A new teaser for FX and BBC’s gritty new period drama Taboo has given us Tom Hardy at his bad-ass best.
Sporting some rather fetching tribal tattoos and swearing to do “very foolish things”, Hardy’s role as vengeful James Delaney looks just as dark as we promised it’d be.
Taboo follows Delaney, a traveller long thought dead who returns to 1814 London after ten years in Africa, burdened with his father’s mysterious legacy.
His obscure family history comes to the fore when he clashes with the all-powerful East India Company over control of his family’s shipping business.
Hardy, along with his father Chips, came up with the screenplay and original idea behind Taboo, which is to be produced by Ridley Scott and Peaky Blinders and Locke’s Steven Knight.
This Is England’s Stephen Graham recently jumped on board the new series, calling it the “antidote” to Downton Abbey.
“There’s no lords or people making tea, it’s gritty and heavy. It’s a fantastic piece and a pleasure to be a part of it,” he told Digital Spy. “It was really good and I’m really pleased with what I’ve seen.”
Graham is playing the role of an Artful Dodger type, who “can kill a man… if the money’s right”. Sounds ominous.
The eight-episode Taboo boasts an all-star cast, also including Jonathan Pryce, Oona Chaplin, David Hayman, Jessie Buckley, Ashley Walters and Jefferson Hall.
Although no official release date has been confirmed, Taboo is expected to premiere on both sides of the Atlantic some time soon.
