Josh Hartnett is set to take the lead in upcoming mini-series The Fear Index for Comcast’s European pay TV giant Sky.
The four-part thriller, based on the bestselling novel by Robert Harris (Pompeii, Enigma), is being adapted by Paul Andrew Williams and Caroline Bartleet, and directed by David Caffrey (The Alienist, Peaky Blinders), and will also star Leila Farzad (I Hate Suzie, Innocent), Arsher Ali (The Ritual, Informer) and Grégory Montel (Call My Agent).
Left Bank Pictures, the Sony-owned production company best known for Netflix’s The Crown, is producing in association with Sky Studios.
The Fear Index will see Hartnett play a computer scientist and genius set to make billions from an AI-driven system that exploits fear in the financial markets. But his plans — and life — are thrown into disarray following a vicious attack that forces him to question everything he sees and believe he’s being framed.
The series was commissioned by Zai Bennett, managing director of content for Sky U.K. and Ireland, and Paul Gilbert, executive producer, Sky Studios. Executive producers are Andy Harries and Sharon Hughff for Left Bank Pictures, and Gilbert for Sky Studios.
The Fear Index, which will begin filming this month in Hungary and will air on Sky Atlantic and streaming service Now later this year, is produced by Nuala O’Leary. International sales are being handled by NBCUniversal Global Distribution on behalf of Sky Studios.
