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Baby Reindeer creator Richard Gadd to write and star in new BBC drama alongside Jamie Bell

The Emmy winner will also executive produce the forthcoming series

Lydia Spencer-Elliott
Monday 25 November 2024 11:01 EST
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Richard Gadd is set to star in a new six part BBC drama titled Half Man alongside Jamie Bell.

The Emmy winner, 34, who has previously quashed rumours of a second series of his hit Netflix show Baby Reindeer, is the creator, writer and executive producer of the series, formerly known as Lions.

Lions was commissioned by the BBC back in February – before the release of Baby Reindeer in April, which catapulted Gadd to fame.

Following the show’s success, HBO joined the project as co-producers and Gadd was confirmed to star in the programme as well as creating, writing, and executive producing.

In the series, now renamed Half Man, Gadd and Bell (All of Us Strangers, Rocket Man) will play estranged brothers Ruben and Niall with filming set to take place in Scotland next year.

The official synopsis reads: “When Niall’s estranged ‘brother’ Ruben shows up at his wedding, it leads to an explosion of violence that catapults us back through their lives.

Spanning almost forty years from the 1980s to the present day, Half Man will cover the highs and lows of the brothers’ relationship from their meeting as teenagers to their falling out as adults.

Richard Gadd in ‘Baby Reindeer’
Richard Gadd in ‘Baby Reindeer’ (Ed Miller/Netflix)

Half Man will be directed by Alexandra Brodski (Rivals) and Eshref Reybrouck (Ferry: The Series). Meanwhile, Wendy Griffin (Limbo) will produce.

The synopsis continues: “It will capture the wild energy of a changing city — a changing world, even — and try to get to the bottom of the difficult question… What does it mean to be a man?”

Back in September, Gadd said there would never be a second season of Baby Reindeer despite the series’ resounding success.

Speaking to IndieWire at the Emmys, in response to being asked whether he wants to make the show an anthology, Gadd said: “I don’t think so.”

Gadd at the 2024 Emmy Awards
Gadd at the 2024 Emmy Awards (Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)

He added: “I was so proud of that ending – I fought real hard for that ending. I really wanted Baby Reindeer to end in the way that it did. I really fought for that and I think it couldn’t have ended better.

“It couldn’t have ended better, and there’s a full circularity to season one which I love, and so I think some things are best left.

“There’s so much love for it, I just think leaving it there on the platform as a kind of artistic gem for people to enjoy and discover, I think that’s absolutely fine by me.”

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