Netflix’s upcoming Scottish crime drama from the makers of The Queens Gambit finds its cast

(Image credit: IMDb)

From the creator of one of the most-watched shows on the streamer The Queens Gambit, Netflix’s upcoming crime drama Department Q finds its cast.

As reported by Deadline, the upcoming series from showrunner Scott Frank, has cast A Discovery of Witches’ Matthew Goode, Chloe Pirrie, Alexej Manvelov, Call the Midwife’s Leah Byrne, and Trainspotting’s Kelly Macdonald.

The Scottish-based drama, adapted from Danish author Jussi Adler-Olsen’s hugely popular crime novels, follows DCI Carl Morck (Goode), a detective who, after recovering from a violent incident, returns to work to find he is now in charge of setting up cold case unit Department Q. Despite his disinterest at first, Morck soon finds himself wrapped up in his new department which quickly becomes a magnet for a crew of unorthodox misfits.

Alongside Goode, Macdonald takes the role of police therapist Dr. Rachel Irving, whilst Pirrie, who also starred in The Queen’s Gambit, plays ruthless prosecutor Merrit Lingard. Manvelov plays a refugee turned police officer who becomes part of the new department, and Byrne takes the role of a star police cadet looking for a chance to prove herself. Filming is now underway in Edinburgh, where the series is also set.

Frank, who has co-written and will direct the first two episodes of Department Q, found success with his 2020 Netflix show The Queen’s Gambit, a limited series starring Anya Taylor Joy on a quest to become the greatest chess player in the world. The series stands at number five on the streamer’s list of most-watched series with 112,800,000 views, right behind Bridgerton, Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, Stranger Things 4, and Wednesday which takes the lead with a staggering 252,100,000 views.

Department Q does not yet have a release date but will be available to stream on Netflix as soon as it drops. For more, check out our list of the best Netflix shows, or keep up to date with upcoming TV shows heading your way in 2024.

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