Branagh Is Swedish Cop Wallander
BBC Hopes to Emulate Classics Like Prime Suspect and Morse
Sep 15, 2008
With this £6 million series of three crime dramas, BBC1 is hoping to create a classic cop show to rival ITV hits such as Prime Suspect, Inspector Morse and Cracker.
On the face of it, Wallander has the pedigree to become a fresh, distinctive addition to the pantheon of small-screen police heroes.
Blockbuster Novels and Stunning Scenery
This autumn's opening three 90-minute stories - One Step Behind, Firewall and Sidetracked - are based on the worldwide bestsellers of Swedish novelist Henning Mankell. They are shot by an Anglo-Swedish team on stunning locations around Ystad in southern Sweden.
And they have Branagh, best known for his big-screen Shakespearean adaptations, but also in private a big fan of the Wallander novels. He met Mankell, who was apparently keen that Branagh play the lead, and Branagh will also be an executive-producer of the films.
In trailers the actor looks suitably grizzled and tousled to be a good photofit for the tough but emotionally uptight inspector.
Sometimes Funny... Often Very Dark
'He engages as an ordinary person in an extraordinary job,' says Branagh, aged 47. 'He has a problem with his father, he has a problem with his daughter, he has a problem in his relationships with women. But his version of experiencing them and dealing with them is interesting and clunky and bumpy, sometimes funny and certainly often very dark.'
The first three stories include one of Mankell's best, Sidetracked, winner of the Crime Writers' Association Gold Dagger. It starts with a young woman burning herself to death in front of Wallander and develops into a terrifying hunt for a serial killer.
Extremely Ambitious Project
Anne Mensah, the Head of Drama for BBC Scotland who commissioned the series, says: 'Wallander is an extremely ambitious project - after all we're looking to create a classic new detective character for British television.
'The Henning Mankell novels are well loved around the world and have a depth and complexity which will make for exciting and compulsive viewing. We couldn't hope for a stronger team behind the project, nor could we hope for a more perfect leading man than Kenneth Branagh.'
Playing Wallander's novice partner, Martinsson, is rising star Tom Hiddleston. Jeany Spark is Linda Wallander, Kurt's daughter.
Prize-Winning Debut
Wallander first appeared in the 1991 novel Faceless Killers, which won the Academy of Swedish Crime Writers' Prize. Ten Wallander novels followed and Mankell's books have been published in 35 languages, selling 20 million copies.
One difference between Branagh's Wallander and the original - the detective's love of opera has apparently been dropped. Too close to Morse and his devotion to Wagner, obviously.
In addition to making Wallander for TV, Branagh recently directed Jude Law and Michael Caine in Sleuth, and will soon be seen in Tom Cruise's star-laden war movie Valkyrie.
BBC1's schedules have not been finalised yet, but according to Branagh's website, Wallander will go out on Sunday 23 November. If it is a hit, there are plans to film another three novels next year.
- Wallander won the 2009 Bafta for Best Drama Series, beating Doctor Who, Shameless and Spooks
