Sheridan Smith will play the leading role in a new TV adaptation of the bestselling Lucy Clarke thriller The Castaways.
The No Return actress will star alongside Showtrial's Céline Buckens in the gripping drama about a dream holiday that goes horribly wrong.
Filming on the project will commence in both Greece and Fiji soon, and a release date on Paramount Plus will be announced in due course.
Speaking about the news, Sheridan said: "I’m so excited to be working with Céline Buckens and to be part of this amazing production bringing Lucy Clarke’s best-selling novel to life. And, as I’m currently playing Shirley Valentine in London’s West End, it’s ironic that I finally get to go Greece!"
While Céline added: "I’m really thrilled to bring Erin to life - she’s a firecracker and the scripts bring layers and darkness to such an arresting premise. I hope audiences will be as hooked watching it as I was reading it."
In The Castaways, sisters Lori (Sheridan) and Erin (Celine) think they are headed to paradise in Fiji. But the duo have a huge fight and Erin decides not to get on the plane, leaving Lori to go on her own. However, it never arrives at its destination.
Following the ordeal, a heartbroken Erin is desperate to find out what happened to her sister months on, with no wreckage or survivors ever found.
However, Erin soon learns that Lori’s credit card has been used on a remote Fijian island and she boards a plane to track down the truth about what really happened on that fateful day.
Author Lucy said of the project: “I'm so delighted that The Castaways is being made for Paramount Plus. It promises to be an incredible adaptation; the scriptwriting is electric, and Sheridan and Céline are perfectly cast as Lori and Erin."
The new series is produced by Clapperboard Studios and BlackBox Multimedia. Ben Harris serves as executive producer on the series as well as serving as lead writer. It will be directed by Andy and Rhyan Tohill, known for their work on Dalgliesh.
