ITV has commissioned a new espionage thriller, Betrayal, starring Vigil’s Shaun Evans.
From award-winning playwright and screenwriter, David Eldridge, it’s set in Manchester and London as John Hughes (Evans) stars as a spy, trying to avert a “serious and dark” threat to national security.
On a hunch he meets Ehsan, a British Iranian man with links to the Manchester gangland who claims he has intelligence about a plot on UK soil.
Before he can share intel, Ehsan is executed by a lone gunman, and Hughes impulsively kills the assassin in retaliation. This triggers a chain of events which puts him in direct collision with his superiors who are furious that he appears to have got involved in a Manchester gang turf war.
“I’m delighted to be returning to ITV with this exceptionally well written and timely project,” said Evans.
“It’s a great privilege to reunite with David Eldridge and bring to life his insightful take on the world of espionage. And it is of course a joy to be collaborating once again with the first-rate team at Mammoth Screen. I look forward to sharing it with ITV audiences soon.”
Set in London and Manchester, Betrayal commences filming in early 2025.
It’s produced by ITV Studios’ Mammoth Screen in association with Navarino Pictures, the show is executive produced by Mammoth’s founder and Chief Creative Officer Damien Timmer alongside Mammoth’s Tom Leggett, David Eldridge and Shaun Evans.
Mammoth’s Creative Director Rebecca Keane has overseen the development of the series.
“I’m thrilled be working with ITV and Mammoth Screen on Betrayal, an espionage drama rooted as much in the trials and betrayals of family life as in the bloody, dangerous business of spying,” added Eldridge.
“It’s also a pleasure to be collaborating again with Shaun Evans for whom I have created the show’s leading role – out of favour intelligence officer John Hughes.”
Betrayal has been commissioned for ITV and ITVX by Head of Drama Polly Hill and Drama Commissioner Huw Kennair-Jones, who will oversee production on behalf of the broadcaster.
