Samantha Morton leads diamond heist drama

Sky Atlantic, CANAL+, Warp Films, and Haut et Court TV are to co-produce a new six-part a tri-lingual (English, French, Serbian) drama, The Last Panthers, from Skins writer Jack Thorne.

Led by BAFTA-winning actress, Samantha Morton, the series opens with a daring diamond heist before quickly delving into the dark heart of Europe where a shadowy alliance of gangsters and ‘banksters’ now rules. Morton plays Naomi, a British loss adjustor charged with recovering the stolen diamonds whatever the cost. Three-time BAFTA Award winner and Golden Globe winner John Hurt portrays Tom, her nefarious boss.

Also in pursuit is a French-Algerian policeman Khalil, played by double Cesar award winner Tahar Rahim, one of France’s most talented and versatile actors.

Fabrice De La Patellière, Director of French Drama and co-productions for CANAL+ said: “The Last Panthers tells the tale of the world-famous Pink Panthers, a network of jewel thieves who still capture the imagination today. The series follows the quest to track some of these characters down, plunging the audience into a Europe gripped by new forms of crime and featuring the interplay between traffickers, European officials, war criminals and City bankers. We are delighted to be supporting this ambitious international series for Création Originale CANAL+, alongside our partners Sky Atlantic, Haut et Court TV and Warp Films”

Peter Carlton, Warp Films, and Caroline Benjo, Haut et Court TV, commented: “What Sky Atlantic and CANAL+ have given us is the chance to make a truly contemporary, world class series that is smart and multi layered. The Last Panthers is a big, bold operatic series that tells a story about Europe today, about old alliances and terrifying freedoms, through the lives of our characters who move within it. Our shared histories and moral choices impact on every one of us in ways we cannot foresee.”

The Last Panthers originated as an idea from celebrated French journalist Jerome Pierrat. The series will be directed by Johan Renck (Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead).

The Last Panthers begins filming on 27th October with four key shooting locations in London, Marseille, Belgrade and Montenegro for transmission on Sky Atlantic in the UK, Ireland and Germany, and on CANAL+ in France, in 2015.