Deadline: Sharon D Clarke To Star In Detective Drama Series ‘Ellis’ For Acorn TV & UK’s Channel 5

Story from Deadline:

Acorn TV, the Anglophilic streaming service, has partnered with Paramount’s British broadcaster Channel 5 on a new three-part detective drama series starring Sharon D Clarke.

The two networks have ordered Ellis, a feature-length series that stars Clarke as the eponymous detective.

Clarke, who is best known for her role on British hospital drama Holby City, is a three-time Olivier Award winner and a 2022 Tony Award nominee and has starred in series including BBC’s Showtrial and appeared in Rocketman.

The series follows DCI Ellis, a tenacious cop who is parachuted into failing investigations. Each two-hour episode sees Ellis – accompanied by her right-hand man DS Harper, played by Andrew Gower (Outlander) – arrive at a different police station, where she will have to win over the local detectives and immerse herself in the cases she has come to solve. As a black female cop, Ellis is used to being dismissed and overlooked, but she is a first-class murder detective, with a determination for justice and a deep well of compassion for those who need it.

The series is produced by All3Media’s Company Pictures in association with Northern Ireland Screen. It is exec produced by Catherine Mackin, Bea Tammer, Michele Buck and Lucy Raffety. Chris Martin is producer and writers are Paul Logue and Sian Ejiwunmi-Le Berre. All3Media International will distribute.

Ellis is set to begin filming this spring in Northern Ireland and will air on Acorn TV and Channel 5 later this year.

Catherine Mackin, Managing Director, Acorn Media Enterprises, said, “Acorn TV is known for compelling, intriguing and invigorating detective dramas, and Ellis delivers on every note. We are elated to have found our ideal DCI in the incomparable Sharon D. Clarke, and we are excited to work with both Channel 5 and Company Pictures again.”

Paramount UK’s Deputy Chief Content Officer Sebastian Cardwell added, “Ellis is a brilliant addition to our scripted slate, and we are thrilled to be working with the teams at Acorn TV and Company Pictures on this gripping new series. I can’t wait to see the incredible Sharon D. Clarke bring DCI Ellis to life.”

Clarke is repped by Scott Marshall in the UK and Entertainment 360.