I’m always scandalised when someone allows their kid to play the creepy weirdo on TV. I imagine the character prep they do at home. When you go to work today, sweetie, I want you to act like you’ve seen a ghost who’s told you not to tell anyone. I want you to stare unblinkingly into the sky like it’s whispering secrets. Today, I want you to wee on a bully’s rucksack when the director tells you to, but at real school, handle your problems with words. Do you tell your son he’s playing the freak? Do you tell him that if he’s deranged enough, adults will dress as him for Halloween for decades to come?
The haunting thriller The Devil’s Hour (Amazon Prime Video) stars just such a child actor (Benjamin Chivers), though it’s too soon to say if his Isaac will end up the series villain or its oracle. The story is told across multiple timelines and jumps between characters that seem destined to collide, but are so far bridged only by a coincidence. Nikesh Patel, who you may recognise as the charming cad from Hulu’s charmless TV adaptation of Four Weddings and a Funeral, plays Ravi Dhillon – a 35-year-old DI who still gets “wobbly” at the sight of blood. An ever-reliable Jessica Raine is Lucy Chambers, Isaac’s stressed-out mum. They both separately mention fireworks for no reason at all. WHAT CAN IT MEAN?
