‘The Day of the Jackal’ Is the Biggest New Series to Ever Launch on Sky (Exclusive)

by

As a devoted fan of gripping and engaging television series, I must say that 2024 has been an exceptional year, particularly with Sky’s original content. The Day of the Jackal, starring Eddie Redmayne and Lashana Lynch, has left me utterly captivated and is now officially my favorite new series to ever launch on Sky. With its riveting plotline and stellar performances, it has set a new benchmark for Sky Originals.

As a hardcore gamer, I can confidently say that I’ve never been more thrilled about a new series debut than I am about “The Day of the Jackal” on Sky. According to an exclusive report by The Hollywood Reporter, it’s set to be the biggest series launch they’ve ever seen!

After 26 days of broadcasting, the first episode of the thriller series featuring Eddie Redmayne and Lashana Lynch attracted a U.K. audience of 4.5 million viewers, making it the most successful launch for any Sky Original series to date, whether scripted or unscripted. A team from Sky, consisting of Phil Edgar-Jones (executive director of original unscripted), Jamie Morris (executive director of content strategy & performance), and Meghan Lyvers (executive director of original scripted, U.K. and Ireland) will provide further insights on these impressive figures at Content London on Wednesday.

Last month, the streamer owned by NBCUniversal announced that it will produce another season of the show The Day of the Jackal. In its debut weekend on Peacock, the series was among the top five original streaming shows in the U.S., according to initial Nielsen data.

The TV show is inspired by a novel published in 1971 named after Frederick Forsyth, which was earlier transformed into a movie in 1973. The series revolves around a thrilling chase between a cunning assassin (Redmayne) and an MI6 officer (Lynch), who’s relentless in his pursuit. With only two episodes remaining, the climax is scheduled for release on December 12.

Barb claims that seven out of the top 10 shows aired on Sky in this year were original productions by Sky. In 2024, Sky Original dramas reached their peak performance in the history of the broadcaster with hits like “The Tattooist of Auschwitz,” “Sweetpea,” and “The Day of the Jackal” drawing audiences exceeding two million viewers each.

2021 was a year filled with significant milestones for Sky Originals. Among these accomplishments were record-breaking successes such as our highest-rated premium documentary series to date, “The Body Next Door”, boasting impressive viewership numbers; the largest theatrical release we’ve ever had, “Lee”; the best comedy launch in three years with “Mr Bigstuff”; Sky Nature attracting its largest audience in two years for “Secret World of Sound with David Attenborough”; and setting a new record for the biggest overnight audience for a Sky Arts show, with season 11 of “Portrait Artist of the Year”.

2024 has been an exceptional year for Sky’s original shows across all categories, according to Cécile Frot-Coutaz, CEO of Sky Studios and Chief Content Officer at Sky. She stated that we have provided an unparalleled series of programs, reflecting our new emphasis on developing top-tier content that we can genuinely take pride in. This year stands out as our most successful for Sky Original dramas to date, which is especially rewarding given the abundance of entertainment options available today. It’s a pleasure to offer Sky customers such engaging and high-quality programming, and I am eager to reveal what’s next on our agenda.

Below is the current list of Sky’s most popular shows in 2024, based on Barb’s 28-day average ratings, as compiled at the time of writing.

  1. The Day of the Jackal (Sky)
  2. House of the Dragon S2 (HBO)
  3. True Detective S4 (HBO)
  4. Sweetpea (Sky)
  5. The Tattooist of Auschwitz (Sky)
  6. The Body Next Door (Sky)
  7. Rob & Romesh vs F1 (Sky)
  8. Rob & Romesh vs… S7 (Sky)
  9. Brassic S6 (Sky)
  10. The Penguin (HBO)

Read More

2024-12-04 03:25