Utopia’s tense third episode is its most unsettling yet. Here’s Louisa’s review…
This review contains spoilers.
The opening moments of this week’s Utopia were dreadful in the true sense of the word. They were dreadful to watch, and, once it was made clear what was happening, dreadful to anticipate.
Some will feel - perhaps justifiably - that the school shooting was a step too far into shock territory, but it’s not as if Utopia hadn’t prepared us. The tacit contract drawn up with viewers over the preceding episodes stated clearly that nobody, innocent or guilty, child or adult, was safe. After sitting through a terrified child’s execution, a man’s eye being gouged out, and a family being gassed to death in the name of entertainment, it’s problematic for the outrage to kick in only now.
Be warned: Utopia’s tense third episode is its most unsettling yet. Here’s Louisa’s review…
This review contains spoilers.
The opening moments of this week’s Utopia were dreadful in the true sense of the word. They were dreadful to watch, and, once it was made clear what was happening, dreadful to anticipate.
Some will feel - perhaps justifiably - that the school shooting was a step too far into shock territory, but it’s not as if Utopia hadn’t prepared us. The tacit contract drawn up with viewers over the preceding episodes stated clearly that nobody, innocent or guilty, child or adult, was safe. After sitting through a terrified child’s execution, a man’s eye being gouged out, and a family being gassed to death in the name of entertainment, it’s problematic for the outrage to kick in only now.
- 1/29/2013
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
Unable to ever return to their old lives, Ian and Becky are forced to face the terrifying reality of life on the run. Meanwhile, Dugdale is drawn deeper and deeper into a plot that threatens to have fatal consequences. Starring: Adeel Akhtar as Wilson Alexandra Roach as Becky James Fox as Assistant Michael Smiley as Detective Reynolds Nathan Stewart-Jarrett as Ian Oliver Woollford as Grant Paul Higgins as Michael Dugdale Paul Ready and Neil Maskell as Network henchmen Fiona O'Shaughnessy as Jessica Hyde Directed by Marc Munden LEEE777 - I'm hooked already, episode two shown tonight at 10Pm on Channel 4 and Channel 4 +1 at 11Pm (UK/Ireland).
- 1/22/2013
- ComicBookMovie.com
Review Louisa Mellor Jan 22, 2013
Episode two of conspiracy drama Utopia is every bit as good-looking, disturbing and intriguing as the first…
This review contains spoilers.
In 2012, author Neil Gaiman told a group of arts graduates that freelancers get jobs thanks to three attributes: a) their work is good, b) they deliver on time, and c) they’re easy to get along with. You don’t even need all three, he said, “people will tolerate how unpleasant you are if your work is good and you deliver it on time. They'll forgive the lateness of the work if it's good, and if they like you. And you don't have to be as good as the others if you're on time and it's always a pleasure to hear from you.”
TV drama has three such columns to tick. It succeeds magnificently when a) its premise and plot are engaging, b) its characters and cast are fantastic,...
Episode two of conspiracy drama Utopia is every bit as good-looking, disturbing and intriguing as the first…
This review contains spoilers.
In 2012, author Neil Gaiman told a group of arts graduates that freelancers get jobs thanks to three attributes: a) their work is good, b) they deliver on time, and c) they’re easy to get along with. You don’t even need all three, he said, “people will tolerate how unpleasant you are if your work is good and you deliver it on time. They'll forgive the lateness of the work if it's good, and if they like you. And you don't have to be as good as the others if you're on time and it's always a pleasure to hear from you.”
TV drama has three such columns to tick. It succeeds magnificently when a) its premise and plot are engaging, b) its characters and cast are fantastic,...
- 1/22/2013
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
If you saw lots of tweets about "spoons" and the question "Where is Jessica Hyde?" last night and didn't understand why, you clearly weren't watching Channel 4's new dark drama series Utopia. A mixture of conspiracies, comic book geekery and gruesomeness on a sick scale (it involves a spoon, I'll say no more), the show was thoroughly confusing, but utterly hypnotic. Like forum geeks and central protagonists Ian (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett), Wilson Wilson (Adeel Akhtar) and Becky (Alexandra Roach), it feels like we're caught up in a dark, unimaginable and impenetrable new world. Alongside scallywag youth Grant, the oddball characters are drawn together by a shared interest in The Utopia Experiments, a mysterious graphic novel. When comic collector Bejan claims to have found a rare manuscript of the second part (more)...
- 1/16/2013
- by By Alex Fletcher
- Digital Spy
Review Louisa Mellor Jan 15, 2013
From the makers of Hunted and Spooks comes stylish conspiracy thriller Utopia…
This review contains spoilers. Our spoiler-free version is here.
What a welcome distraction from the January mire is Utopia. A nasty conspiracy thriller with a glint of humour and a stomach for violence, it’s just the tonic for swilling out the aftertaste of Christmas Specials and TV talent contests.
Episode one performs the required set-up neatly, taking all of Utopia’s pieces out of the box and placing them on the board in preparation for the five weeks to come.
If - and this isn't a given in the bizarre, paranoid world of Utopia - everyone is as they first appear, then the characters are familiar types: a pair of stylised hitmen, a crackpot conspiracy theorist web hacker, a Shane Meadows-y estate kid… It's not the characters, but the combination of stylised direction,...
From the makers of Hunted and Spooks comes stylish conspiracy thriller Utopia…
This review contains spoilers. Our spoiler-free version is here.
What a welcome distraction from the January mire is Utopia. A nasty conspiracy thriller with a glint of humour and a stomach for violence, it’s just the tonic for swilling out the aftertaste of Christmas Specials and TV talent contests.
Episode one performs the required set-up neatly, taking all of Utopia’s pieces out of the box and placing them on the board in preparation for the five weeks to come.
If - and this isn't a given in the bizarre, paranoid world of Utopia - everyone is as they first appear, then the characters are familiar types: a pair of stylised hitmen, a crackpot conspiracy theorist web hacker, a Shane Meadows-y estate kid… It's not the characters, but the combination of stylised direction,...
- 1/15/2013
- by louisamellor
- Den of Geek
Two top young British actors, Misfits' star Nathan Stewart-Jarrett and fast-rising Welsh actress Alexandra Roach headline the cast in Utopia, a brand new six-part drama series for Channel 4 which is currently filming in Liverpool. They star alongside Paul Higgins, Neil Maskell, James Fox and Geraldine James in the conspiracy drama.
Nathan (now represented by Curtis Brown) is a Central drama school graduate and plays Curtis in E4's BAFTA-winning drama Misfits; he is the sole-surviving original cast member to appear in the up-coming 4th series. He will play Ian in Utopia, one of a group of previously unconnected people who end up in possession of a manuscript of cult graphic novel Utopia which knocks their lives out of kilter by explosive events.
Alexandra Roach (represented by Troika), who plays Becky in Utopia, was one of Screen International Stars of Tomorrow from 2011. She is a graduate of Rada drama...
Nathan (now represented by Curtis Brown) is a Central drama school graduate and plays Curtis in E4's BAFTA-winning drama Misfits; he is the sole-surviving original cast member to appear in the up-coming 4th series. He will play Ian in Utopia, one of a group of previously unconnected people who end up in possession of a manuscript of cult graphic novel Utopia which knocks their lives out of kilter by explosive events.
Alexandra Roach (represented by Troika), who plays Becky in Utopia, was one of Screen International Stars of Tomorrow from 2011. She is a graduate of Rada drama...
- 8/15/2012
- by noreply@blogger.com (ScreenTerrier)
- ScreenTerrier
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