Jekyll & Hyde is a 2015 ITV British ten-part television series written by executive producer Charlie Higson, very loosely inspired by The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson.
The series stars Tom Bateman (Da Vinci’s Demons), Richard E. Grant (Doctor Who) and Natalie Gumede (Doctor Who). Tom Bateman takes the lead role as Robert Jekyll, Richard E Grant plays Bulstrode who heads the secret government department MI0 known as ‘The Invisible Men’ and Natalie Gumede takes the part of Bella who forms part of a love triangle with Robert.
Press release:
‘Set in 1930’s London at a time of Hollywood glamour, aerodynamic cars and monster movies, the drama pays homage to the Stevenson novel, and focuses on the young, attractive, troubled hero, Robert Jekyll, the grandson of the original doctor.
At the heart of the drama is Robert Jekyll’s quest to discover his real identity, his true family history and the nature of his ‘curse’. Jekyll transforms into superhero Hyde in moments of extreme anger, stress and when his or the lives of others are threatened.
In the opening episode Jekyll is a newly qualified doctor living with his foster parents in Ceylon. He knows nothing of his family history or his inherited condition, which his foster father, Dr Vishal Najaran, is controlling with medication.
The drama follows his path to discovery, which coincides with the transformative powers of his condition growing stronger and more disruptive. His journey will take him into a dark and unforgiving place, as his alter ego seems capable of anything. At the same time there are shadowy forces trying to find Jekyll and the source of his powers.’
Scriptwriter Charlie Higson commented: “It’s a superhero Jekyll & Hyde – about Dr Jekyll’s grandson, who doesn’t know anything about who he is or why he’s like he is.
He added: “One of our models for making it was Indiana Jones,” he revealed. “You’ve got action, you’ve got adventure, you’ve got humour… But there’s also quite a lot of horror in those films, and you can use the humour to stop the horror from getting too heavy – particularly bearing in mind the sort of audience we’re looking for with the show.”
Source: Digital Spy
